Awakening and To Let

第15章

Abreezesighedinthehigherboughs;theskyseenthroughtheirgreenwasveryblueandverywhiteincloud——thoseheavywhitecloudsalmostalwayspresentinriverlandscape。Bees，shelteringoutofthewind，hummedsoftly，andoverthelushgrassfellthethickshadefromthosefruit—treesplantedbyherfatherfive—and—twenty，yearsago。Birdswerealmostsilent，thecuckooshadceasedtosing，butwood—pigeonswerecooing。Thebreathanddroneandcooingofhighsummerwerenotforlongasedativetoherexcitednerves。Crouchedoverherkneesshebegantoscheme。Herfathermustbemadetobackherup。Whyshouldhemindsolongasshewashappy？Shehadnotlivedfornearlynineteenyearswithoutknowingthatherfuturewasallhereallycaredabout。Shehad，then，onlytoconvincehimthatherfuturecouldnotbehappywithoutJon。Hethoughtitamadfancy。Howfoolishtheoldwere，thinkingtheycouldtellwhattheyoungfelt！Hadnotheconfessedthathe——whenyoung——hadlovedwithagrandpassion？Heoughttounderstand！’Hepilesuphismoneyforme，’shethought;’butwhat’stheuse，ifI’mnotgoingtobehappy？’

Money，andallitbought，didnotbringhappiness。Loveonlybroughtthat。Theox—eyeddaisiesinthisorchard，whichgaveitsuchamoonylooksometimes，grewwildandhappy，andhadtheirhour。’Theyoughtn’ttohavecalledmeFleur，’shemused，’iftheydidn’tmeanmetohavemyhour，andbehappywhileitlasts。’Nothingrealstoodintheway，likepoverty，ordisease——sentimentonly，aghostfromtheunhappypast！Jonwasright。Theywouldn’tletyoulive，theseoldpeople！Theymademistakes，committedcrimes，andwantedtheirchildrentogoonpaying！Thebreezediedaway;midgesbegantobite。Shegotup，pluckedapieceofhoneysuckle，andwentin。

Itwashotthatnight。Bothsheandhermotherhadputonthin，palelowfrocks。Thedinnerflowerswerepale。Fleurwasstruckwiththepalelookofeverything;herfather’sface，hermother’sshoulders;

thepalepanelledwalls，thepalegreyvelvetycarpet，thelamp—

shade，eventhesoupwaspale。Therewasnotonespotofcolourintheroom，notevenwineinthepaleglasses，fornoonedrankit。

Whatwasnotpalewasblack——herfather’sclothes，thebutler’sclothes，herretrieverstretchedoutexhaustedinthewindow，thecurtainsblackwithacreampattern。Amothcamein，andthatwaspale。Andsilentwasthathalf—mourningdinnerintheheat。

Herfathercalledherbackasshewasfollowinghermotherout。

Shesatdownbesidehimatthetable，and，unpinningthepalehoneysuckle，putittohernose。

"I’vebeenthinking，"hesaid。

"Yes，dear？"

"It’sextremelypainfulformetotalk，butthere’snohelpforit。

Idon’tknowifyouunderstandhowmuchyouaretomeI’veneverspokenofit，Ididn’tthinkitnecessary;but——butyou’reeverything。Yourmother——"hepaused，staringathisfinger—bowlofVenetianglass。

"Yes？"’

"I’veonlyyoutolookto。I’veneverhad——neverwantedanythingelse，sinceyouwereborn。"

"Iknow，"Fleurmurmured。

Soamesmoistenedhislips。

"YoumaythinkthisamatterIcansmoothoverandarrangeforyou。

You’remistaken。I’mhelpless。"

Fleurdidnotspeak。

"Quiteapartfrommyownfeelings，"wentonSoameswithmoreresolution，"thosetwoarenotamenabletoanythingIcansay。They—

—theyhateme，aspeoplealwayshatethosewhomtheyhaveinjured。"

"Buthe——Jon——"

"He’stheirfleshandblood，heronlychild。Probablyhemeanstoherwhatyoumeantome。It’sadeadlock。"

"No，"criedFleur，"no，Father！"

Soamesleanedback，theimageofpalepatience，asifresolvedonthebetrayalofnoemotion。

"Listen！"hesaid。"You’reputtingthefeelingsoftwomonths——twomonths——againstthefeelingsofthirty—fiveyears！Whatchancedoyouthinkyouhave？Twomonths——yourveryfirstloveaffair，amatterofhalfadozenmeetings，afewwalksandtalks，afewkisses—

—against，againstwhatyoucan’timagine，whatnoonecouldwhohasn’tbeenthroughit。Come，bereasonable，Fleur！It’smidsummermadness！"

Fleurtorethehoneysuckleintolittle，slowbits。

"Themadnessisinlettingthepastspoilitall。

Whatdowecareaboutthepast？It’sourlives，notyours。"

Soamesraisedhishandtohisforehead，wheresuddenlyshesawmoistureshining。

"Whosechildareyou？"hesaid。"Whosechildishe？Thepresentislinkedwiththepast，thefuturewithboth。There’snogettingawayfromthat。"

Shehadneverheardphilosophypassthoselipsbefore。Impressedeveninheragitation，sheleanedherelbowsonthetable，herchinonherhands。

"But，Father，consideritpractically。Wewanteachother。There’seversomuchmoney，andnothingwhateverinthewaybutsentiment。

Let’sburythepast，Father。"

Hisanswerwasasigh。

"Besides，"saidFleurgently，"youcan’tpreventus。"

"Idon’tsuppose，"saidSoames，"thatiflefttomyselfIshouldtrytopreventyou;Imustputupwiththings，Iknow，tokeepyouraffection。Butit’snotIwhocontrolthismatter。That’swhatI

wantyoutorealisebeforeit’stoolate。Ifyougoonthinkingyoucangetyourwayandencouragethisfeeling，theblowwillbemuchheavierwhenyoufindyoucan’t。"

"Oh！"criedFleur，"helpme，Father;youcanhelpme，youknow。"

Soamesmadeastartledmovementofnegation。"I？"hesaidbitterly。

"Help？Iamtheimpediment——thejustcauseandimpediment——isn’tthatthejargon？Youhavemybloodinyourveins。"

Herose。

"Well，thefat’sinthefire。Ifyoupersistinyourwilfulnessyou’llhaveyourselftoblame。Come！Don’tbefoolish，mychild——myonlychild！"

Fleurlaidherforeheadagainsthisshoulder。

Allwasinsuchturmoilwithinher。Butnogoodtoshowit！Nogoodatall！Shebrokeawayfromhim，andwentoutintothetwilight，distraught，butunconvinced。Allwasindeterminateandvaguewithinher，liketheshapesandshadowsinthegarden，except——herwilltohave。Apoplarpiercedupintothedark—blueskyandtouchedawhitestarthere。Thedewwettedhershoes，andchilledherbareshoulders。Shewentdowntotheriverbank，andstoodgazingatamoonstreakonthedarkeningwater。Suddenlyshesmelledtobaccosmoke，andawhitefigureemergedasifcreatedbythemoon。ItwasyoungMontinflannels，standinginhisboat。Sheheardthetinyhissofhiscigaretteextinguishedinthewater。

"Fleur，"camehisvoice，"don’tbehardonapoordevil！I’vebeenwaitinghours。"

"Forwhat？"

"Comeinmyboat！"

"NotI。"

"Whynot？"

"I’mnotawater—nymph。"

"Haven’tyouanyromanceinyou？Don’tbemodern，Fleur！"

Heappearedonthepathwithinayardofher。

"Goaway！"

"Fleur，Iloveyou。Fleur！"

Fleurutteredashortlaugh。

"Comeagain，"shesaid，"whenIhaven’tgotmywish。"

"Whatisyourwish？"

"Askanother。"

"Fleur，"saidMont，andhisvoicesoundedstrange，"don’tmockme！

Evenvivisecteddogsareworthdecenttreatmentbeforethey’recutupforgood。"

Fleurshookherhead;butherlipsweretrembling。

"Well，youshouldn’tmakemejump。Givemeacigarette。"

Montgaveherone，lightedit，andanotherforhimself。

"Idon’twanttotalkrot，"hesaid，"butpleaseimaginealltherotthatalltheloversthateverwerehavetalked，andallmyspecialrotthrownin。"

"Thankyou，Ihaveimaginedit。Good—night！"Theystoodforamomentfacingeachotherintheshadowofanacacia—treewithverymoonlitblossoms，andthesmokefromtheircigarettesmingledintheairbetweenthem。

"Alsoran:’MichaelMont’？"hesaid。Fleurturnedabruptlytowardthehouse。Onthelawnshestoppedtolookback。MichaelMontwaswhirlinghisarmsabovehim;shecouldseethemdashingathishead;

thenwavingatthemoonlitblossomsoftheacacia。Hisvoicejustreachedher。"Jolly—jolly！"Fleurshookherself。Shecouldn’thelphim，shehadtoomuchtroubleofherown！Ontheverandahshestoppedverysuddenlyagain。Hermotherwassittinginthedrawing—

roomatherwritingbureau，quitealone。Therewasnothingremarkableintheexpressionofherfaceexceptitsutterimmobility。

Butshelookeddesolate！Fleurwentupstairs。Atthedoorofherroomshepaused。Shecouldhearherfatherwalkingupanddown，upanddownthepicture—gallery。

’Yes，’shethought，jolly！Oh，Jon！’

DECISION

WhenFleurlefthimJonstaredattheAustrian。Shewasathinwomanwithadarkfaceandtheconcernedexpressionofonewhohaswatchedeverylittlegoodthatlifeoncehadslipfromher，onebyone。

"Notea？"shesaid。

Susceptibletothedisappointmentinhervoice，Jonmurmured:

"No，really;thanks。"

"Alilcup——itready。Alilcupandcigarette。"

Fleurwasgone！Hoursofremorseandindecisionlaybeforehim！Andwithaheavysenseofdisproportionhesmiled，andsaid:

"Well——thankyou！"

Shebroughtinalittlepotofteawithtwolittlecups，andasilverboxofcigarettesonalittletray。

"Sugar？MissForsytehasmuchsugar——shebuymysugar，myfriend’ssugaralso。MissForsyteisavereekindlady。Iamhappytoserveher。Youherbrother？"

"Yes，"saidJon，beginningtopuffthesecondcigaretteofhislife。

"Veryyoungbrother，"saidtheAustrian，withalittleanxioussmile，whichremindedhimofthewagofadog’stail。

"MayIgiveyousome？"hesaid。"Andwon’tyousitdown，please？"

TheAustrianshookherhead。

"Yourfatheraveryniceoldman——themostniceoldmanIeversee。

MissForsytetellmeallabouthim。Ishebetter？"

HerwordsfellonJonlikeareproach。"OhYes，Ithinkhe’sallright。"

"Iliketoseehimagain，"saidtheAustrian，puttingahandonherheart;"hehavevereekindheart。"

"Yes，"saidJon。Andagainherwordsseemedtohimareproach。

"Henevergivenotroubletonoone，andsmilesogentle。"

"Yes，doesn’the？"

"HelookatMissForsytesofunnysometimes。Itellhimallmystory;hesosympatisch。Yourmother——sheniceandwell？"

"Yes，very。"

"Hehaveherphotographonhisdressing—table。Vereebeautiful"

Jongulpeddownhistea。Thiswoman，withherconcernedfaceandherremindingwords，waslikethefirstandsecondmurderers。

"Thankyou，"hesaid;"Imustgonow。May——mayIleavethiswithyou？"

Heputaten—shillingnoteonthetraywithadoubtinghandandgainedthedoor。HeheardtheAustriangasp，andhurriedout。Hehadjusttimetocatchhistrain，andallthewaytoVictorialookedateveryfacethatpassed，asloverswill，hopingagainsthope。OnreachingWorthingheputhisluggageintothelocaltrain，andsetoutacrosstheDownsforWansdon，tryingtowalkoffhisachingirresolution。Solongashewentfullbat，hecouldenjoythebeautyofthosegreenslopes，stoppingnowandagaintosprawlonthegrass，admiretheperfectionofawildroseorlistentoalark’ssong。Butthewarofmotiveswithinhimwasbutpostponed——thelongingforFleur，andthehatredofdeception。Hecametotheoldchalk—pitaboveWansdonwithhismindnomoremadeupthanwhenhestarted。ToseebothsidesofaquestionvigorouslywasatonceJon’sstrengthandweakness。Hetrampedin，justasthefirstdinner—bellrang。

Histhingshadalreadybeenbroughtup。HehadahurriedbathandcamedowntofindHollyalone——ValhadgonetoTownandwouldnotbebacktillthelasttrain。

SinceVal’sadvicetohimtoaskhissisterwhatwasthematterbetweenthetwofamilies，somuchhadhappened——Fleur’sdisclosureintheGreenPark，hervisittoRobinHill，to—day’smeeting——thatthereseemednothingtoask。HetalkedofSpain，hissunstroke，Val’shorses，theirfather’shealth。Hollystartledhimbysayingthatshethoughttheirfathernotatallwell。ShehadbeentwicetoRobinHillfortheweek—end。Hehadseemedfearfullylanguid，sometimeseveninpain，buthadalwaysrefusedtotalkabouthimself。

"He’sawfullydearandunselfish——don’tyouthink，Jon？"

Feelingfarfromdearandunselfishhimself，Jonanswered:"Rather！"

"Ithink，he’sbeenasimplyperfectfather，solongasIcanremember。"

"Yes，"answeredJon，verysubdued。

"He’sneverinterfered，andhe’salwaysseemedtounderstand。I

shallneverforgethislettingmegotoSouthAfricaintheBoerWarwhenIwasinlovewithVal。"

"ThatwasbeforehemarriedMother，wasn’tit？"saidJonsuddenly。

"Yes。Why？"

"Oh！nothing。Only，wasn’tsheengagedtoFleur’sfatherfirst？"

Hollyputdownthespoonshewasusing，andraisedhereyes。Herstarewascircumspect。Whatdidtheboyknow？Enoughtomakeitbettertotellhim？Shecouldnotdecide。Helookedstrainedandworried，altogetherolder，butthatmightbethesunstroke。

"Therewassomething，"shesaid。"Ofcoursewewereoutthere，andgotnonewsofanything。"Shecouldnottaketherisk。

Itwasnothersecret。Besides，shewasinthedarkabouthisfeelingsnow。BeforeSpainshehadmadesurehewasinlove;butboyswereboys;thatwassevenweeksago，andallSpainbetween。

Shesawthatheknewshewasputtinghimoff，andadded:

"HaveyouheardanythingofFleur？"

"Yes。"

Hisfacetoldher，then，morethanthemostelaborateexplanations。

Sohehadnotforgotten！

Shesaidveryquietly:"Fleurisawfullyattractive，Jon，butyouknow——ValandIdon’treallylikeherverymuch。"

"Why？"

"Wethinkshe’sgotrathera’having’nature。"

"’Having’？Idon’tknowwhatyoumean。She——she——"hepushedhisdessertplateaway，gotup，andwenttothewindow。

Holly，too，gotup，andputherarmroundhiswaist。

"Don’tbeangry，Jondear。Wecan’tallseepeopleinthesamelight，canwe？Youknow，Ibelieveeachofusonlyhasaboutoneortwopeoplewhocanseethebestthat’sinus，andbringitout。ForyouIthinkit’syourmother。Ioncesawherlookingataletterofyours;itwaswonderfultoseeherface。Ithinkshe’sthemostbeautifulwomanIeversaw——Agedoesn’tseemtotouchher。"

Jon’sfacesoftened;thenagainbecametense。Everybody——everybodywasagainsthimandFleur！Itallstrengthenedtheappealofherwords:"Makesureofme——marryme，Jon！"

Here，wherehehadpassedthatwonderfulweekwithher——thetugofherenchantment，theacheinhisheartincreasedwitheveryminutethatshewasnottheretomaketheroom，thegarden，theveryairmagical。Wouldheeverbeabletolivedownhere，notseeingher？

Andhecloseduputterly，goingearlytobed。Itwouldnotmakehimhealthy，wealthy，andwise，butitclosetedhimwithmemoryofFleurinherfancyfrock。HeheardVal’sarrival——theForddischargingcargo，thenthestillnessofthesummernightstoleback——withonlythebleatingofverydistantsheep，andanight—Jar’sharshpurring。

Heleanedfarout。Coldmoon——warmair——theDownslikesilver！

Smallwings，astreambubbling，theramblerroses！God——howemptyallofitwithouther！IntheBibleitwaswritten:Thoushaltleavefatherandmotherandcleaveto——Fleur！

Lethimhavepluck，andgoandtellthem！Theycouldn’tstophimmarryingher——theywouldn’twanttostophimwhentheyknewhowhefelt。Yes！Hewouldgo！Boldandopen——Fleurwaswrong！

Thenight—jarceased，thesheepweresilent;theonlysoundinthedarknesswasthebubblingofthestream。AndJoninhisbedslept，freedfromtheworstoflife’sevils——indecision。

TIMOTHYPROPHESIES

OnthedayofthecancelledmeetingattheNationalGallerybeganthesecondanniversaryoftheresurrectionofEngland’sprideandglory——

or，moreshortly，thetophat。"Lord’s"——thatfestivalwhichtheWarhaddrivenfromthefield——raiseditslightanddarkblueflagsforthesecondtime，displayingalmosteveryfeatureofagloriouspast。Here，intheluncheoninterval，wereallspeciesoffemaleandonespeciesofmalehat，protectingthemultipletypesoffaceassociatedwith"theclasses。"TheobservingForsytemightdiscerninthefreeorunconsideredseatsacertainnumberofthesquash—

hatted，buttheyhardlyventuredonthegrass;theoldschool——orschools——couldstillrejoicethattheproletariatwasnotyetpayingthenecessaryhalf—crown。Herewasstillacloseborough，theonlyoneleftonalargescale——forthepaperswereabouttoestimatetheattendanceattenthousand。Andthetenthousand，allanimatedbyonehope，wereaskingeachotheronequestion:"Whereareyoulunching？"Somethingwonderfullyupliftingandreassuringinthatqueryandthesightofsomanypeoplelikethemselvesvoicingit！

WhatreservepowerintheBritishrealm——enoughpigeons，lobsters，lamb，salmonmayonnaise，strawberries，andbottlesofchampagnetofeedthelot！Nomiracleinprospect——nocaseofsevenloavesandafewfishes——faithrestedonsurerfoundations。Sixthousandtophats，fourthousandparasolswouldbedoffedandfurled，tenthousandmouthsallspeakingthesameEnglishwouldbefilled。Therewaslifeintheolddogyet！Tradition！AndagainTradition！Howstrongandhowelastic！Warsmightrage，taxationprey，TradesUnionstaketoll，andEuropeperishofstarvation;butthetenthousandwouldbefed;and，withintheirringfence，strollupongreenturf，weartheirtophats，andmeet——themselves。Theheartwassound，thepulsestillregular。E—ton！E—ton！Har—r—o—o—o—w！

AmongthemanyForsytes，presentonahunting—groundtheirs，bypersonalprescriptiveright，orproxy，wasSoameswithhiswifeanddaughter。Hehadnotbeenateitherschool，hetooknointerestincricket，buthewantedFleurtoshowherfrock，andhewantedtowearhistophatparadeitagaininpeaceandplentyamonghispeers。HewalkedsedatelywithFleurbetweenhimandAnnette。Nowomenequalledthem，sofarashecouldsee。Theycouldwalk，andholdthemselvesup;therewassubstanceintheirgoodlooks;themodernwomanhadnobuild，nochest，noanything！HerememberedsuddenlywithwhatintoxicationofpridehehadwalkedroundwithIreneinthefirstyearsofhisfirstmarriage。Andhowtheyusedtolunchonthedragwhichhismotherwouldmakehisfatherhave，becauseitwasso"chic"——alldragsandcarriagesinthosedays，nottheselumberinggreatStands！AndhowconsistentlyMontagueDartiehaddrunktoomuch。Hesupposedthatpeopledranktoomuchstill，buttherewasnotthescopeforitthereusedtobe。HerememberedGeorgeForsyte—

—whosebrothersRogerandEustacehadbeenatHarrowandEton——

toweringuponthetopofthedragwavingalight—blueflagwithonehandandadark—blueflagwiththeother，andshouting"Etroow—

Harrton！"Justwheneverybodywassilent，likethebuffoonhehadalwaysbeen;andEustacegotuptotheninesbelow，toodandifiedtowearanycolourortakeanynotice。H’m！Olddays，andIreneingreysilkshotwithpalestgreen。Helooked，sideways，atFleur’sface。Rathercolourless—nolight，noeagerness！Thatloveaffairwaspreyingonher——abadbusiness！Helookedbeyond，athiswife’sface，rathermoretouchedupthanusual，alittledisdainful——notthatshehadanybusinesstodisdain，sofarashecouldsee。ShewastakingProfond’sdefectionwithcuriousquietude;orwashis"small"voyagejustablind？Ifso，heshouldrefusetoseeit！

Havingpromenadedroundthepitchandinfrontofthepavilion，theysoughtWinifred’stableintheBedouinClubtent。ThisClub——anew"cockandhen"——hadbeenfoundedintheinterestsoftravel，andofagentlemanwithanoldScottishname，whosefatherhadsomewhatstrangelybeencalledLevi。Winifredhadjoined，notbecauseshehadtravelled，butbecauseinstincttoldherthataClubwithsuchanameandsuchafounderwasboundtogofar;ifonedidn’tjoinatonceonemightneverhavethechance。Itstent，withatextfromtheKoranonanorangeground，andasmallgreencamelembroideredovertheentrance，wasthemoststrikingontheground。OutsideittheyfoundJackCardiganinadarkbluetie（hehadonceplayedforHarrow），battingwithaMalaccacanetoshowhowthatfellowoughttohavehitthatball。Hepilotedthemin。AssembledinWinifred’scornerwereImogen，Benedictwithhisyoungwife，ValDartiewithoutHolly，Maudandherhusband，and，afterSoamesandhistwowereseated，oneemptyplace。

"I’mexpectingProsper，"saidWinifred，"buthe’ssobusywithhisyacht。"

Soamesstoleaglance。Nomovementinhiswife’sface！Whetherthatfellowwerecomingornot，sheevidentlyknewallaboutit。ItdidnotescapehimthatFleur，too，lookedathermother。IfAnnettedidn’trespecthisfeelings，shemightthinkofFleur’s！Theconversation，verydesultory，wassyncopatedbyJackCardigantalkingabout"mid—off。"Hecitedallthe"greatmid—offs"fromthebeginningoftime，asiftheyhadbeenadefiniteracialentityinthecompositionoftheBritishpeople。Soameshadfinishedhislobster，andwasbeginningonpigeon—pie，whenheheardthewords，"I’masmallbitlate，Mrs。Dartie，"andsawthattherewasnolongeranyemptyplace。ThatfellowwassittingbetweenAnnetteandImogen。

Soamesatesteadilyon，withanoccasionalwordtoMaudandWinifred。

Conversationbuzzedaroundhim。HeheardthevoiceofProfondsay:

"Ithinkyou’remistaken，Mrs。Forsyde;I’ll——I’llbetMissForsydeagreeswithme。"

"Inwhat？"cameFleur’sclearvoiceacrossthetable。

"Iwassayin’，younggurlsaremuchthesameastheyalwayswere——

there’sverysmalldifference。"

"Doyouknowsomuchaboutthem？"

Thatsharpreplycaughttheearsofall，andSoamesmoveduneasilyonhisthingreenchair。

"Well，Idon’tknow，Ithinktheywanttheirownsmallway，andI

thinktheyalwaysdid。"

"Indeed！"

"Oh，but——Prosper，"Winifredinterjectedcomfortably，"thegirlsinthestreets——thegirlswho’vebeeninmunitions，thelittleflappersintheshops;theirmannersnowreallyquitehityouintheeye。"

Attheword"hit"JackCardiganstoppedhisdisquisition;andinthesilenceMonsieurProfondsaid:

"Itwasinsidebefore，nowit’soutside;that’sall。"

"Buttheirmorals！"criedImogen。

"Justasmoralastheyeverwere，Mrs。Cardigan，butthey’vegotmoreopportunity。"

Thesaying，socrypticallycynical，receivedalittlelaughfromImogen，aslightopeningofJackCardigan’smouth，andacreakfromSoames’chair。

Winifredsaid:"That’stoobad，Prosper。"

"Whatdoyousay，Mrs。Forsyde;don’tyouthinkhumannature’salwaysthesame？"

Soamessubduedasuddenlongingtogetupandkickthefellow。Heheardhiswifereply:

"HumannatureisnotthesameinEnglandasanywhereelse。"Thatwasherconfoundedmockery！

"Well，Idon’tknowmuchaboutthissmallcountry"——’No，thankGod！’

thoughtSoames——"butIshouldsaythepotwasboilin’underthelideverywhere。Weallwantpleasure，andwealwaysdid。"

Damnthefellow！Hiscynicismwas——wasoutrageous！

Whenlunchwasovertheybrokeupintocouplesforthedigestivepromenade。Tooproudtonotice，SoamesknewperfectlythatAnnetteandthatfellowhadgoneprowlingroundtogether。FleurwaswithVal;shehadchosenhim，nodoubt，becauseheknewthatboy。HehimselfhadWinifredforpartner。Theywalkedinthebright，circlingstream，alittleflushedandsated，forsomeminutes，tillWinifredsighed:

"Iwishwewerebackfortyyears，oldboy！"

Beforetheeyesofherspiritaninterminableprocessionofherown"Lord’s"frockswaspassing，paidforwiththemoneyofherfather，tosavearecurrentcrisis。"It’sbeenveryamusing，afterall。

SometimesIevenwishMontywasback。Whatdoyouthinkofpeoplenowadays，Soames？"

"Preciouslittlestyle。Thethingbegantogotopieceswithbicyclesandmotor—cars;theWarhasfinishedit。"

"Iwonderwhat’scoming？"saidWinifredinavoicedreamyfrompigeon—pie。"I’mnotatallsureweshan’tgobacktocrinolinesandpegtops。Lookatthatdress！"

Soamesshookhishead。