Your forefathers. Your mother’s forefathers, JOHNNY Is that old man in the wig an ancestor? DE MULLIN Yes. That is Anthony De Mullin, your great-great-grandfather. JOHNNY What was _he?_ DE MULLIN (puzzled) _What_ was he? I don’t know that he was anything in particular. He was just a gentleman. JOHNNY _(disappointed)_ Is that all? DE MULLIN Don’t make any mistake, my boy. It’s a great thing to be descended from gentle-people, a thing to be proud of and to be thankful for. JOHNNY Mother says the great thing is for every one to be of some use in the world. Are gentle-people of more use in the world than other people, grandfather? DE MULLIN Certainly. JOHNNY And were all these old men gentle-people? DE MULLIN All of them. And you must grow up like them. JOHNNY They’re very _ugly_, grandfather _(pause)_. What did they do? DE MULLIN They lived down here at Brendon. JOHNNY Nothing else? DE MULLIN They looked after their land. JOHNNY Had they much land? DE MULLIN A great deal. At one time the De Mullins owned all the land about here. JOHNNY How much do they own now? DE MULLIN _(sighs)_ Not very much, I’m afraid. JOHNNY Then they can’t have looked after it very well, can they, grandfather? MRS. DE MULLIN _(feeling the strain of this conversation)_ Now, Hugo, do you think you ought to talk any more? Why not go upstairs for a little and lie down? DE MULLIN Perhaps I will, Jane. I _am_ a little tired. HESTER Shall I go with father? MRS. DE MULLIN No. I will. Come, Hugo _(helps him up)_. DE MULLIN Will you come, with me, Johnny? MRS. DE MULLIN _(hastily)_ No, Hugo. He will only disturb you. Stay down here, Johnny, with your mother. Now then. Carefully. _[Leads De Mullin off by the door on the left. There is a pause, during which the remaining occupants of the room obviously have nothing in particular to say to each other. At last Mrs. Clouston speaks._ MRS. CLOUSTON Well, Janet, how have you been all these years? JANET _(nonchalantly)_ All right, Aunt Harriet. And you? MRS. CLOUSTON Pretty well, thanks. JANET Are you still living down at Bath? MRS. CLOUSTON Yes. You live in London, Jane tells me. JANET Yes. MRS. CLOUSTON What do you do there? Teach? JANET Oh no. Why should I be teaching? MRS. CLOUSTON Jane said you wanted to teach at one time. JANET That was years ago. Before I left Brendon. soon gave up that idea. No. I keep a shop. MRS. CLOUSTON A shop! JANET Yes. A hat-shop MRS. CLOUSTON Good heavens! A De Mullin in a hat-shop! JANET _(a little maliciously)_ Not a De Mullin, Aunt Harriet. A Seagrave. MRS. CLOUSTON Did Mr. Seagrave keep a hat-shop? JANET Mr. Seagrave?... oh, I see. No. It’s not a man’s hat shop. It’s a lady’s _(takes off hat)_. This is one of ours. What do you think of it, Hester? HESTER _(frostily)_ It looks very expensive. JANET _(looking at it critically)_