第9章
MissBartlettatoncecameforward，andafteralongpreambleaskedagreatfavour:mightshegotochurch？Mr。Beebeandhismotherhadalreadygone，butshehadrefusedtostartuntilsheobtainedherhostess"sfullsanction，foritwouldmeankeepingthehorsewaitingagoodtenminutesmore。
"Certainly，"saidthehostesswearily。"IforgotitwasFriday。
Let"sallgo。Powellcangoroundtothestables。”
"Lucydearest——"
"Nochurchforme，thankyou。”
Asigh，andtheydeparted。Thechurchwasinvisible，butupinthedarknesstothelefttherewasahintofcolour。Thiswasastainedwindow，throughwhichsomefeeblelightwasshining，andwhenthedooropenedLucyheardMr。Beebe"svoicerunningthroughthelitanytoaminutecongregation。Eventheirchurch，builtupontheslopeofthehillsoartfully，withitsbeautifulraisedtranseptanditsspireofsilveryshingle——eventheirchurchhadlostitscharm；andthethingonenevertalkedabout——religion——
wasfadinglikealltheotherthings。
ShefollowedthemaidintotheRectory。
WouldsheobjecttosittinginMr。Beebe"sstudy？Therewasonlythatonefire。
Shewouldnotobject。
Someonewastherealready，forLucyheardthewords:"Aladytowait，sir。”
OldMr。Emersonwassittingbythefire，withhisfootuponagout-stool。
"Oh，MissHoneychurch，thatyoushouldcome!"hequavered；andLucysawanalterationinhimsincelastSunday。
Notawordwouldcometoherlips。Georgeshehadfaced，andcouldhavefacedagain，butshehadforgottenhowtotreathisfather。
"MissHoneychurch，dear，wearesosorry!Georgeissosorry!Hethoughthehadarighttotry。Icannotblamemyboy，andyetI
wishhehadtoldmefirst。Heoughtnottohavetried。Iknewnothingaboutitatall。”
Ifonlyshecouldrememberhowtobehave!
Hehelduphishand。"Butyoumustnotscoldhim。”
Lucyturnedherback，andbegantolookatMr。Beebe"sbooks。
"Itaughthim，"hequavered，"totrustinlove。Isaid:"Whenlovecomes，thatisreality。"Isaid:"Passiondoesnotblind。
No。Passionissanity，andthewomanyoulove，sheistheonlypersonyouwilleverreallyunderstand。""Hesighed:"True，everlastinglytrue，thoughmydayisover，andthoughthereistheresult。Poorboy!Heissosorry!Hesaidheknewitwasmadnesswhenyoubroughtyourcousinin；thatwhateveryoufeltyoudidnotmean。Yet"——hisvoicegatheredstrength:hespokeouttomakecertain——"MissHoneychurch，doyourememberItaly？"
Lucyselectedabook——avolumeofOldTestamentcommentaries。
Holdingituptohereyes，shesaid:"IhavenowishtodiscussItalyoranysubjectconnectedwithyourson。”
"Butyoudorememberit？"
"Hehasmisbehavedhimselffromthefirst。”
"IonlywastoldthathelovedyoulastSunday。Inevercouldjudgebehaviour。I——I——supposehehas。”
Feelingalittlesteadier，sheputthebookbackandturnedroundtohim。Hisfacewasdroopingandswollen，buthiseyes，thoughtheyweresunkendeep，gleamedwithachild"scourage。
"Why，hehasbehavedabominably，"shesaid。"Iamgladheissorry。Doyouknowwhathedid？"
"Not"abominably，""wasthegentlecorrection。"Heonlytriedwhenheshouldnothavetried。Youhaveallyouwant，MissHoneychurch:youaregoingtomarrythemanyoulove。DonotgooutofGeorge"slifesayingheisabominable。”
"No，ofcourse，"saidLucy，ashamedatthereferencetoCecil。
""Abominable"ismuchtoostrong。IamsorryIuseditaboutyourson。IthinkIwillgotochurch，afterall。Mymotherandmycousinhavegone。Ishallnotbesoverylate——"
"Especiallyashehasgoneunder，"hesaidquietly。
"Whatwasthat？"
"Goneundernaturally。”Hebeathispalmstogetherinsilence；
hisheadfellonhischest。
"Idon"tunderstand。”
"Ashismotherdid。”
"But，Mr。Emerson——MR。EMERSON——whatareyoutalkingabout？"
"WhenIwouldn"thaveGeorgebaptized，"saidhe。
Lucywasfrightened。
"Andsheagreedthatbaptismwasnothing，buthecaughtthatfeverwhenhewastwelveandsheturnedround。Shethoughtitajudgment。”Heshuddered。"Oh，horrible，whenwehadgivenupthatsortofthingandbrokenawayfromherparents。Oh，horrible——
worstofall——worsethandeath，whenyouhavemadealittleclearinginthewilderness，plantedyourlittlegarden，letinyoursunlight，andthentheweedscreepinagain!Ajudgment!Andourboyhadtyphoidbecausenoclergymanhaddroppedwateronhiminchurch!Isitpossible，MissHoneychurch？Shallweslipbackintothedarknessforever？"
"Idon"tknow，"gaspedLucy。"Idon"tunderstandthissortofthing。Iwasnotmeanttounderstandit。”
"ButMr。Eager——hecamewhenIwasout，andactedaccordingtohisprinciples。Idon"tblamehimoranyone……butbythetimeGeorgewaswellshewasill。Hemadeherthinkaboutsin，andshewentunderthinkingaboutit。”
ItwasthusthatMr。EmersonhadmurderedhiswifeinthesightofGod。
"Oh，howterrible!"saidLucy，forgettingherownaffairsatlast。
"Hewasnotbaptized，"saidtheoldman。"Ididholdfirm。”Andhelookedwithunwaveringeyesattherowsofbooks，asif——atwhatcost!——hehadwonavictoryoverthem。"Myboyshallgobacktotheearthuntouched。”
SheaskedwhetheryoungMr。Emersonwasill。
"Oh——lastSunday。”Hestartedintothepresent。"GeorgelastSunday——no，notill:justgoneunder。Heisneverill。Butheishismother"sson。Hereyeswerehis，andshehadthatforeheadthatIthinksobeautiful，andhewillnotthinkitworthwhiletolive。Itwasalwaystouchandgo。Hewilllive；buthewillnotthinkitworthwhiletolive。Hewillneverthinkanythingworthwhile。YourememberthatchurchatFlorence？"
Lucydidremember，andhowshehadsuggestedthatGeorgeshouldcollectpostagestamps。
"AfteryouleftFlorence——horrible。Thenwetookthehousehere，andhegoesbathingwithyourbrother，andbecamebetter。Yousawhimbathing？"
"Iamsosorry，butitisnogooddiscussingthisaffair。Iamdeeplysorryaboutit。”
"Thentherecamesomethingaboutanovel。Ididn"tfollowitatall；Ihadtohearsomuch，andhemindedtellingme；hefindsmetooold。Ah，well，onemusthavefailures。Georgecomesdownto-morrow，andtakesmeuptohisLondonrooms。Hecan"tbeartobeabouthere，andImustbewhereheis。”
"Mr。Emerson，"criedthegirl，"don"tleaveatleast，notonmyaccount。IamgoingtoGreece。Don"tleaveyourcomfortablehouse。”
Itwasthefirsttimehervoicehadbeenkindandhesmiled。"Howgoodeveryoneis!AndlookatMr。Beebehousingme——cameoverthismorningandheardIwasgoing!HereIamsocomfortablewithafire。”
"Yes，butyouwon"tgobacktoLondon。It"sabsurd。”
"ImustbewithGeorge；Imustmakehimcaretolive，anddownherehecan"t。Hesaysthethoughtofseeingyouandofhearingaboutyou——Iamnotjustifyinghim:Iamonlysayingwhathashappened。”
"Oh，Mr。Emerson"——shetookholdofhishand——"youmustn"t。I"vebeenbotherenoughtotheworldbynow。Ican"thaveyoumovingoutofyourhousewhenyoulikeit，andperhapslosingmoneythroughit——allonmyaccount。Youmuststop!IamjustgoingtoGreece。”
"AllthewaytoGreece？"
Hermanneraltered。
"ToGreece？"
"Soyoumuststop。Youwon"ttalkaboutthisbusiness，Iknow。I
cantrustyouboth。”
"Certainlyyoucan。Weeitherhaveyouinourlives，orleaveyoutothelifethatyouhavechosen。”
"Ishouldn"twant——"
"IsupposeMr。VyseisveryangrywithGeorge？No，itwaswrongofGeorgetotry。Wehavepushedourbeliefstoofar。Ifancythatwedeservesorrow。”
Shelookedatthebooksagain——black，brown，andthatacridtheologicalblue。Theysurroundedthevisitorsoneveryside；
theywerepiledonthetables，theypressedagainsttheveryceiling。ToLucywhocouldnotseethatMr。Emersonwasprofoundlyreligious，anddifferedfromMr。Beebechieflybyhisacknowledgmentofpassion——itseemeddreadfulthattheoldmanshouldcrawlintosuchasanctum，whenhewasunhappy，andbedependentonthebountyofaclergyman。
Morecertainthaneverthatshewastired，heofferedherhischair。
"No，pleasesitstill。IthinkIwillsitinthecarriage。”
"MissHoneychurch，youdosoundtired。”
"Notabit，"saidLucy，withtremblinglips。
"Butyouare，andthere"salookofGeorgeaboutyou。Andwhatwereyousayingaboutgoingabroad？"
Shewassilent。
"Greece"——andshesawthathewasthinkingthewordover——
"Greece；butyouweretobemarriedthisyear，Ithought。”
"NottillJanuary，itwasn"t，"saidLucy，claspingherhands。
Wouldshetellanactualliewhenitcametothepoint？
"IsupposethatMr。Vyseisgoingwithyou。Ihope——itisn"tbecauseGeorgespokethatyouarebothgoing？"
"No。”
"IhopethatyouwillenjoyGreecewithMr。Vyse。”
"Thankyou。”
AtthatmomentMr。Beebecamebackfromchurch。Hiscassockwascoveredwithrain。"That"sallright，"hesaidkindly。"Icountedonyoutwokeepingeachothercompany。It"spouringagain。Theentirecongregation，whichconsistsofyourcousin，yourmother，andmymother，standswaitinginthechurch，tillthecarriagefetchesit。DidPowellgoround？"
"Ithinkso；I"llsee。”
"No——ofcourse，I"llsee。HowaretheMissAlans？"
"Verywell，thankyou。”
"DidyoutellMr。EmersonaboutGreece？"
"I——Idid。”
"Don"tyouthinkitverypluckyofher，Mr。Emerson，toundertakethetwoMissAlans？Now，MissHoneychurch，goback——keepwarm。I
thinkthreeissuchacourageousnumbertogotravelling。”Andhehurriedofftothestables。
"Heisnotgoing，"shesaidhoarsely。"Imadeaslip。Mr。VysedoesstopbehindinEngland。”
Somehowitwasimpossibletocheatthisoldman。ToGeorge，toCecil，shewouldhaveliedagain；butheseemedsoneartheendofthings，sodignifiedinhisapproachtothegulf，ofwhichhegaveoneaccount，andthebooksthatsurroundedhimanother，somildtotheroughpathsthathehadtraversed，thatthetruechivalry——nottheworn-outchivalryofsex，butthetruechivalrythatalltheyoungmayshowtoalltheold——awokeinher，and，atwhateverrisk，shetoldhimthatCecilwasnothercompaniontoGreece。Andshespokesoseriouslythattheriskbecameacertainty，andhe，liftinghiseyes，said:"Youareleavinghim？
Youareleavingthemanyoulove？"
"I——Ihadto。”
"Why，MissHoneychurch，why？"
Terrorcameoverher，andsheliedagain。Shemadethelong，convincingspeechthatshehadmadetoMr。Beebe，andintendedtomaketotheworldwhensheannouncedthatherengagementwasnomore。Heheardherinsilence，andthensaid:"Mydear，Iamworriedaboutyou。Itseemstome"——dreamily；shewasnotalarmed——"thatyouareinamuddle。”
Sheshookherhead。
"Takeanoldman"sword；there"snothingworsethanamuddleinalltheworld。ItiseasytofaceDeathandFate，andthethingsthatsoundsodreadful。ItisonmymuddlesthatIlookbackwithhorror——onthethingsthatImighthaveavoided。Wecanhelponeanotherbutlittle。IusedtothinkIcouldteachyoungpeoplethewholeoflife，butIknowbetternow，andallmyteachingofGeorgehascomedowntothis:bewareofmuddle。Doyourememberinthatchurch，whenyoupretendedtobeannoyedwithmeandweren"t？Doyourememberbefore，whenyourefusedtheroomwiththeview？Thoseweremuddles——little，butominous——andIamfearingthatyouareinonenow。”Shewassilent。"Don"ttrustme，MissHoneychurch。Thoughlifeisveryglorious，itisdifficult。”Shewasstillsilent。""Life"wroteafriendofmine，"isapublicperformanceontheviolin，inwhichyoumustlearntheinstrumentasyougoalong。"Ithinkheputsitwell。Manhastopickuptheuseofhisfunctionsashegoesalong——especiallythefunctionofLove。”Thenheburstoutexcitedly；"That"sit；
that"swhatImean。YouloveGeorge!"Andafterhislongpreamble，thethreewordsburstagainstLucylikewavesfromtheopensea。
"Butyoudo，"hewenton，notwaitingforcontradiction。"Youlovetheboybodyandsoul，plainly，directly，ashelovesyou，andnootherwordexpressesit。Youwon"tmarrytheothermanforhissake。”
"Howdareyou!"gaspedLucy，withtheroaringofwatersinherears。"Oh，howlikeaman!——Imean，tosupposethatawomanisalwaysthinkingaboutaman。”
"Butyouare。”
Shesummonedphysicaldisgust。
"You"reshocked，butImeantoshockyou。It"stheonlyhopeattimes。Icanreachyounootherway。Youmustmarry，oryourlifewillbewasted。Youhavegonetoofartoretreat。Ihavenotimeforthetenderness，andthecomradeship，andthepoetry，andthethingsthatreallymatter，andforwhichyoumarry。Iknowthat，withGeorge，youwillfindthem，andthatyoulovehim。Thenbehiswife。Heisalreadypartofyou。ThoughyouflytoGreece，andneverseehimagain，orforgethisveryname，Georgewillworkinyourthoughtstillyoudie。Itisn"tpossibletoloveandtopart。Youwillwishthatitwas。Youcantransmutelove，ignoreit，muddleit，butyoucanneverpullitoutofyou。I
knowbyexperiencethatthepoetsareright:loveiseternal。”
Lucybegantocrywithanger，andthoughherangerpassedawaysoon，hertearsremained。
"Ionlywishpoetswouldsaythis，too:loveisofthebody；notthebody，butofthebody。Ah!themiserythatwouldbesavedifweconfessedthat!Ah!foralittledirectnesstoliberatethesoul!Yoursoul，dearLucy!Ihatethewordnow，becauseofallthecantwithwhichsuperstitionhaswrappeditround。Butwehavesouls。Icannotsayhowtheycamenorwhithertheygo，butwehavethem，andIseeyouruiningyours。Icannotbearit。Itisagainthedarknesscreepingin；itishell。”Thenhecheckedhimself。"WhatnonsenseIhavetalked——howabstractandremote!
AndIhavemadeyoucry!Deargirl，forgivemyprosiness；marrymyboy。WhenIthinkwhatlifeis，andhowseldomloveisansweredbylove——Marryhim；itisoneofthemomentsforwhichtheworldwasmade。”
Shecouldnotunderstandhim；thewordswereindeedremote。Yetashespokethedarknesswaswithdrawn，veilafterveil，andshesawtothebottomofhersoul。
"Then，Lucy——"
"You"vefrightenedme，"shemoaned。"Cecil——Mr。Beebe——theticket"sbought——everything。”Shefellsobbingintothechair。
"I"mcaughtinthetangle。Imustsufferandgrowoldawayfromhim。Icannotbreakthewholeoflifeforhissake。Theytrustedme。”
Acarriagedrewupatthefront-door。
"GiveGeorgemylove——onceonly。Tellhim"muddle。""Thenshearrangedherveil，whilethetearspouredoverhercheeksinside。
"Lucy——"
"No——theyareinthehall——oh，pleasenot，Mr。Emerson——theytrustme——"
"Butwhyshouldthey，whenyouhavedeceivedthem？"
Mr。Beebeopenedthedoor，saying:"Here"smymother。”
"You"renotworthyoftheirtrust。”
"What"sthat？"saidMr。Beebesharply。
"Iwassaying，whyshouldyoutrustherwhenshedeceivedyou？"
"Oneminute，mother。”Hecameinandshutthedoor。
"Idon"tfollowyou，Mr。Emerson。Towhomdoyourefer？Trustwhom？"
"ImeanshehaspretendedtoyouthatshedidnotloveGeorge。
Theyhavelovedoneanotherallalong。”
Mr。Beebelookedatthesobbinggirl。Hewasveryquiet，andhiswhiteface，withitsruddywhiskers，seemedsuddenlyinhuman。A
longblackcolumn，hestoodandawaitedherreply。
"Ishallnevermarryhim，"quaveredLucy。
Alookofcontemptcameoverhim，andhesaid，"Whynot？"
"Mr。Beebe——Ihavemisledyou——Ihavemisledmyself——"
"Oh，rubbish，MissHoneychurch!"
"Itisnotrubbish!"saidtheoldmanhotly。"It"sthepartofpeoplethatyoudon"tunderstand。”
Mr。Beebelaidhishandontheoldman"sshoulderpleasantly。
"Lucy!Lucy!"calledvoicesfromthecarriage。
"Mr。Beebe，couldyouhelpme？"
Helookedamazedattherequest，andsaidinalow，sternvoice:
"IammoregrievedthanIcanpossiblyexpress。Itislamentable，lamentable——incredible。”
"What"swrongwiththeboy？"fireduptheotheragain。
"Nothing，Mr。Emerson，exceptthathenolongerinterestsme。
MarryGeorge，MissHoneychurch。Hewilldoadmirably。”
Hewalkedoutandleftthem。Theyheardhimguidinghismotherup-stairs。
"Lucy!"thevoicescalled。
SheturnedtoMr。Emersonindespair。Buthisfacerevivedher。Itwasthefaceofasaintwhounderstood。
"Nowitisalldark。NowBeautyandPassionseemnevertohaveexisted。Iknow。ButrememberthemountainsoverFlorenceandtheview。Ah，dear，ifIwereGeorge，andgaveyouonekiss，itwouldmakeyoubrave。Youhavetogocoldintoabattlethatneedswarmth，outintothemuddlethatyouhavemadeyourself；andyourmotherandallyourfriendswilldespiseyou，oh，mydarling，andrightly，ifitiseverrighttodespise。Georgestilldark，allthetussleandthemiserywithoutawordfromhim。AmI
justified？"Intohisowneyestearscame。"Yes，forwefightformorethanLoveorPleasure；thereisTruth。Truthcounts，Truthdoescount。”
"Youkissme，"saidthegirl。"Youkissme。Iwilltry。”
Hegaveherasenseofdeitiesreconciled，afeelingthat，ingainingthemansheloved，shewouldgainsomethingforthewholeworld。Throughoutthesqualorofherhomewarddrive——shespokeatonce——hissalutationremained。Hehadrobbedthebodyofitstaint，theworld"stauntsoftheirsting；hehadshownhertheholinessofdirectdesire。She"neverexactlyunderstood，"shewouldsayinafteryears，"howhemanagedtostrengthenher。Itwasasifhehadmadeherseethewholeofeverythingatonce。”
ChapterXX:TheEndoftheMiddleAgesTheMissAlansdidgotoGreece，buttheywentbythemselves。
TheyaloneofthislittlecompanywilldoubleMaleaandploughthewatersoftheSaronicgulf。TheyalonewillvisitAthensandDelphi，andeithershrineofintellectualsong——thatupontheAcropolis，encircledbyblueseas；thatunderParnassus，wheretheeaglesbuildandthebronzecharioteerdrivesundismayedtowardsinfinity。Trembling，anxious，cumberedwithmuchdigestivebread，theydidproceedtoConstantinople，theydidgoroundtheworld。Therestofusmustbecontentedwithafair，butalessarduous，goal。Italiampetimus:wereturntothePensionBertolini。
Georgesaiditwashisoldroom。
"No，itisn"t，"saidLucy；"becauseitistheroomIhad，andI
hadyourfather"sroom。Iforgetwhy；Charlottemademe，forsomereason。”
Hekneltonthetiledfloor，andlaidhisfaceinherlap。
"George，youbaby，getup。”
"Whyshouldn"tIbeababy？"murmuredGeorge。
Unabletoanswerthisquestion，sheputdownhissock，whichshewastryingtomend，andgazedoutthroughthewindow。Itwaseveningandagainthespring。
"Oh，botherCharlotte，"shesaidthoughtfully。"Whatcansuchpeoplebemadeof？"
"Samestuffasparsonsaremadeof。”
"Nonsense!"
"Quiteright。Itisnonsense。”
"Nowyougetupoffthecoldfloor，oryou"llbestartingrheumatismnext，andyoustoplaughingandbeingsosilly。”
"Whyshouldn"tIlaugh？"heasked，pinningherwithhiselbows，andadvancinghisfacetohers。"What"stheretocryat？Kissmehere。”Heindicatedthespotwhereakisswouldbewelcome。
Hewasaboyafterall。Whenitcametothepoint，itwasshewhorememberedthepast，sheintowhosesoultheironhadentered，shewhoknewwhoseroomthishadbeenlastyear。Itendearedhimtoherstrangelythatheshouldbesometimeswrong。
"Anyletters？"heasked。
"JustalinefromFreddy。”
"Nowkissmehere；thenhere。”
Then，threatenedagainwithrheumatism，hestrolledtothewindow，openedit(astheEnglishwill)，andleantout。Therewastheparapet，theretheriver，theretotheleftthebeginningsofthehills。Thecab-driver，whoatoncesalutedhimwiththehissofaserpent，mightbethatveryPhaethonwhohadsetthishappinessinmotiontwelvemonthsago。Apassionofgratitude——
allfeelingsgrowtopassionsintheSouth——cameoverthehusband，andheblessedthepeopleandthethingswhohadtakensomuchtroubleaboutayoungfool。Hehadhelpedhimself，itistrue，buthowstupidly!
Allthefightingthatmatteredhadbeendonebyothers——byItaly，byhisfather，byhiswife。
"Lucy，youcomeandlookatthecypresses；andthechurch，whateveritsnameis，stillshows。”
"SanMiniato。I"lljustfinishyoursock。”
"Signorino，domanifaremounogiro，"calledthecabman，withengagingcertainty。
Georgetoldhimthathewasmistaken；theyhadnomoneytothrowawayondriving。
Andthepeoplewhohadnotmeanttohelp——theMissLavishes，theCecils，theMissBartletts!EverpronetomagnifyFate，Georgecounteduptheforcesthathadswepthimintothiscontentment。
"AnythinggoodinFreddy"sletter？"
"Notyet。”
Hisowncontentwasabsolute，buthersheldbitterness:theHoneychurcheshadnotforgiventhem；theyweredisgustedatherpasthypocrisy；shehadalienatedWindyCorner，perhapsforever。
"Whatdoeshesay？"
"Sillyboy!Hethinkshe"sbeingdignified。Heknewweshouldgooffinthespring——hehasknownitforsixmonths——thatifmotherwouldn"tgiveherconsentweshouldtakethethingintoourownhands。Theyhadfairwarning，andnowhecallsitanelopement。
Ridiculousboy——"
"Signorino，domanifaremounogiro——"
"Butitwillallcomerightintheend。Hehastobuildusbothupfromthebeginningagain。Iwish，though，thatCecilhadnotturnedsocynicalaboutwomen。Hehas，forthesecondtime，quitealtered。Whywillmenhavetheoriesaboutwomen？Ihaven"tanyaboutmen。Iwish，too，thatMr。Beebe——"
"Youmaywellwishthat。”
"Hewillneverforgiveus——Imean，hewillneverbeinterestedinusagain。IwishthathedidnotinfluencethemsomuchatWindyCorner。Iwishhehadn"t——Butifweactthetruth，thepeoplewhoreallyloveusaresuretocomebacktousinthelongrun。”
"Perhaps。”Thenhesaidmoregently:"Well，Iactedthetruth——
theonlythingIdiddo——andyoucamebacktome。Sopossiblyyouknow。”Heturnedbackintotheroom。"Nonsensewiththatsock。”
Hecarriedhertothewindow，sothatshe，too，sawalltheview。
Theysankupontheirknees，invisiblefromtheroad，theyhoped，andbegantowhisperoneanother"snames。Ah!itwasworthwhile；
itwasthegreatjoythattheyhadexpected，andcountlesslittlejoysofwhichtheyhadneverdreamt。Theyweresilent。
"Signorino，domanifaremo——"
"Oh，botherthatman!"
ButLucyrememberedthevendorofphotographsandsaid，"No，don"tberudetohim。”Thenwithacatchingofherbreath，shemurmured:"Mr。EagerandCharlotte，dreadfulfrozenCharlotte。
Howcruelshewouldbetoamanlikethat!"
"Lookatthelightsgoingoverthebridge。”
"ButthisroomremindsmeofCharlotte。HowhorribletogrowoldinCharlotte"sway!Tothinkthateveningattherectorythatsheshouldn"thaveheardyourfatherwasinthehouse。Forshewouldhavestoppedmegoingin，andhewastheonlypersonalivewhocouldhavemademeseesense。Youcouldn"thavemademe。WhenI
amveryhappy"——shekissedhim——"Irememberonhowlittleitallhangs。IfCharlottehadonlyknown，shewouldhavestoppedmegoingin，andIshouldhavegonetosillyGreece，andbecomedifferentforever。”
"Butshedidknow，"saidGeorge；"shedidseemyfather，surely。
Hesaidso。”
"Oh，no，shedidn"tseehim。ShewasupstairswitholdMrs。
Beebe，don"tyouremember，andthenwentstraighttothechurch。
Shesaidso。”
Georgewasobstinateagain。"Myfather，"saidhe，"sawher，andI
preferhisword。Hewasdozingbythestudyfire，andheopenedhiseyes，andtherewasMissBartlett。Afewminutesbeforeyoucamein。Shewasturningtogoashewokeup。Hedidn"tspeaktoher。”
Thentheyspokeofotherthings——thedesultorytalkofthosewhohavebeenfightingtoreachoneanother，andwhoserewardistorestquietlyineachother"sarms。ItwaslongeretheyreturnedtoMissBartlett，butwhentheydidherbehaviourseemedmoreinteresting。George，whodislikedanydarkness，said:"It"sclearthatsheknew。Then，whydidsheriskthemeeting？Sheknewhewasthere，andyetshewenttochurch。”
Theytriedtopiecethethingtogether。
Astheytalked，anincrediblesolutioncameintoLucy"smind。Sherejectedit，andsaid:"HowlikeCharlottetoundoherworkbyafeeblemuddleatthelastmoment。”Butsomethinginthedyingevening，intheroaroftheriver，intheirveryembracewarnedthemthatherwordsfellshortoflife，andGeorgewhispered:"Ordidshemeanit？"
"Meanwhat？"
"Signorino，domanifaremounogiro——"
Lucybentforwardandsaidwithgentleness:"Lascia，prego，lascia。Siamosposati。”
"Scusitanto，signora，"herepliedintonesasgentleandwhippeduphishorse。
"Buonasera——egrazie。”
"Niente。”
Thecabmandroveawaysinging。
"Meanwhat，George？"
Hewhispered:"Isitthis？Isthispossible？I"llputamarveltoyou。Thatyourcousinhasalwayshoped。Thatfromtheveryfirstmomentwemet，shehoped，fardowninhermind，thatweshouldbelikethis——ofcourse，veryfardown。Thatshefoughtusonthesurface，andyetshehoped。Ican"texplainheranyotherway。
Canyou？Lookhowshekeptmealiveinyouallthesummer；howshegaveyounopeace；howmonthaftermonthshebecamemoreeccentricandunreliable。Thesightofushauntedher——orshecouldn"thavedescribedusasshedidtoherfriend。Therearedetails——itburnt。Ireadthebookafterwards。Sheisnotfrozen，Lucy，sheisnotwitheredupallthrough。Shetoreusaparttwice，butintherectorythateveningshewasgivenonemorechancetomakeushappy。Wecannevermakefriendswithherorthankher。ButIdobelievethat，fardowninherheart，farbelowallspeechandbehaviour，sheisglad。”
"Itisimpossible，"murmuredLucy，andthen，rememberingtheexperiencesofherownheart，shesaid:"No——itisjustpossible。”
Youthenwrappedthem；thesongofPhaethonannouncedpassionrequited，loveattained。Buttheywereconsciousofalovemoremysteriousthanthis。Thesongdiedaway；theyheardtheriver，bearingdownthesnowsofwinterintotheMediterranean。