"I wouldn't. They're idiots, the lot of 'em. What's the use? What do girls want to get married for, anyway?"
She glanced up at him quickly. Then at the glimpse she had of Jerry's sober profile her wide gaze dulled and then sought the earth before her. It was true then what she believed of him. A child—this gorgeous creature that shaved its face!
"I suppose it's because they—they haven't anything else to do," she stammered.
"There's plenty for every woman to do without marrying, or there ought to be. They can work like men, or clean their houses, or raise their children."
At this point the girl was seized with a sudden fit of coughing and her face was purple.
"What's the matter?"
"I—I just swallowed the wrong way," she gasped.
"Here, I'll pat you on the back. All right now?"
"Y-yes, better, thanks." But she held her fingers before her eyes and still struggled for breath. In a moment when she raised her head, there were traces of a smile, but she was quite composed.
"Then you—you don't believe in marriage as an institution?" she asked with some hesitation.