"Did the general forbid you to tell me?"
"On the contrary, he instructed me— But I'd rather not talk about it, Mrs. Siddall."
"Is she poor?" repeated Mildred.
"Yes."
"What became of her?"
A long pause. Then Harding said: "She was a poor girl when the general married her. After the divorce she lived for a while with the man. But he had nothing. They separated. She tried various kinds of work—and other things. Since she lost her looks— She writes from time to time, asking for money."
"Which she never gets?" said Mildred.
"Which she never gets," said Harding. "Lately she was cashier or head waitress in a cheap restaurant in St. Louis."
After a long silence Mildred said: "I understand. I understand." She drew a long breath. "I shall understand better as time goes on, but I understand fairly well now."
"I need not tell you, Mrs. Siddall," said Harding in his gentle, tranquil way, "that the general is the kindest and most generous of men, but he has his own methods—as who has not?"