Once a man came to an afternoon 'at home,' and, when ready to leave the house, could not find his umbrella, a beautiful new one. He made somewhat of a fuss in the hall. The master of the house came to his rescue, and looked for the missing umbrella among the scores that were there.
'Are you sure you had an umbrella when you came?'
'Quite sure.'
'Perhaps you left it at the other party, where you went first.'
'No, no; that's where I got it.'
CHAPTER XXV
SOME AMERICAN TOPICS
As I sit quietly thinking over my seventh visit to the United States, some impressions take a definite shape. I may here repeat a phrase which I used yesterday while speaking to the representative of an English newspaper who had called to interview me: