go on:
"You mean that for HER at least he's a new person--that she sees him as
different?"

"She sees him as different."

"And how does she see him?"

Strether gave it up. "How can one tell how a deep little girl sees a
deep young man?"

"Is every one so deep? Is she too?"

"So it strikes me deeper than I thought. But wait a little--between us
we'll make it out. You'll judge for that matter yourself."

Madame de Vionnet looked for the moment fairly bent on the chance.
"Then she WILL come with her?--I mean Mamie with Mrs. Pocock?"

"Certainly. Her curiosity, if nothing else, will in any case work
that. But leave it all to Chad."

"Ah," wailed Madame de Vionnet, turning away a little wearily, "the
things I leave to Chad!"

The tone of it made him look at her with a kindness that showed his
vision of her suspense. But he fell back on his confidence. "Oh
well--trust him. Trust him all the way." He had indeed no sooner so
spoken than the queer displacement of his point of view appeared again
to come up for him in the very sound, which drew from him a short
laugh, immediately checked. He became still more advisory. "When they
do come give them plenty of Miss Jeanne. Let Mamie see her well."

She looked for a moment as if she placed them face to face. "For Mamie
to hate her?"

He had another of his corrective headshakes. "Mamie won't. Trust THEM."

She looked at him hard, and then as if it were what she must always
come back to: "It's you I trust. But I was sincere," she said, "at
the hotel. I did, I do, want my child--"

"Well?"--Strether waited with deference while she appeared to hesitate
as to how to put it.

"Well, to do what she can for me."

Strether for a little met her eyes on it; after which something that
might have been unexpected to her came from him. "Poor little duck!"

Not more expected for himself indeed might well have been her echo of
it. "Poor little duck! But she immensely wants herself," she said,
"to see our friend's cousin."

"Is that what she thinks her?"

"It's what we call the young lady."

He thought again; then with a laugh: "Well, your daughter will help
you."

And now at last he took leave of her, as he had been intending for five
minutes. But she went part of the way with him, accompanying him out
of the room and into the next and the next. Her noble old apartment
offered a succession of three, the first two of which indeed, on
entering, smaller th