To the guest in her house Barbara was the perfection of courtesy.

But beneath the mask of convention raged fury with Liosha.

A woman can seldom take a queer social animal for what he is and suck the honey from his flowers of unconventionality.

She had never heard a man say "Right oh!" to a butler when offered a second helping of pudding.

She had never dreamed of the possibility of a strange table-neighbour laying his hand on hers and requesting her to "take it from me, my dear." It sent awful shivers down her spine to hear my august self alluded to as her "old man." She looked down her nose when, to the apoplectic joy of Susan (supposed to be on her primmest behaviour at meals), he, with a significant wink, threw a new potato into the air, caught it on his fork and conveyed it to his mouth.