第9章

Henriettapleadedasmovinglyasshecouldforanimmediatereturntotheirdomesticstate,butheputheroffwithendearingspeeches,promisednothingbuteternalaffection,andsentherbacktoLondonbythetwelveo"clockexpress。Thenhiscountenancechanged;hewalkedbacktoLyvern,andthencetothechalet,likeamanpursuedbydisgustandremorse。Laterintheafternoon,toraisehisspirits,hetookhisskatesandwenttoWickens"spond,where,itbeingSaturday,hefoundtheicecrowdedwiththeAltonstudentsandtheirhalf—holidayvisitors。

Fairholme,describingcircleswithhishabitualairofcompressedhardihood,stoppedandstaredwithindignantsurpriseasSmilashlurchedpasthim。

"Isthatmanherebyyourpermission？"hesaidtoFarmerWickens,whowaswalkingaboutasifsuperintendingaharvest。

"Heisherebecausehelikes,Itakeit,"saidWickensstubbornly。"Heisaneighborofmineandafriendofmine。Isthereanyobjectionstomyhavingafriendonmyownpond,seein"

thatthereisnighontwoorthreetonofotherpeople"sfriendsonit108withoutasmuchasawith—your—leaveoraby—your—

leave。"

"Oh,no,"saidFairholme,somewhatdashed。"Ifyouaresatisfiedtherecanbenoobjection。"

"I"mgladonit。Ithoughttheremoutbe。"

"Letmetellyou,"saidFairholme,nettled,"thatyourlandlordwouldnotbepleasedtoseehimhere。HesentoneofSirJohn"sbestshepherdsoutofthecountry,afterfillinghisheadwithideasabovehisstation。IheardSirJohnspeakverywarmlyaboutitlastSunday。"

"Mayhapyoudid,MusterFairholme。Ihavealeaseofthisland——andgravelly,poorstuffitis——andIamnowaysbeholdentoSirJohn"slikingsanddislikings。AverygoodthingtooforSirJohnthatIhavealease,forthereain"tamaninthecountry"udtak"apresento"thefarmifitwasfreeto—morrow。

Andwhat"sa"more,thoughthatyoungmandotalkfoolishthingsabouttherightsoffarmlaborersandsuch—likenonsense,ifSirJohnwastohearhimlayin"itdownconcernin"rentandimprovements,andthewaywetenantfarmersisputupon,p"rapshe"dspeakwarmerthanevernextSunday。"

AndWickens,withasmileexpressiveofhissenseofhavingretortedeffectivelyupontheparson,noddedandwalkedaway。

JustthenAgatha,skatinghandinhandwithJaneCarpenter,heardthesewordsinherear:"Ihavesomethingveryfunnytotellyou。

Don"tlookround。"

SherecognizedthevoiceofSmilashandobeyed。

"Iamnotquitesurethatyouwillenjoyitasitdeserves,"headded,anddartedoffagain,aftercastinganeloquentglanceatMissCarpenter。

Agathadisengagedherselffromhercompanion,madeacircuit,andpassednearSmilash,saying:"Whatisit？"

Smilashflittedawaylikeaswallow,tracedseveralcirclesaroundFairholme,andthenreturnedtoAgathaandproceededsidebysidewithher。

"IhavereadtheletteryouwrotetoHetty,"hesaid。

Agatha"sfacebegantoglow。Sheforgottomaintainherbalance,andalmostfell。

"Takecare。Andsoyouarenotfondofme——intheromanticsense？"

Noanswer。Agathadumbandafraidtolifthereyelids。

"Thatisfortunate,"hecontinued,"because——goodevening,MissWard;Ihavedonenothingbutadmireyourskatingforthelasthour——becausemenweredeceiversever;andIamnoexception,asyouwillpresentlyadmit。"

Agathamurmuredsomething,butitwasunintelligibleamidthedinofskating。

"Youthinknot？Well,perhapsyouareright;Ihavesaidnothingtoyouthatisnotinameasuretrue。Youhavealwayshadapeculiarcharmforme。ButIdidnotmeanyoutotellHetty。Canyouguesswhy？"

Agathashookherhead。

"Becausesheismywife。"

Agatha"sanklesbecamelimp。WithaneffortshekeptuprightuntilshereachedJane,towhomsheclungforsupport。

"Don"t,"screamedJane。"You"llupsetme。"

"Imustsitdown,"saidAgatha。"Iamtired。Letmeleanonyouuntilwegettothechairs。"

"Bosh！Icanskateforanhourwithoutsittingdown,"saidJane。

However,shehelpedAgathatoachairandlefther。ThenSmilash,asifdesiringarestalso,satdownclosebyonthemarginofthepond。

"Well,"hesaid,withouttroublinghimselfastowhethertheirconversationattractedattentionornot,"whatdoyouthinkofmenow？"

"Whydidyounottellmebefore,Mr。Trefusis？"

"Thatisthecreamofthejoke,"hereplied,poisinghisheelsontheicesothathisskatesstoodverticallyatlegs"lengthfromhim,andlookingatthemwithacynicalair。"Ithoughtyouwereinlovewithme,andthatthetruthwouldbetoosevereablowtoyou。Ha！ha！And,forthesamereason,yougenerouslyforboretotellmethatyouwerenomoreinlovewithmethanwiththemaninthemoon。Eachplayedafarce,andpalmeditoffontheotherasatragedy。"

"Therearesomethingssounmanly,sounkind,andsocruel,"saidAgatha,"thatIcannotunderstandanygentlemansayingthemtoagirl。Pleasedonotspeaktomeagain。MissWard！Cometomeforamoment。I——Iamnotwell。"

Wardhurriedtoherside。Smilash,afterstaringatherforamomentinastonishment,andinsomeconcern,skimmedawayintothecrowd。WhenhereachedtheoppositebankhetookoffhisskatesandaskedJane,whostrayedintentionallyinhisdirection,totellMissWyliethathewasgone,andwouldskatenomorethere。Withoutaddingawordofexplanationheleftherandmadeforhisdwelling。Ashewentdownintothehollowwheretheroadpassedthroughtheplantationonthecollegesideofthechalethedescriedaboy,intheuniformofthepostoffice,slidingalongthefrozenditch。Apresentimentofeviltidingscameuponhimlikeadarkeningofthesky。Hequickenedhispace。

"Anythingforme？"hesaid。

Theboy,whoknewhim,fumbledinalettercaseandproducedabuffenvelope。Itcontainedatelegram。

FromJansenius,London。

TOJ。Smilash,ChamoounixVilla,Lyvern。

_________________________________________

Henriettadangerouslyillafterjourneywantstoseeyoudoctorssaymustcomeatonce_________________________________________

Therewasapause。Thenhefoldedthepapermethodicallyandputitinhispocket,asifquitedonewithit。

"Andso,"hesaid,"perhapsthetragedyistofollowthefarceafterall。"

Helookedattheboy,whoretreated,notlikinghisexpression。

"DidyouslideallthewayfromLyvern？"

"Onlytocomequicker,"saidthemessenger,faltering。"IcameasquickasIcould。"

"Youcarriednewsheavyenoughtobreakthethickesticeeverfrozen。Ihaveamindtothrowyouoverthetopofthattreeinsteadofgivingyouthishalf—crown。"

"Youletmealone,"whimperedtheboy,retreatinganotherpace。

"GetbacktoLyvernasfastasyoucanrunorslide,andtellMr。

Marshtosendmethefastesttraphehas,todrivemetotherailwaystation。Hereisyourhalf—crown。Offwithyou;andifI

donotfindthetrapreadywhenIwantit,woebetideyou。"

Theboycameforthemoneymistrustfully,andranoffwithitasfastashecould。Smilashwentintothechaletandneverreappeared。Instead,Trefusis,agentlemaninanulster,carryingarug,cameout,lockedthedoor,andhurriedalongtheroadtoLyvern,wherehewaspickedupbythetrap,andcarriedswiftlytotherailwaystation,justintimetocatchtheLondontrain。

"Eveningpaper,sir？"saidavoiceatthewindow,ashesettledhimselfinthecornerofafirst—classcarriage。

"No,thankyou。"

"Footwarmer,sir？"saidaporter,appearinginthenews—vender"splace。

"Ah,that"sagoodidea。Yes,letmehaveafootwarmer。"

Thefootwarmerwasbrought,andTrefusiscomposedhimselfcomfortablyforhisjourney。Itseemedveryshorttohim;hecouldhardlybelieve,whenthetrainarrivedinLondon,thathehadbeennearlythreehoursontheway。

TherewasasenseofChristmasaboutthetravellersandthepeoplewhowereattheterminustomeetthem。TheporterwhocametothecarriagedoorremindedTrefusisbyhismannerandvoicethattheseasonwasoneatwhichitbecomesagentlemantobefestiveandliberal。

"Wotluggage,sir？Hansomorfourweoll,sir？"

ForamomentTrefusisfeltavagabondimpulsetoresumethelanguageofSmilashandfabletothemanofhampersofturkeyandplum—puddinginthevan。Butherepressedit,gotintoahansom,andwasdriventohisfather—in—law"shouseinBelsizeAvenue,studyinginagloomilycriticalmoodtheanxietythatsurgeduponhimandmadehisheartbeatlikeaboy"sashedrewnearhisdestination。Thereweretwocarriagesatthedoorwhenhealighted。Thereticentexpressionofthecoachmensentatremorthroughhim。

Thedooropenedbeforeherang。"Ifyouplease,sir,"saidthemaidinalowvoice,"willyoustepintothelibrary;andthedoctorwillseeyouimmediately。"

OnthefirstlandingofthestaircasetwogentlemenwerespeakingtoMr。Jansenius,whohastilymovedoutofsight,notbeforeaglimpseofhisairofgrief174anddiscomfiturehadgivenTrefusisastrangetwinge,succeededbyasensationofhavingbeentwentyyearsawidower。Hesmiledunconcernedlyashefollowedthegirlintothelibrary,andaskedherhowshedid。

Shemurmuredsomereplyandhurriedaway,thinkingthatthepooryoungmanwouldalterhistonepresently。

Hewasjoinedatoncebyagraywhiskeredgentleman,scrupulouslydressedandmannered。Trefusisintroducedhimself,andthephysicianlookedathimwithsomeinterest。Thenhesaid:

"Youhavearrivedtoolate,Mr。Trefusis。Allisover,Iamsorrytosay。"

"Wasthelongrailwayjourneyshetookinthiscoldweatherthecauseofherdeath？"

Somebitterwordsthatthephysicianhadheardupstairsmadehimawarethatthiswasadelicatequestion。Buthesaidquietly:

"Theproximatecause,doubtless。Theproximatecause。"

"Shereceivedsomeunwelcomeandquiteunlooked—forintelligencebeforeshestarted。Hadthatanythingtodowithherdeath,doyouthink？"

"Itmayhaveproducedanunfavorableeffect,"saidthephysician,growingrestiveandtakinguphisgloves。"Thehabitofreferringsucheventstosuchcausesiscarriedtoofar,asarule。"

"Nodoubt。Iamcuriousbecausetheeventisnovelinmyexperience。Isupposeitisacommonplaceinyours。Pardonme。

175Thelossofaladysoyoungandsofavorablycircumstancedisnotacommonplaceeitherinmyexperienceorinmyopinion。"

Thephysicianhelduphisheadashespoke,inprotestagainstanyassumptionthathissympathieshadbeenbluntedbyhisprofession。

"Didshesuffer？"

"Forsomehours,yes。Wewereabletodoalittletoalleviateherpain——poorthing！"HealmostforgotTrefusisasheaddedtheapostrophe。

"Hoursofpain！Canyouconceiveanygoodpurposethatthosehoursmayhaveserved？"

Thephysicianshookhishead,leavingitdoubtfulwhetherhemeanttoreplyinthenegativeortodeploreconsiderationsofthatnature。Healsomadeamovementtodepart,beinguneasyinconversationwithTrefusis,whowould,hefeltsure,presentlyaskquestionsormakeremarkswithwhichhecouldhardlydealwithoutcommittinghimselfinsomedirection。Hisconsciencewasnotquiteatrest。Henrietta"spainhadnot,hethought,servedanygoodpurpose;buthedidnotwanttosayso,lestheshouldacquireareputationforimpietyandlosehispractice。Hebelievedthatthegeneralpractitionerwhoattendedthefamily,andhadcalledhiminwhenthecasegrewserious,hadtreatedHenriettaunskilfully,butprofessionaletiquetteboundhimsostronglythat,soonerthanbetrayhiscolleague"sinefficiency,hewouldhaveallowedhimtodecimateLondon。

"Onewordmore,"saidTrefusis。"Didsheknowthatshewasdying？"

"No。Iconsidereditbestthatsheshouldnotbeinformedofherdanger。Shepassedawaywithoutanyapprehension。"

"Thenonecanthinkofitwithequanimity。Shedreadeddeath,poorchild。Thewonderisthattherewasnotenoughfollyinthehouseholdtoprevailagainstyourgoodsense。"

Thephysicianbowedandtookhisleave,esteeminghimselfsomewhatfortunateinescapingwithoutbeingreproachedforhishumanityinhavingallowedHenriettatodieunawares。

Amomentlaterthegeneralpractitionerentered。Trefusis,havingaccompaniedtheconsultingphysiciantothedoor,detectedthefamilydoctorintheactofpullingalongfacejustoutsideit。

Restrainingadesiretoseizehimbythethroat,heseatedhimselfontheedgeofthetableandsaidcheerfully:

"Well,doctor,howhastheworldusedyousincewelastmet？"

Thedoctorwastakenaback,butthesolemndispositionofhisfeaturesdidnotrelaxashealmostintoned:"HasSirFrancistoldyouthesadnews,Mr。Trefusis？"

"Yes。Frightful,isn"tit？Lordblessme,we"rehereto—dayandgoneto—morrow。"

"True,verytrue！"

"SirFrancishasahighopinionofyou。"

Thedoctorlookedalittlefoolish。"Everythingwasdonethatcouldbedone,Mr。Trefusis;butMrs。Janseniuswasveryanxiousthatnostoneshouldbeleftunturned。ShewasgoodenoughtosaythathersolereasonforwishingmetocallinSirFranciswasthatyoushouldhavenocausetocomplain。"

"Indeed！"

"Anexcellentmother！Asadeventforher！Ah,yes,yes！Dearme！

Averysadevent！"

"Mostdisagreeable。Suchacolddaytoo。Pleasantertobeinheaventhanhereinsuchweather,possibly。"

"Ah！"saidthedoctor,asifmuchsoundcomfortlayinthat。"I

hopeso;Ihopeso;Idonotdoubtit。SirFrancisdidnotpermitustotellher,andI,ofcourse,deferredtohim。Perhapsitwasforthebest。"

"Youwouldhavetoldher,then,ifSirFrancishadnotobjected？"

"Well,thereare,yousee,considerationswhichwemustnotignoreinourprofession。Deathisaseriousthing,asIamsureIneednotremindyou,Mr。Trefusis。Wehavesometimeshigherdutiesthanindulgencetothenaturalfeelingsofourpatients。"

"Quiteso。Thepossibilityofeternalblissandtheprobabilityofeternaltormentareconsolationsnottobelightlywithheldfromadyinggirl,eh？However,what"spastcannotbemended。I

havemuchtobethankfulfor,afterall。Iamayoungman,andshallnotcutabadfigureasawidower。Andnowtellme,doctor,amInotinverybadreputeupstairs？"

"Mr。Trefusis！Sir！Icannotmeddleinfamilymatters。I

understandmydutiesandneveroverstepthem。"Thedoctor,shockedatlast,spokeasloftilyashecould。

"ThenIwillgoandseeMr。Jansenius,"saidTrefusis,gettingoffthetable。

"Stay,sir！Onemoment。Ihavenotfinished。Mrs。Janseniushasaskedmetoask——IwasabouttosaythatIamnotspeakingnowasthemedicaladviserofthisfamily;butalthoughanoldfriend——and——ahem！Mrs。Janseniushasaskedmetoask——torequestyoutoexcuseMr。Jansenius,asheisprostratedbygrief,andis,asIcan——asamedicalman——assureyou,unabletoseeanyone。

Shewillspeaktoyouherselfassoonasshefeelsabletodoso——atsometimethisevening。Meanwhile,ofcourse,anyordersyoumaygive——youmustbefatiguedbyyourjourney,andIalwaysrecommendpeoplenottofasttoolong;itproducesanacuteformofindigestion——anyordersyoumaywishtogivewill,ofcourse,beattendedtoatonce。"

"Ithink,"saidTrefusis,afteramoment"sreflection,"Iwillorderahansom。"

"Thereisnoill—feeling,"saidthedoctor,who,asaslowman,wasusuallyalarmedbypromptdecisions,evenwhentheyseemedwisetohim,asthisonedid。"IhopeyouhavenotgatheredfromanythingIhavesaid——"

"Notatall;youhavedisplayedtheutmosttact。ButIthinkI

hadbettergo。Janseniuscanbeardeathandmiserywithperfectfortitudewhenitisonalargescaleandhiddeninabackslum。

Butwhenitbreaksintohisownhouse,andattackshisproperty——hisdaughterwashispropertyuntilveryrecently——heisjustthemantolosehisheadandquarrelwithmeforkeepingmine。"

Thedoctorwasunabletocopewiththisspeech,whichconveyedvaguelymonstrousideastohim。SeeingTrefusisabouttoleave,hesaidinalowvoice:"Willyougoupstairs？"

"Upstairs！Why？"

"I——Ithoughtyoumightwishtosee——"Hedidnotfinishthesentence,butTrefusisflinched;theblankhadexpressedwhatwasmeant。

"ToseesomethingthatwasHenrietta,andthatisathingwemustcastoutandhide,withalittlesuperstitiousmummingtosaveappearances。Whydidyouremindmeofit？"

"But,sir,whateveryourviewsmaybe,willyounot,asamatterofform,indeferencetothefeelingsofthefamily——"

"Letthemsparetheirfeelingsfortheliving,onwhosebehalfI

haveoftenappealedtotheminvain,"criedTrefusis,losingpatience。"Damntheirfeelings！"And,turningtothedoor,hefounditopen,andMrs。Janseniustherelistening。

Trefusiswasconfounded。Heknewwhattheeffectofhisspeechmustbe,andfeltthatitwouldbefollytoattemptexcuseorexplanation。Heputhishandsintohispockets,leanedagainstthetable,andlookedather,mutelywonderingwhatwouldfollowonherpart。

Thedoctorbrokethesilencebysayingtremulously,"IhavecommunicatedthemelancholyintelligencetoMr。Trefusis。"

"Ihopeyoutoldhimalso,"shesaidsternly,"that,howeverdeficientwemaybeinfeeling,wedideverythingthatlayinourpowerforourchild。"

"Iamquitesatisfied,"saidTrefusis。

"Nodoubtyouare——withtheresult,"saidMrs。Jansenius,hardly。

"Iwishtoknowwhetheryouhaveanythingtocomplainof。"

"Nothing。"

"Pleasedonotimplythatanythinghashappenedthroughourneglect。"

"WhathaveItocomplainof？Shehadawarmroomandaluxuriousbedtodiein,withthebestmedicaladviceintheworld。Plentyofpeoplearestarvingandfreezingto—daythatwemayhavethemeanstodiefashionably;askTHEMiftheyhaveanycauseforcomplaint。DoyouthinkIwillwrangleoverherbodyabouttheamountofmoneyspentonherillness？Whatmeasureisthatofthecauseshehadforcomplaint？Inevergrudgedmoneytoher——howcouldI,seeingthatmorethanIcanwasteisgiventomefornothing？Orhowcouldyou？Yetshehadgreatreasontocomplainofme。Youwillallowthattobeso。"

"Itisperfectlytrue。"

"Well,whenIaminthehumorforit,Iwillreproachmyselfandnotyou。"Hepaused,andthenturnedforciblyonher,saying,"Whydoyouselectthistime,ofallothers,tospeaksobitterlytome？"

"IamnotawarethatIhavesaidanythingtocallforsucharemark。DidYOU,"（appealingtothedoctor）"hearmesayanything？"

"Mr。Trefusisdoesnotmeantosaythatyoudid,Iamsure。Oh,no。Mr。Trefusis"sfeelingsarenaturally——areharrowed。Thatisall。"

"Myfeelings！"criedTrefusisimpatiently。"Doyousupposemyfeelingsareatrumperysetofsocialobservances,tobeharrowedtoorderandexhibitedatfunerals？Shehasgoneaswethreeshallgosoonenough。Ifwewereimmortal,wemightreasonablypitythedead。Aswearenot,wehadbettersaveourenergiestominimizetheharmwearelikelytodobeforewefollowher。"

Thedoctorwasdeeplyoffendedbythisspeech,forthestatementthatheshouldonedaydieseemedtohimareflectionuponhisprofessionalmasteryoverdeath。Mrs。JanseniuswasgladtoseeTrefusisconfirmingherbadopinionandreportofhimbyhisconductandlanguageinthedoctor"spresence。Therewasabriefpause,andthenTrefusis,toofaroutofsympathywiththemtobeabletoleadtheconversationintoakindervein,lefttheroom。

Intheactofputtingonhisovercoatinthehall,hehesitated,andhungitupagainirresolutely。Suddenlyheranupstairs。Atthesoundofhisstepsawomancamefromoneoftheroomsandlookedinquiringlyathim。

"Isithere？"hesaid。

"Yes,sir,"shewhispered。

Apainfulsenseofconstrictioncameinhischest,andheturnedpaleandstoppedwithhishandonthelock。

"Don"tbeafraid,sir,"saidthewoman,withanencouragingsmile。"Shelooksbeautiful。"

Helookedatherwithastrangegrin,asifshehadutteredaghastlybutirresistiblejoke。Thenhewentin,and,whenhereachedthebed,wishedhehadstayedwithout。Hewasnotoneofthosewho,seeinglittleinthefacesofthelivingmisslittleinthefacesofthedead。Thearrangementoftheblackhaironthepillow,thesoftdrapery,andtheflowersplacedtherebythenursetocompletetheartisticeffecttowhichshehadsoconfidentlyreferred,werelostonhim;hesawonlyalifelessmaskthathadbeenhiswife"sface,andatsightofithiskneesfailed,andhehadtoleanforsupportontherailatthefootofthebed。

Whenhelookedagainthefaceseemedtohavechanged。Itwasnolongerawaxlikemask,butHenrietta,girlishandpatheticallyatrest。Deathseemedtohavecancelledhermarriageandwomanhood;

hehadneverseenherlooksoyoung。Aminutepassed,andthenateardroppedonthecoverlet。Hestarted;shookanothertearonhishand,andstaredatitincredulously。

"ThisisafraudofwhichIhaveneverevendreamed,"hesaid。

"Tearsandnosorrow！HereamIcrying！growingmaudlin！whilstI

amgladthatsheisgoneandIfree。Ihavethemechanismofgriefinmesomewhere;itbeginstoturnatsightofherthoughI

havenosorrow;justassheusedtostartthemechanismofpassionwhenIhadnolove。Andthatmadenodifferencetoher;

whilstthewheelswentroundshewassatisfied。Ihopethemechanismofgriefwillflagandstopinitsspinningassoonastheotherusedto。Itisstoppingalready,Ithink。Whatamockery！WhilstitlastsIsupposeIamreallysorry。Andyet,wouldIrestorehertolifeifIcould？Perhapsso;IamthereforethankfulthatIcannot。"Hefoldedhisarmsontherailandgravelyaddressedthedeadfigure,whichstillaffectedhimsostronglythathehadtoexerthiswilltofaceitwithcomposure。"Ifyoureallylovedme,itiswellforyouthatyouaredead——idiotthatIwastobelievethatthepassionyoucouldinspire,youpoorchild,wouldlast。Wearebothlucky;Ihaveescapedfromyou,andyouhaveescapedfromyourself。"

Presentlyhebreathedmorefreelyandlookedroundtheroomtohelphimselfintoamatter—of—factveinbyalittleunembarrassedaction,andthecommonplaceaspectofthebedroomfurniture。Hewenttothepillow,andbentoverit,examiningthefaceclosely。

"Poorchild！"hesaidagain,tenderly。Then,withsuddenreaction,apostrophizinghimselfinsteadofhiswife,"Poorass！

Pooridiot！Poorjackanapes！Hereisthebodyofawomanwhowasnearlyasoldasmyself,andperhapswiser,andhereamI

moralizingoveritasifIwereGodAlmightyandsheababy！Themoreyouremindamanofwhatheis,themoreconceitedhebecomes。Monstrous！Ishallfeelimmortalpresently。"

Hetouchedthecheekwithafaintattemptatroughness,tofeelhowcolditwas。Thenhetouchedhisown,andremarked:

"ThisiswhatIamhasteningtowardattheexpressspeedofsixtyminutesanhour！"Hestoodlookingdownatthefaceandtastingthissombrereflectionforalongtime。Whenitpalledonhim,herousedhimself,andexclaimedmorecheerfully:

"Afterall,sheisnotdead。Everywordsheuttered——everyideasheformedandexpressed,wasaninexhaustibleandindestructibleimpulse。"Hepaused,consideredalittlefurther,andrelapsedintogloom,adding,"andthedozenotherswhosenameswillbewithhersinthe"Times"to—morrow？Theirwordstooarestillintheair,toenduretheretoalleternity。Hm！Howtheairmustbecrammedwithnonsense！Twosoundssometimesproduceasilence;

perhapsideasneutralizeoneanotherinsomeanalogousway。No,mydear;youaredeadandgoneanddonewith,andIshallbedeadandgoneanddonewithtoosoontoleavemeleisuretofoolmyselfwithhopesofimmortality。PoorHetty！Well,good—by,mydarling。Letuspretendforamomentthatyoucanhearthat;I

knowitwillpleaseyou。"

Allthiswasinahalf—articulatewhisper。Whenheceasedhestillbentoverthebody,gazingintentlyatit。Evenwhenhehadexhaustedthesubject,andturnedtogo,hechangedhismind,andlookedagainforawhile。Thenhestooderect,apparentlynervedandrefreshed,andlefttheroomwithafirmstep。Thewomanwaswaitingoutside。Seeingthathewaslessdistressedthanwhenheentered,shesaid:

"Ihopeyouaresatisfied,sir！"

"Delighted！Charmed！Thearrangementsareextremelyprettyandtasteful。Mostconsolatory。"Andhegaveherhalfasovereign。

"Ithankyou,sir,"shesaid,droppingacurtsey。"Thepooryounglady！Shewasanxioustoseeyou,sir。Tohearhersaythatyouweretheonlyonethatcaredforher！Andsofretfulwithhermother,too。"LethimbetoldthatIamdangerouslyill,"saysshe,"andhe"llcome。"Shedidn"tknowhowtrueherwordwas,poorthing;andshewentoffwithoutbeingawareofit。"

"Flatteringherselfandflatteringme。Happygirl！"

"Blessyou,Iknowwhatherfeelingswere,sir;Ihavehadexperience。"Heresheapproachedhimconfidentially,andwhispered:"Thefamilywereagain"you,sir,andsheknewit。Butshewouldn"tlistentothem。Shethoughtofnothing,whenshewaseasyenoughtothinkatall,butofyourcoming。And——hush！

Here"stheoldgentleman。"

TrefusislookedroundandsawMr。Jansenius,whosehandsomefacewaswhiteandseamedwithgriefandannoyance。Hedrewbackfromtheprofferedhandofhisson—in—law,likeanoverworriedchildfromanill—timedattempttopetit。Trefusispitiedhim。Thenursecoughedandretired。

"HaveyoubeenspeakingtoMrs。Jansenius？"saidTrefusis。

"Yes,"saidJanseniusoffensively。

"SohaveI,unfortunately。Praymakemyapologiestoher。Iwasrude。Thecircumstancesupsetme。"

"Youarenotupset,sir,"saidJanseniusloudly。"Youdonotcareadamn。"

Trefusisrecoiled。