The Second Mrs. Tanqueray: A Play in Four Acts

AUBREY TANQUERAY's Chambers in the Albany--a richly and tastefully decorated room, elegantly and luxuriously furnished: on the right a large pair of doors opening into another room, on the left at the further end of the room a small door leading to a bedchamber. A circular table is laid for a dinner for four persons which has now reached the stage of dessert and coffee. Everything in the apartment suggests wealth and refinement. The fire is burning brightly.

AUBREY TANQUERAY, MISQUITH, and JAYNE are seated at the dinner-table. AUBREY is forty-two, handsome, winning in manner, his speech and bearing retaining some of the qualities of young-manhood. MISQUITH is about forty-seven, genial and portly. JAYNE is a year or two MISQUITH's senior; soft-speaking and precise--in appearance a type of the prosperous town physician. MORSE, AUBREY's servant, places a little cabinet of cigars and the spirit-lamp on the table beside AUBREY, and goes out.

MISQUITH.

Aubrey, it is a pleasant yet dreadful fact to contemplate, but it's nearly fifteen years since I first dined with you. You lodged in Piccadilly in those days, over a hat-shop. Jayne, I met you at that dinner, and Cayley Drummle.

JAYNE.

Yes, yes. What a pity it is that Cayley isn't here to-night.

AUBREY.

Confound the old gossip! His empty chair has been staring us in the face all through dinner. I ought to have told Morse to take it away.

MISQUITH.

Odd, his sending no excuse.

AUBREY.

I'll walk round to his lodgings later on and ask after him.

MISQUITH.

I'll go with you.

JAYNE.

So will I.

AUBREY.

[_Opening the cigar-cabinet._] Doctor, it's useless to tempt you, I know. Frank--[MISQUITH and AUBREY _smoke._] I particularly wished Cayley Drummle to be one of us to-night. You two fellows and Cayley are my closest, my best friends----

MISQUITH.

My dear Aubrey!

JAYNE.

I rejoice to hear you say so.

AUBREY.

And I wanted to see the three of you round this table. You can't guess the reason.

MISQUITH.

You desired to give us a most excellent dinner.

JAYNE.

Obviously.

AUBREY.

[_Hesitatingly._] Well--I--[_glancing at the clock_]--Cayley won't turn up now.

JAYNE.

H'm, hardly.

AUBREY.

Then you two shall hear it. Doctor, Frank, this is the last time we are to meet in these rooms.

JAYNE.

The last time?

MISQUITH.

You're going to leave the Albany?

AUBREY.

Yes. You've heard me speak of a house I built in the country years ago, haven't you?