But it had been uttered; and, let what apology there may be made, a word uttered cannot be retracted.

As he looked across the table at his wife, he saw that the word had been taken in deep dudgeon.
She escaped, to the writing of her letters she said, almost before the meal was done.

"Vulgarity!" She uttered the word aloud to herself, as she sat herself down in the little room up-stairs which she had assigned to herself for her own use.

But though she was very angry with him, she did not, even in her own mind, contradict him.
Perhaps it was vulgar.

But why shouldn't she be vulgar, if she could most surely get what she wanted by vulgarity?
What was the meaning of the word vulgarity?
Of course she was prepared to do things,--was daily doing things,--which would have been odious to her had not her husband been a public man.