"I'm coming, dear; and, Sarah--"; then she whispered something, finishing with--"for supper, when we come home." "Are you coming to-night?" "Yes, dear; have you got the opera glass?" "No; where is it?" "In the drawer there. Sarah, have a good fire on, and--" and then followed more whispered injunctions, concluding with "for breakfast." When they were seated in the cab, Mrs. M'Cranky said: "Have you got the tickets, dear?" "No; con--found it. Hi! cabby; turn back; that's the worst of taking women anywhere." "How, dear; can you get in without a ticket?" Mr. M'Cranky was so long looking for the tickets that Mrs. M'Cranky went into help him, but he had just discovered them in his topcoat pocket. "What did you worry me about the tickets for?" he asked, angrily. "I had them all right." "Sarah, have you put out the----?" "Oh, come on." In paying the cabman, M'Cranky found he hadn't the necessary sixpence, and after fumbling in his pockets, he asked his wife: "Have you a sixpence?" "No, dear, I'm sorry." "H'm! you never have any money." "I know, dear; I wish you would give me some more frequently." The doors were not open, and M'Cranky's small stock of patience had long been exhausted, and though he had been bustling his wife, he said: "Now, you see! you would rush me out; we've half an hour to wait. Just like you women; no idea of the value of time. I might have had a comfortable smoke." "Do you make money smoking, dear? we ought to be quite wealthy." Though there was a considerable time to wait, Mrs. M'Cranky quite enjoyed herself, studying the dresses of the new arrivals, and pleased to bow to those she knew, as it showed them she had a considerate husband, and M'Cranky had the satisfactory feeling that he had done his duty as a husband. On their return from the concert, Mrs. M'Cranky observed her husband taking the missing watch-key from his vest pocket; but her previous experiences in similar circumstances made her take no notice of his mistake. THE SINGING LESSON