“I was trying to perform some experiments with it.”
“Oh, I see. Well, it’s a very good one; take care of it. Little chemistry, too, eh?”
“Yes: uncle shows me sometimes how to perform experiments.”
“But he does not show you how to be neat and orderly.”
“Oh, this is only a place to amuse oneself in!” said Vane.
“Exactly, but you can get ten times the amusement out of a shop where everything is in its place and there’s a place for everything. Now, suppose I wanted to perform some simple experiment, say, to show what convection is, with water, retort and spirit lamp?”
“Convection?” said Vane, thoughtfully, as if he were searching in his mind for the meaning of a word he had forgotten.
“Yes,” said the visitor, smiling. “Surely you know what convection is.”
“I’ve forgotten,” said Vane, shaking his head. “I knew once.”
“Then you have not forgotten. You’ve got it somewhere packed away. Head’s untidy, perhaps, as your laboratory.”