And the doctor and Julian ceased to talk.

Valentine certainly did not sing with such peculiar skill as he showed in playing, but he had a charming voice which he used with great ease, and he never sang a single note, or phrased a passage, without complete intelligence and understanding of his composer.

Only he lacked power.

This scarcely interfered with the pleasure he could give in a drawing-room, and to-night both Levillier and Julian were rather in a mood for supreme delicacy than for great passion.
They listened with silent pleasure for a time.

Then Levillier said: "Do you remark how wonderfully the timbre of Cresswell's voice expresses the timbre of his mind?
The parallel is exact." Julian nodded.
"That is his soul written in sound," the doctor added.
It was at this point that Valentine ceased and got up from the piano.
"I must smoke too," he said.