Theater outside and theater within; a great drama of light and shadow, of comedy and tragedy; for he gazed upon the scene with all his poet's eyes.

He enjoyed the opera, the color and music, the propinquity of Kitty.

Sometimes their shoulders touched; the indefinable perfume of her hair thrilled him.
Kitty had seen all these things so many times that she no longer experienced enthusiasm; but his was so genuine, so un-English, that she found it impossible to escape the contagion.

She did not bubble over, however; on the contrary, she sat through the performance strangely subdued, dimly alarmed over what she had done.
As they were leaving the lobby of the theater, a man bumped against Thomas, quite accidentally.
"I beg your pardon!" said the stranger, politely raising his hat and passing on.
[Illustration: "I beg your pardon!" said the stranger.] Thomas' hand went clumsily to his own hat, which he fumbled and dropped and ran after frantically across the mosaic flooring.
A ghost; yes, sir, Thomas had seen a ghost..