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28 Dead Men's Shoesthat, and I never thought it. You'revery unreasonable, David; you are, indeed.I don't see how self-respect comesinto it. We have the money. Why can'twe go on living this way? All your—allthe money you make will go to littleAgatha, won't it?""I dare say it would if I were willingto go on like this. As it happens, I'mnot. There's no use in crying, Edith.I'm not unreasonable, but I'm very tiredof being a mere hanger-on. That's all.If you want to go South with the children,you'd better go. I've other thingsto do. Don't cry, I beg of you."It was a poor attempt at dignity that heclutched at, and it accomplished nothing,even towards bolstering up his pride.That he did not see, any more than he sawthe flush that swept his wife's face. Althoughhis eyes were full upon her, hisown were too curtained by misery andanger to mark any change in her features.He was even a good deal surprised whenshe turned suddenly to leave the room.She was still dabbing at her eyes a little.He hadn't started the unpleasantness, hereflected in self-defense, but he was gladto have the talk at an end."I can't think what is the matter,David," Edith Lloyd flung at him overher shoulder, as she went. "You're veryungrateful, anyhow."Ungrateful! Only that was needed tocomplete the break between them. IfEdith felt it proper for him to regard heras a benefactor, her fine protestationsweren't worth much. He was confirmedin his worst suspicions. The situationhad become intolerable. It had been intolerablefrom the start, no doubt, but itcould not be borne now that he had grownconscious of it. He had been a fool; theyhad both been fools; but he would haveno more of it. He would find a way out.He had never quarrelled seriously withEdith before, and he had all the dislikeof heroics that is inbred in his kind. Butto be called ungrateful when he was tryinghis best to escape from a false position! When he wished to escape fromthe necessity of being grateful at all!His resentment focussed itself upon hiswife. As she disappeared through thedoorway, he scowled at her instead ofspace.When she had gone, he threw himselfinto a chair and tried to discover justwhere the interview left him. He wasfagged after a hard day at the office.Edith was right about that, though sheexaggerated absurdly in supposing that heneeded a holiday. He hated to think tonight,but he must see the thing clear beforehe slept. His anger dropped suddenlyas soon as he began to put the caseto himself, and he felt listless. He had toforce himself, in order to go on thinkingat all. He was very sorry that Edith hadmade a scene. It was all her fault. Forhis part, he could have discussed the situationquite calmly except for her tears andher exhibition of temper. He hadn'trealized that she was capable of behavingso badly, but then he hadn't realized howcompletely she regarded him as her slave.Well: he would see. One ought neverto be drawn into an argument with awoman.For the moment, he admitted, it wouldhave been more convenient to go on livingas they had been living—largely onEdith's income. The capital he had accumulatedwasn't much compared withher fortune—or Jack's, rather; and hehad uses for all he could make. With hisincome free, and if he had good luck, hewould be a rich man on his own accountafter a few years. The idea had beenthat little Agatha would be provided forin that way. But he couldn't sacrificehis self-respect any longer, especially sinceEdith had confirmed his suspicions as toher attitude. He would insist hereafteron paying at least his share of family expenses.If necessary, he would have touse a high hand in the matter.Edith must accept the changed situationas best she could. Her irritationwould pass, naturally. Possibly he himselfhad been a little hasty, and he mustbe kind to her. He wouldn't forgive hertoo easily for her rotten thrust at him asshe went out; but he wouldn't, on theother hand, be too stiff when she came tomake up the quarrel. The longer hethought about it, the more clearly he sawthat what had seemed a serious break betweenthem needn't be anything morethan a passing storm. It might even leadto a better understanding. He was perfectlycalm now, and he was sure that he