It was only under considerable stress of feeling that such coherence of ideas could have been expressed by his irrelevant friend.

What he had learned the last few minutes had been a surprise, a pain, and a puzzle to him.

The runaway marriage held more elements than he had imagined.

He bent forward confidentially.
"You would make a carpet of your body for Zora Middlemist ?" "Why, of course," replied the other in perfect simplicity.
"Then, my friend, you're desperately in love with her." There was kindness, help, sympathy in the big man's voice, and Septimus, though the challenge caused him agonies of shyness, did not find it in his heart to resent Sypher's logic.
"I suppose every man whom she befriends must feel the same towards her.
Don't you ?" "I?
I'm different.

I've got a great work to carry through.