第4章

Mrs。Vertrees"satup"forherdaughter,Mr。Vertreeshavingretiredafterarestlessevening,notmuchsoothedbythesocietyofhisLandseers。Maryhadtakenakey,insistingthatheshouldnotcomeforherandseemingconfidentthatshewouldnotlackforescort;nordidthesequelproveherconfidenceunwarranted。ButMrs。Vertreeshadalongvigilofit。

Shewasnotthewomantomakeherselfeasy——noservanthadeverseenherinawrapper——andwithherhairanddressandhershoesjustwhattheyhadbeenwhenshereturnedfromtheafternoon\'scall,shesatthroughtheslownighthoursinastifflittlechairunderthegaslightinherownroom,whichwasdirectlyoverthe"fronthall。"There,bookinhand,sheemployedthetimeinherownreminiscences,thoughitwasherbeliefthatshewasreadingMadamedeRemusat\'s。

Herthoughtswentbackwardintoherlifeandintoherhusband\'s;andthedeeperintothepasttheywent,thebrighterthepicturestheybroughther——

andthereistragedy。Likeherhusband,shethoughtbackwardbecauseshedidnotdarethinkforwarddefinitely。Whatthinkingforwardthistroubledcoupleventuredtooktheformofaslenderhopewhichneitherofthemcouldhavebornetohearputinwords,andyettheyhadtalkeditover,dayafterday,fromtheveryhourwhentheyheardSheridanwastobuildhisNewHousenextdoor。For——soquicklydoesanyidealofhumanbehaviorbecomeanantique——theiryouthwasoftheinnocentolddays,sodead！of"breeding"and"gentility,"andnocrafthadbeenmorestraitlytraineduponthemthanthatoftalkingaboutthingswithoutmentioningthem。HereinwasmarkedthemostvitaldifferencebetweenMr。andMrs。Vertreesandtheirbignewneighbor。

Sheridan,thoughhisyouthwasofthesameepoch,knewnothingofsuchmatters。Hehadbeenchoppingwoodforthemorningfireinthecountrygrocerywhiletheywerestilldancing。

Itwasafteroneo\'clockwhenMrs。Vertreesheardstepsandthedelicateclinkingofthekeyinthelock,andthen,withtheopeningofthedoor,Mary\'slaugh,and"Yes——ifyouaren\'tafraid——to—morrow！"

Thedoorclosed,andsherushedup—stairs,bringingwithherabreathofcoldandbracingairintohermother\'sroom。"Yes,"shesaid,beforeMrs。Vertreescouldspeak,"hebroughtmehome！"

Shelethercloakfalluponthebed,and,drawinganoldred—velvetrocking—chairforward,satbesidehermotheraftergivingheralightpatupontheshoulderandaheartykissuponthecheek。

"Mamma！"Maryexclaimed,whenMrs。Vertreeshadexpressedahopethatshehadenjoyedtheeveningandhadnotcaughtcold。"Whydon\'tyouaskme？"

Thisinquiryobviouslymadehermotheruncomfortable。"Idon\'t——"shefaltered。"Askyouwhat,Mary？"

"HowIgotalongandwhathe\'slike。"

"Mary！"

"Oh,itisn\'tdistressing！"saidMary。"AndIgotalongsofast——"Shebrokeofftolaugh;continuingthen,"Butthat\'sthewayIwentatit,ofcourse。

WeAREinahurry,aren\'twe？"

"Idon\'tknowwhatyoumean,"Mrs。Vertreesinsisted,shakingherheadplaintively。

"Yes,"saidMary,"I\'mgoingoutinhiscarwithhimto—morrowafternoon,andtothetheaterthenextnight——butIstoppeditthere。Yousee,afteryougivethefirstpush,youmustleaveittothemwhileYOUpretendtorunaway！"

"Mydear,Idon\'tknowwhatto——"

"Whattomakeofanything！"Maryfinishedforher。"Sothat\'sallright！NowI\'lltellyouallaboutit。Itwasgorgeousanddeafeningandtee—total。Wecouldhavelivedayearonit。I\'mnotgoodatfigures,butIcalculatedthatifwelivedsixmonthsonpooroldCharlieandNedandthestation—wagonandtheVictoria,wecouldmanageatleasttwiceaslongonthecostofthe\'house—warming。\'Ithinktheorchidsalonewouldhavelastedusacoupleofmonths。Theretheywere,beforeme,butIcouldn\'tsteal\'emandsell\'em,andso——well,soIdidwhatIcould！"

Sheleanedbackandlaughedreassuringlytohertroubledmother。"Itseemedtobeasuccess——whatIcould,"shesaid,claspingherhandsbehindherneckandstirringtherockertomotionasarhythmicaccompanimenttohernarrative。"ThegirlEdithandhersister—in—law,Mrs。RoscoeSheridan,weretooanxiousabouttheeffectofthingsonme。Thefather\'sworthabushelofbothofthem,iftheyknewit。He\'swhatheis。Ilikehim。"Shepausedreflectively,continuing,"Edith\'s\'interested\'inthatLamhornboy;he\'sgood—lookingandnotstupid,butIthinkhe\'s——"Sheinterruptedherselfwithacheeryoutcry:"Oh！Imustn\'tbecallinghimnames！Ifhe\'stryingtomakeEdithlikehim,Ioughttorespecthimasacolleague。"

"Idon\'tunderstandathingyou\'retalkingabout,"Mrs。Vertreescomplained。

"Allthebetter！Well,he\'sabadlot,thatLamhornboy;everybody\'salwaysknownthat,buttheSheridansdon\'tknowtheeverybodiesthatknow。HesatbetweenEdithandMrs。RoscoeSheridan。SHE\'Slikethosepeopleyouwonderedaboutatthetheater,thelasttimewewent——dressedinball—gowns;boundtoshowtheirclothesandjewelsSOMEwhere！Sheflattersthefather,andsodidI,forthatmatter——butnotthatway。Itreatedhimoutrageously！"

"Mary！"

"That\'swhatflatteredhim。Afterdinnerhemadethewholeregimentofusfollowhimalloverthehouse,whilehelecturedlikeaguideonthePalatine。

Hegavedimensionsandcosts,andthewholeb\'ilin\'of\'emlistenedasiftheythoughtheintendedtomakethemapresentofthehouse。WhathewasproudestofwastheplumbingandthatBayofNaplespanoramainthehall。Hemadeuslookatalltheplumbing——bath—roomsandeverywhereelse——andthenhemadeuslookattheBayofNaples。Hesaiditwasahundredandelevenfeetlong,butIthinkit\'smore。Andheledusallintotheready—madelibrarytoseeapoemEdithhadtakenaprizewithatschool。They\'dhaditprintedingoldlettersandframedinmother—of—pearl。Butthepoemitselfwasrathersimpleandwistfulandnice——hereadittous,thoughEdithtriedtostophim。Shewasmodestaboutit,andsaidshe\'dneverwrittenanythingelse。Andthen,afterawhile,Mrs。RoscoeSheridanaskedmetocomeacrossthestreettoherhousewiththem——herhusbandandEdithandMr。LamhornandJimSheridan——"

Mrs。Vertreeswasshocked。"\'Jim\'！"sheexclaimed。"Mary,PLEASE——"

"Ofcourse,"saidMary。"I\'llmakeitaseasyforyouasIcan,mamma。Mr。

JamesSheridan,Junior。Wewentoverthere,andMrs。Roscoeexplainedthat\'themenwerealldyingforadrink,\'thoughInoticedthatMr。Lamhornwastheonlyoneneardeath\'sdooronthataccount。EdithandMrs。RoscoesaidtheyknewI\'dbeenboredatthedinner。Theywereobjectionablyapologeticaboutit,andtheyseemedtothinkNOWweweregoingtohavea\'goodtime\'tomakeupforit。ButIhadn\'tbeenboredatthedinner,I\'dbeenamused;andthe\'goodtime\'atMrs。Roscoe\'swashorribly,horriblystupid。"

"But,Mary,"hermotherbegan,"is——is——"Andsheseemedunabletocompletethequestion。

"Nevermind,mamma。I\'llsayit。IsMr。JamesSheridan,Junior,stupid？I\'msurehe\'snotatallstupidaboutbusiness。Otherwise——Oh,whatrighthaveI

tobecallingpeople\'stupid\'becausethey\'renotexactlymykind？Onthebigdinner—tabletheyhadenormousicingmodelsoftheSheridanBuilding——"

"Oh,no！"Mrs。Vertreescried。"Surelynot！"

"Yes,andtwootherthingsofthatkind——Idon\'tknowwhat。But,afterall,I

wonderediftheyweresobad。IfI\'dbeenatadinneratapalaceinItaly,andarelieforinscriptionononeoftheoldsilverpeiceshadreferredtosomegreatdeedorachievementofthefamily,Ishouldn\'thavefeltsuperior;

I\'dhavethoughtitpicturesqueandstately——I\'dhavebeenimpressed。Andwhat\'stherealdifference？Theicingistemporary,andthat\'smuchmoremodest,isn\'tit？Andwhyisitvulgartofeelimportantmoreonaccountofsomethingyou\'vedoneyourselfthanbecauseofsomethingoneofyourancestorsdid？Besides,ifwegobackafewgenerations,we\'veallgotsuchhundredsofancestorsitseemsidiotictogopickingoutoneortwotobeproudofourselvesabout。Well,then,mamma,ImanagednottofeelsuperiortoMr。

JamesSheridan,Junior,becausehedidn\'tseeanythingoutofplaceintheSheridanBuildinginsugar。"

Mrs。Vertrees\'sexpressionhadlostnoneofitsanxietypendingtheconclusionofthislivelybitofanalysis,andsheshookherheadgravely。"Mydear,dearchild,"shesaid,"itseemstome——Itlooks——I\'mafraid——"

"Sayasmuchofitasyoucan,mamma,"saidMary,encouragingly。"Icangetit,ifyou\'lljustgivemeonekey—word。"

"Everythingyousay,"Mrs。Vertreesbegan,timidly,"seemstohavetheairof——Itisasifyouwereseekingto——tomakeyourself——"

"Oh,Isee！YoumeanIsoundasifIweretryingtoforcemyselftolikehim。"

"Notexactly,Mary。Thatwasn\'tquitewhatImeant,"saidMrs。Vertrees,speakingdirectuntruthwithperfectunconsciousness。"Butyousaidthat——

thatyoufoundthelatterpartoftheeveningatyoungMrs。Sheridan\'sunentertaining——"

"AndasMr。JamesSheridanwasthere,andIsawmoreofhimthanatdinner,andhadahorriblystupidtimeinspiteofthat,youthinkI——"AndthenitwasMarywholeftthedeductionunfinished。

Mrs。Vertreesnodded;andthoughboththemotherandthedaughterunderstood,Maryfeltitbettertomaketheunderstandingdefinite。

"Well,"sheasked,gravely,"isthereanythingelseIcando？Youandpapadon\'twantmetodoanythingthatdistressesme,andso,asthisistheonlythingtobedone,itseemsit\'suptomenottoletitdistressme。That\'sallthereisaboutit。isn\'tit？"

"ButnothingMUSTdistressyou！"themothercried。

"That\'swhatIsay！"saidMary,cheerfully。"Andsoitdoesn\'t。It\'sallright。"Sheroseandtookhercloakoverherarm,asiftogotoherownroom。Butonthewaytothedoorshestopped,andstoodleaningagainstthefootofthebed,contemplatingathreadbarerugatherfeet。"Mother,you\'vetoldmeathousandtimesthatitdoesn\'treallymatterwhomagirlmarries。"

"No,no！"Mrs。Vertreesprotested。"Ineversaidsucha——"

"No,notinwords;ImeanwhatyouMEANT。It\'strue,isn\'tit,thatmarriagereallyis\'notabedofroses,butafieldofbattle\'？Togetrightdowntoit,agirlcouldfightitoutwithanybody,couldn\'tshe？Onemanaswellasanother？"

"Oh,mydear！I\'msureyourfatherandI——"

"Yes,yes,"saidMary,indulgently。"Idon\'tmeanyouandpapa。Butisn\'titpropinquitythatmakesmarriages？Somanypeoplesayso,theremustbesomethinginit。"

"Mary,Ican\'tbearforyoutotalklikethat。"AndMrs。Vertreesliftedpleadingeyestoherdaughter——eyesthatbeggedtobespared。"Itsounds——almostreckless！"

Marycaughttheappeal,cametoher,andkissedhergaily。"Neverfret,dear！

I\'mnotlikelytodoanythingIdon\'twanttodo——I\'vealwaysbeentoothorough—goingalittlepig！AndifitISpropinquitythatdoesourchoosingforus,well,atleastnogirlintheworldcouldaskformorethanTHAT！Howcouldtherebeanymorepropinquitythantheveryhousenextdoor？"

Shegavehermotherafinalkissandwentgailyallthewaytothedoorthistime,pausingforherpostscriptwithherhandontheknob。"Oh,theonethatcaughtmelookinginthewindow,mamma,theyoungestone——"

"Didhespeakofit？"Mrs。Vertreesasked,apprehensively。

"No。Hedidn\'tspeakatall,thatIsaw,toanyone。Ididn\'tmeethim。Butheisn\'tinsane,I\'msure;orifheis,hehaslongintervalswhenhe\'snot。

Mr。JamesSheridanmentionedthathelivedathomewhenhewas\'wellenough\';

anditmaybehe\'sonlyaninvalid。Helooksdreadfullyill,buthehaspleasanteyes,anditstruckmethatif——ifonewereintheSheridanfamily"——shelaughedalittleruefully——"hemightbeinterestingtotalktosometimes,whentherewastoomuchstocksandbonds。Ididn\'tseehimafterdinner。"

"Theremustbesomethingwrongwithhim,"saidMrs。Vertrees。"They\'dhaveintroducedhimiftherewasn\'t。"

"Idon\'tknow。He\'sbeenillsomuchandawaysomuch——sometimespeoplelikethatjustdon\'tseemto\'count\'inafamily。Hisfatherspokeofsendinghimbacktoamachine—shoporsomesort;Isupposehemeantwhenthepoorthinggetsbetter。Iglancedathimjustthen,whenMr。Sheridanmentionedhim,andhehappenedtobelookingstraightatme;andhewaspathetic—lookingenoughbeforethat,butthemosttragicchangecameoverhim。Heseemedjusttodie,rightthereatthetable！"

"Youmeanwhenhisfatherspokeofsendinghimtotheshopplace？"

"Yes。"

"Mr。Sheridanmustbeveryunfeeling。"

"No,"saidMary,thoughtfully,"Idon\'tthinkheis;buthemightbeuncomprehending,andcertainlyhe\'sthekindofmantodoanythingheoncesetsouttodo。ButIwishIhadn\'tbeenlookingatthatpoorboyjustthen！

I\'mafraidI\'llkeepremembering——"

"Iwouldn\'t。"Mrs。Vertreessmiledfaintly,andinhersmiletherewastheremotestghostofagenteelroguishness。"I\'dkeepmymindonpleasanterthings,Mary。"

Marylaughedandnodded。"Yes,indeed！Plentypleasantenough,andprobably,ifallwereknown,toogood——evenforme！"

AndwhenshehadgoneMrs。Vertreesdrewalongbreath,asifaburdenwereoffhermind,and,smiling,begantoundressinagentlereverie。

Edith,glancingcasuallyintothe"ready—made"library,stoppedabruptly,seeingBibbstherealone。Hewasstandingbeforethepearl—framedandgolden—

letteredpoem,musinglyinspectingit。Hereadit:

FugitiveIwillforgetthethingsthatsting:

Thelashinglook,thebarbedword。

IknowtheveryhandsthatflingThestonesatmehadneverstirredToangerbutfortheirownscars。

They\'vesufferedso,that\'swhytheystrike。

I\'llkeepmyheartamongthestarsWherenoneshallhuntitout。Oh,likeThesewoundedonesImustnotbe,For,wounded,Imightstrikeinturn！

So,noneshallhurtme。FarandfreeWheremyheartfliesnooneshalllearn。

"Bibbs！"Edith\'svoicewasangry,andhercolordeepenedsuddenlyasshecameintotheroom,precededbyascentofvioletsmuchmorepowerfulthanthatwarrantedbytheactualbunchofthemuponthelapelofhercoat。

Bibbsdidnotturnhishead,butwaggeditsolemnly,seemingdepressedbythepoem。"Prettyyoung,isn\'tit？"hesaid。"Theremusthavebeensomethingaboutyourlooksthatgottheprize,Edith;Ican\'tbelievethepoemdidit。"

Sheglancedhurriedlyoverhershoulderandspokesharply,butinalowvoice:

"Idon\'tthinkit\'sveryniceofyoutobringitupatall,Bibbs。I\'dlikeachancetoforgetthewholesillybusiness。Ididn\'twantthemtoframeit,andIwishtogoodnesspapa\'dquittalkingaboutit;buthere,thatnight,afterthedinner,didn\'thegoandreaditaloudtothewholecrowdof\'em！

AndthentheyallwantedtoknowwhatotherpoemsI\'dwrittenandwhyIdidn\'tkeepitupandwritesomemore,andifIdidn\'t,whydidn\'tI,andwhythisandwhythat,tillIthoughtI\'ddieofshame！"

"Youcouldtell\'emyouhadwriter\'scramp,"Bibbssuggested。

"Icouldn\'ttell\'emanything！Ijustchokewithmortificationeverytimeanybodyspeaksofthething。"

Bibbslookedgrieved。"Thepoemisn\'tTHATbad,Edith。Yousee,youwereonlyseventeenwhenyouwroteit。"

"Oh,hushup！"shesnapped。"IwishithadburntmyfingersthefirsttimeI

touchedit。ThenImighthavehadsenseenoughtoleaveitwhereitwas。I

hadnobusinesstotakeit,andI\'vebeenashamed——"

"No,no,"hesaid,comfortingly。"Itwastheverymostflatteringthingeverhappentome。ItwasalmostmylastflightbeforeIwenttothemachine—shop,andit\'spleasanttothinksomebodylikeditenoughto——"

"ButIDON\'Tlikeit！"sheexclaimed。"Idon\'tevenunderstandit——andpapamadesomuchfussoveritsgettingtheprize,Ijusthateit！ThetruthisI

neverdreamedit\'dgettheprize。"

"Maybetheyexpectedfathertoendowtheschool,"Bibbsmurmered。

"Well,Ihadtohavesomethingtoturnin,andIcouldn\'twriteaLINE！I

hatepoetry,anyhow;andBobbyLamhorn\'salwaysteasingmeabouthowI\'keepmyheartamongthestars。\'Hemakesitseemsuchamushykindofthing,thewayhesaysit。Ihateit！"

"You\'llhavetoliveitdown,Edith。Perhapsabroadandunderanothernameyoumightfind——"

"Oh,hushup！I\'llhiresomeonetostealitandburnitthefirstchanceI

get。"Sheturnedawaypetulantly,movingtothedoor。"I\'dliketothinkI

couldhopetohearthelastofitbeforeIdie！"

"Edith！"hecalled,asshewentintothehall。

"What\'sthematter？"

"Iwanttoaskyou:DoIreallylookbetter,orhaveyoujustgotusedtome？"

"Whatonearthdoyoumean？"shesaid,comingbackasfarasthethreshold。

"WhenIfirstcameyoucouldn\'tlookatme,"Bibbsexplained,inhisimpersonalway。"ButI\'venoticedyoulookatmelately。IwonderedifI\'d——"

"It\'sbecauseyoulooksomuchbetter,"shetoldhim,cheerfully。"Thismonthyou\'vebeenhere\'sdoneyounoendofgood。It\'sthechange。"

"Yes,that\'swhattheysaidatthesanitarium——thechange。"

"Youlookworsethan\'mostanybodyIeversaw,"saidEdith,withsupremecandor。"ButIdon\'tknowmuchaboutit。I\'veneverseenacorpseinmylife,andI\'veneverevenseenanybodythatwasterriblysick,soyoumustn\'tjudgebyme。Ionlyknowyoudolookbetter,I\'mgladtosay。Butyou\'rerightaboutmynotbeingabletolookatyouatfirst。Youhadakindofwhitenessthat——Well,you\'realmostasthin,Isuppose,butyou\'vegotmorejustordinarilypale;notthatghastlylook。Anybodycouldlookatyounow,Bibbs,andno——notget——"

"Sick？"

"Well——almostthat！"shelaughed。"Andyou\'regettingabettercoloreveryday,Bibbs;youreallyare。You\'regettingalongsplendidly。"

"I——I\'mafraidso,"hesaid,ruefully。

"\'Afraidso\'！Well,ifyouaren\'tthequeerest！Isupposeyoumeanfathermightsendyoubacktothemachine—shopifyougetwellenough。Iheardhimsaysomethingaboutitthenightofthe——"Thejingleofadistantbellinterruptedher,andsheglancedatherwatch。"BobbyLamhorn！I\'mgoingtomotorhimouttolookataplaceinthecountry。Afternoon,Bibbs！"

Whenshehadgone,Bibbsmoonedpessimisticallyfromshelftoshelf,hiseyewanderingamongthetitlesofthebooks。Thelibraryconsistedalmostentirelyofhandsome"uniformeditions":Irving,Poe,Cooper,Goldsmith,Scott,Byron,Burns,Longfellow,Tennyson,Hume,Gibbon,Prescott,Thackeray,Dickens,DeMusset,Balzac,Gautier,Flaubert,Goethe,Schiller,Dante,andTasso。Therewereshelvesandshelvesofencyclopedias,ofanthologies,of"famousclassics,"of"Orientalmasterpieces,"of"masterpiecesoforatory,"

andmoreshelvesof"selectedlibraries"of"literature,"of"thedrama,"andof"modernscience。"Theymadeaneffectivedecorationfortheroom,allthesebig,expensivebooks,withaglossybindinghereandtheretwinklingareflectionoftheflamesthatcrackledinthesplendidGothicfireplace;butBibbshadanimpressionthatthebooksellerwhoselectedthemconsideredthemarelief,andthatwhite—jacketconsideredthemaburdenofdust,andthatnobodyelseconsideredthematall。Himself,hedisturbednotone。

Therecameachimeofbellsfromaclockinanotherpartofthehouse,andwhite—jacketappearedbeaminglyinthedoorway,bearingfurs。"Awready,Mist\'

Bibbs,"heannounced。"You\'masaywrapupwawmf\'you\'ride,an\'shecain\'

gowithyouto—day,an\'notf\'gitgoseeyou\'paatfo\'\'clock。Awready,suh。"

HeequippedBibbsforthedailydriveDr。Gurneyhadcommanded;andinthemannerofamasterofceremoniesunctuouslyledtheway。InthehalltheypassedtheMoor,andBibbspausedbeforeitwhilewhite—jacketopenedthedoorwithaflourishandwavedcondescendinglytothechauffeurinthecarwhichstoodwaitinginthedriveway。

"ItseemstomeIaskedyouwhatyouthoughtaboutthis\'statue\'whenIfirstcamehome,George,"saidBibbs,thoughtfully。"Whatdidyoutellme？"

"Yessuh！"Georgechuckled,perfectlyunderstandingthatforsomeunknownreasonBibbsenjoyedhearinghimrepeathisopinionoftheMoor。"Youastmewhenyoufirs\'comehome,an\'youastmenex\'day,an\'mightynearev\'ydayalltimeyoubeenhere;an\'las\'Sundayyouastmetwicet。"Heshookhisheadsolemnly。"Looktomemus\'besomep\'mmightlamiDAL\'bout\'atstatue！"

"Mightywhat？"

"MightylamiDAL！"George,burstoutlaughing。"WhatDO\'atwordmean,Mist\'

Bibbs？"

"It\'snewtome,George。Wheredidyouhearit？"

"Inev\'DIDhearit！"saidGeorge。"Iuzdesssittin\'thinkumtomyse\'fan\'

shepopinmyhead——\'lamiDAL,\'desslike\'at！An\'shesoun\'sogood,seemlikesheGOTTAmeansomep\'m！"

"Cometothinkofit,Ibelieveshedoesmeansomething。Why,yes——"

"Doshe？"criedGeorge。"WHATshemean？"

"It\'sexactlythewordforthestatue,"saidBibbs,withconviction,asheclimbedintothecar。"It\'salamiDALstatue。"

"Hiyi！"Georgeexulted。"Man！Man！Listen！Well,suh,shemightylamiDAL

statue,butlamiDALstatueheapo\'troubletodus\'！""Iexpectsheis！"saidBibbs,astheenginebegantochurn;andamomentlaterhewassweptfromsight。

GeorgeturnedtoMist\'Jackson,whohadbeenlisteningbenevolentlyinthehallway。"Sameheaw—wayssay,Mist\'Jackson——\'Iexpec\'sheis！\'Ev\'ydayhetryt\'gitmetalk\'bout\'atlamiDALstatue,an\'aw—ways,las\'thingHEsay,\'Iexpec\'sheis！\'Youknow,Mist\'Jackson,ifhegitwell,\'atyoungmango\'

beprideo\'thefamily,Mist\'Jackson。Yes—suh,rightnowIpick\'imfo\'

firs\'money！"

"Lookoutwithall\'atmoney,George！"Jacksonwarnedtheenthusiast。"Whitefolks\'n\'ishouseknow\'imheaplonger\'nyou。Youtheon\'ymanbettin\'on\'im！"

"Iriskit！"criedGeorge,merrily。"Iputherallonnow——ev\'ycent！\'Atboy\'sgo\'beflowero\'theflock！"

Thissingularprophecy,foundedsomewhatrecklesslyupongratitudeforthemeaningof"lamiDAL,"differedradicallyfromanotherpredictionconcerningBibbs,setforthforthebenefitofafairauditorsometwentyminuteslater。

JimSheridan,skirtingtheedgesofthetownwithMaryVertreesbesidehim,inhisownswiftmachine,encounteredtheinvaliduponthehighroad。Thetwocarsweregoinginoppositedirections,andtheoccupantsofJim\'shadonlyaswayingglimpseofBibbssittingaloneonthebackseat——hiswhitefacestartlinglywhiteagainstcapandcollarofblackfur——butheflashedintorecognitionasMarybowedtohim。

Jimwavedhislefthandcarelessly。"It\'sBibbs,takinghisconstitutional,"

heexplained。

"Yes,Iknow,"saidMary。"Ibowedtohim,too,thoughI\'venevermethim。Infact,I\'veonlyseenhimonce——no,twice。Ihopehewon\'tthinkI\'mverybold,bowingtohim。"

"Idoubtifhenoticedit,"saidhonestJim。

"Oh,no！"shecried。

"What\'sthetrouble？"

"I\'malmostsurepeoplenoticeitwhenIbowtothem。"

"Oh,Isee！"saidJim。"Ofcoursetheywouldordinarily,butBibbsisfunny。"

"Ishe？How？"sheasked。"Hestrikesmeasanythingbutfunny。"

"Well,I\'mhisbrother,"Jimsaid,deprecatingly,"butIdon\'tknowwhathe\'slike,and,totellthetruth,I\'veneverfeltexactlylikeIWAShisbrother,thewayIdoRoscoe。Bibbsneverdidseemmorethanhalfalivetome。OfcourseRoscoeandIareolder,andwhenwewereboysweweretoobigtoplaywithhim,butheneverplayedanyway,withboyshisownage。He\'dratherjustsitinthehouseandmopearoundbyhimslef。NobodycouldevergethimtoDO

anything;youcan\'tgethimtodoanythingnow。HeneverhadanyLIFEinhim;

andhonestly,ifheismybrother,ImustsayIbelieveBibbsSheridanisthelaziestmanGodevermade！Fatherputhiminthemachine—shopoveratthePumpWorks——bestthingintheworldforhim——andhewasjustplainnoaccount。

Itmadehimsick！Ifhe\'dhadtherightkindofenergy——thekindfather\'sgot,forinstance,orRoscoe,either——why,itwouldn\'tmadehimsick。Andsupposeitwaseitherofthem——yes,orme,either——doyouthinkanyofuswouldhavestoppedifweWEREsick？Notmuch！Ihatetosayit,butBibbsSheridan\'llneveramounttoanythingaslongashelives。"

Marylookedthoughtful。"Isthereanyparticularreasonwhyheshould？"sheasked。

"Goodgracious！"heexclaimed。"Youdon\'tmeanthat,doyou？Don\'tyoubelieveinaman\'sknowinghowtoearnhissalt,nomatterhowmuchmoneyhisfather\'sgot？Hasn\'tthebusinessofthisworldgottobecarriedonbyeverybodyinit？Arewegoingtolaybackonwhatwe\'vegotandseeotherfellowsgetaheadofus？Ifwe\'vegotbigthingsalready,isn\'titeveryman\'sbusinesstogoaheadandmake\'embigger？Isn\'tithisduty？Don\'twealwayswanttogetbiggerandbigger？"

"Ye—es——Idon\'tknow。ButIfeelrathersorryforyourbrother。Helookedsolonely——andsick。"