He did not perceive the twinkle in John's eyes at this reply.

"In my opinion there are only two ways of looking at every question--the right way and the wrong way." "My profession teaches me," said John, "that there are as many different points of view as there are parties to a case." "Then--from _my_ point of view," said Sir Timothy, with an air of waving all other points of view away as irrelevant, "since my wife, very naturally, desires to see her son again before he sails, am I justified in allowing her to set off in ignorance of the ordeal that awaits me ?" "Good heavens, no!" cried John.

"Should the operation prove unsuccessful, you would be entailing upon her a lifelong remorse." "I did not look upon it in that light," said Sir Timothy, rather stiffly.

"The propriety or the impropriety of her going remains in any, case the same, whether the operation succeeds or fails.

I feared that it would be the wrong thing to allow her to go at all; that it might cause comment were she absent from my side at such a critical juncture." "I see," said John.