第10章
mean——they"llSAYsomething——"
"Whatiftheydo？"
Shemovedhershouldersinalittleapprehensiveshiver。"It"llchangeyou，"shesaid。"I"mjustsuresomethingspiteful"sgoingtohappentome。You"llfeeldifferentlyabout——things。"
"Now，isn"tthatanidea!"heexclaimed。
"Itwill，"sheinsisted。"Iknowsomethingspiteful"sgoingtohappen!"
"Youseempossessedbyanotionnotabitflatteringtome，"heremarked。
"Oh，butisn"tit？That"sjustwhatitis!Whyisn"tit？"
"BecauseitimpliesthatI"mmadeofsuchsoftmaterialtheslightestbreezewillmessmeallup。I"mnotsolikethatasI
evidentlyappear；andifit"struethatwe"reafraidotherpeoplewilldothethingswe"dbemostlikelytodoourselves，itseemstomethatIoughttobetheonetobeafraid。IoughttobeafraidthatsomebodymaysaysomethingaboutmetoyouthatwillmakeyoubelieveI"maprofessionalforger。"
"No。Webothknowtheywon"t，"shesaid。"Webothknowyou"rethesortofpersoneverybodyintheworldsaysnicethingsabout。"Sheliftedherhandtosilencehimashelaughedatthis。"Oh，ofcourseyouare!Ithinkperhapsyou"realittleflirtatious——mostquietmenhavethatoneslywaywith"em——oh，yes，theydo!Butyouhappentobethekindofmaneverybodylovestopraise。Andifyouweren"t，_I_shouldn"thearanythingterribleaboutyou。ItoldyouIwasunpopular:Idon"tseeanybodyatallanymore。Theonlymanexceptyouwho"sbeentoseemeinamonthisthatfearfullittlefatFrankDowling，andI
sentwordtoHIMIwasn"thome。Nobody"dtellmeofyourwickedness，yousee。"
"Thenletmebreaksomenewstoyou，"Russellsaid。"Nobodywouldtellmeofyours，either。Nobody"sevenmentionedyoutome。"
Sheburlesquedacryofanguish。"ThatISobscurity!IsupposeI"mtooapttoforgetthattheysaythepopulation"sabouthalfamillionnowadays。ThereAREotherpeopletotalkabout，youfeel，then？"
"NonethatIwantto，"hesaid。"ButIshouldthinkthesizeoftheplacemightrelieveyourmindofwhatseemstoinsistonburdeningit。Besides，I"dratheryouthoughtmeabettermanthanyoudo。"
"WhatkindofamandoIthinkyouare？"
"Thekindaffectedbywhat"ssaidaboutpeopleinsteadofbywhattheydothemselves。"
"Aren"tyou？"
"No，I"mnot，"hesaid。"Ifyouwantoursummereveningstobeoveryou"llhavetodrivemeawayyourself。"
"Nobodyelsecould？"
"No。"
Shewassilent，leaningforward，withherelbowsonherkneesandherclaspedhandsagainstherlips。Then，notmoving，shesaidsoftly:
"Well——Iwon"t!"
Shewassilentagain，andhesaidnothing，butlookedather，seemingtobecontentwithlooking。Herattitudewasoneonlyagracefulpersonshouldassume，butshewasgraceful；and，inthewanlight，whichmadeaprettilyshapedmistofher，shehadbeauty。Perhapsitwasbeautyofthehour，andofthelovescenealmostmadeintoformbywhattheyhadbothjustsaid，butshehadit；andthoughbeautyofthehourpasses，hewhoseesitwilllongrememberitandthehourwhenitcame。
"Whatareyouthinkingof？"heasked。
Sheleanedbackinherchairanddidnotansweratonce。Thenshesaid:
"Idon"tknow；IdoubtifIwasthinkingofanything。ItseemstomeIwasn"t。IthinkIwasjustbeingsortofsadlyhappyjustthen。"
"Wereyou？Wasit"sadly，"too？"
"Don"tyouknow？"shesaid。"Itseemstomethatonlylittlechildrencanbejusthappilyhappy。IthinkwhenwegetolderourhappiestmomentsareliketheoneIhadjustthen:it"sasifweheardstrainsofminormusicrunningthroughthem——oh，sosweet，butoh，sosad!"
"ButwhatmakesitsadforYOU？"
"Idon"tknow，"shesaid，inalightertone。"Perhapsit"sakindofuselessforebodingIseemtohaveprettyoften。Itmaybethat——oritmaybepoorpapa。"
"YouAREafunny，delightfulgirl，though!"Russelllaughed。
"Whenyourfather"ssowellagainthathegoesoutwalkingintheevenings!"
"Hedoestoomuchwalking，"Alicesaid。"Toomuchaltogether，overathisnewplant。Butthereisn"tanystoppinghim。"Shelaughedandshookherhead。"Whenamangetsanambitiontobeamulti-millionairehisfamilydon"tappeartohavemuchweightwithhim。He"llwalkallhewantsto，inspiteofthem。"
"Isupposeso，"Russellsaid，absently；thenheleanedforward。
"IwishIcouldunderstandbetterwhyyouwere"sadly"happy。"
Meanwhile，asAliceshedwhatfurtherlightshecouldonthispoint，themanambitioustobea"multi-millionaire"wasindeedwalkingtoomuchforhisowngood。Hehadgonetobed，hopingtosleepwellandriseearlyforalongday"swork，buthecouldnotrest，andnow，inhisnightgownandslippers，hewaspacingthefloorofhisroom。
"IwishIDIDknow，"hethought，overandover。"IDOwishI
knewhowhefeelsaboutit。"
CHAPTERXVIII
Thatwasathoughtalmostcontinuouslyinhismind，evenwhenhewashardestatwork；and，asthedayswentonandhecouldnotfreehimself，hebecamequerulousaboutit。"IguessI"mthebiggestdangfoolalive，"hetoldhiswifeastheysattogetheroneevening。"Igotplentyelsetobotherme，withoutworryingmyheadoffaboutwhatHEthinks。Ican"thelpwhathethinks；
it"stoolateforthat。SowhyshouldIkeeppesteringmyselfaboutit？"
"It"llwearoff，Virgil，"Mrs。Adamssaid，reassuringly。Shewasgentleandsympatheticwithhim，andforthefirsttimeinmanyyearshewouldcometositwithherandtalk，whenhehadfinishedhisday"swork。Hehadtoldher，evadinghereye，"Oh，Idon"tblameyou。Youdidn"tgetaftermetodothisonyourownaccount；youcouldn"thelpit。"
"Yes；butitdon"twearoff，"hecomplained。"ThisafternoonI
wasshowingthemenhowIwantedmyvatstogo，andIcaughtmyfoolselfstandingtheresayingtomyfoolself，"It"sfunnyI
don"thearhowhefeelsaboutitfromSOMEbody。"Iwassayingitaloud，almost——anditISfunnyIdon"thearanything!"
"Well，youseewhatitmeans，don"tyou，Virgil？Itonlymeanshehasn"tsaidanythingtoanybodyaboutit。Don"tyouthinkyou"regettingkindofmorbidoverit？"
"Maybe，maybe，"hemuttered。
"Why，yes，"shesaid，briskly。"Youdon"trealizewhatalittlebitofathingallthisistohim。It"sbeenalong，longwhilesincethelasttimeyouevenmentionedgluetohim，andhe"sprobablyforgotteneverythingaboutit。"
"You"reoffyourbase；itisn"tlikehimtoforgetthings，"Adamsreturned，peevishly。"Hemayseemtoforget"em，buthedon"t。"
"Buthe"snotthinkingaboutthis，oryou"dhaveheardfromhimbeforenow。"
Herhusbandshookhishead。"Ah，that"sjustit!"hesaid。"WhyHAVEN"TIheardfromhim？"
"It"sallyourmorbidness，Virgil。LookatWalter:ifMr。Lambheldthisupagainstyou，wouldhestillletWalterstaythere？
Wouldn"thehavedischargedWalterifhefeltangrywithyou？"
"Thatdangboy!"Adamssaid。"IfheWANTEDtocomewithmenow，Iwouldn"thardlylethim，Whatdoyousupposemakeshimsobull-headed？"
"Buthasn"thearighttochooseforhimself？"sheasked。"I
supposehefeelsheoughttosticktowhathethinksissurepay。
Assoonasheseesthatyou"regoingtosucceedwiththeglue-workshe"llwanttobewithyouquickenough。"
"Well，hebettergetalittlesenseinhishead，"Adamsreturned，crossly。"Hewantedmetopayhimathree-hundred-dollarbonusinadvance，whenanybodywithagrainofcommonsenseknowsI
needeverypennyIcanlaymyhandson!"
"Nevermind，"shesaid。"He"llcomearoundlaterandbegladofthechance。"
"He"llhavetobegforitthen!_I_won"taskhimagain。"
"Oh，Walterwillcomeoutallright；youneedn"tworry。Anddon"tyouseethatMr。Lamb"snotdischarginghimmeansthere"snohardfeelingagainstyou，Virgil？"
"Ican"tmakeitoutatall，"hesaid，frowning。"TheonlythingIcanTHINKitmeansisthatJ。A。Lambissofair-minded——andofcourseheISoneofthefair-mindedestmenaliveIsupposethat"sthereasonhehasn"tfiredWalter。Hemayknow，"Adamsconcluded，morosely——"hemayknowthat"sjustanotherthingtomakemefeelallthemeaner:keepingmyboythereonasalaryafterI"vedonehimaninjury。"
"Now，now!"shesaid，tryingtocomforthim。"Youcouldn"tdoanybodyaninjurytosaveyourlife，andeverybodyknowsit。"
"Well，anybodyoughttoknowIwouldn"tWANTtodoaninjury，butthisworldisn"tbuiltso"twecandojustwhatwewant。"Hepaused，reflecting。"OfcoursetheremaybeoneexplanationofwhyWalter"sstillthere:J。A。maybehasn"tnoticedthatheIS
there。There"ssomanyIexpecthehardlyknowshimbysight。"
"Well，justdoquitthinkingaboutit，"sheurgedhim。"Itonlybothersyouwithoutdoinganygood。Don"tyouknowthat？"
"Don"tI，though!"helaughed，feebly。"Iknowitbetter"nanybody!Howfunnythatis:whenyouknowthinkingaboutathingonlypestersyouwithouthelpinganythingatall，andyetyoukeeprightonpesteringyourselfwithit!"
"ButWHY？"shesaid。"What"stheusewhenyouknowyouhaven"tdoneanythingwrong，Virgil？Yousaidyourselfyouweregoingtoimprovetheprocesssomuchitwouldbedifferentfromtheoldone，andyou"dREALLYhavearighttoit。"
Adamshadpersuadedhimselfofthiswhenheyielded；hehadfounditnecessarytopersuadehimselfofit——thoughtherewasapartofhim，ofcourse，thatremainedunpersuaded；andthisdiscomfitingpartofhimwaswhatmadehispresenttrouble。
"Yes，Iknow，"hesaid。"That"strue，butIcan"tquiteseemtogetawayfromthefactthattheprincipleoftheprocessisagooddealthesame——well，it"smore"nthat；it"sjustaboutthesameastheonehehiredCampbellandmetoworkoutforhim。
Truthis，nobodycouldtellthedifference，andIdon"tknowasthereISanydifferenceexceptintheseimprovementsI"mmaking。
Ofcourse，theimprovementsdogivemeprettynearaperfectrighttoit，asapersonmightsay；andthat"soneofthethingsIthoughtofputtinginmylettertohim；butIwasafraidhe"djustthinkIwastryingtomakeupexcuses，soIleftitout。I
kindofworriedallthetimeIwaswritingthatletter，becauseifhethoughtIWASjustmakingupexcuses，why，itmightsethimjustsomuchmoreagainstme。"
EversinceMrs。Adamshadfoundthatshewastohaveherway，thedepthsofhereyeshadbeentroubledbyacontinuousuneasiness；and，althoughsheknewitwasthere，andsometimesveileditbykeepingtherevealingeyesavertedfromherhusbandandchildren，shecouldnotalwayscoveritunderthatassumptionofabsent-mindedness。Theuneasylookbecamevivid，andhervoicewasslightlytremulousnow，asshesaid，"ButwhatifheSHOULDbeagainstyou——althoughIdon"tbelieveheis，ofcourse——youtoldmehecouldn"tDOanythingtoyou，Virgil。"
"No，"hesaid，slowly。"Ican"tseehowhecoulddoanything。
Itwasjustasecret，notapatent；thethingain"tpatentable。
I"vetriedtothinkwhathecoulddo——supposinghewastowantto——butIcan"tfigureoutanythingatallthatwouldbeanyharmtome。Thereisn"tanywayintheworlditcouldbemadeaquestionoflaw。Onlythinghecoulddo"dbetoTELLpeoplehissideofit，andset"emagainstme。Ibeenkindofwaitingforthattohappen，allalong。"
Shelookedsomewhatrelieved。"SodidIexpectit，"shesaid。
"IwasdreadingitmostonAlice"saccount:itmighthave——well，youngmenaresoeasilyinfluencedandall。Butsofarasthebusinessisconcerned，whatifMr。Lambdidtalk？Thatwouldn"tamounttomuch。Itwouldn"taffectthebusiness；nottohurt。
And，besides，heisn"tevendoingthat。"
"No；anyhownotyet，itseems。"AndAdamssighedagain，wistfully。"ButIWOULDgiveagooddealtoknowwhathethinks!"
Beforehissurrenderhehadalwayssupposedthatifhedidsuchanunthinkablethingastoseizeupontheglueprocessforhimself，whathewouldfeelmustbeanoverpoweringshame。Butshameistherarestthingintheworld:whathefeltwasthisunremittentcuriosityabouthisoldemployer"sthoughts。Itwasanobsession，yethedidnotwanttohearwhatLamb"thought"
fromLambhimself，forAdamshadasecondobsession，andthiswashisdreadofmeetingtheoldmanfacetoface。Suchanencountercouldhappenonlybychanceandunexpectedly；sinceAdamswouldhaveavoidedanydeliberatemeeting，solongashislegshadstrengthtocarryhim，evenifLambcametothehousetoseehim。
Butpeopledomeetunexpectedly；andwhenAdamshadtobedown-townhekeptawayfromthe"wholesaledistrict。"OnedayhedidseeLamb，asthelatterwentbyinhiscar，impassive，goinghometolunch；andAdams，inthecrowdatacorner，knewthattheoldmanhadnotseenhim。Nevertheless，inastreetcar，onthewaybacktohissheds，anhourlater，hewasstillsubjecttolittleshiveringseizuresofhorror。
Heworkedunceasingly，seemingtokeepatiteveninhissleep，forhealwayswokeinthemidstofaplanningandestimatingthatmusthavebeengoingoninhismindbeforeconsciousnessofhimselfreturned。Moreover，thework，thusurged，wentrapidly，inspiteofthehighwageshehadtopayhislabourersfortheirshorthours。"Iteatsmoney，"hecomplained，and，infact，bythetimehisvatsandboilerswereinplaceithadeatenalmostallhecouldsupply；butinadditiontohisequipmenthenowownedastockof"rawmaterial，"rawindeed；andwhenoperationsshouldbealittlefurtheralonghewasconfidenthisbankerwouldbewillingto"carry"him。
Sixweeksfromthedayhehadobtainedhisleasehebeganhisglue-making。Theterriblesmellscameoutoftheshedsandwentwrithinglikesnakesallthroughthatquarterofthetown。A
smilingman，strollingandbreathingtheairwithsatisfaction，wouldturnacornerandsmilenomore，buthurry。However，colouredpeoplehadalmostallthedwellingsofthisoldsectiontothemselves；andalthougheventheyweretroubled，therewasrecompenseforthem。Beingphilosophicaboutwhatappearedtothemasintheorderofnature，theysoughtneitherescapenorredress，andsoonlearnedtobearwhatthewindbroughtthem。
Theyevenmadeuseofittoenrichthosefiguresofspeechwithwhichthenativeimpulsesofcolouredpeopledecoratetheircommunications:theyflavouredmetaphor，simile，andinvectivewithit；andthusmaybesaidtohaveenjoyedit。Butthemanwhoproducedittookahotbathassoonashereachedhishometheeveningofthatfirstdaywhenhismanufacturingbegan。Thenheputonfreshclothes；butafterdinnerheseemedtobehaunted，andaskedhiswifeifshe"noticedanything。"
Shelaughedandinquiredwhathemeant。
"Seemstomeasifthatglue-workssmellhadn"tquithangingtome，"heexplained。"Don"tyounoticeit？"
"No!Whatanidea!"
Helaughed，too，butuneasily；andtoldherhewassure"thedanggluesmell"wassomehowstickingtohim。Later，hewentoutdoorsandwalkedupanddownthesmallyardinthedusk；butnowandthenhestoodstill，withhisheadlifted，andsniffedtheairsuspiciously。"CanYOUsmellit？"hecalledtoAlice，whosatupontheveranda，prettilydressedandwaitinginareverie。
"Smellwhat，papa？"
"Thatdangglue-works。"
Shedidthesamethinghermotherhaddone:laughed，andsaid，"No!Howfoolish!Why，papa，it"sovertwomilesfromhere!"
"Youdon"tgetitatall？"heinsisted。
"Theidea!Theairislovelyto-night，papa。"
Theairdidnotseemlovelytohim，forhewaspositivethathedetectedthetaint。Hewonderedhowfaritcarried，andifJ。
A。Lambwouldsmellit，too，outonhisownlawnamiletothenorth；andifhedid，wouldheguesswhatitwas？ThenAdamslaughedathimselfforsuchnonsense；butcouldnotridhisnostrilsoftheirdisgust。Tohimthewholetownseemedtosmellofhisglue-works。
Nevertheless，thegluewasmaking，andhisshedswerebusy。
"Guesswe"restirrin"upthisoleneighbourhoodwithmorethanthesmell，"hisforemanremarkedonemorning。
"How"sthat？"Adamsinquired。
"Thatgreatbig，enormousoledeadbutterinefactoryacrossthestreetfromourlot，"themansaid。"Nothin"likesettin"anexampletobringrealestatetolife。Thatplaceisfullo"
carpentersstartin"intomakearegularbuildin"ofitagain。
Guessyououghttohavethecreditofit，becauseyouwasthefirstmanintenyearstoseeanypossibilitiesinthisneighbourhood。"
Adamswaspleased，and，goingouttoseeforhimself，heardagreathammeringandsawingfromwithinthebuilding；whilecarpenterswerejustemerginggingerlyuponthedangerousroof。
Hewalkedoutoverthedriedmudofhisdeeplot，crossedthestreet，andspokegeniallytoaworkmanwhowasremovingthebrokenglassofawindowonthegroundfloor。
"Here!What"sallthishowdy-dooverhere？"
"Goin"tofixherallup，Iguess，"theworkmansaid。"Bigjobitis，too。"
"Sh"thinkitwouldbe。"
"Yes，sir；aprettybigjob——aprettybigjob。Gotmenatitonallfourfloorsandontheroof。They"redoin"itRIGHT。"
"Who"sdoingit？"
"Lord!Id"know。Someo"theseherebigmanufacturingcorporations，Iguess。"
"What"sitgoingtobe？"
"TheytellME，"theworkmananswered——"theytellMEshe"sgoin"
tobeabutterinefactoryagain。Anyways，Ihopeshewon"tbeanythingtosmelllikethatglue-worksyougotovertherenotwhileI"mworkin"aroundher，anyways!"
"Thatsmell"sallright，"Adamssaid。"Yousoongetusedtoit。"
"Youdo？"Themanappearedincredulous。"Listen!IwasoverinFrance:it"sagoodthingthemDutchmenneverthoughtofit；we"dofhadtoquit!"
Adamslaughed，andwentbacktohissheds。"Iguessmyforemanwasright，"hetoldhiswife，thatevening，withalittlesatisfaction。"Assoonasonemanshowsenterpriseenoughtofoundanindustryinabroken-downneighbourhood，somebodyelseissuretofollow。Ikindoflikethelookofit:it"llhelpmakeourplaceseemsortofmorebusyandprosperouswhenitcomestogettingaloanfromthebank——andIgottogetonemightysoon，too。Ididthinksomethatifthingsgoaswellasthere"severyreasontothinktheyOUGHTto，Imightwanttospreadoutandmaybegetholdofthatoldfactorymyself；butI
hardlyexpectedtobeabletohandleapropositionofthatsizebeforetwoorthreeyearsfromnow，andanyhowthere"sroomenoughonthelotIgot，ifweneedmorebuildingssomeday。
ThingsaregoingaboutasfineasIcouldask:Ihiredsomegirlsto-daytodothebottling——colouredgirlsalongaboutsixteentotwentyyearsold。Afterwhile，Iexpecttogetamachinetoputthestuffinthelittlebottles，whenwebegintogetgoodreturns；buthalfadozenofthesecolouredgirlscandoitallrightnow，byhand。We"regettingtohavereallyquitealittleplantoverthere:yes，sir，quitearegularlittleplant!"
Hechuckled，andatthischeerfulsound，ofakindhiswifehadalmostforgottenhewascapableofproducing，sheventuredtoputherhanduponhisarm。Theyhadgoneoutdoors，afterdinner，takingtwochairswiththem，andweresittingthroughthelatetwilighttogether，keepingwellawayfromthe"frontporch，"
whichwasnotyetoccupied，howeverAlicewasinherroomchangingherdress。
"Well，honey，"Mrs。Adamssaid，takingconfidencenotonlytoputherhanduponhisarm，buttorevivethisdisusedendearment；——"it"sgrandtohaveyousooptimistic。Maybesometimeyou"lladmitIwasright，afterall。Everything"sgoingsowell，itseemsapityyoudidn"ttakethis——thisstep——longago。
Don"tyouthinkmaybeso，Virgil？"
"Well——ifIwasevergoingto，Idon"tknowbutImightaswellof。Igottoadmitthepropositionbeginstolookprettygood:I
knowthestuff"llsell，andIcan"tseeathingintheworldtostopit。Itdoeslookgood，andif——if——"Hepaused。
"Ifwhat？"shesaid，suddenlyanxious。
Helaughedplaintively，asifconfessingasuperstition。"It"sfunny——well，it"smightyfunnyaboutthatsmell。I"vegotsousedtoitattheplantIneverseemtonoticeitatalloverthere。It"sonlywhenIgetaway。Honestly，can"tyounotice——？"
"Virgil!"Sheliftedherhandtostrikehisarmchidingly。"Doquitharpingonthatnonsense!"
"Oh，ofcourseitdon"tamounttoanything，"hesaid。"Apersoncanstandagooddealofjustsmell。Itdon"tWORRYmeany。"
"Ishouldthinknotespeciallyasthereisn"tany。"
"Well，"hesaid，"Ifeelprettyfairoverthewholething——alotbetter"nIeverexpectedto，anyhow。Idon"tknowasthere"sanyreasonIshouldn"ttellyouso。"
Shewasdeeplypleasedwiththisacknowledgment，andhervoicehadtendernessinitassheresponded:"There，honey!Didn"tI
alwayssayyou"dbegladifyoudidit？"
Embarrassed，hecoughedloudly，thenfilledhispipeandlitit。
"Well，"hesaid，slowly，"it"sapuzzle。Yes，sir，it"sapuzzle。"
"Whatis？"
"Prettymucheverything，Iguess。"
Ashespoke，asongcametothemfromalightedwindowovertheirheads。Thenthewindowdarkenedabruptly，butthesongcontinuedasAlicewentdownthroughthehousetowaitonthelittleveranda。"MichiamoMimi，"shesang，andinhervoicethrobbedsomethingalmoststartlinginitssweetness。Herfatherandmotherlistened，notspeakinguntilthesongstoppedwiththeclickofthewirescreenatthefrontdoorasAlicecameout。
"My!"saidherfather。"Howsweetshedoessing!Idon"tknowasIeverheardhervoicesoundnicerthanitdidjustthen。"
"There"ssomethingthatmakesitsoundthatway，"hiswifetoldhim。
"Isupposeso，"hesaid，sighing。"Isupposeso。Youthink——"
"She"sjustterriblyinlovewithhim!"
"Iexpectthat"sthewayitoughttobe，"hesaid，thendrewuponhispipeforreflection，andbecamemurmurouswiththesymptomsofmelancholylaughter。"Itdon"tmakethingslessofapuzzle，though，doesit？"
"Inwhatway，Virgil？"
"Why，here，"hesaid——"herewegothroughallthismuckandmoiltohelpfixthingsnicerforherathome，andwhat"sitallamountto？Seemslikeshe"sjustgoneaheadthewayshe"d"a"
goneanyhow；andnow，Isuppose，gettingreadytoupandleaveus!Ain"tthatapuzzletoyou？Itistome。"
"Oh，butthingshaven"tgonethatfaryet。"
"Why，youjustsaid——"
Shegavealittlecryofprotest。"Oh，theyaren"tENGAGEDyet。
OfcoursetheyWILLbe；he"sjustasmuchinterestedinherassheisinhim，but——"
"Well，what"sthetroublethen？"
"YouAREasimpleoldfellow!"hiswifeexclaimed，andthenrosefromherchair。"Thatremindsme，"shesaid。
"Whatof？"heasked。"What"smybeingsimpleremindyouof？"
"Nothing!"shelaughed。"Itwasn"tyouthatremindedme。Itwasjustsomethingthat"sbeenonmymind。Idon"tbelievehe"sactuallyeverbeeninsideourhouse!"
"Hasn"the？"
"Iactuallydon"tbelieveheeverhas，"shesaid。"Ofcoursewemust——"Shepaused，debating。
"Wemustwhat？"
"IguessIbettertalktoAliceaboutitrightnow，"shesaid。
"Hedon"tusuallycomeforabouthalfanhouryet；IguessI"vegottime。"Andwiththatshewalkedaway，leavinghimtohispuzzles。
CHAPTERXIX
Alicewassoftlycrooningtoherselfashermotherturnedthecornerofthehouseandapproachedthroughthedusk。
"Isn"titthemostBEAUTIFULevening!"thedaughtersaid。"WHY
can"tsummerlastallyear？Didyoueverknowaloveliertwilightthanthis，mama？"
Mrs。Adamslaughed，andanswered，"NotsinceIwasyourage，I
expect。"
Alicewaswistfulatonce。"Don"ttheystaybeautifulaftermyage？"
"Well，it"snotthesamething。"
"Isn"tit？Notever？"
"Youmayhaveadifferentkindfrommine，"themothersaid，alittlesadly。"Ithinkyouwill，Alice。Youdeserve——"
"No，Idon"t。Idon"tdeserveanything，andIknowit。ButI"mgettingagreatdealthesedays——morethanIeverdreamedCOULD
cometome。I"m——I"mprettyhappy，mama!"
"Dearie!"Hermotherwouldhavekissedher，butAlicedrewaway。
"Oh，Idon"tmean——"Shelaughednervously。"Iwasn"tmeaningtotellyouI"mENGAGED，mama。We"renot。Imean——oh!thingsseemprettybeautifulinspiteofallI"vedonetospoil"em。"
"You？"Mrs。Adamscried，incredulously。"Whathaveyoudonetospoilanything？"
"Littlethings，"Alicesaid。"Athousandlittlesilly——oh，what"stheuse？He"ssohonestlywhatheis——justsimpleandgoodandintelligent——Ifeelatrickymessbesidehim!Idon"tseewhyhelikesme；andsometimesI"mafraidhewouldn"tifheknewme。"
"He"djustworshipyou，"saidthefondmother。"Andthemoreheknewyou，themorehe"dworshipyou。"
Aliceshookherhead。"He"snottheworshipingkind。Notlikethatatall。He"smore——"
ButMrs。Adamswasnotinterestedinthisanalysis，andsheinterruptedbriskly，"Ofcourseit"stimeyourfatherandI
showedsomeinterestinhim。IwasjustsayingIactuallydon"tbelievehe"severbeeninsidethehouse。"
"No，"Alicesaid，musingly；"that"strue:Idon"tbelievehehas。
Exceptwhenwe"vewalkedintheeveningwe"vealwayssatouthere，eventhosetwotimeswhenitwasdrizzly。It"ssomuchnicer。"
"We"llhavetodoSOMETHINGorother，ofcourse，"hermothersaid。
"Whatlike？"
"Iwasthinking——"Mrs。Adamspaused。"Well，ofcoursewecouldhardlyputoffaskinghimtodinner，orsomething，muchlonger。"
Alicewasnotenthusiastic；sofarfromit，indeed，thattherewasamelancholyalarminhervoice。"Oh，mama，mustwe？Doyouthinkso？"
"Yes，Ido。Ireallydo。"
"Couldn"twe——well，couldn"twewait？"
"Itlooksqueer，"Mrs。Adamssaid。"Itisn"tthethingatallforayoungmantocomeasmuchashedoes，andnevermorethanjustbarelymeetyourfatherandmother。No。Weoughttodosomething。"
"Butadinner!"Aliceobjected。"Inthefirstplace，thereisn"tanybodyIwanttoask。Thereisn"tanybodyIWOULDask。"
"Ididn"tmeantryingtogiveabigdinner，"hermotherexplained。"Ijustmeanhavinghimtodinner。Thatmulattowoman，MalenaBurns，goesoutbytheday，andshecouldbringawaitress。Wecangetsomeflowersforthetableandsometoputintheliving-room。Wemightjustaswellgoaheadanddoitto-morrowasanyothertime；becauseyourfather"sinafinemood，andIsawMalenathisafternoonandtoldherImightwanthersoon。Shesaidshedidn"thaveanyengagementsthisweek，andIcanletherknowto-night。Supposewhenhecomesyouaskhimforto-morrow，Alice。Everything"llbeverynice，I"msure。
Don"tworryaboutit。"
"Well——but——"Alicewasuncertain。
"Butdon"tyousee，itlookssoqueer，nottodoSOMETHING？"hermotherurged。"Itlookssokindofpoverty-stricken。Wereallyoughtn"ttowaitanylonger。"
Aliceassented，thoughnotwithagoodheart。"Verywell，I"llaskhim，ifyouthinkwe"vegotto。"
"Thatmatter"ssettledthen，"Mrs。Adamssaid。"I"llgotelephoneMalena，andthenI"lltellyourfatheraboutit。"
Butwhenshewentbacktoherhusband，shefoundhiminanexcitedstateofmind，andWalterstandingbeforehiminthedarkness。Adamswasalmostshouting，sogreatwashisvehemence。
"Hush，hush!"hiswifeimplored，asshecamenearthem。"They"llhearyououtonthefrontporch!"
"Idon"tcarewhohearsme，"Adamssaid，harshly，thoughhetemperedhisloudness。"Doyouwanttoknowwhatthisboy"saskingmefor？Ithoughthe"dmaybecometotellmehe"dgotalittlesenseinhisheadatlast，andalittledecencyaboutwhat"sduehisfamily!Ithoughthewasgoingtoaskmetotakehimintomyplant。No，ma"am；THAT"Snotwhathewants!"
"No，itisn"t，"Waltersaid。Inthedarknesshisfacecouldnotbeseen；hestoodmotionless，inwhatseemedanapatheticattitude；andhespokequietly，"No，"herepeated。"Thatisn"twhatIwant。"
"Youstaydownatthatplace，"Adamswenton，hotly，"insteadoftryingtobealittleusetoyourfamily；andtheonlyreasonyou"reALLOWEDtostaythereisbecauseMr。Lamb"sneverhappenedtonoticeyouAREstillthere!Youjustwait——"
"You"reoff，"Waltersaid，inthesamequietway。"HeknowsI"mthere。Hespoketomeyesterday:heaskedmehowIwasgettingalongwithmywork。"
"Hedid？"Adamssaid，seemingnottobelievehim。
"Yes。Hedid。"
"Whatelsedidhesay，Walter？"Mrs。Adamsaskedquickly。
"Nothin"。Justwalkedon。"
"Idon"tbelieveheknewwhoyouwere，"Adamsdeclared。
"Thinknot？Hecalledme"WalterAdams。""
AtthisAdamswassilent；andWalter，afterwaitingamoment，said:
"Well，areyougoingtodoanythingaboutme？AboutwhatItoldyouIgottohave？"
"Whatisit，Walter？"hismotherasked，sinceAdamsdidnotspeak。
Walterclearedhisthroat，andrepliedinatoneasquietasthathehadusedbefore，thoughwithaslighthuskiness，"Igottohavethreehundredandfiftydollars。Youbettergethimtogiveittomeifyoucan。"
Adamsfoundhisvoice。"Yes，"hesaid，bitterly。"That"sallheasks!Hewon"tdoanythingIaskHIMto，andinreturnheasksmeforthreehundredandfiftydollars!That"sall!"
"Whatintheworld!"Mrs。Adamsexclaimed。"WhatFOR，Walter？"
"Igottohaveit，"Waltersaid。
"ButwhatFOR？"
Hisquiethuskinessdidnotalter。"Igottohaveit。"
"Butcan"tyoutellus——"
"Igottohaveit。"
"That"sallyoucangetoutofhim，"Adamssaid。"Heseemstothinkit"llbringhiminthreehundredandfiftydollars!"
Afainttremulousnessbecameevidentinthehuskyvoice。
"Haven"tyougotit？"
"NO，Ihaven"tgotit!"hisfatheranswered。"AndI"vegottogotoabankformorethanmypay-rollnextweek。DoyouthinkI"mamint？"
"Idon"tunderstandwhatyoumean，Walter，"Mrs。Adamsinterposed，perplexedanddistressed。"Ifyourfatherhadthemoney，ofcoursehe"dneedeverycentofit，especiallyjustnow，and，anyhow，youcouldscarcelyexpecthimtogiveittoyou，unlessyoutolduswhatyouwantwithit。Buthehasn"tgotit。"
"Allright，"Waltersaid；andafterstandingamomentmore，insilence，headded，impersonally，"Idon"tseeasyoueverdidanythingmuchforme，anyhoweitherofyou。"
Then，asifthiswerehisvaledictory，heturnedhisbackuponthem，walkedawayquickly，andwasatoncelosttotheirsightinthedarkness。
"There"safineboyto"vehadthetroubleofraising!"Adamsgrumbled。"Justcrazy，that"sall。"
"Whatintheworlddoyousupposehewantsallthatmoneyfor？"
hiswifesaid，wonderingly。"Ican"timaginewhathecouldDO
withit。Iwonder——"Shepaused。"Iwonderifhe——"
"Ifhewhat？"Adamspromptedherirritably。
"IfheCOULDhavebad——associates。"
"Godknows!"saidAdams。"_I_don"t!ItjustlookstomelikehehadsomethinginhimIdon"tunderstand。Youcan"tkeepyoureyeonaboyallthetimeinacitythissize，notaboyWalter"sage。Yougotagirlprettymuchinthehouse，butaboy"llfollowhisnature。_I_don"tknowwhattodowithhim!"
Mrs。Adamsbrightenedalittle。"He"llcomeoutallright，"shesaid。"I"msurehewill。I"msurehe"dneverbeanythingreallybad:andhe"llcomearoundallrightabouttheglue-works，too；
you"llsee。Ofcourseeveryyoungmanwantsmoney——itdoesn"tprovehe"sdoinganythingwrongjustbecauseheasksyouforit。"
"No。Allitprovestomeisthathehasn"tgotgoodsenseaskingmeforthreehundredandfiftydollars，whenheknowsaswellasyoudothepositionI"min!IfIwantedto，Icouldn"thardlylethimhavethreehundredandfiftycents，letalonedollars!"
"I"mafraidyou"llhavetoletMEhavethatmuch——andmaybealittlemore，"sheventured，timidly；andshetoldhimofherplansforthemorrow。Heobjectedvehemently。
"Oh，butAlicehasprobablyaskedhimbythistime，"Mrs。Adamssaid。"Itreallymustbedone，Virgil:youdon"twanthimtothinkshe"sashamedofus，doyou？"
"Well，goahead，butjustletmestayaway，"hebegged。"OfcourseIexpecttoundergoakindoftalkwithhim，whenhegetsreadytosaysomethingtousaboutAlice，butIdohatetohavetositthroughafashionabledinner。"
"Why，itisn"tgoingtobotheryou，"shesaid；"justoneyoungmanasaguest。"
"Yes，Iknow；butyouwanttohaveallthisfancycookin"；andI
seewellenoughyou"regoingtogetthatolddresssuitoutofthecedarchestintheattic，andtrytomakemeputitonme。"
"Idothinkyoubetter，Virgil。"
"Ihopethemothshavegotinit，"hesaid。"LasttimeIworeitwastothebanquet，anditwasprettyoldthen。OfcourseI
didn"tmindwearingittothebanquetsomuch，becausethatwaswhatyoumightcallquiteanoccasion。"Hespokewithsomereminiscentcomplacency；"thebanquet，"anaffairnowfiveyearspast，havingprovidedtheonetimeinhislifewhenhehadbeensodistinguishedamonghisfellow-citizensastoreceiveaninvitationtobepresent，withsomesevenhundredothers，attheannualeatingandspeech-makingofthecity"sChamberofCommerce。"Anyhow，asyousay，Ithinkitwouldlookfoolishofmetowearadresssuitforjustoneyoungman，"hewentonprotesting，feebly。"What"stheuseofallsomuchhowdy-do，anyway？Youdon"texpecthimtobelieveweputonallthatstyleeverynight，doyou？Isthatwhatyou"reafter？"
"Well，wewanthimtothinkwelivenicely，"sheadmitted。
"Sothat"sit!"hesaid，querulously。"Youwanthimtothinkthat"sourregulargait，doyou？Well，he"llknowbetteraboutme，nomatterhowyoufixmeup，becausehesawmeinmyregularsuittheeveningsheintroducedmetohim，andhecouldtellanywayI"mnotoneofthesemoving-picturesporting-menthat"salwaysgotadresssuiton。Besides，youandAlicecertainlyhavesomeideahe"llcomeAGAIN，haven"tyou？Iftheygetthingssettledbetween"emhe"llbearoundthehouseandtomealsmostanytime，won"the？Youdon"thardlyexpecttoputonstyleallthetime，Iguess。Well，he"llseethenthatthiskindofthingwasallshow-off，andbluff，won"the？Whataboutit？"
"Oh，well，byTHATtime——"Sheleftthesentenceunfinished，asifabsently。"Youcouldletushavealittlemoneyforto-morrow，couldn"tyou，honey？"
"Oh，Ireckon，Ireckon，"hemumbled。"AgirllikeAliceissomecomfort:shedon"tcomearoundactingasifshe"dcommitsuicideifshedidn"tgetthreehundredandfiftydollarsinthenextfiveminutes。IexpectIcansparefiveorsixdollarsforyourshow-offifIgotto。"
However，shefinallyobtainedfifteenbeforehisbedtime；andthenextmorning"wenttomarket"afterbreakfast，leavingAlicetomakethebeds。Walterhadnotyetcomedownstairs。"Youhadbettercallhim，"Mrs。Adamssaid，asshedepartedwithabigbasketonherarm。"Iexpecthe"sprettysleepy；hewasoutsolatelastnightIdidn"thearhimcomein，thoughIkeptawaketillaftermidnight，listeningforhim。Tellhimhe"llbelatetoworkifhedoesn"thurry；andseethathedrinkshiscoffee，evenifhehasn"ttimeforanythingelse。AndwhenMalenacomes，getherstartedinthekitchen:showherwhereeverythingis。"
Shewavedherhand，asshesetoutforacornerwherethecarsstopped。"Everything"llbelovely。Don"tforgetaboutWalter。"