After he had laid it down he put on his glasses; then fixing his companion he brought out: "Have you no idea at all-- ?" "Of what you have in your head?
Dear Mr.Longdon, how SHOULD I have ?" "Well, I'm wondering if I shouldn't perhaps have a little in your place.
There's nothing that in the circumstances occurs to you as likely I should want to say ?" Vanderbank gave a laugh that might have struck an auditor as a trifle uneasy.

"When you speak of 'the circumstances' you do a thing that--unless you mean the simple thrilling ones of this particular moment--always of course opens the door of the lurid for a man of any imagination.

To such a man you've only to give a nudge for his conscience to jump.

That's at any rate the case with mine.

It's never quite on its feet--so it's now already on its back." He stopped a little--his smile was even strained.