THE   AMBASSADORS
" Oh dear, yes."
"Ah then—!"
"Ah then what?"
Strether had, after all, to think. "Well, I'm sorry for them."
But it didn't matter, for the moment, more than that. He assured
his young friend he was quite content. They wouldn't stir; were
all right as they were. He didn't want to be introduced ; had been
introduced already about as far as he could go. He had seen
moreover an immensity; liked Gloriani, who, as Miss Barrace kept
saying, was wonderful; had made out, he was sure, the half-dozen
other men who were distinguished, the artists, the critics and, oh, the
great dramatist—7m'ot it was easy to spot; but wanted—no, thanks,
really—to talk with none of them; having nothing at all to say and
finding it would do beautifully as it was; do beautifully because
what it was—well, was just simply too late. And when, after this, lit-
tle Bilham, submissive and responsive, but with an eye to the conso-
lation nearest, easily threw off some " Better late than never !" all he
got in return for it was a sharp "Better early than late!" This
note, indeed, the next thing, overflowed, for Strether, into a quiet
stream of demonstration that, as soon as he had let himself go,
he felt as the real relief. It had consciously gathered to a head, but
the reservoir had filled sooner than he knew, and his companion's
touch was to make the waters spread. There were some things that
had to come in time if they were to come at all. If they didn't
come in time they were lost forever. It was the general sense of
them that had overwhelmed him with its long, slow rush.
"It's not too late for you, on any side, and you don't strike
me as in danger of missing the train; besides which people can be
in general pretty well trusted, of course—with the clock of their
freedom ticking as loud as it seems to do here—to keep an eye on
the fleeting hour. All the same, don't forget that you're young—
blessedly young; be glad of it, on the contrary, and live up to it.
Live all you can; it's a mistake not to. It doesn't so much matter
what you do in particular, so long as you have your life. If you
haven't had that, what have you had ? This place and these impres-
sions—mild as you may find them to wind a man up so ; all my im-
pressions of Chad and of people I've seen at his place—well, have
had their abundant message for me, have just dropped that into my
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