. "It's a
question of keeping house for him, and being a good mother to the
children, and being loyal to him and them."

"There are reservations?"

"She doesn't love him."

"Oh," said Harry scornfully, "_that_ sort of thing won't work."

"We know a good many cases where that sort of thing seems to work."

"It only works when the husband acts like a natural man. Fulton won't.
For him only Lucy is possible. There can be no substitute. No. In
this case it won't work. He's too young and she's too good-looking."

"Then it won't work," I said shortly.

"She makes me sick," said Harry. "She gets her board and lodging and
her clothes and spending money from him, and love and protection,
and--Oh, it isn't as if there'd never been anything between them.
After all, as far as he's concerned, she's no novice."

"The moment she stopped loving him she became spiritually separated
from him."

"Spiritually be damned!" exclaimed Harry. "Don't talk to me. There
are women in New York who to keep from starvation, will make love to
any man that comes along, for a pittance. They do the very best they
can to earn the money. I can't help admiring 'em. But your
fashionable married woman, she's too refined, too delicately souled,
too spiritual to do anything but eat herself sick on her man's money
and spend him into a hole. It's bad enough to be a prostitute who
plays the game, but it's a damned sight worse to be a prostitute who
doesn't."

"I'm not going to get angry with you, Harry. We've been through too
much together. But I think you have said enough. Lucy is one of the
finest, purest-minded women in the world."

"Then she ought to be her husband's wife, or get out. If she's not his
wife, she's no business grafting on him for board and lodging and
pocket money. How long does a pure-minded, good-looking woman keep off
the streets if she can't raise the wind any other way? Not long. And
how many men can she graft on? Plenty of 'em--once. But not twice.
The word goes round about her. 'She's a beauty to look at,' says the
word, 'but she doesn't earn her money.'"

"Many marriages," I said, "_have_ to be re-arranged and compromised."

"Don't say _have_ to be, say _are_."

"Harry," I said with great firmness, "the country needs rain like the
devil."

After a moment, good humor returned to his face. He said; "You've just
won an argument. I also am dry as a bone."

XXIV

"This isn't the last ride t