"Was I rude?"
"Not rude."
"What then?"
"You rather ignored the others."
"I really did my best, but when Mr. Vincent came I forgot them. I like him. I hope he'll come again. I should like to marry him for dull days when I've nothing to do, and you for all the rest."
"Don't, Theresa. I can't bear to hear you flippant about our love."
"It's the result of talking to him and of listening to the others. I wish Mr. Smith could have heard them. Did you hear the conversation about the thriftlessness of the agricultural labourer? They had the decency not to mention his wage. It was the eldest Miss Waring who was so eloquent. It seems she has been telling Jim somebody's wife how to spend her money! I wonder how much her own weekly bill of luxuries would come to."
"She is a charming girl."
"Yes, her complexion has been formed on fresh air, good food, pleasant exercise, and an easy conscience. I'm sure she's nice. I wonder what Mrs. Jim's complexion is like. And is she charming on a few shillings a week? Basil, while, in my professional manner, I was laughing at that ignorant young woman, I was searching my own conscience, and I thought, 'Can I—can I be going to live in this beautiful place while Mrs. Jim is so hungry?' And I don't think I can."
"What do you mean, Theresa? Is this—is this my dismissal?"