第12章
"Iknewtherewassomethingelse,"saidMrs。Sheridan,blinkingoverayawn。
"Youbetterletitgotillto—morrowandgettobednow——"lessyou"lltellme？"
"SupposesomethinghappenedtoRoscoe,"hesaid。"THENwhat"dIhavetolookforwardto？THENwhatcouldIdependontoholdthingstogether？Alummix！
Alummixthathasn"tlearnedhowtopushastripo"zincalongagroove！"
"Roscoe？"sheyawned。"Youneedn"tworryaboutRoscoe,papa。He"sthestrongestchildwehad。Ineverdidknowanybodykeepbetterhealththanhedoes。Idon"tbelievehe"sevenhadacoldinfiveyears。Youbettergouptobed,papa。"
"SupposesomethingDIDhappentohim,though。Youdon"tknowwhatitmeans,keepin"propertytogetherthesedays——justkeepin"itALIVE,letalonemakin"
itgrowthewayIdo。I"veseentoomanyestateshackedawayinchunks,bigandlittle。Itellyouwhenamandiesthewolvescomeouto"thewoods,packafterpack,toseewhattheycantearoffforthemselves;andifthatdeadman"schuldernain"tonthejob,nightandday,everythinghebuilt"llgetcarriedoff。Carriedoff？I"veseenabigfortunebehavelikeanash—barrelinacyclone——therewasn"tevenadust—heaplefttotellwhereitstood！I"veseenit,timeandagain。MyLord！whenIthinko"suchthingscomin"toME！
Itdon"tseemlikeIdeservedit——nomanevertriedhardertoraisehisboysrightthanIhave。Iplannedandplannedandplannedhowtobring"emuptobeguardstodrivethewolvesoff,andhowtobebuilderstobuild,andbuildbigger。Itellyouthisbusinesslifeisnofool"sjobnowadays——aman"sgottohaveeyesinthebackofhishead。Youheartalk,sometimes,"dmakeyouthinkthemillenniumhadcome——butrightthenextbreathyou"llhearsomebodyhollerin"about"thegreatunrest。"YouBETthere"sa"greatunrest"！Thereain"tanymanalivesmartenoughtoseewhatit"sgoin"todotousintheend,norwhatdayit"sgotsettobustloose,butit"sfrothin"andbubblin"
intheboiler。Thiscountry"sbeenfillin"upwithitfromallovertheworldforagoodmanyyears,andtheoldcamp—meetin"daysaredeadanddonewith。
Churchain"twhatitusedtobe。Nothin"swhatitusedtobe——everything"sturnedupfromthebottom,andthegrowthissobigtherootsstickoutintheair。There"sanawfulructiongoin"on,andyougottokeephoppin"ifyou"regoin"tokeepyourbalanceonthetopofit。Andtheschemers！Theyrunlikebugsonthebottomofaboard——afteranypieceo"moneytheyhearisloose。
Foolschemesandcrookedschemes;thefoolonesarethemostandtheworst！
YougottoFIGHTtokeepyourmoneyafteryou"vemadeit。Andthewoodsarefullo"mightyindustriousmenthat"sgotonlyonemotto:"Gettheotherfellow"smoneybeforehegetsyours！"Andwhenaman"sbuiltasIhave,whenhe"sbuiltgoodandstrong,andmadegoodthingsgrowandprosper——THOSEarethefellowsthatlayforthechancetoslideinandsneakthebenefitofitandputtheirnamestoit！Andwhat"stheuseofmyhavin"everbeenborn,ifsuchathingasthatisgoin"tohappen？What"stheuseofmyhavin"workedmylifeandsoulintomybusiness,ifit"sallgoin"tobedispersedandscatteredsoonasI"mintheground？"
Hestrodeupanddownthelongroom,gesticulating——littleregardingthetroubledanddrowsyfigurebythefireside。Histhroatrumbledthunderously;
thewordscamewithstormybitterness。"Youthinkthisisatimeforyoungmentobelyin"onbedsofease？Itellyouthereneverwassuchatimebefore;thereneverwassuchopportunity。Thesluggardisdespoiledwhilehesleeps——yes,byGeorge！ifamaylaysdownthey"lleathimbeforehewakes！——butthelivemancanbuildstraightuptillhetouchesthesky！Thisisthebusinessman"sday;itusedtobethesoldier"sdayandthestatesman"sday,butthisisOURS！Anditain"taSundaytogofishin"——it"sturmoil！
turmoil！——andyougottogooutandliveitandbreatheitandMAKEityourself,oryou"llonlybeadeadmanwalkin"arounddreamin"you"realive。
Andthat"swhatmysonBibbshasbeendoin"allhislife,andwhathe"dratherdonowthangooutanddohispartbyme。AndifanythinghappenstoRoscoe——"
"Oh,dostopworryin"oversuchnonsense,"Mrs。Sheridaninterrupted,irritatedintosharpwakefulnessforthemoment。"Thereisn"tanythinggoin"
tohappentoRoscoe,andyou"rejusttormentin"yourselfaboutnothin"。
Aren"tyouEVERgoin"tobed？"
Sheridanhalted。"Allright,mamma,"hesaid,withavastsigh。"Let"sgoup。"Andhesnappedofftheelectriclight,leavingonlytherosyglowofthefire。
"DidyouspeaktoRoscoe？"sheyawned,risinglopsidedlyinherdrowsiness。
"DidyoumentionaboutwhatItoldyoutheotherevening？"
"No。Iwillto—morrow。"
ButRoscoedidnotcomedown—townthenextday,northenext;nordidSheridanseefittoenterhisson"shouse。Hewaited。Then,onthefourthdayofthemonth,Roscoewalkedintohisfather"sofficeatnineinthemorning,whenSheridanhappenedtobealone。
"Theytoldmedown—stairsyou"dleftwordyouwantedtoseeme。"
"Sitdown,"saidSheridan,rising。
Roscoesat。Hisfatherwalkedclosetohim,sniffedsuspiciously,andthenwalkedaway,smilingbitterly。"Boh！"heexclaimed。"Stillatit！"
"Yes,"saidRoscoe。"I"vehadacoupleofdrinksthismorning。Whataboutit？"
"IreckonIbetteradoptsomedecentyoungman,"hisfatherreturned。"I"dbringBibbsuphereandputhiminyourplaceifhewasfit。Iwould！"
"Betterdoit,"Roscoeassently,sullenly。
"When"dyoubeginthisthing？"
"Ialwaysdiddrinkalittle。EversinceIgrewup,thatis。"
"Leavethattalkout！YouknowwhatImean。"
"Well,Idon"tknowasIeverhadtoomuchinofficehours——untiltheotherday。"
Sheridanbegancutting。"It"salie。I"vehadRayWillsupfromyouroffice。
Hedidn"twanttogiveyouaway,butIputthehooksintohim,andhecamethrough。Youweredrunktwicebeforeandcouldn"twork。Youbeenleavin"
yourofficefordrinkseveryfewhoursforthelastthreeweeks。Ibeenoveryourbooks。Yourofficeiswaybehind。Youhaven"tdoneanywork,tocount,inamonth。"
"Allright,"saidRoscoe,droopingunderthetorture。"It"salltrue。"
"Whatyougoin"todoaboutit？"
Roscoe"sheadwassunkbetweenhisshoulders。"Ican"tstandverymuchtalkaboutit,father,"hesaid,pleadingly。
"No！"Sheridancried。"NeithercanI！WhatdoyouthinkitmeanstoME？"Hedroppedintothechairathisbigdesk,groaning。"Ican"tstandtotalkaboutitanymore"nyoucantolisten,butI"mgoin"tofindoutwhat"sthematterwithyou,andI"mgoin"tostraightenyouout！"
Roscoeshookhisheadhelplessly。
"Youcan"tstraightenmeout。"
"Seehere！"saidSheridan。"Canyougobacktoyourofficeandstaysoberto—day,whileIgetmyworkdone,orwillIhavetohireacoupleo"huskiestofollowyouaroundandknockthewhiskeyouto"yourhandiftheyseeyoutryin"totakeit？"
"Youneedn"tworryaboutthat,"saidRoscoe,lookingupwithafaintresentment。"I"mnotdrinkingbecauseI"vegotathirst。"
"Well,whathaveyougot？"
"Nothing。Nothingyoucandoanythingabout。Nothing,Itellyou。"
"We"llseeaboutthat！"saidSheridan,harshly。"NowIcan"tfoolwithyouto—day,andyougetupouto"thatchairandgetouto"myoffice。Youbringyourwifetodinnerto—morrow。Youdidn"tcomelastSunday——butyoucometo—morrow。I"lltalkthisoutwithyouwhenthewomen—folksareworkin"thephonograph,afterdinner。Canyoukeepsobertillthen？Youbetterbesure,becauseI"mgoingtosendAbercrombiedowntoyourofficeeverylittlewhile,andhe"llletmeknow。"
Roscoepausedatthedoor。"YoutoldAbercrombieaboutit？"heasked。
"TOLDhim！"AndSheridanlaughedhideously。"Doyousupposethere"sanelevator—boyinthewholedam"buildingthatain"tontoyou？"
Roscoesettledhishatdownoverhiseyesandwentout。
"WHOlooksamustangintheeye？Changety,chang,chang！Bash！Crash！BANG！"
SosangBibbs,hismusicalgaietiesinaudibletohisfellow—workmenbecauseofthenoiseofthemachinery。Hehaddiscoveredlongagothattheuproarwasrhythmical,andithadbeenintolerable;butnow,ontheafternoonofthefourthdayofhisreturn,hewasaccompanyingtheswingandclashofthemetalswithjubilantvaquerofragments,minglingimprovisationsofhisownamongthem,andmockingthezinc—eater"scrashwithvocalimitations:
Fearlessandbold,Chang！Bash！Behold！WithaleapfromthegroundTothesaddleinabound,Andaway——andaway！Hi—YAY！WHOlooksachang,chang,bash,crash,bang！WHOcaresadashhowyoubashandyoucrash？NIGHT"SonthewayEACHtimeIsay,Hi—YAY！Crash,chang！Bash,chang！Chang,bang,BANG！
Thelongroomwasceaselesslythunderingwithmetallicsound;theairwasthickwiththesmellofoil;thefloortrembledperpetually;everythingwasimplacablyinmotion——nowherewastherearestforthedizziedeye。ThefirsttimehehadenteredtheplaceBibbshadbecomedizzyinstantly,andsixmonthsofithadonlyaddedincreasingnauseatofaintness。Buthefeltneithernow。
"ALLDAYLONGI"LLSENDMYTHOUGHTSTOYOU。YOUMUSTKEEPREMEMBERINGTHAT
YOURFRIENDSTANDSBESIDEYOU。"Hesawhertherebesidehim,andthegreasy,roaringplacebecamesuffusedwithradiance。Thepoetwashappyinhismachine—shop;hewasstillapoetthere。Andhefedhisoldzinc—eater,andsang:
Away——andaway！Hi—YAH！Crash,bash,crash,bash,CHANG！Wildarehiseyes,Fiercelyhedies！Hi—YAH！Crash,bash,bang！Bash,CHANG！ReadytoflingOurglovesinthering——
Hewasunawareofasensationthatpassedalongthelinesofworkmen。Theirgreatmasterhadcomeamongthem,andtheygrinnedtoseehimstandingwithDr。GurneybehindtheunconsciousBibbs。Sheridannoddedtothosenearesthim——hehadpersonalacquaintancewithnearlyallofthem——buthekepthisattentionuponhisson。Bibbsworkedsteadily,neverturningfromhismachine。Nowandthenhevariedhismusicalprogrammewithremarksaddressedtothezinc—eater。
"Goon,youoldcrash—basher！Chewitup！It"sgoodforyou,ifyoudon"ttrytoboltyourvittles。Fletcherize,youpig！That"sright——YOU"LLnevergetalumpinyourgizzard。Wantsomemore？Here"sanice,shinyone。"
Thewordswereindistinguishable,butSheridaninclinedhisheadtoGurney"searandshoutedfiercely:"Talkin"tohimself！ByGeorge！"
Gurneylaughedreassuringly,andshookhishead。
Bibbsreturnedtosong:
Chang！Chang,bash,chang！It"sI！WHOlooksamustangintheeye？Fearlessandbo——
Hisfathergraspedhimbythearm。"Here！"heshouted。"LetMEshowyouhowtorunastripthroughthere。Theforemansaysyou"resomebetter"nyouusedtobe,butthat"snowaytohandle——Getoutthewayandletmeshowyouonce。"
"Betterbecareful,"Bibbswarnedhim,steppingtooneside。
"Careful？Boh！"Sheridanseizedastripofzincfromthebox。"Whatyoutalkin"toyourselfabout？Tryin"tomakeyourselfthinkyou"resoabusedyou"regoin"wronginthehead？"
""Abused"？No！"shoutedBibbs。"IwasSINGING——becauseI"likeit"！ItoldyouI"dcomebackand"likeit。""
Sheridanmaynothaveunderstood。Atallevents,hemadenoreply,butbegantorunthestripofzincthroughthemachine。Hediditawkwardly——andwithbadresults。
"Here！"heshouted。"Thisistheway。WatchhowIdoit。There"snothin"toit,ifyouputyourmindonit。"Byhisownshowingthenhismindwasnotuponit。Hecontinuedtotalk。"Allyougottolookoutforistokeepitpressedoverto——"
"Don"trunyourhandupwithit,"Bibbsvociferated,leaningtowardhim。
"Runnothin"！YouGOTto——"
"Lookout！"shoutedBibbsandGurneytogether,andtheybothsprangforward。
ButSheridan"srighthandhadfollowedthestriptoofar,andthezinc—eaterhadbittenoffthetipsofthefirstandsecondfingers。Hesworevehemently,andwrunghishand,sendingashowerofreddropsoverhimselfandBibbs,butGurneygraspedhiswrist,andsaid,sharply:
"Comeoutofhere。Comeovertothelavatoryintheoffice。Bibbs,fetchmybag。It"sinmymachine,outside。"
AndwhenBibbsbroughtthebagtothewashroomhefoundthedoctorstillgraspingSheridan"swrist,holdingtheinjuredhandoverabasin。Sheridanhadlostcolor,andtemper,too。HeglaredoverhisshoulderathissonasthelatterhandedthebagtoGurney。
"Yougoonbacktoyourwork,"hesaid。"I"vehadworsesnipsthanthatfromapencil—sharpener。"
"Ohno,youhaven"t！"saidGurney。
"Ihave,too！"Sheridanretorted,angrily。"Bibbs,yougoonbacktoyourwork。There"snoreasontostandaroundherewatchin"oleDocGurneytryin"
tokeephimselfawakeworkin"onascratchthatonlyneedsalittlecourt—plaster。Islipped,oritwouldn"thappened。Yougetbackonyourjob。"
"Allright,"saidBibbs。
"HERE！"Sheridanbellowed,ashissonwaspassingoutofthedoor。"Youwatchoutwhenyou"rerunnin"thatmachine！YouhearwhatIsay？Islipped,orIwouldn"tgotscratched,butyou——YOU"REliabletogetyourwholehandcutoff！Youkeepyoureyesopen！"
"Yes,sir。"AndBibbsreturnedtothezinc—eaterthoughtfully。
Halfanhourlater,Gurneytouchedhimontheshoulderandbeckonedhimoutside,whereconversationwaspossible。"Isenthimhome,Bibbs。He"llhavetobecarefulofthathand。Gogetyouroverallsoff。I"lltakeyouforadriveandleaveyouathome。"
"Can"t,"saidBibbs。"Gottosticktomyjobtillthewhistleblows。"
"No,youdon"t,"thedoctorreturned,smotheringayawn。"Hewantsmetotakeyoudowntomyofficeandgiveyouanoverhaulingtoseehowmuchharmthesefourdaysonthemachinehavedoneyou。Iguessyoufolkshavegotthatoldmanprettythoroughlyupset,betweenyou,upatyourhouse！ButIdon"tneedtogooveryou。Icanseewithmyeyeshalfshut——"
"Yes,"Bibbsinterrupted,"that"swhattheyare。"
"IsayIcanseeyou"restartingout,atleast,ingoodshape。What"smadethedifference？"
"Ilikethemachine,"saidBibbs。"I"vemadeafriendofit。Iserenadeitandtalktoit,andthenittalksbacktome。"
"Indeed,indeed？Whatdoesitsay？"
"WhatIwanttohear。"
"Well,well！"Thedoctorstretchedhimselfandstampedhisfootrepeatedly。
"Bettercomealongandtakeadrivewithme。Youcantakethetimeoffthatheallowedfortheexamination,and——"
"Notatall,"saidBibbs。"I"mgoingtostandbymyoldzinc—eatertillfiveo"clock。ItellyouILIKEit！"
"ThenIsupposethat"stheendofyourwantingtowrite。"
"Idon"tknowaboutthat,"Bibbssaid,thoughtfully;"butthezinc—eaterdoesn"tinterferewithmythinking,atleast。It"sbetterthanbeinginbusiness;I"msureofthat。Idon"twantanythingtochange。I"dbecontenttoleadjustthelifeI"mleadingnowtotheendofmydays。"
"Youdobeatthedevil！"exclaimedGurney。"Yourfather"srightwhenhetellsmeyou"reamystery。PerhapstheAlmightyknewwhatHewasdoingwhenHemadeyou,butittakesalotoffaithtobelieveit！Well,I"moff。Goonbacktoyourmurderingoldmachine。"Heclimbedintohiscar,whichheoperatedhimself,butherefrainedfromsettingitimmediatelyinmotion。"Well,I
rubbeditinontheoldmanthatyouhadwarnedhimnottoslidehishandalongtoofar,andthathegothurtbecausehedidn"tpayattentiontoyourwarning,andbecausehewastryingtoshowyouhowtodosomethingyouwerealreadydoingagreatdealbetterthanhecould。YoutellhimI"llbearoundtolookatitandchangethedressingto—morrowmorning。Good—by。"
Butwhenhepaidthepromisedvisit,thenextmorning,hedidmorethanchangethedressinguponthedamagedhand。Theinjurywassevereofitskind,andGurneyspentalongtimeoverit,thoughSheridanwasrebelliousandscornful,beingbroughttoadegreeoftractabilityonlybymeansofhorriblethreatsandtalkofamputation。However,heappearedatthedinner—tablewithhishandsupportedinasling,whichheseemedtoregardasanindignity,whilethenaturalinquiriesuponthesubjectevidentlystruckhimasdeliberateinsults。Mrs。Sheridan,havingbeenunabletocontainhersolicitudeseveraltimesduringtheday,andhavingbeencheckedeachtimeinamannerthatblanchedhercheek,hastenedtowarnRoscoeandSibyl,upontheirarrivalatfive,toomitanyreferencetotheinjuryandtoavoidevenlookingattheslingiftheypossiblycould。
TheSheridansdinedonSundaysatfive。Sibylhadtakenpainsnottoarriveeitherbeforeorafterthehandwaspreciselyonthehour;andthemembersofthefamilywereallseatedatthetablewithintwominutesaftersheandRoscoehadenteredthehouse。
Itwasaglumgathering,overhungwithportents。Theairseemedcharged,awaitinganytinyignitiontoexplode;andMrs。Sheridan"sexpression,asshesatwithhereyesfixedalmostcontinuallyuponherhusband,wasthatofapersonengagedinprayer。Edithwaspaleandintent。Roscoelookedill;
Sibyllookedill;andSheridanlookedbothillandexplosive。Bibbshadmorecolorthananyofthese,andtherewasastrangebrightness,likealight,uponhisface。Itwascurioustoseeanythingsohappyinthetensegloomofthathousehold。
Edithatelittle,butgazednearlyallthetimeatherplate。SheneveroncelookedatSibyl,thoughSibylnowandthengaveheraquickglance,heavilycharged,andthenlookedaway。Roscoeatenothing,and,likeEdith,kepthiseyesuponhisplateandmadebelievetooccupyhimselfwiththeviandsthereon,loadinghisforkfrequently,butnotliftingittohismouth。Hedidnotoncelookathisfather,thoughhisfathergazedheavilyathimmostofthetime。AndbetweenEdithandSibyl,andbetweenRoscoeandhisfather,somebitterwirelesscommunicationseemedcontinuallytobetakingplacethroughoutthelongsilencesprevailingduringthisenliveningceremonyofSabbathrefection。
"Didn"tyougotochurchthismorning,Bibbs？"hismotherasked,intheefforttobreakuponeofthoseghastlyintervals。
"Whatdidyousay,mother？"
"Didn"tyougotochurchthismorning？"
"Ithinkso,"heanswered,asfromaroseatetrance。
"YouTHINKso！Don"tyouknow？"
"Ohyes。Yes,Iwenttochurch！"
"Whichone？"
"Justdownthestreet。It"sbrick。"
"Whatwasthesermonabout？"
"What,mother？"
"Can"tyouhearme？"shecried。"Iaskedyouwhatthesermonwasabout？"
Herousedhimself。"Ithinkitwasabout——"Hefrowned,seemingtoconcentratehiswilltorecollect。"IthinkitwasaboutsomethingintheBible。"
White—jacketGeorgewasgladofanopportunitytoleavetheroomandleanuponMist"Jackson"sshoulderinthepantry。"Hedon"tknowtheyWASanysuhmon！"
heconcluded,havingnarratedthedining—roomdialogue。"Allheknowishewaswith"atladylivesnex"do"！"Georgewasright。
"Didyougotochurchallbyyourself,Bibbs？"Sibylasked。
"No,"heanswered。"No,Ididn"tgoalone。"
"Oh？"Sibylgavetheejaculationanupwardtwist,asofmockinginquiry,andfolloweditbyanother,expressiveofhilariouscomprehension。"OH！"
Bibbslookedatherstudiously,butshespokenofurther。Andthatcompletedtheconversationatthelugubriousfeast。
Coffeecamefinally,wasdisposedofquickly,andthepartydispersedtootherpartsofthehouse。BibbsfollowedhisfatherandRoscoeintothelibrary,butwasnotwellreceived。
"YOUgoandlistentothephonographwiththewomen—folks,"Sheridancommanded。
Bibbsretreated。"Sometimesyoudoseemtobeahardsortofman！"hesaid。
However,hewentobedientlytothegilt—and—brocaderoominwhichhismotherandhissisterandhissister—in—lawhadhelplesslywithdrawn,accordingtotheirSabbaticalcustom。Edithsatinacorner,tappingherfeettogetherandlookingatthem;Sibylsatinthecenteroftheroom,examiningabroochwhichshehaddetachedfromherthroat;andMrs。SheridanwaslookingoveracollectionofrecordsconsistingexclusivelyofCarusoandrag—time。Sheselectedoneofthelatter,remarkingthatshethoughtit"rightpretty,"andfolloweditwithoneoftheformerandthesameremark。
Asthesecondreacheditsconclusion,Georgeappearedinthebroaddoorway,seemingtohaveanerrandthere,buthedidnotspeak。Instead,hefavoredEdithwithabenevolentsmile,andsheimmediatelylefttheroom,Georgesteppingasideforhertoprecedehim,andthendisappearingafterherinthehallwithanairofsuccessfuldiplomacy。HemadeitperfectlyclearthatEdithhadgivenhimsecretinstructionsandthatithadbeenhisprideandpleasuretofulfilthemtotheletter。
Sibylstiffenedinherchair;herlipsparted,andshewatchedwithcuriouseyesthevanishingbackofthewhitejacket。
"What"sthat？"sheasked,inalowvoice,butsharply。
"Here"sanotherrightprettyrecord,"saidMrs。Sheridan,affecting——withpatentnervousness——nottohear。Andsheunloosedthemusic。
Sibylbitherlipandbegantotapherchinwiththebrooch。AfteralittlewhilesheturnedtoBibbs,whoreposedathalf—lengthinagoldchair,withhiseyesclosed。
"WheredidEdithgo？"sheasked,curiously。
"Edith？"herepeated,openinghiseyesblankly。"Isshegone？"
Sibylgotupandstoodinthedoorway。Sheleanedagainstthecasing,stilltappingherchinwiththebrooch。Hereyesweredilating;shewassuddenlyathightension,andherexpressionhadbecomeoneofsharpexcitement。Shelistensintently。
WhentherecordwasspunoutshecouldhearSheridanrumblinginthelibrary,duringtheensuingsilence,andRoscoe"svoice,querulousandhusky;"Iwon"tsayanythingatall。Itellyou,youmightjustaswellletmealone！"
Buttherewereothersound:arustlingandmurmur,whispering,lowprotestingcadencesinamalevoice。AndasMrs。Sheridanstartedanotherrecord,asudden,vitalresolveleapedlikefireintheeyesofSibyl。Shewalkeddownthehallandstraightintothesmoking—room。
LamhornandEdithbothsprangtotheirfeet,separating。Edithbecameinstantlydeathlywhitewitharagethatsethershakingfromheadtofoot,andLamhornstutteredashetriedtospeak。
ButEdith"sshakingwasnotsoviolentasSibyl"s,norwasherfacesowhite。
Atsightofthemandoftheirembrace,allpossibleconsequencesbecamenothingtoSibyl。Shecourtesied,holdingupherskirtsandcontortingherlipstothesemblanceofasmile。
"Sitjustasyouwere——bothofyou！"shesaid。AndthentoEdith:"DidyoutellmyhusbandIhadbeentelephoningtoLamhorn？"
"Youmarchoutofhere！"saidEdith,fiercely。"Marchstraightoutofhere！"
SibylleveledaforefingeratLamhorn。
"DidyoutellherI"dbeentelphoningyouIwantedyoutocome？"
"Oh,goodGod！"Lamhornsaid。"Hush！"
"Youknewshe"dtellmyhusband,DIDN"Tyou？"shecried。"Youknewthat！"
"HUSH！"hebegged,panic—stricken。
"ThatwasaMANLYthingtodo！Oh,itwaslikeagentleman！Youwouldn"tcome——youwouldn"tevencomeforfiveminutestohearwhatIhadtosay！YouwereTIREDofwhatIhadtosay！You"dhearditallathousandtimesbefore,andyouwouldn"tcome！No！No！NO！"shestormed。"Youwouldn"tevencomeforfiveminutes,butyoucouldtellthatlittlecat！AndSHEtoldmyhusband！
You"reaMAN！"
EdithsawinaflashthattheconsequencesofbattlewouldberuinoustoSibyl,andthefuriousgirlneedednofurthertemptationtogivewaytoherfeelings。"Getoutofthishouse！"sheshrieked。"Thisismyfather"shouse。
Don"tyoudarespeaktoRobertlikethat！"
"No！No！Imustn"tSPEAK——"
"Don"tyouDARE！"
EdithandSibylbegantoscreaminsultsateachothersimultaneously,frontingeachother,theirfuriousfacesclose。Theirvoicesshrilledandroseandcracked——theyscreeched。Theycouldbeheardoverthenoiseofthephonograph,whichwasplayingabrass—bandselection。Theycouldbeheardalloverthehouse。Theywereheardinthekitchen;theycouldhavebeenheardinthecellar。Neitherofthemcaredforthat。
"Youtoldmyhusband！"screamedSibyl,bringingherfacestillclosertoEdith"s。"Youtoldmyhusband！ThismanputTHATinyouhandstostrikemewith！HEdid！"
"I"lltellyourhusbandagain！I"lltellhimeverythingIknow！It"sTIME
yourhusband——"
Theyweresweptasunderbyabandagedhand。"Doyouwanttheneighborsin？"
Sheridanthundered。
Therefellashockingsilence。FrenziedSibylsawherhusbandandhismotherinthedoorway,andsheunderstoodwhatshehaddone。Shemovedslowlytowardthedoor;thensuddenlyshebegantorun。Sheranintothehall,andthroughit,andoutofthehouse。Roscoefollowedherheavily,hiseyesontheground。
"NOWTHEN！"saidSheridantoLamhorn。