Quotation from: The Little Lady of the Big House

Written by: Jack London

CHAPTER XX

Once again the tide of guests ebbed from the Big House, and more than
one lunch and dinner found only the two men and Paula at the table. On
such evenings, while Graham and Dick yarned for their hour before bed,
Paula no longer played soft things to herself at the piano, but sat
with them doing fine embroidery and listening to the talk.

Both men had much in common, had lived life in somewhat similar ways,
and regarded life from the same angles. Their philosophy was harsh
rather than sentimental, and both were realists. Paula made a practice
of calling them the pair of "Brass Tacks."