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286 of Mrs. Pocock, "about dear old Maria? The worst is that Miss Gostrey is really a wonderful woman."

"Oh, yes, indeed," Strether answered for her, "Mrs. Pocock knows about Miss Gostrey. Your mother, Sarah, must have told you about her; your mother knows everything," he sturdily pursued. "And I cordially admit," he added with his conscious gaiety of courage, "that she's as wonderful a woman as you like."

"Ah, it isn't I who 'like,' dear Mr. Strether, anything to do with the matter!" Sarah Pocock promptly protested; "and I'm by no means sure I have—from my mother or from anyone else—a notion of whom you're talking about."

"Well, he won't let you see her, you know," Mme. de Vionnet sympathetically threw in. "He never lets me—old friends as we are; I mean as I am with Maria. He reserves her for his best hours; keeps her thoroughly to himself; only gives us others the crumbs of the feast."

"Well, Countess, I've had some of the crumbs," Waymarsh observed deliberately and covering her with his large look, which led her to break in before he could go on.

"Comment donc, he shares her with you?" she exclaimed in droll stupefaction. "Take care you don't have, before you go much further, rather more of all ces dames than you may know what to do with!"

But he only continued in his massive way. "I can post you about the lady, Mrs. Pocock, so far as you may care to hear. I've seen her quite a number of times, and I was practically present when they made acquaintance. I've kept my eye on her right along, but I don't know that there's any real harm in her."

"'Harm'?" Mme. de Vionnet quickly echoed. "Why, she's the dearest and cleverest of all the clever and dear."

"Well, you run her pretty close, Countess," Waymarsh returned with spirit; "though there's no doubt she's pretty well up in things. She knows her way round Europe. Above all there's no doubt she does love Strether."

"Ah, but we all do that—we all love Strether; it isn't a merit!" their fellow-visitor laughed, keeping to her idea with a good conscience at which our friend was aware that he marvelled, though he trusted also for it, as he met her