low bow). Madam, I thank you.

DINAH (curtseying). Your servant, Mr. Strange.

OLIVIA (from outside). Dinah!

DINAH (jumping up). Hullo!

(OLIVIA comes in through the windows, followed by GEORGE and LADY
MARDEN, the latter a vigorous young woman of sixty odd, who always
looks as if she were beagling.)

OLIVIA. Aunt Julia wants to see the pigs, dear. I wish you'd take her
down. I'm rather tired, and your uncle has some business to attend to.

LADY MARDEN. I've always said that you don't take enough exercise,
Olivia. Look at me--sixty-five and proud of it.

OLIVIA. Yes, Aunt Julia, you're wonderful.

DINAH. How old would Olivia be if she took exercise?

GEORGE. Don't stand about asking silly questions, Dinah. Your aunt
hasn't much time.

BRIAN. May I come, too, Lady Marden?

LADY MARDEN. Well, a little exercise wouldn't do _you_ any harm, Mr.
Strange. You're an artist, ain't you?

BRIAN. Well, I try to paint.

DINAH. He sold a picture last March for--

GEORGE. Yes, yes, never mind that now.

LADY MARDEN. Unhealthy life. Well, come along.

[She strides out, followed by DINAH and BRIAN.

(GEORGE sits down at his desk with his head in his hand, and stabs the
blotting-paper with a pen. OLIVIA takes the curtains with her to the
sofa and begins to work on them.)

GEORGE (looking up and seeing them). Really, Olivia, we've got
something more important, more vital to us than curtains, to discuss,
now that we _are_ alone at last.

OLIVIA. I wasn't going to discuss them, dear.

GEORGE. I'm always glad to see Aunt Julia in my house, but I wish she
hadn't chosen this day of all days to come to lunch.

OLIVIA. It wasn't Aunt Julia's fault. It was really Mr. Pim who chose
the wrong day.

GEORGE (fiercely). Good Heavens, is it true?

OLIVIA. About Jacob Telworthy?

GEORGE. You told me he was dead. You always said that he was dead.
You--you--

OLIVIA. Well, I always thought that he was dead. He was as dead as
anybody could be. All the papers said he was dead.

GEORGE (scornfully). The papers!

OLIVIA (as if this would settle it for GEORGE). The _Times_ said he
was dead. There was a paragraph about him. Apparently even his death
was fraudulent.

GEORGE. Yes, yes, I'm not blaming you, Olivia, but what are we going
to do, that's the question, what are we going to do? My God, it's
horrible! You've never been married to me at all! You don't seem to
understand.

OLIVIA. It is a little difficult to rea