t you are happy too, Mr. Druitt."

"Mrs. Dale," he said, "I don't reco'nize myself. When I think of the
past and the present--"

Mavis stopped him. He was of course going to disparage Number One, and
she felt that to be so horrid of him.

XXII

The new housemaid was adequately filling Mary's place, and life at
Vine-Pits as of old ran smoothly on. With increasing means the Dales
still refrained from frivolous additions to household expenditure.
Neither craved for further pomp or luxury; both took pleasure in
amassing rather than in squandering.

To get up early, work hard, and go to bed thoroughly tired--all this
Mavis took for granted as a correct and undeviating program for one's
days. Indeed in her complete satisfaction she tended naturally to a
mental attitude that was taking for granted all phenomena, whether
objective or subjective. The visible comforts of her home, the love of
her husband, the bliss of being the mother of two perfect children,
together with her contented thoughts in relation to each and all of
these matters, were accepted as so intimately connected with the prime
fact of her existence itself that no fear of possible disturbance or
cessation ever troubled her. She no more thought of a break in the
grand routine of placid joy than she thought of leaving off the
process by which she filled and emptied her lungs when breathing.

As perhaps is usual with the majority of successful people, she never
considered whether the hour had not come for diminishing the effort
that was producing the success. They had fixed no goal which when
reached should be a resting-place as well as a winning-post.

They were working for the future. The money they earned was for then,
and not for now. But she very rarely thought of this remote period;
and when she did, it was with absolute vagueness. A lot of money would
be required for the children; and eventually she and Will would be
old, feeble, unable to go on working, and then a modest amount of
money would be required for themselves.

Always in her early dreams of affluence she had pictured holidays, the
excitement of traveling, and rapid changes of scene; yet, although
since they first came to Vine-Pits they had not been away for a single
staying holiday, she had no sense of missing something that might have
been enjoyed. It would be absurd to drag Dale away from home while he
was so busy. For herself it seemed quite sufficient change and
excitement to