" Anna smiled, as people smile at the weaknesses of those they love, and, putting her hand under his, she escorted him to the door of the study.

She knew his habit, that had grown into a necessity, of reading in the evening.

She knew, too, that in spite of his official duties, which swallowed up almost the whole of his time, he considered it his duty to keep up with everything of note that appeared in the intellectual world.