Page:The Other House (London, William Heinemann, 1896), Volume 1.djvu/81

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THE OTHER HOUSE
67

are, and I'm always indebted to you." Then as he opened the door: "Is there anything else?"

"Anything else?"

"I mean that you advise."

She thought a moment. "Nothing but that—for you to seem to enter thoroughly into her idea, to show her you understand it as she understands it herself."

Tony looked vague. "As she does?"

"Why, for the lifetime of your daughter." As he appeared still not fully to apprehend, she risked: "If you should lose Effie the reason would fail."

Tony, at this, jerked back his head with a flush. "My dear Rose, you don't imagine that it's as a needed vow———"

"That you would give it?" she broke in. "Certainly I don't, any more than I suppose the degree of your fidelity to be the ground on which we're talking. But the thing is to convince Julia, and I said that only because she'll be more convinced if you strike her as really looking at what you subscribe to."

Tony gave his nervous laugh. "Don't you know