The evidence of civilized life by which we were now surrounded restored Maria's spirits; she found her tongue.
"Why did you stop on the doorstep, Edward?" she asked.
"I had to lock the street door," I answered.
"We will not take that house, my dear," she said.
Some unaccustomed note in my voice struck her as strange.
"Is anything the matter with you?" she asked.
"No," I replied, glancing at the cat, "nothing."
"What are you looking at? Why are your eyes wandering so?"
"My dear," I said, with an attempt to speak in a lively tone, and failing dismally, "I must be a bit unstrung, that is all."
She accepted my explanation as satisfactory.
"No wonder," she said; "I would not go through such another trial for all the money in the world."
For a little while we walked along in silence, and then I asked my wife whether she would ride or walk home.
"I should prefer to walk," she said; "it is early, and the air is fresh and reviving. Things look all the brighter now we are out of that horrible place. A walk will do us good."
I made no demur, though I was curious to see what the skeleton cat would do when we entered an omnibus full of people. It would experience a difficulty in finding a place on the floor of the 'bus, and there would be no room for it to stretch itself comfortably on the seats. I wished to ascertain, also, whether among a number of strangers there would be one to whom it would make itself visible. I peered into the faces of the passers-by with this thought in my mind, but I saw no expression of surprise in them, notwithstanding that the cat seemed to touch their legs in brushing past. Again and again did I turn my eyes away from the apparition; and again and again, looking down at my feet, I beheld it as clearly as if it were an actual living example of its species. Once we got into a crowd and I hoped that I had lost it. No such luck; it evinced no disposition to leave me.
"Edward," said my wife, "I am sure you are not well. I have tired you out with this eternal looking over houses to let. You have been very patient with me"--she pressed my arm affectionately--"and I will try and make it up to you. I know you never really wished to move."
"And you have gone through all this for my sake. I don't like to give up a thing once I have set my mind on it,--you know that of old, my dear,--but the experiences of this morning will last me a lifetime; so I will give this up."