so glad to have you back again, Gladys," I said, speaking in a
low voice, for I had an instinctive feeling that ex-Judge Bundy had
turned his head, though ostensibly he was busy with porters.

"And it's so nice to see you," she replied, and her gaze wandered
vaguely about the pier. She had written that it would be so good just
to let her eyes rest on me, but now their appetite was quickly
satisfied, and it nettled me.

I spoke to her again, louder, reiterating my delight, and she raised
her eyebrows and answered that she was glad that I was pleased. Doctor
Todd and Mrs. Todd, however, were not so casual in their greeting. The
doctor took both of my hands and declared that this was a happy family
reunion. Mrs. Todd kissed me on both cheeks and gave me the paroquet
to carry. As we made our way through the crowd, she asked me if I did
not think that Gladys had improved, but to myself, as I watched her
striding ahead of us in her mannish clothes, I said that she certainly
looked quite trim and smart, and I found myself wondering if she still
painted tulips on black plaques or would deign to sing "Douglas, tender
and true"? Perhaps, to her mind, broadened by a year of travel, I was
but a provincial fellow, whose musical education had not gone beyond
"The Minute Guns at Sea," who, never having seen the galleries of
Europe, could have no appreciation of art.

I was irritated. I wanted to set myself right in her mind, to show her
that I, too, had grown broader and wiser. But there was no
opportunity. She was busy either with the trunks or in keeping Blossom
quiet. During the drive to the hotel the situation was little better.
We were in an ancient barouche, piled high with luggage, Mrs. Todd,
Gladys, and I, ex-Judge Bundy having tactfully suggested that he take
the doctor with him in a hansom.

Mrs. Todd was voluble. She was artfully sentimental. She spoke of the
day when, as a young girl, she had left home for six weeks, and she
recalled her emotions as she came back to find the doctor waiting for
her at the station. They were married shortly afterward. How history
repeats itself! But Gladys was not impressed by the coincidence. She
merely said that she was glad to have Blossom ashore again, for at
times the dog had been fearfully sea-sick. I could have strangled
Blossom. Nothing is more humiliating to a man than to discover that a
woman's love for him is waning. Here is a reflection on his power of
fasc