human
I begin to understand how it is that people take to drinking,
gpt
Ah! don't talk of it in that light way! cried Algitha.
human
It is the fashion to treat it airily, but if people only knew what an awful curse it is, I think they would feel ashamed to be 'moderate' and indifferent about it.
gpt
I don't mean to treat it or anything that brings harm and suffering 'moderately,' returned Hadria.
human
I mean only that I can see why the vice is so common. It causes forgetfulness, and I suppose most people crave for that.
gpt
I think, Hadria, if I may be allowed to say so, that you are finding your excitement in another direction.
human
You mean that I am trying to find a substitute for the pleasures of drunkenness in those of flirtation.
gpt
I should not like to think that you had descended to _conscious_ flirtation.