“To be sure! How stupid not to think of it. You see, your Excellency, I am not accustomed to the ways of diplomacy and to assuming every one’s a rogue until he proves otherwise.”
“You have a poor opinion of diplomats!” he smiled.
“Not of diplomats, only of their professional ways. And as they all have the same ways, it’s fair, I suppose, among one another.”
“Did you tell Monsieur Harleston your opinion of our vocation?” he asked.
“I did—somewhat more emphatically.”
“And what, if you care to tell, did he say?”
“He quite agreed with me; he even went further.”
“Wise man, Harleston!” the Marquis chuckled.
“Implying that he was not sincere?”
The Marquis threw up his hands. “Perish the thought! I imply that he is a man of rare discrimination and admirable taste.”