第9章

"That\'ssensible,"sheresponded,curtly。"You\'remostsurprisingofallwhenyou\'resensible,Bibbs。"

"Yes,"hesighed。"I\'madulldog。Shakehandsandforgiveme,Edith。"

Thawingsofarastosmile,sheunderwentthisbriefceremony,andGeorgeappeared,summoningBibbstothelibrary;Dr。Gurneywaswaitingthere,heannounced。AndBibbsgavehissisterashybutfriendlytouchupontheshoulderasacomplementtothehandshaking,andlefther。

Dr。Gurneywassittingbythelogfire,aloneintheroom,andhemerelyglancedoverhisshoulderwhenhispatientcamein。Hewasnotoverfifty,inspiteofSheridan\'shabitual"oleDocGurney。"Hewasgray,however,almostasthinasBibbs,andnearlyalwayshelookeddrowsy。

"Yourfathertelephonedmeyesterdayafternoon,Bibbs,"hesaid,notrising。

"Wantsmeto\'lookyouover\'again。Comearoundhereinfrontofme——betweenmeandthefire。IwanttoseeifIcanseethroughyou。"

"Youmeanyou\'retoosleepytomove,"returnedBibbs,complying。"Ithinkyou\'llnoticethatI\'mgettingworse。"

"Takenonabouttwelvepounds,"saidGurney。"Thirteen,maybe。"

"Twelve。"

"Well,itwon\'tdo。"Thedoctorrubbedhiseyelids。"You\'resomuchbetterI\'llhavetousesomemachineryonyoubeforewecanknowjustwhereyouare。

Youcomedowntomyplacethisafternoon。Walkdown——alltheway。Isupposeyouknowwhyyourfatherwantstoknow。"

Bibbsnodded。"Machine—shop。"

"Stillhateit？"

Bibbsnoddedagain。

"Don\'tblameyou！"thedoctorgrunted。"Yes,Iexpectit\'llmakealumpinyourgizzardagain。Well,whatdoyousay？ShallItellhimyou\'vegottheoldlumpthereyet？Youstillwanttowrite,doyou？"

"What\'stheuse？"Bibbssaid,smilingruefully。"Mykindofwriting！"

"Yes,"thedoctoragreed。"Isupposeityoubrokeawayandlivedonrootsandberriesuntilyoubeganto\'attractthefavorableattentionofeditors\'

youmightbeabletohopeforanincomeoffourorfivehundreddollarsayearbythetimeyou\'refifty。"

"That\'saboutit,"Bibbsmurmured。

"OfcourseIknowwhatyouwanttodo,"saidGurney,drowsily。"Youdon\'thatethemachine—shoponly;youhatethewholeshow——thenoiceandjaranddirt,thescramble——thewholebloomin\'crazeto\'geton。\'You\'dliketogosomewhereinAlgiers,ortoTaormina,perhaps,andbaskonabalcony,smellingflowersandwritingsonnets。You\'dgrowfatonitandhaveadelicatelittlelifealltoyourself。Well,whatdoyousay？Icanlielikesixty,Bibbs！ShallItellyourfatherhe\'llloseanotherofhisboysifyoudon\'tgotoSicily？"

"Idon\'twanttogotoSicily,"saidBibbs。"Iwanttostayrighthere。"

Thedoctor\'sdrowsinessdisappearedforamoment,andhegavehispatientasharpglance。"It\'sarisk,"hesaid。"Ithinkwe\'llfindyou\'resomuchbetterhe\'llsendyoubacktotheshopprettyquick。Something\'sgotholdofyoulately;you\'renotquitesolackadaisicalasyouusedtobe。ButIwarnyou:Ithinktheshopwillknockyoujustasitdidbefore,andperhapsevenharder,Bibbs。"

Herose,shookhimself,andrubbedhiseyelids。"Well,whenwegooveryouthisafternoonwhatarewegoingtosayaboutit？"

"TellhimI\'mready,"saidBibbs,lookingatthefloor。

"Ohno,"Gurneylaughed。"Notquiteyet;butyoumaybealmost。We\'llsee。

Don\'tforgetIsaidtowalkdown。"

Andwhentheexaminationwasconcluded,thatafternoon,thedoctorinformedBibbsthattheresultwasmuchtoosatisfactorytobepleasing。"Here\'sanew\'situation\'foraone—actfarce,"hesaid,gloomily,tohisnextpatientwhenBibbshadgone。"Doctortellsamanhe\'swell,andthat\'shisdeathsentence,likely。Dam\'funnyworld！"

Bibbsdecidedtowalkhome,thoughGurneyhadnotinstructedhimuponthispoint。Infact,Gurneyseemedtohavenomoreinstructionsonanypoint,sodiscouragingwastheyoungman\'simprovement。Itwasadingyafternoon,andthesmokewasevidentnotonlytoBibbs\'ssight,buttohisnostrils,thoughmostofthepedestriansweresosaturatedwiththesmelltheycouldnolongerdetectit。Nearlyallofthemwalkedhurriedly,toointentupontheirdestinationstobemorethanhalfawareofthewayside;theyworetheexpressionsofpeopleunderavagueyetconstantstrain。Theywerealllightlypowdered,insideandout,withfinedustandgritfromthehard—pavedstreets,andtheywereunawareofthatalso。Theydidnotevennoticethattheysawthesmoke,thoughthethickenedairwaslikeashroudingmist。AndwhenBibbspassedthenew"SheridanApartments,"nowalmostcompleted,heobservedthatthemarbleofthevestibulewasalreadystreakywithsoot,likehisgloves,whichwerenew。

Thatrecalledtohimthefaintodorofgasoleneinthecoupeonthewayfromhisbrother\'sfuneral,andthisincitedatrainofthoughtwhichcontinuedtillhereachedthevicinityofhishome。HisroutewasbyastreetparalleltothatonwhichtheNewHousefronted,andinhispreoccupationhewalkedablockfartherthanheintended,sothat,havingcrossedtohisownstreet,heapproachedtheNewHousefromthenorth,andashecametothecornerofMr。

Vertrees\'slotMr。Vertrees\'sdaughteremergedfromthefrontdoorandwalkedthoughtfullydownthepathtotheoldpicketgate。Shewasunconsciousoftheapproachofthepedestrianfromthenorth,anddidnotseehimuntilshehadopenedthegateandhewasalmostbesideher。Thenshelookedup,andasshesawhimshestartedvisibly。AndifthisthinghadhappenedtoRobertLamhorn,hewouldhavehadathoughtfarbeyondthehorizonoffaint—heartedBibbs\'sthoughts。Lamhorn,indeed,wouldhavespokenhisthought。Hewouldhavesaid:

"Youjumpedbecauseyouwerethinkingofme！"

Marywasthepictureofaladyflustered。Shestoodwithonehandclosingthegatebehindher,andshehadturnedtogointhedirectionBibbswaswalking。Thereappearedtobenothingforitbutthattheyshouldwalktogether,atleastasfarastheNewHouse。ButBibbshadpausedinhisslowstride,andthereelapsedaninstantbeforeeitherspokeormoved——itwasnolongerthanthat,andyetitsufficedforeachtoseemtosay,bylookandattitude,"Why,it\'sYOU！"

Thentheybothspokeatonce,eachhurriedlypronouncingtheother\'snameasifabouttodeliveramessageofimportance。Thenbothcametoastopsimultaneously,butBibbsmadeaheroiceffort,andastheybegantowalkontogetherhecontrivedtofindhisvoice。

"I——I——hateafrozenfishmyself,"hesaid。"Ithinkthreemileswastoolongforyoutoputupwithone。"

"Goodgracious！"shecried,turningtohimaglowingfacefromwhichrestraintandembarrassmenthadsuddenlyfled。"Mr。Sheridan,you\'relovelytoputitthatway。Butit\'salwaysthegirl\'splacetosayit\'sturningcooler！Ioughttohavebeentheonetoshowthatwedidn\'tknoweachotherwellenoughnottosaySOMETHING！Itwasanimpositionformetohavemadeyoubringmehome,andafterIwentintothehouseIdecidedIshouldhavewalked。Besides,itwasn\'tthreemilestothecar—line。Ineverthoughtofit！"

"No,"saidBibbs,earnestly。"Ididn\'t,either。ImighthavesaidsomethingifI\'dthoughtofanything。I\'mtalkingnow,though;Imustrememberthat,andnotworryaboutitlater。IthinkI\'mtalking,thoughitdoesn\'tsoundintelligenteventome。ImadeupmymindthatifIevermetyouagainI\'dturnonmyvoiceandkeepitgoing,nomaterwhatitsaid。I——"

Sheinterruptedhimwithlaughter,andMaryVertrees\'slaughwasonewhichBibbs\'sfatherhaddeclared,afterthehouse—warming,"acripplewouldcrawlfivemilestohear。"AndatthemerryliltingofitBibbs\'sfather\'ssontookhearttoforgetsomeofhistrepidation。"I\'llbeanykindofidiot,"

hesaid,"ifyou\'lllaughatmesomemore。Itwon\'tbedifficultforme。"

Shedid;andBibbs\'scheeksshowedalittleactualcolor,whichMaryperceived。Itrecalledtoher,bycontrast,hercarelessandirritateddescriptionofhimtohermotherjustaftershehadseenhimforthefirsttime。"Rathertragicandaltogetherimpossible。"Itseemedtohernowthatshemusthavebeenblind。

TheyhadpassedtheNewHousewithouteitherofthemshowing——orpossessing——anyconsciousnessthatithadbeenthedestinationofoneofthem。

"I\'llkeepontalking,"Bibbscontinued,cheerfully,"andyoukeeponlaughing。I\'mamountingtosomethingintheworldthisafternoon。I\'mmakinganoise,andthatmakesyoumakemusic。Don\'tbebotheredbymybleatingoutsuchthingsasthat。I\'mreallyfrightened,andthatmakesmebleatanything。I\'mfrightenedabouttwothings:I\'mafraidofwhatI\'llthinkofmyselflaterifIdon\'tkeeptalking——talkingnow,Imean——andI\'mafraidofwhatI\'llthinkofmyselfifIdo。Andbesidesthesetwothings,I\'mfrightened,anyhow。Idon\'tremembertalkingasmuchasthismorethanonceortwiceinmylife。Isupposeitwasalwaysinmetodoit,though,thefirsttimeImetanyonewhodidn\'tknowmewellenoughnottolisten。"

"Butyou\'renotreallytalkingtome,"saidMary。"You\'rejustthinkingaloud。"

"No,"hereturned,gravely。"I\'mnotthinkingatall;I\'monlymakingvocalsoundsbecauseIbelieveit\'smoremannerly。Iseemtobethesubjectofwhatlittlemeaningtheypossess,andI\'dliketochangeit,butIdon\'tknowhow。Ihaven\'tanyexperienceintalking,andIdon\'tknowhowtomanageit。"

"Youneedn\'tchangethesubjectonmyaccount,Mr。Sheridan,"shesaid。"Notevenifyoureallytalkedaboutyourself。"Sheturnedherfacetowardhimasshespoke,andBibbscaughthisbreath;hewaspatheticallyamazedbythelookshegavehim。Itwasaglowinglook,warmlyfriendlyandunderstanding,and,whatalmostshockedhim,itwasaneagerlyinterestedlook。Bibbswasnotaccustomedtoanythinglikethat。

"I——you——I——I\'m——"hestammered,andthefaintcolorinhischeeksgrewalmostvivid。

Shewasstilllookingathim,andshesawthestrangeradiancethatcameintohisface。Therewassomethingabouthim,too,thatexplainedhow"queer"

manypeoplemightthinkhim;buthedidnotseem"queer"toMaryVertrees;heseemedthemostquaintlynaturalpersonshehadevermet。

Hewaited,andbecamecoherent。"YOUsaysomethingnow,"hesaid。"Idon\'tevenbelonginthechorus,andhereIam,tryingtosingthefunnyman\'ssolo！You——"

"No,"sheinterrupted。"I\'dratherplayyouraccompaniment。"

"I\'llstopandlistentoit,then。"

"Perhaps——"shebegan,butafterpausingthoughtfullyshemadeagesturewithhermuff,indicatingalargebrickchurchwhichtheywereapproaching。"Doyouseethatchurch,Mr。Sheridan？"

"IsupposeIcould,"heansweredinsimpletruthfulness,lookingather。

"ButIdon\'twantto。Once,whenIwasill,thenursetoldmeI\'dbettersayanythingthatwasonmymind,andIgotthehabit。TheotherreasonIdon\'twanttoseethechurchisthatIhaveafeelingit\'swhereyou\'regoing,andwhereI\'llbesentback。"

Sheshookherheadincheerynegation。"Notunlessyouwanttobe。Wouldyouliketocomewithme？"

"Why——why——yes,"hesaid。"Anywhere！"Andagainitwasapparentthathespokeinsimpletruthfulness。

"Thencome——ifyoucarefororganmusic。Theorganistisanoldfriendofmine,andsometimesheplaysforme。He\'sadearoldman。HehadadegreefromBonn,andwasaprofessorafterward,buthegaveupeverythingformusic。That\'she,waitinginthedoorway。HelookslikeBeethoven,doesn\'the？Ithinkheknowsthat,perhaps,andenjoysitalittle。Ihopeso。"

"Yes,"saidBibbs,astheyreachedthechurchsteps。"IthinkBeethovenwouldlikeit,too。Itmustbepleasanttolooklikeotherpeople。"

"Ihaven\'tkeptyou？"Marysaidtotheorganist。

"No,no,"heanswered,heartily。"Iwouldnotmindsoonlyyoushouldshooercome！"

"ThisisMr。Sheridan,Dr。Kraft。Hehascometolistenwithme。"

Theorganistlookedbluntlysurprised。"IssthatSO？"heexclaimed。"Well,Iamgladifyouwishhim,andifhecanstantmyliddleplayink。Heissmusicianhimself,then,ofcourse。"

"No,"saidBibbs,asthethreeenteredthechurchtogether。"I——Iplayedthe——Itriedtoplay——"Fortunatelyhecheckedhimself;hehadbeenabouttooffertheinformationthathehadfailedtomasterthejews\'—harpinhisboyhood。"No,I\'mnotamusician,"hecontentedhimselfwithsaying。

"What？"Dr。Kraft\'ssurpriseincreased。"Youngman,youarefortunate！I

playforMissVertrees;shecomesalwaysalone。Youarethefirst。YouarethefirstoneEVER！"

Theyhadreachedtheheadofthecentralaisle,andastheorganistfinishedspeakingBibbsstoppedshort,turningtolookatMaryVertreesinadazedwaythatwasnotofherpreceiving;for,thoughshestoppedashedid,hergazefollowedtheorganist,whowaswalkingawayfromthemtowardthefrontofthechurch,shakinghiswhiteBeethovianmaneroguishly。

"It\'sfalsepretensesonmypart,"Bibbssaid。"Youmeantobekindtothesick,butI\'mnotaninvalidanymore。I\'msowellI\'mgoingbacktoworkinafewdays。I\'dbetterleavebeforehebeginstoplay,hadn\'tI？"

"No,"saidMary,beginningtowalkforward。"Notunlessyoudon\'tlikegreatmusic。"

Hefollowedhertoaseatabouthalf—wayuptheaislewhileDr。Kraftascendedtotheorgan。Itwasanenormousone,theprocessionofpipesrangingfromlong,starvelingwhistlestothunderingfatguns;theycoveredalltherearwallofthechurch,andtheorganist\'sfigure,reachingitshighperch,lookedlikethatofsomeLilliputianmagicianludicrouslydaringtheattempttoconrolamonstercertaintooverwhelmhim。

"ThisafternoonsomeHandel！"heturnedtoshout。

Marynodded。"Willyoulikethat？"sheaskedBibbs。

"Idon\'tknow。Ineverheardanyexcept\'Largo。\'Idon\'tknowanythingaboutmusic。Idon\'tevenknowhowtopretendIdo。IfIknewenoughtopretend,Iwould。"

"No,"saidMary,lookingathimandsmilingfaintly,"youwouldn\'t。"

Sheturnedawayasagreatsoundbegantoswimandtrembleintheair;thehughemptyspaceofthechurchfilledwithit,andthetwopeoplelisteningfilledwithit;theuniverseseemedtofillandthrillwithit。Thetwosatintenselystill,thegreatsoundallroundaboutthem,whilethechurchgrewdusky,andonlytheorganist\'slampmadeatinystaroflight。Hiswhiteheadmovedfromsidetosidebeneathitrhythmically,orlungedandrecoveredwiththefiercenessofaduelistthrusting,buthewasmagnificentlythemasterofhisgiant,anditsangtohismagicashebadeit。

Bibbswassweptawayuponthatmightysinging。Suchathingwaswhollyunknowntohim;therehadbeennomusicinhismeagerlife。Unlikethetale,itwasthePrincessBedrulbudourwhohadbroughthimtotheenchantedcave,andthat——forBibbs——waswhatmadeitsmagicdazing。Itseemedtohimalong,longtimesincehehadbeenwalkinghomedrearilyfromDr。Gurney\'soffice;itseemedtohimthathehadsetoutuponahappyjourneysincethen,andthathehadreachedanotherplanet,whereMaryVertreesandhesatalonetogetherlisteningtoavastchoiringofinvisiblesoldiersandholyangels。

Therewerearmiesofvoicesaboutthemsingingpraiseandthanksgiving;andyettheywerealone。Itwasincrediblethatthewallsofthechurchwerenottheboundariesoftheuniverse,toremainsoforever;incrediblethattherewasasmokystreetjustyonder,wherehousemaidswerebringingineveningpapersfromfrontstepsandwherechildrenweretakingtheirlastspinsonroller—skatesbeforebeinghaledindoorsfordinner。

Hehadacurioussenseofcommunicationwithhisnewfriend。Heknewitcouldnotbeso,andyethefeltasifallthetimehespoketoher,saying:

"Youhearthisstrain？Youhearthatstrain？Youknowthedreamthatthesesoundsbringtome？"Anditseemedtohimasthoughsheansweredcontinually:"Ihear！Ihearthatstrain,andIhearthenewonethatyouarehearingnow。Iknowthedreamthatthesesoundsbringtoyou。Yes,yes,Ihearitall！Wehear——together！"

Andthoughthechurchgrewsodimthatallwasmysteriousshadowexceptthevagueplanesofthewindowsandtheorganist\'slight,withthewhiteheadmovingbeneathit,Bibbshadnoconsciousnessthatthegirlsittingbesidehimhadgrownshadowy;heseemedtoseeherasplainlyaseverinthedarkness,thoughhedidnotlookather。Andallthemightychantingoftheorgan\'smultitudinousvoicesthatafternoonseemedtoBibbstobechorusingofherandinterpretingher,singingherthoughtsandsingingforhimtheworldofhumblegratitudethatwasinhisheartbecauseshewassokindtohim。ItallmeantMary。

Butwhensheaskedhimwhatitmeant,ontheirhomewardway,hewassilent。

Theyhadcomeafewpacesfromthechurchwithoutspeaking,walkingslowly。

"I\'lltellyouwhatitmeanttome,"shesaid,ashedidnotimmediatelyreply。"AlmostanymusicofHandel\'salwaysmeansonethingaboveallotherstome:courage！That\'sit。Itmakescowardiceofwhiningseemsoinfinitesimal——itmakesMOSTthingsinourhustlinglittlelivesseeminfinitesimal。"

"Yes,"hesaid。"Itseemsodd,doesn\'tit,thatpeopledown—townarehurryingtotrainsandhangingtostrapsintrolley—cars,welteringeverywaytogethomeandfeedandsleepsotheycangetdown—townto—morrow。Andyetthereisn\'tanythingdownthereworthgettingto。They\'relikeservantsdrudgingtokeepthehousegoing,andbelievingthedrudgeryitselfisthegreatthing。Theymakesomuchnoiseandfussanddirttheyforgetthatthehousewasmeanttolivein。Thehouseworkhastobedone,butthepeoplewhodoithavebeensooverpaidthatthey\'reconfusedandworshipthehousework。

They\'reoverpaid,andyet,poorthings！theyhaven\'tanythingthatachickencan\'thave。Ofcourse,whentheworldgetstopayingitswagessensiblythatwillbedifferent。"

"Doyoumean\'communism\'？"sheasked,andshemadetheirslowpacealittleslower——theyhadonlythreeblockstogo。

"Whateverthewordis,Ionlymeanthatthingsdon\'tlookverysensiblenow——especiallytoamanthatwantstokeepoutof\'emandcan\'t！

\'Communism\'？Well,atleastany\'decentsport\'wouldsayit\'sfairforallthestrongrunnerstostartfromthesamemarkandgivetheweakonesafairdistanceahead,sothatallcanrunsomethinglikeevenonthestretch。Andwouldn\'titbepleasant,really,iftheycouldallcrossthewinning—linetogether？Whoreallyenjoysbeatinganybody——ifheseesthebeatenman\'sface？Theonlywaywecanenjoygettingaheadofotherpeoplenowadaysisbyforgettingwhattheotherpeoplefeel。Andthat,"headded,"isnothingofwhatthemusicmeanttome。Yousee,ifIkeeptalkingaboutwhatitdidn\'tmeanIcankeepfromtellingyouwhatitdidmean。"

"Didn\'titmeancouragetoyou,too——alittle？"sheasked。"Triumphandpraisewereinit,andsomehowthosethingsmeancouragetome。"

"Yes,theywereallthere,"Bibbssaid。"Idon\'tknowthenameofwhatheplayed,butIshouldn\'tthinkitwouldmattermuch。Themanthatmakesthemusicmustleaveittoyouwhatitcanmeantoyou,andthenameheputstoitcan\'tmakemuchdifference——excepttohimselfandpeopleverymuchlikehim,Isuppose。"

"Isupposethat\'strue,thoughI\'dneverthoughtofitlikethat。"

"Iimagemusicmustmakefeelingsandpaintpicturesinthemindsofthepeoplewhohearit,"Bibbswenton,musingly,"accordingtotheirownnaturesasmuchasaccordingtothemusicitself。Themusicianmightcomposesomethingandplayit,wantingyoutothinkoftheHolyGrail,andsomepeoplewhohearditwouldthinkofaprayer—meeting,andsomewouldthinkofhowgoodtheywerethemselves,andaboymightthinkofhimselfattheheadofasolemnprocession,carryingabannerandridingawhitehorse。Andthen,ifthereweresomejubilantpassagesinthemusic,he\'dthinkofacircus。"

Theyhadreachedhergate,andshesetherhanduponit,butdidnotopenit。

Bibbsfeltthatthiswasalmostthekindestofherkindnesses——nottobepromptinleavinghim。

"Afterall,"shesaid,"youdidn\'ttellmewhetheryoulikedit。"

"No。Ididn\'tneedto。"

"No,that\'strue,andIdidn\'tneedtoask。Iknew。Butyousaidyouweretryingtokeepfromtellingmewhatitdidmean。"

"Ican\'tkeepfromtellingitanylonger,"hesaid。"Themusicmeanttome——itmeantthekindnessof——ofyou。"

"Kindness？How？"

"YouthoughtIwasasortoflonelytramp——andsick——"

"No,"shesaid,decidedly。"Ithoughtperhapsyou\'dliketohearDr。Kraftplay。Andyoudid。"

"It\'scurious;sometimesitseemedtomethatitwasyouwhowereplaying。"

Marylaughed。"I？Istrum！Piano。AlittleChopin——Grieg——Chaminade。Youwouldn\'tlisten！"

Bibbsdrewadeepbreath。"I\'mfrightenedagain,"hesaid,inanunsteadyvoice。"I\'mafraidyou\'llthinkI\'mpushing,but——"Hepaused,andthewordssanktoamurmur。

"Oh,ifyouwantMEtoplayforyou！"shesaid。"Yes,gladly。Itwillbemerelyabsurdafterwhatyouheardthisafternoon。Iplaylikeahundredthousandothergirls,andIlikeit。I\'mgladwhenanyone\'swillingtolisten,andifyou——"Shestopped,checkedbyasuddenrecollection,andlaughedruefully。"Butmypianowon\'tbehereafterto—night。I——I\'msendingitawayto—morrow。I\'mafraidthatifyou\'dlikemetoplaytoyouyou\'dhavetocomethisevening。"

"You\'llletme？"hecried。

"Certainly,ifyoucareto。"

"IfIcouldplay——"hesaid,wistfully,"ifIcouldplaylikethatoldmaninthechurchIcouldthankyou。"

"Ah,butyouhaven\'theardmeplay。IKNOWyoulikedthisafternoon,but——"

"Yes,"saidBibbs。"ItwasthegreatesthappinessI\'veeverknown。"

Itwastoodarktoseehisface,buthisvoiceheldsuchplainhonesty,andhespokewithsuchcompleteunconsciousnessofsayinganythingespeciallysignificant,thatsheknewitwasthetruth。Foramomentshewasnonplussed,thensheopenedthegateandwentin。"You\'llcomeafterdinner,then？"

"Yes,"hesaid,notmoving。"WouldyoumindifIstoodhereuntiltimetocomein？"

Shehadreachedthesteps,andatthatsheturned,offeringhimtheresponseoflaughterandagaygestureofhermufftowardthelightedwindowsoftheNewHouse,asthoughbiddinghimtorunhometohisdinner。

Thatnight,Bibbssatwritinginhisnote—book。

Musiccancomeintoablanklife,andfillit。Everythingthatisbeautifulismusic,ifyoucanlisten。

Thereisnogracefulnesslikethatofagracefulwomanatagrandpiano。

Thereisaswimminglovelinessoflinethatseemstomergewiththerunningofthesound,andyouseem,asyouwatchher,toseewhatyouarehearingandtohearwhatyouareseeing。

Therearewomenwhomakeyouthinkofpinewoodscomingdowntoasparklingsea。Theairaboutsuchawomanisbracing,andwhensheisnearyou,youfeelstrongandambitious;youforgetthattheworlddoesn\'tlikeyou。Youthinkthatperhapsyouareagreatfellow,afterall。ThenyoucomeawayandfeellikeaboywhohasfalleninlovewithhisSunday—schoolteacher。

You\'llbewhippedforit——andoughttobe。

TherearewomenwhomakeyouthinkofDiana,crownedwiththemoon。Buttheydonothavethe"Greekprofile。"IdonotbelieveHelenofTroyhada"Greekprofile";theywouldnothavefoughtaboutherifhernosehadbeenquitethatlong。TheGreeknoseisnottheadorablenose。Theadorablenoseisaboutaneighthofaninchshorter。

MuchofthemusicofWagner,itappears,isnotsuitabletothepiano。

Wagnerwasacomposerwhocouldinterpretintomusicsuchthingsastheprimitiveimpulsesofhumanity——hecouldhavemadeamachine—shopintomusic。

Butnotifhehadtoworkinit。Wagnerwasalwaysdealinginimmensities——amachine—shopwouldhaveputamajesticlumpinsograndagizzardasthat。

Thereisamysteryaboutpianos,itseems。Sometimestheyhavetobe"sentaway。"Thatishowsomepeoplespeakofthepenitentiary。"Sentaway"isaeuphuismfor"senttoprison。"Butpianosarenotsenttoprison,andtheyarenotsenttothetuner——thetunerissenttothem。Whyarepianos"sentaway"——andwhere？

Sometimesagloriousdayshinesintothemostordinaryanduselesslife。

Happinessandbeautycomecarolingoutoftheairintothegloomyhouseofthatlifeasifsomestrayangeljusthappenedtoperchontheroof—tree,restingandsinging。Andthenightaftersuchadayislustrousandsplendidwiththememoryofit。Musicandbeautyandkindness——thosearethethreegreatestthingsGodcangiveus。Tobringthemallinonedaytoonewhoexpectednothing——ah！theheartthatreceivedthemshouldbeashumbleasitisthankful。Butitishardtobehumblewhenoneissorichwithnewmemories。Itisimpossibletobehumbleafteradayofglory。

Yes——theadorablenoseismorethananeighthofaninchshorterthantheGreeknose。Itisafullquarterofaninchshorter。

Therearewomenwhowillbekindertoasicktrampthantoaconqueringhero。

Butthesicktramphadbetterrememberthat\'swhatheis。Takecare,takecare！Humble\'stheword！

That"mysteryaboutpianos"whichtroubledBibbshadbeenamysterytoMr。

Vertrees,anditwasbeingexplainedtohimataboutthetimeBibbsscribbledthereferencetoitinhisnotes。Maryhadgoneup—stairsuponBibbs\'sdepartureatteno\'clock,andMr。andMrs。Vertreessatuntilaftermidnightinthelibrary,talking。Andinallthattimetheyfoundnotonecheerfultopic,butbecamemoredepressedwitheverythingandwitheveryphaseofeverythingthattheydiscussed——noextraordinarystateofaffairsinafamilywhichhasalways"heldupitshead,"onlytoarriveintheendatapointwhereallitcandoistolookonhelplesslyattheprocessesofitsownfinancialdissolution。Forthatwasthepointwhichthisdespairingcouplehadreached——theycoulddonothingexceptlookonandtalkaboutit。Theywereonlyvaporing,andtheyknewit。

"Sheneedn\'ttohavedonethataboutherpiano,"vaporedMr。Vertrees。"Wecouldhavemanagedsomehowwithoutit。Atleastsheoughttohaveconsultedme,andifsheinsistedIcouldhavearrangedthedetailswiththe——thedealer。"

"Shethoughtthatitmightbe——annoyingforyou,"Mrs。Vertreesexplained。

"Really,sheplannedforyounottoknowaboutituntiltheyhadremoved——untilafterto—morrow,thatis,butIdecidedto——tomentionit。

Yousee,shedidn\'teventellmeaboutituntilthismorning。Shehasanotherides,too,I\'mafraid。It\'s——it\'s——"

"Well？"heurged,asshefounditdifficulttogoon。

"Herotherideais——thatis,itwas——Ithinkitcanbeavoided,ofcourse——itwasaboutherfurs。"

"No！"heexclaimed,quickly。"Iwon\'thaveit！Youmustseetothat。I\'drathernottalktoheraboutit,butyoumustn\'tlether。"

"I\'lltrynot,"hiswifepromised。"Ofcourse,they\'reveryhandsome。"

"Allthemorereasonforhertokeepthem！"hereturned,irritably。"We\'renotTHATfargone,Ithink！"

"Perhapsnotyet,"Mrs。Vertreessaid。"Sheseemstobetroubledaboutthe——thecoalmatterand——aboutTilly。Ofcoursethepianowilltakecareofsomethingslikethoseforawhileand——"

"Idon\'tlikeit。Igaveherthepianotoplayon,notto——"

"Youmustn\'tbedistressedaboutitinONEway,"shesaid,comfortingly。