“Of course I shouldn’t encourage her to,” I said, “until she had altered her profession.”

“And perhaps she won’t,” he said, “perhaps she won’t.”

“Won’t what?” I asked.

“Alter her profession.”

“But don’t you want her to?” I cried.

“Oh, of course,” he said. “But they seldom do, you know, unless they marry.”

“Precisely,” I said, “unless they marry.”

He opened his mouth for a moment, but only breathed through it.

“But you don’t mean to tell me,” he said, “that as Vice-President——?”

“It might be my duty,” I said, “to sacrifice myself.”