He had said at Old Place, the first time that she met him, that the war
had destroyed all his scruples. That might be true; but it was hardly the
remark of a man naturally unscrupulous.
She met him one day at Old Place about a week after Christmas. The
Captain was not there; he was at her own house, with Cynthia. With the
rest of the family Beaumaroy was at his best; gaily respectful to Mrs.
Naylor, merry with Gertie, exchanging cut and thrust with old Mr.
Naylor, easy and cordial towards herself. Certainly an attractive human
being and a charming companion, pre-eminently natural. "One talks of
taking people as one finds them," old Naylor said to her when they were
left alone together for a few minutes by the fire, while the others
chatted by the window. "That fellow takes himself as he finds himself!
Not as a pattern, a failure, or a problem, but just as a fact--a
psychological fact."
"That rather shuts out effort, doesn't it? Well, I mean--"
"Strivings?" Mr. Naylor smiled. "Yes, it does. On the other hand, it
gives such free play. That's what makes him interesting, makes you
think about him.
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