er. But you must lie still today. Yes, really--you will
find you are weak when you try to stand."

Madame watched Alvina's thin face with sullen eyes.

"You are an Englishwoman, severe and materialist," she said.

Alvina started and looked round at her with wide blue eyes.

"Why?" she said. There was a wan, pathetic look about her, a sort of
heroism which Madame detested, but which now she found touching.

"Come!" said Madame, stretching out her plump jewelled hand. "Come,
I am an ungrateful woman. Come, they are not good for you, the
people, I see it. Come to me."

Alvina went slowly to Madame, and took the outstretched hand. Madame
kissed her hand, then drew her down and kissed her on either cheek,
gravely, as the young men had kissed each other.

"You have been good to Kishwegin, and Kishwegin has a heart that
remembers. There, Miss Houghton, I shall do what you tell me.
Kishwegin obeys you." And Madame patted Alvina's hand and nodded her
head sagely.

"Shall I take your temperature?" said Alvina.

"Yes, my dear, you shall. You shall bid me, and I shall obey."

So Madame lay back on her pillow, submissively pursing the
thermometer between her lips and watching Alvina with black eyes.

"It's all right," said Alvina, as she looked at the thermometer.
"Normal."

"Normal!" re-echoed Madame's rather guttural voice. "Good! Well,
then when shall I dance?"

Alvina turned and looked at her.

"I think, truly," said Alvina, "it shouldn't be before Thursday or
Friday."

"Thursday!" repeated Madame. "You say Thursday?" There was a note of
strong rebellion in her voice.

"You'll be so weak. You've only just escaped pleurisy. I can only
say what I truly think, can't I?"

"Ah, you Englishwomen," said Madame, watching with black eyes. "I
think you like to have your own way. In all things, to have your own
way. And over all people. You are so good, to have your own way.
Yes, you good Englishwomen. Thursday. Very well, it shall be
Thursday. Till Thursday, then, Kishwegin does not exist."

And she subsided, already rather weak, upon her pillow again. When
she had taken her tea and was washed and her room was tidied, she
summoned the young men. Alvina had warned Max that she wanted
Madame to be kept as quiet as possible this day.

As soon as the first of the four appeared, in his shirt-sleeves and
his slippers, in the doorway, Madame said:

"Ah, there you are, my young men! Come in! Come in! It is not
Kishwegin