And Wardwell, bewildered, silenced, half believing, knew that he was beaten.
But he did go to see the doctor.
Doctor Gardner's little eyes twinkled behind a cloud of smoke from a big cigar as Wardwell expounded the situation at home and told what must be done and what Augusta must not be allowed to do. When Jimmie had quite finished the doctor asked with an elaborate diffidence:
"Ah—Do I understand that you are intending to do something that Augusta does not want?"
"Well—of course—" Jimmie started to explain.
"I was only going to remark," the doctor went on serenely, "that, to my personal knowledge, Augusta began doing things after her own plan on the day she was born. And, so far as I know, nobody has been able to change that. You see, the trouble has been that she has always turned out to be right."
"Yes, of course she's always right," Wardwell hastened to agree, "but, in this—"
"And, unless you have found a way," the doctor proceeded, "of changing Augusta, we'll just have to let her go her own way in this. To be sure, though, we must try to see that she does not kill herself with the hard work.
"But how's the book coming on?" he asked suddenly, sitting up and fixing Wardwell with a sharp, steady appraisal that Jimmie could almost feel physically.
"Rotten!" said Jimmie, annoyed and sullen, though he did not know why. "But how did you know—?"