"She must have been wonderful." "She WAS," Strether candidly admitted--all of which practically told as a reference to the conditions created by the accident of the previous week.
They appeared for a little to be looking back at it; and that came out still more in what Chad next said.

"I don't know what you've really thought, all along; I never did know--for anything, with you, seemed to be possible.

But of course--of course--" Without confusion, quite with nothing but indulgence, he broke down, he pulled up.

"After all, you understand.

I spoke to you originally only as I HAD to speak.
There's only one way--isn't there ?--about such things.