"You fool, do you want to ruin me? I haven't told her yet, and I can't let her hear it from you."
"Why not?" asked George.
"You ass!" said Gray, excitedly. "I can't explain here. I don't want her to know."
"Quick!" said George, as Mrs. Gray's footsteps sounded in the passage; "shake hands, and I'll keep your secret."
The pair grasped hands dramatically.
"Yes," said Mrs. Gray; "it's a splendid thing for Jim, isn't it?"
"Splendid thing for the club," said George. "They know what they're about; you can take my word for it. Where could they find a man, I should like to know, with the ability, the splendid gifts, and the remarkable knowledge of your husband? He's a man," said George, fixing a keen eye on the paper Gray was reading, "he's a man in a thousand. An orator, a politician, a scientist, a man of the world. His intellect——"
"That'll do," snapped Gray.
"No," said George, "I won't stop. Why should I? The position is a big one; but you are as good as the position."
"That's what I say," said Mrs. Gray, who approved of all George said.