me, too, all day," said my wife. "You
don't suppose he has been out of my mind either? I wish we had never had
anything to do with him."

A husband likes to abuse his victory, when he has his wife quite at his
mercy, but the case was so entirely in my favor that for once I forbore.
I could see that she was suffering for having put into Tedham's head the
notion which had resulted in this error, and I considered that she was
probably suffering enough. Besides, I was afraid that if I said anything
it would bring out the fact that I had myself intimated the question
again which his course had answered so mistakenly. I could well imagine
that she was grateful for my forbearance, and I left her to this
admirable state of mind while I went off to put myself a little in shape
after my day's work and my journey out of town. I kept thinking how
perfectly right in the affair Tedham's simple, selfish instinct had
been, and how our several consciences had darkened counsel; that quaint
Tuscan proverb came into ray mind: _Lascia fare Iddio, ch' e un buon
vecchio_. We had not been willing to let God alone, or to trust his
leading; we had thought to improve on his management of the case, and to
invent a principle for poor Tedham that should be better for him to act
upon than the love of his child, which God had put into the man's heart,
and which was probably the best thing that had ever been there. Well, we
had got our come-uppings, as the country people say, and however we
might reason it away we had made ourselves responsible for the event.

There came a ring at the door that made my own heart jump into my mouth.
I knew it was Tedham come back again, and I was still in the throes of
buttoning on my collar when my wife burst into my room. I smiled round
at her as gayly as I could with the collar-buttoning grimace on my face.
"All right, I'll be down in a minute. You just go and talk to him
till--"

"_Him_?" she gasped back; and I have never been quite sure of her syntax
to this day. "_Them!_ It's Mr. and Mrs. Hasketh, and some young lady! I
saw them through the window coming up the walk."

"Good Lord! You don't suppose it's Tedham's daughter?"

"How do I know? Oh, how _could_ you be dressing at a time like this!"

It did seem to me rather heinous, and I did not try to defend myself,
even when she added, from her access of nervousness, in something like a
whimper, "It seems to me you're _always_ dressing, Basil!"

"I'll be right