It was a great moment for Thaddeus McIlvaine. He sat down among his friends almost portentously, adjusted his spectacles, and peered over them in his usual manner, half way between a querulous oldster and a reproachful schoolmaster.
"I've done it," he said quietly.
"Aye, and what?" asked Alexander testily.
"I discovered a new star."
"Oh," said Leopold flatly. "A cinder in your eye."
"It lies just off Arcturus," McIlvaine went on, "and it would appear to be coming closer."
"Give it my love," said Richardson with a wry smile. "Have you named it yet? Or don't the discoverers of new stars name them any more? McIlvaine's Star—that's a good name for it. Hard a port of Arcturus, with special displays on windy nights."
McIlvaine only smiled. "It's a dark star," he said presently. "It doesn't have light." He spoke almost apologetically, as if somehow he had disappointed his friends. "I'm going to try and communicate with it."
"That's the ticket," said Alexander.