IV
SOAMESCOGITATES
TheannouncementinTheTimesofhiscousinJolyon’sdeathaffectedSoamesquitesimply。Sothatchapwasgone！Therehadneverbeenatimeintheirtwoliveswhenlovehadnotbeenlostbetweenthem。
Thatquick—bloodedsentimenthatredhadrunitscourselongsinceinSoames’heart，andhehadrefusedtoallowanyrecrudescence，butheconsideredthisearlydeceaseapieceofpoeticjustice。Fortwentyyearsthefellowhadenjoyedthereversionofhiswifeandhouse，and——hewasdead！Theobituarynotice，whichappearedalittlelater，paidJolyon——hethought——toomuchattention。Itspokeofthat\"diligentandagreeablepainterwhoseworkwehavecometolookonastypicalofthebestlate—Victorianwater—colourart。\"Soames，whohadalmostmechanicallypreferredMole，Morpin，andCaswellBaye，andhadalwayssniffedquiteaudiblywhenhecametooneofhiscousin’sontheline，turnedTheTimeswithacrackle。
HehadtogouptoTownthatmorningonForsyteaffairs，andwasfullyconsciousofGradman’sglancesidelongoverhisspectacles。