Had he voiced his thoughts, they might then and there have thrashed their differences out in half an hour. But he could not voice them. For the first time in their friendship, neither of them was candid when candor was the sensible course. "This comes of caring for a woman not wisely but too well," thought Robert. He was amazed and incredulous to find that he cared so much; he was also a little indignant with himself, for he had vowed never to do that very thing. "Don’t be alarmed," he heard Janet saying. "I’m not going to impress you into the cause. You have bigger fish to fry than the feminist movement. As for me, I’ve had a very good offer from Mrs. R. H. L. Jerome." She sketched a picture of this whimsical lady, and gave a short account of Mrs. Jerome’s interest in the organized effort to rid women of their professional disabilities. Robert learned that Mrs. Jerome had repeatedly expressed a desire to put Janet to some use in the cause she had at heart. "The work would be quite in line with my old plans," added Janet. "Then why don’t you accept her offer at once?" "I wish I knew," she said, evasively. "Perhaps I can do all I’ve wanted to do, and more, if I follow the beaten track, if I buy cheap and sell dear in the marriage market; in short, give as little of myself as I can to the richest bidder that offers. What do you think?" "I think a cynical step of that sort would do very well for Mazie, whose words you appear to be repeating." "Oh, don’t underrate Mazie’s cynicism. It has been hammered into a durable, serviceable instrument by some very hard knocks. Knocks that she got from men. Her flippant manner often obscures some very sound remarks, like the one that there’ll be no equality between the sexes until women exploit men as shamelessly as men exploit women." "Doesn’t the modern woman do this, already?" asked Robert, with a smile. "How often does she get the same chance? It’s equality of chances that I’m aiming for, you know." "So am I for that matter," said Robert. "I hope we’ll get your equality of chances before long. Then we can work together for decency." It was close upon midnight when they took a taxi back to the Boulevard Haussman. Not a soul was stirring in the Maison Paulette. Robert and Janet walked through the corridor on the _rez-de-chausée_ to the rear building, the one used for sleeping quarters. For a few minutes they stopped in the vestibule at the foot of the staircase.