he answered. "I blame
myself entirely."

"So long as we see our own mistakes," said the Professor, "there is
hope for us all. You go straight home, young man, and tell her you've
changed your mind. Tell her you don't want her with brains. Tell her
you like her best without. You get that into her head before anything
else happens."

"I've tried to," said Marigold. "She says it's too late. That the
light has come to her and she can't help it."

It was the Professor's turn to stare. He had not heard anything of
Sunday's transactions. He had been hoping against hope that the
Arlington affair would remain a locked secret between himself and the
twins, and had done his best to think about everything else.

"She's joined the Fabian Society," continued Marigold gloomily.
"They've put her in the nursery. And the W.S.P.U. If it gets about
before the next election I'll have to look out for another
constituency--that's all."

"How did you hear about her?" asked the Professor.

"I didn't hear about her," answered Marigold. "If I had I mightn't
have gone up to town. You think it right," he added, "to--to encourage
such people?"

"Who's encouraging her?" demanded the professor. "If fools didn't go
about thinking they could improve every other fool but themselves, this
sort of thing wouldn't happen. Arlington had an amiable,
sweet-tempered wife, and instead of thanking God and keeping quiet
about it, he worries her out of her life because she is not the
managing woman. Well, now he's got the managing woman. I met him on
Wednesday with a bump on his forehead as big as an egg. Says he fell
over the mat. It can't be done. You can't have a person changed just
as far as you want them changed and there stop. You let 'em alone or
you change them altogether, and then they don't know themselves what
they're going to turn out. A sensible man in your position would have
been only too thankful for a wife who didn't poke her nose into his
affairs, and with whom he could get away from his confounded politics.
You've been hinting to her about once a month, I expect, what a tragedy
it was that you hadn't married a woman with brains. Well, now she's
found her brains and is using them. Why shouldn't she belong to the
Fabian Society and the W.S.P.U? Shows independence of character. Best
thing for you to do is to join them yourself. Then you'll be able to
work together."

"I'm sorry," said Marigold rising. "I didn't kno