and swearing to the truth that no
gesture, not even a word of love had passed between them seemed to him
more degrading than to take the tacit stigma of being an adulterer--more
truly degrading, considering the feeling in his heart, and just as bad
and painful for his children. The thought of explaining away, if he
could, before a judge and twelve average Englishmen, their meetings in
Paris, and the walks in Richmond Park, horrified him. The brutality and
hypocritical censoriousness of the whole process; the probability that
they would not be believed--the mere vision of her, whom he looked on as
the embodiment of Nature and of Beauty, standing there before all those
suspicious, gloating eyes was hideous to him. No, no! To defend a suit
only made a London holiday, and sold the newspapers. A thousand times
better accept what Soames and the gods had sent!

'Besides,' he thought honestly, 'who knows whether, even for my boy's
sake, I could have stood this state of things much longer? Anyway, her
neck will be out of chancery at last!' Thus absorbed, he was hardly
conscious of the heavy heat. The sky had become overcast, purplish with
little streaks of white. A heavy heat-drop plashed a little star pattern
in the dust of the road as he entered the Park. 'Phew!' he thought,
'thunder! I hope she's not come to meet me; there's a ducking up there!'
But at that very minute he saw Irene coming towards the Gate. 'We must
scuttle back to Robin Hill,' he thought.

***************************

The storm had passed over the Poultry at four o'clock, bringing welcome
distraction to the clerks in every office. Soames was drinking a cup of
tea when a note was brought in to him:

"DEAR SIR,

"Forsyte v. Forsyte and Forsyte

"In accordance with your instructions, we beg to inform you that we
personally served the respondent and co-respondent in this suit to-day,
at Richmond, and Robin Hill, respectively.
"Faithfully yours,
"LINKMAN AND LAVER."

For some minutes Soames stared at that note. Ever since he had given
those instructions he had been tempted to annul them. It was so
scandalous, such a general disgrace! The evidence, too, what he had
heard of it, had never seemed to him conclusive; somehow, he believed
less and less that those two had gone all lengths. But this, of course,
would drive them to it; and he suffered from the thought. That fellow to
have her love, where he had failed! Was it t