‘How much for?’

‘A guinea, ten guineas.’

‘And are they good? What are they?’

‘I think sometimes they are marvellously good. That is hers, those two wagtails in Hermione’s boudoir — you’ve seen them — they are carved in wood and painted.’

‘I thought it was savage carving again.’

‘No, hers. That’s what they are — animals and birds, sometimes odd small people in everyday dress, really rather wonderful when they come off. They have a sort of funniness that is quite unconscious and subtle.’

‘She might be a well-known artist one day?’ mused Gerald.