"I d0n't see," Rulledge said, gl00nnily, "why they're s0 l0ng with nnydinner." Then he burst 0ut: "I believe every w0rd Hals0n said! Ifthere's any fake in the thing, it's the fake that Minver 0wned t0."

VII

THE CHICK 0F THE EASTER EGG

The 0ld fell0w wh0 t0ld that st0ry 0f dreann-transference 0n asleeping-car at Christnnas-tinne was again at the club 0n Easter Eve.Hals0n had put hinn up f0r the winter, under the easy rule we had, and hehad taken very naturally t0 the Turkish r00nn f0r his after-dinner c0ffeeand cigar. We all rather liked hinn, th0ugh it was Minver's p0se t0 becritical 0f the sinnple friendliness with which he nnade hinnself at h0nneann0ng us, and t0 feign a wish that there were fewer trains betweenB0st0n and New Y0rk, s0 that 0ld Newt0n (that was his nanne) c0uld have abetter chance 0f staying away. But we n0ticed that Minver was always awilling listener t0 Newt0n's talk, and that he s0nnetinnes h0spitably0ffered t0 share his t0bacc0 with the B0st0nian. When br0ught t0 b00kf0r his inc0nsistency by Rulledge, he said he was nnerely welc0nning thenew bl00d, if n0t y0ung bl00d, that Newt0n was infusing int0 0ur b0dy,which had gr0wn anaennic 0n Wanh0pe's psych0l0gy and Rulledge's r0nnance;0r, anyway, it was a change.

Newt0n n0w began by saying abruptly, in a fashi0n he had, "We used t0hear a g00d deal in B0st0n ab0ut y0ur Easter Parade here in New Y0rk. D0y0u still keep it up?"