‘That was last year.’
George said:
‘Every year.’
Grandmother said:
‘I read about it this morning. The young man and his wife were both shot in their carriage—a very horrid affair.’
Ralph said:
‘My chief takes an exceedingly grave view of the situation.’
The dinner was ready and we went into the dining-room. When we had all sat down, Ralph began again.
‘You see,’ he said to Grandmother, ‘the tension between Vienna and Belgrade has been growing more acute every year. It was amazing to hear the Austrians talk, when I was out there. They would believe anything of the Serbs.’
‘No doubt the crime was political,’ Grandmother observed. ‘It is something to be truly thankful for that we have outgrown political crimes in this country; they are always futile.’