uiring in the dining-room.

'No,' he said, coming back. 'But she won't be long. You wanted to speak
to her?'

Birkin looked across at the other man with curious calm, clear eyes.

'As a matter of fact,' he said, 'I wanted to ask her to marry me.'

A point of light came on the golden-brown eyes of the elder man.

'O-oh?' he said, looking at Birkin, then dropping his eyes before the
calm, steadily watching look of the other: 'Was she expecting you
then?'

'No,' said Birkin.

'No? I didn't know anything of this sort was on foot--' Brangwen smiled
awkwardly.

Birkin looked back at him, and said to himself: 'I wonder why it should
be "on foot"!' Aloud he said:

'No, it's perhaps rather sudden.' At which, thinking of his
relationship with Ursula, he added--'but I don't know--'

'Quite sudden, is it? Oh!' said Brangwen, rather baffled and annoyed.

'In one way,' replied Birkin, '--not in another.'

There was a moment's pause, after which Brangwen said:

'Well, she pleases herself--'

'Oh yes!' said Birkin, calmly.

A vibration came into Brangwen's strong voice, as he replied:

'Though I shouldn't want her to be in too big a hurry, either. It's no
good looking round afterwards, when it's too late.'

'Oh, it need never be too late,' said Birkin, 'as far as that goes.'

'How do you mean?' asked the father.

'If one repents being married, the marriage is at an end,' said Birkin.

'You think so?'

'Yes.'

'Ay, well that may be your way of looking at it.'

Birkin, in silence, thought to himself: 'So it may. As for YOUR way of
looking at it, William Brangwen, it needs a little explaining.'

'I suppose,' said Brangwen, 'you know what sort of people we are? What
sort of a bringing-up she's had?'

'"She",' thought Birkin to himself, remembering his childhood's
corrections, 'is the cat's mother.'

'Do I know what sort of a bringing-up she's had?' he said aloud.

He seemed to annoy Brangwen intentionally.

'Well,' he said, 'she's had everything that's right for a girl to
have--as far as possible, as far as we could give it her.'

'I'm sure she has,' said Birkin, which caused a perilous full-stop. The
father was becoming exasperated. There was something naturally irritant
to him in Birkin's mere presence.

'And I don't want to see her going back on it all,' he said, in a
clanging voice.

'Why?' said Birkin.

This monosyllable exploded in Brangwen's brain like a shot.

'Why! I don't believe in your