I believe in love--" said Jim, watching and grinning oddly.
"Bah, love! Messing, that's what it is.

It wouldn't matter if it did you no harm.

But when you stagger and stumble down a road, out of sheer sloppy relaxation of your will---" At this point Jim suddenly sprang from his chair at Lilly, and gave him two or three hard blows with his fists, upon the front of the body.

Then he sat down in his own chair again, saying sheepishly: "I knew I should have to do it, if he said any more." Lilly sat motionless as a statue, his face like paper.

One of the blows had caught him rather low, so that he was almost winded and could not breathe.