第4章

"Tellhimtocallatmyhousenexttimeyouseehim。Andforheaven’ssaketellhimtocometotheservants’door。Don’tyoupeopledownherehaveanyservants’doorstoyourhouses？Therehavebeennolessthanfiftypeddlersonmyporchsinceyesterdayandmybutlerwilldieofapoplexyifitkeepson。He’sagoodone，forawonder，andIdon’twanttolosehim。"

Imadenoreplytothisobservationandhedidnotseemtoexpectany。HewatchedZebrakeforamomentandthenheturnedbacktome。

"Canyoucomeovertomyhousenow？"heasked。

IwasnotexpectingthisandagainIdidnothaveananswerready。

"Canyou？"hewenton。"I’vegotabusinessdealtomakewithyouandI’drathermakeitthere。I’vegotalotofcarpentersandpaintersatworkandtheyaskmetenquestionsaminute。TheyareunnecessaryquestionsbutifIdon’tanswerthemthefellowsaresuretomakesomefoolmistakeorother。Theyneedagoverness。

Ifyou’llcomeoverwithmeI’llbeintouchwiththemandyouandIcantalkjustaswell。Cancome，can’tyou？"

Ididnotknowwhattosay。Iwantedtosayno，thatifhehadanybusinesswithmeitcouldbediscussedinthatboathouse。Ididnotlikehismanner，yetIhadafeelingthatitwashisusualoneandthathehadnotmeanttoberude。AndIcouldthinkofnogoodreasonfornotgoingwithhim。

"Youcancome，can’tyou？"herepeated。

"IsupposeIcan。But——"

"Ofcourseifyou’retoobusytoleave——"

IrememberedthepositionhehadfoundmeinandIratherthinkI

hadturnedred。Hedidnotsmile，buttherewasasortofgrimtwinkleinhiseyes。

"I’llcome，"Isaid。

"Muchobliged。Iwon’tkeepyoulong。Comeon。"

HeledthewayandIfollowed，rebellious，andangry，notsomuchwithhimaswithmyself。IwishednowthatIhadgoneovertotheColtonplacewhenIfirstreceivedthesummonstocourt，insteadofmakingproclamationsofdefiancetomotherandLuteRogers。Thisseemedsuchacompletebackdown。AswepassedthehouseIsawLutepeeringfromthebarn。Idevoutlyhopedhemightnotseeme，buthedid。Hismouthopenedandhestared。Then，catchingmyeye，hewinkedtriumphantly。Iwantedtopunchhishead。

TheKingofNewYorkwalkedbrisklyoninsilenceuntilwewerejustattheedgeofthegrovebytheShoreLane。Thenhestoppedandturnedtome。

"Youownallthisland，don’tyou？"heasked。

"Yes。"

"Humph！Getagoodviewfromhere。"

Iadmittedthattheviewwasgood。Atthatparticularpointitembracednearlythewholeofthebayinfront，andalargeportionofthevillageattheside。

Hewavedhishandtowardtheclusterofhouses。

"Thereareeighteenhundredpeopleinthistown，theytellme，"hesaid。"Permanentresidents，Imean。Whatdotheyalldo？"

"Do？"

"Yes。Howdotheygetaliving？Theymustgetitsomehow。Intheregularsummerresortstheysqueezeitoutofthecitypeople，I

knowthat。Buttherearen’tsomanycottagersandboardershere。

Whatdoyoualldoforaliving？"

ItoldhimthatmostofmasculineDenborofishedorfarmedorkeptstore。

"Whichdoyoudo？"heasked。"Yousaidyouweren’taboat—builder。"

"I’mnotdoinganythingatpresent，"Ireplied，shortly。

"Outofajob？"

"Youmightcallitthat。Isthisapartofthebusinessyouwishedtoseemeabout，Mr。Colton？"

Iwasboilinginwardlyandalittleoftheheatwasexpressedinmytone。Idon’tknowwhetherhetookthehintormerelylostinterestinthesubject。Atanyratehisreplywasabrief"No，"

andwecontinuedourwalk。

AswereachedtheShoreLanehepausedagain，andIthoughthewasabouttospeak。Hedidnot，however，andwecrossedtheboundarylineofmypropertyandenteredtheColtongrounds。AswedrewnearertothehouseIwassurprisedtoseehowlargeitwas。WhentheAtwatersowneditIwasanoccasionalcallerthere，foroldMajorAtwaterwasfondofshootingandsometimesborrowedmydecoys。But，sinceitchangedhands，IhadnotbeennearertoitthantheLane。Withthenewwingandtheotheradditionsitwasenormous。Itfairlyreekedofmoney，though，sofarasIwasajudge，thetasteshowninrebuildinganddecoratingwasgood。Weturnedthecorner，whereAsaPeters，theheadcarpenter，camehurryingup。Asalookedsurprisedenoughtoseemeincompanywithhisemployerandregardedmewonderingly。"Mr。Colton，"hesaid，"Iwantedtoaskyouaboutthemskylights。"Isteppedbackoutofhearing，butIinferredfromColton’sactionsthatthequestionwasanotheroneofthe"unnecessary"oneshehadsoscornfullyreferredtointheboathouse。

"Jackass！"heexclaimed，asherejoinedme。IjudgedhewasclassifyingAsa，but，ifso，hedidnottroubletolowerhisvoice。

"Comeon，Paine，"headded，andwepassedalonglineofwindows，hungwithcostlycurtains，andsteppeduponahandsomeColonialporticobeforetwobigdoors。

Thedoorswereopenedbyanimposingpersonageindarkblueandbrassbuttons，whobowedprofoundlybeforeColtonandregardedmewithcondescendingsuperiority。Thispersonage，whomIrecognized，fromAlvin’sdescription，asthe"minister—lookin’"butler，ledusthroughahallaboutaslargeasoursitting—room，dining—roomandkitchencombined，butbearingnootherresemblancetotheseapartments，andopenedanotherdoor，throughwhich，bowingoncemore，heusheredus。Thenheclosedthedoor，leavinghimself，tomyrelief，outside。IthadbeenalongtimesinceIwaswaiteduponbyabutlerandIfoundthisspecimenratheroverpowering。

Theroomwewereinwasthelibrary，and，thoughitwasbiggerandfarmoresumptuousthanthelibraryIrememberedsowellasaboy，thesightofthebooksintheircasesalongthewallsgavemeafeelingalmostofhomesickness。Myresentmentagainstmymillionaireneighborincreased。Whyshouldheandhishaveeverything，andtherestofusbedeprivedofthelittleweoncehad？

Coltonseatedhimselfinaleatherupholsteredchairandwavedhishandtowardanother。

"Sitdown，"hesaid。Hetookacigarfromhispocket。"Smoke？"heasked。

Iwasaconfirmedsmoker，butIwasnotgoingtosmokeoneofhiscigars——notthen。

"Nothankyou，"saidI。Hedidnotcommentonmyrefusal，butlitthecigarhimself，fromthestumpofhisformerone。Thenhecrossedhislegsandproceeded，withcharacteristicabruptness，tohissubject。

"Paine，"hebegan，"youownthislandnexttome，yousay。Yourpropertyendsatthefencethissideofthatroadwejustcrossed，doesn’tit？"

"Itendswhereyoursbegins，"Iannounced。

"Yes。Justthissideofthatroad。"

"OftheShoreLane。Itisn’taroadexactly。"

"Idon’tcarewhatyoucallit。Roadorlaneorcow—path。Itendsthere？"

"Yes。"

"AnditISyourland？Itbelongstoyou，personally，allofit，freeandclear？"

"Why——yes；itdoes。"Icouldnotseewhatbusinessofhismyownershipofthatlandmightbe。

"Allright。Iaskedthatbecause，ifitwasn’tyours，ifitwastiedupormortgagedinanyway，itmightcomplicatematters。Butitisn’t。"

"No。"

"Good！Thenwecangetdowntobrasstacksandsavetime。Iwantapieceofthatland。"

Ilookedathim。

"Youwant——？"Irepeated，slowly。

"Iwantastripofyourland。Wanttobuyit，ofcourse。Idon’texpectyoutogiveittome。What’sitworth，bytheacre，say？"

Ididnotanswer。AllatonceIwasbeginningtoseealight。

CaptainJedDean’smysteriousconversationatthepost—officewasbeginningtolosesomeofitsmystery。

"Well？"askedColton，impatiently。Then，withoutwaitinglonger，headded：

"Bytheway，beforeyounameafigure，answermeonemorequestion。

Thatroad——orlane，orwhateveritis——thatisyours，too？Doesn’tbelongtothetown？"

Thelightwasgrowingmorebrilliant。Icouldseebreakersahead。

"No，"Ireplied，slowly。"Itisaprivateway。Itbelongstome。"

"Good！Well，what’sthatlandofyoursworthbytheacre？"

Ishookmyhead。"Iscarcelyknow，"Isaid。"I’veneverfigureditthatway。"

"Idon’tcarehowyoufigureit。Here，let’sgetdowntoabusinessproposition。IwanttobuyastripofthatlandfromtheLowerRoad——that’swhatyoucalltheoneabovehere，isn’tit？——tothebeach。ThestripIwantisaboutthreehundredfeetwide，foraguess。Itextendsfrommyfencetotheothersideofthatgrovebythebluff。Whatwillyousellitfor？"

Thebreakerswerecloseaboard。However，Idodgedthemmomentarily。

"Whydoyouwanttobuy？"Iasked。

"Forreasons。"

"Ishouldthinkyouhadlandenoughalready。"

"IthoughtIhad，butitseemsIhaven’t。Well，what’syourpriceforthatstrip？"

"Mr。Colton，I——I’mafraid——"

"Nevermindthat。Isupposeyou’reafraidyou’llmakethepricetoolow。Now，seehere，I’mabusyman。Ihaven’ttimetodoanybargaining。Nameyourpriceand，ifit’sanywherewithinreason，wewon’thaggle。Iexpecttopaymorethananyoneelsewould。

That’spartofmyfineforbeingacitymanandnotanative。Gad！

theprivilegeisworththemoney。I’llpaythefine。What’stheprice？"

"Butwhydoyouwanttobuy？"

"Forreasonsofmyown，Itellyou。Theyhaven’tanythingtodowithyourselling。"

"I’mnotsosure。"

"Whatdoyoumeanbythat？"

"ThatstriptakesintheShoreLane，Mr。Colton。"

"Iknowit。"

"And，ifyoubuy，IpresumetheLanewillbeclosed。"

Helookedatme，surprised，and，Ithought，alittleannoyed。

"Well？"hesaid；"supposeitis？"

"Butitwillbe，won’tit？"

"Youbetyourlifeitwill！Whatofit？"

"ThenIdon’tknowthatIcaretosell。"

Heleanedbackinhischair。

"Youdon’tcaretosell！"herepeated，slowly。"Whatthedevildoyoumeanbythat？"

"WhatIsaid。And，besides，Mr。Colton，I——"

Heinterruptedme。

"Whydon’tyoucaretosell？"hedemanded。"Thelandisnogoodtoyou，isit？"

"Notmuch。No。"

"Humph！Areyousorichthatyou’vegotallthemoneyyouwant？"

Iwasangryallthrough。Irosefrommychair。

"Goodday，Mr。Colton，"Isaid。

"Here！"heshouted。"Holdon！Whereareyougoing？"

"Ican’tseethatthereisanyuseofourtalkingfurther。"

"Nouse？Why——There！there！sitdown。It’snoneofmybusinesshowrichyouare，andIbegyourpardon。Sitdown。Sitdown，man，Itellyou！"

Isatdown，reluctantly。Hethrewhiscigar，whichhadgoneout，intothefireplaceandlitanother。

"Say，"hesaid，"yousurpriseme，Paine。Whatdoyoumeanbysayingyouwon’tsellthatland？Youdon’tknowwhatI’llpayforityet。"

"No，Idon’t。"

"Thenhowdoyouknowyouwon’tsellit？Ineverhadanythingyet——

exceptmywifeandfamily——thatIwouldn’tsellforaprice。Lookhere！Ihaven’tgottimetodoanyDown—Easthorse—jockeying。I’llmakeyouanoffer。I’llgiveyoufivehundreddollarscashforthatstripofland。Whatdoyousay？"

Ididn’tsayanything。Fivehundreddollarswasagenerousoffer。

Icouldn’thelpthinkingwhatMotherandImightdowiththatfivehundreddollars。

"Whatdoyousay？"herepeated。

Ianswered，Yankeefashion，withanotherquestion。"Mr。Colton，"I

asked，"whydoyouwanttoclosethatShoreLane？"

"BecauseIdo。WhatdifferencedoesitmaketoyouwhyIwanttocloseit？"

"ThatLanehasbeenusedbyDenboropeopleforyears。Itisalmostapublicnecessity。"

Hepuffedtwiceonhiscigarbeforehespokeagain。Whenhediditwasinadifferenttone。

"Isee，"hesaid。"Humph！Isee。Paine，doesthetownpayyourentfortheuseofthatroad？"

"No。"

"Hasitbeenbiddingtobuyit？"

"No。"

"Isanyoneelseafterit？"

"No—o。Ithinknot。But——"

"YouTHINKnot。Thatmeansyou’renotsure。You’vehadabitesomewhere。Somebodyhasbeennibblingatyourhook。Well，they’vegottobitequickandswallowsometogetaheadofme。IwantthatroadclosedandI’mgoingtohaveitclosed，soonerorlater。I’dpreferitsooner。"

"Butwhydoyouwanttocloseit？"

Beforehecouldanswertherecameaknockatthedoor。Thebutlerappeared。

"Ibegyourpardon，sir——"hebegan。Hismastercuthimshort。

"Tell’emtowait，"heordered。"Ican’tseeanyonenow，Johnson。

Ifitisthatdamnedcarpenterhecanwait。"

"Itisn’tthecarpenter，sir，"explainedJohnson。"It’sMrs。

Colton，sir。Shewishestoknowifyouhaveboughtthatroad。Shesaysthreeofthose’orridfishcartshavegonebyinthelasthour，sir，andtheyaremakingherverynervous。That’sall，sir。"

"TellherI’veboughtit，"snappedtheheadofthehouse。"Getout。"

Thebutlerobeyedorders。Coltonturnedtome。

"Youheardthat，Paine，"hesaid。"That’smyreason，theprincipalone。IboughtthisplaceprincipallyonaccountofMrs。Colton’shealth。Thedoctorssaidsheneededquietandrest。Ithoughtshecouldhavethemhere——Godknowstheplacelookedforsakenenough——

butitappearsshecan’t。WheneversheorIsitontheverandaoratawindowwehavetowatchaprocessionofjaysdrivingsmellyfishcartsthroughthatlaneofyours，orbestaredatbyagangofcountrymenhangingoverthefence。It’sanuisance。Itisbadenoughformeormydaughterandourguests，butitwillbetheruinationofmywife’snerves，andIcan’tstandforthat。YouseethepositionI’min。YouheardwhatItoldthatbutler。IsaidI

hadboughttheroad。Youwouldn’tmakemealiar，wouldyou？I’llgiveyoufivehundredforthatbunchofsand。Youcouldn’tgetmoreforitifyousolditbythepound，liketea。Sayyes，andclosethedeal。"

Ishookmyhead。

"Iunderstandyourposition，Mr。Colton，"Isaid，"butIcan’tsayyes。Notnow，atanyrate。"

"Whynot？Isn’tfivehundredenough？"

"It’sagoodoffer。"

"Thenwhynotacceptit？"

"Because，ifIwerecertainthatIwantedtosell，Icouldnotacceptanyofferjustnow。"

"Whynot？Seehere！areyouafraidthetownwillbesorebecausetheroadisclosed？"

"Itwouldbeagreatinconveniencetothem。"

"It’sagreateronetomeasitis。Canyouaffordtobeaphilanthropist？Areyouoneofthosepublic—spiritedcitizenswereadabout？"

Hewassneeringnow，andmyanger，whichhadlessenedsomewhatwhenhespokeofhiswife’sillhealth，wasrisingagain。

"Areyou？"herepeated。

"Idon’tknowastothat。But，asIsaidawhileago，Mr。Colton，Icouldn’tsellthatlandtoyounow。"

"Whynot？"

"Because，iftherewerenootherreason，Ipromisednottosellitwithouttellinganotherpersonfirst。"

Hethrewdownhiscigarandstoodup。Irosealso。

"Isee，"hesaid，withsarcasm。"Iknewtherewassomethingbesidepublicspirit。Youthink，byhangingoffandplayingmeagainstthisothersucker，youcangetahigherprice。Well，ifthat’sthegame，I’llkeephimbusy。"

Hetookouthiswatch，glancedatit，andthrustitbackintohispocket。

"I’vewastedtimeenoughoverthisfoolthing，"hedeclared。"NowthatIknowwhatthegameiswe’lltalktothepoint。It’shighwayrobbery，butImighthaveexpectedtoberobbed。I’llgiveyousixhundredforthatland。"

Ididnotanswer。IwasholdingmytemperbymainstrengthandI

couldnottrustmyselftospeak。

"Well？"hesneered。"Thatshakesyourpublicspiritsome，hey？

Whatdoyousay？"

"No，"Ianswered，andstartedforthedoor。

"What！"hecouldhardlybelievehisears。"BytheLordHarry！thefellowiscrazy。Sixhundredandfiftythen，youinfernalrobber。"

"No。"

"NO！Say，whatinthunderdoyoumean？"

"Imeanthatyoumaygotothedevil，"Iretorted，andreachedforthedoorknob。

Butbeforemyfingerstouchedittherewasthesoundoflaughterandvoicesinthehall。Theknobwasturnedfromwithout。I

steppedbackandtoonesideinvoluntarily，asthedooropenedandintothelibrarycame，notthebutler，butayounglady，agirlinanautomobilecoatandbonnet。And，followingher，ayoungman。

"Father，"saidtheyounglady，"Johnsonsaysyou’veboughtthathorridroad。I’msoglad！Whendidyoudoit？"

"Congratulations，Mr。Colton，"saidtheyoungman。"Wejustpassedacartfullofsomething——seaweed，Ibelieveitwas——aswecamealongwiththecar。Oscarhadtoslowdowntosqueezeby，andwecertainlyweresweptbyoceanbreezes。ByJove！Icansmellthemyet。I——"

Theyoungladyinterruptedhim。

"Hush，Victor，"shesaid。"Ibegyourpardon，Father。Ithoughtyouwerealone。Victor，we’reintruding。"

Theopendoorhadpartiallyscreenedmefromthenewcomers。ButColton，redandwrathful，hadnotceasedtoglareinmydirectionandshe，followinghisgaze，sawme。Shedidnotrecognizeme，I

think——probablyIhadnotmadesufficientimpressionuponhermindevenforcasualremembrance——butIrecognizedher。Shewasthegirlwiththedarkeyes，whoselookofcontemptuousindifferencehadsowitheredmyself—esteem。Andhercompanionwastheyoungchapwho，fromthetonneauoftheautomobilethatmorning，hadinquiredthewaytoBayport。

Theyoungmanturnedlazily。"Arewe？"hesaid。"I——What！Why，Mabel，it’sthehumorist！"

Thensherecognizedme。Icouldfeelthebloodclimbingfrommytoestotherootsofmyhair。Iwastooastonishedandchagrinedtospeakorevenmove，thoughIwantedtomoveverymuchindeed。

ShelookedatmeandIather。Thensheturnedcoldlyaway。

"Come，Victor，"shesaid。

ButVictorwashisownblaseself。Ittookmorethanatrifletoshakehiscalm。Helaughed。

"It’sthehumorist，"herepeated。"Reuben，howareyou？"

Coltonregardedthethreeofuswithamazement。

"What？"hebegan。"Mabel，doyou——"

ButIhadrecoveredmypowersoflocomotion。Iwasonmywayoutofthatlibrary。

"Here！"shoutedColton。"Stop！"

Ididnotstop。FeelingasIdidatthatmomentitwouldhavebeendistinctlyunpleasantforthepersonwhotriedtostopme。Thegirlwasinmywayand，asIapproached，shedrewherskirtsaside。

Nodoubtitwasmyimaginationwhichmadehermannerofdoingitseemlikeaninsult，but，imaginationorreality，itwastheonethingnecessarytoclenchmyresolution。NowwhenshelookedatmeIreturnedthelookwithinterest。Istrodethroughthedoorwayandacrossthehall。Thebutlerwouldhaveopenedtheouterdoorforme，butIopeneditmyselftotheimminentdangerofhisdignifiednose。AsIsteppedfromtheporticoIheardbehindmearoarfromBigJimColtonandashoutoflaughterfromVictor。

Iwalkedhomeattopspeed。OnlyoncedidIlookback。ThatwasjustasIwasabouttoenterthegroveontheothersideoftheShoreLane。ThenIturnedandsaw，atthebigwindowattheendofthe"Newportvilla，"agroupofthreestaringinmydirection：

Colton，hisdaughterandthatcubVictor。Thedistancewastoogreattoseetheexpressionoftheirfaces，butIknewthattwoofthem，atleast，werelaughing——laughingatme。

Ididnotlaugh。

Lutewaswaitingformebythegateandrantomeetme。Hewaswildwithexcitement。

"Hecameafteryou，didn’the？"hecried，grabbingatmycoatsleeve。"Youwentovertohishousewithhim，didn’tyou！IseeyouandatfustIcouldn’tscurcelybelieveit。Whatdidhewant？

Whatdidhesay？"

Ididnotanswer。Heranalongbesideme，stillclingingtomysleeve。

"Whatdidhewant？"herepeated。"Whatdidhesaytoyou？Whatdidyousaytohim？Tellafeller，can’tyou？"

"Itoldhimtogotothedevil，"Ianswered，savagely。

Luteletgoofmysleeve。

"You——you——Bytime，you’restarkloony！"hegasped；andcollapsedagainstthegatepost。

Iwentintothehouse，upthebackstairstomyroom，andshutthedoor。

CHAPTERV

Soshewashisdaughter。Imighthaveguessedit；wouldhaveguesseditifIhadpossessedthecommonestofcommon—sense。I

mighthaveknownthattheautowasColton’s。NoothermachinewaslikelytobetravelingontheLowerRoadatthatseasonoftheyear。ShewastheprettydaughterofwhomDorindahadspokentoMother。Well，shewasprettyenough；evenIhadtoadmitthat。

ButIadmitteditgrudgingly。Ihatedherforherbeautyandfineclothesandhaughtyarrogance。Shewastheincarnationofsnobbishness。

Buttobemadetwiceridiculousevenbytheincarnationofsnobbishnesswasgalling。Shewastobemynext—doorneighbor；wewerelikelytomeetalmostanywhereatanytime。WhenIthoughtofthisandofthetwomeetingswhichhadalreadytakenplaceIsworeattheblueandwhitewater—pitcheronmybureaubecauseitdidnotcontainwaterenoughtodrownme。NotthatIwouldcommitsuicideonheraccount。ShewouldnotcareifIdidandcertainlyIdidnotcarewhethershewouldcareornot；butifIweresatisfactorilydeadIprobablyshouldnotrememberwhatafoolIhadmadeofmyself，orFatehadmadeofme。

WhyhadInotgotoutofthatlibrarybeforeshecame？Oh，ifnot，whyhadn’tIstayedandtoldherfather，inherhearing，andwithdignity，justwhatIthoughtofhimandhisremarkstome？Butno；

Ihadrunaway。She——orthatVictor——wouldtellofthemeetingatthebridge，andallmyindependenceandtherestofitwouldberegardedasofapiecewiththat，justthebig—headed"smartness"

ofacountryboor。IntheireyesIwasanuisance，thatwasall。

Adisagreeableone，perhaps，liketheShoreLane，butanuisance，onetolaughatandforget——ifitcouldnotbegottenridof。

WhyhadIgonewithColtonatall？Whyhadn’tIremainedattheboathouseandtheretoldtheKingofNewYorktogotothemischief？orwordstothateffect。ButIhad，atallevents，toldhimthat。InspiteofmychagrinIcouldnothelpchucklingasI

thoughtofit。TotellBigJimColtontogotothedevilwas，initsway，Iimagined，aprivilegeenjoyedbyfew。Itmusthaveshakenhisself—satisfactionatrifle。Well，afterall，whatdidIcare？He，andhiswholefamily——includingVictor——hadmypermissiontomigrateinthatdirectionandIwishedOldNickjoyoftheircompany。