He was a long time without replying, and then said, hesitatingly: “The world will never understand that Vaudrec made you his sole heiress, and that I allowed it. To receive his fortune in that way would be an acknowledgment on your part of a guilty connection, and on mine of a shameful complaisance. Do you understand now how our acceptance of it would be interpreted? It would be necessary to find a side issue, some clever way of palliating matters. To let it go abroad, for instance, that he had divided the money between us, leaving half to the husband and half to the wife.”

She observed: “I do not see how that can be done, since the will is plain.”

“Oh, it is very simple. You could leave me half the inheritance by a deed of gift. We have no children, so it is feasible. In that way the mouth of public malevolence would be closed.”

She replied, somewhat impatiently: “I do not see any the more how the mouth of public malevolence is to be closed, since the will is there, signed by Vaudrec?”

He said, angrily: “Have we any need to show it and to paste it up on all the walls? You are really stupid. We will say that the Count de Vaudrec left his fortune between us. That is all. But you cannot accept this legacy without my authorization. I will only give it on condition of a division, which will hinder me from becoming a laughing stock.”

She looked at him again with a penetrating glance, and said: “As you like. I am agreeable.”

Then he rose, and began to walk up and down again. He seemed to be hesitating anew, and now avoided his wife’s penetrating glance. He was