"Why do you stay here when you are feeling so tired?" she said to me presently.
"Because," I replied, "my sister lies awake half the night and thinks I am going to die, if I show any signs of fatigue, or go to bed early. Besides, for us, you know, this is quite an exciting evening. We have thought about our dinner-party for days past."
"If you were nice," said Mrs. Fielden after a pause, "you would ask me to come into your library and smoke."
"Do you smoke?"
"No," said Mrs. Fielden, "I don't."
"I'm glad you don't," I said.
"For years," said Mrs. Fielden, "I tried to think it was wrong, and then I quite enjoyed smoking; but there is a certain effort involved in trying to raise an innocent occupation to the level of a crime."
"It is a very unfeminine habit," I said; partly because I was in a contradictious mood, and partly because I wanted to snub Mrs. Fielden for being so beautiful and young and charming.
"The last man," said Mrs. Fielden gravely, "who made that remark died shortly afterwards."
She was gathering up my cushions and pillows as she spoke, and she turned to my sister as she crossed the hall, and said, "We are going to study philosophy in the library."