Mackinnonwasobligedtodeclarethathethoughthiswifewouldobject；andfromthattimeforthheandMrs。Talboysceasedtobeverycloseintheirfriendship。ShestillcametothehouseeverySundayevening，stillrefreshedherselfatthefountainsofhisliteraryrills；butherspecialpropheciesfromhenceforthwerepouredintootherears。AnditsohappenedthatO\'Briennowbecameherchiefally。Idonotrememberthatshetroubledherselfmuchfurtherwiththecherubangelsorwiththeirmother；andIaminclinedtothinkthat，takingupwarmly，asshedid，thestoryofO\'Brien\'smatrimonialwrongs，sheforgotthelittlehistoryoftheBrowns。Bethatasitmay，Mrs。TalboysandO\'Briennowbecamestrictlyconfidential，andshewouldenlargebythehalf-hourtogetheronthemiseriesofherfriend\'sposition，toanyonewhomshecouldgettohearher。
\"I\'lltellyouwhat，Fanny，\"Mackinnonsaidtohiswifeoneday，tohiswifeandtomine，forwewerealltogether；\"weshallhavearowinthehouseifwedon\'ttakecare。O\'BrienwillbemakinglovetoMrs。Talboys。\"
\"Nonsense，\"saidMrs。Mackinnon。\"Youarealwaysthinkingthatsomebodyisgoingtomakelovetosomeone。\"
\"Somebodyalwaysis，\"saidhe。
\"She\'soldenoughtobehismother，\"saidMrs。Mackinnon。