1. Why did Ben accept the invitation to spend a weekend at the Thayers’ when he hated staying ate somebody else’s house?

Ben was bothered a lot recently. He needed to have a rest and his wife noticed it too. She said after the show was over in New York she was going to make him sit at home doing nothing for the whole month. But Mrs. Thayer made a very tempting suggestion to them: she wanted them to spend a week at their place. She said it would be a Liberty Hall for them and if somebody asked for them, Mrs. Thayer would pretend they were not at home. Even though Drake abhored visiting, he hated it, he liked the suggestion. He decided, that if they stuck to their promise to keep them under cover it would be better than staying in New York. He knew that reporters, photographs and phonograph people would bother him in New York, he didn’t want it. But if the visit seemed unbearable to him, Irene’s telegram would provide them with an easy way out.

2. Would you say that the day Ben spent at the Thayers’ was rather trying for him? Why? Wasn’t he entertained properly?

Yes, it was quite trying for him, because instead of peace and Liberty Hall that he was promised he got only irritation and anger. Mrs. Thayer imposed her point of view, she didn’t give him a minute’s peace. She bothered him with silly questions and merely prevented him from doing what he wanted: to drink coffee black, to smoke his favorite cigarettes, to play the piano when he wanted to, to read the book he liked, to sit on the chair he liked to sit on, to listen to the record he liked and etc.

Although the hostess thought she did everything possible to please and entertain her guests, her imposive hospitality made negative and irritative effect on their guests.

3. How did Mr. Drake use the popular belief that geniuses are eccentric?

Mr. Drake used the popular belief in order to curtail his visit in the Thayer’s house. When he understood that the scheme he hit on didn’t work, he found quite a graceful method of leaving the house without accusing the hostess. He told her that he had premonitions and hunches, that he was needed in New York that evening. But the method was quite eccentric for the hostess, she lacked sense of humor and Mr. Drake’s words scared her to death. She decided that it was her duty to let them go and confess that she answered the telegram. Although the new method Drake hit on was eccentric, the effect was quite successful.

4. Why did m. Lautisse accept Gregg’s invitation to spend a weekend in their home?

There were several reasons for his agreement. First of all, he liked the couple. Lautisse was travelling to America incognito and asked the Greggs to keep his name in secret. They made a promise, but there was one more thing: the artist hadn’t been painting for a long time and he said he would never take the brush again. So the talks of art were prohibited.

Also, Lautisse was known like a famous artist who lived alone in his villa for a very long time and never saw anyone except for his servants, so I think one more reason was that he lived quite a boring life and wanted to communicate with other people.