第13章

Thewordswereindefinite,butthevoicewasnot。Neitherwastheviciousgestureofthebandagedhand,whichconcludeditsorbitinthedirectionofthedoorinamannersufficientfortheswiftdispersalofGeorgeandJacksonandseveralfemaleservantswhohoveredbehindMrs。Sheridan。Theyfledlightly。

"Papa,papa！"wailedMrs。Sheridan。"Lookatyourhand！You\'doughtn\'ttobeensoroughwithEdie;youhurtyourhandonhershoulder。Look！"

Therewas,infact,aspreadingredstainuponthebandagesatthetipsofthefingers,andSheridanputhishandbackinthesling。"Nowthen！"herepeated。"Yougoin\'toleavemyhouse？"

"HewillNOT！"sobbedEdith。"Don\'tyouDAREorderhimout！"

"Don\'tyoubother,dear,"saidLamhorn,quietly。"Hedoesn\'tunderstand。YOU

mustn\'tbetroubled。"Pallorwasbecomingtohim;helookedveryhandsome,andashelefttheroomheseemedinthegirl\'sdistraughteyesapersecutednoble,indifferenttotherabbleyawpinginsultathisheels——therabblebeingenactedbyherfather。

"Don\'tcomeback,either！"said,Sheridan,realisticinthisimpersonation。

"Keepoffthepremises！"hecalledsavagelyintothehall。"Thisfamily\'sthroughwithyou！"

"ItisNOT！"Edithcried,breakingfromhermother。"You\'llSEEaboutthat！

You\'llfindout！You\'llfindoutwhat\'llhappen！What\'sHEdone？IguessifIcanstandit,it\'snoneofYOURbusiness,isit？What\'sHEdone,I\'dliketoknow？Youdon\'tknowanythingaboutit。Don\'tyous\'posehetoldME？Shewascrazyabouthimsoonashebegangoingthere,andheflirtedwithheralittle。That\'severythinghedid,anditwasbeforehemetME！Afterthathewouldn\'t,anditwasn\'tanything,anyway——heneverwasseriousaminuteaboutit。SHEwantedittobeserious,andshewasboundshewouldn\'tgivehimup。

Hetoldherlongagohecaredaboutme,butshekeptpersecutinghimand——"

"Yes,"saidSheridan,sternly;"that\'sHISsideofit！That\'lldo！Hedoesn\'tcomeinthishouseagain！"

"Youlookout！"Edithcried。

"Yes,I\'lllookout！I\'d\'a\'toldyouto—dayhewasn\'ttobeallowedonthepremises,butIhadotherthingsonmymind。IhadAbercrombielookupthisyoungmanprivately,andhe\'sno\'count。He\'sno\'countonearth！He\'snogood！He\'sNOTHIN\'！Butitwouldn\'tmatterifhewasGeorgeWashington,afterwhat\'shappenedandwhatI\'veheardto—night！"

"But,papa,"Mrs。Sheridanbegan,"ifEdiesaysitwasallSibyl\'sfault,makin\'uptohim,andheneverencouragedhermuch,nor——"

"\'Senough！"heroared。"Hekeepsoffthesepremises！Andifanyofyousomuchaseverspeakhisnametomeagain——"

ButEdithscreamed,clappingherhandsoverherearstoshutoutthesoundofhisvoice,andranup—stairs,sobbingloudly,followedbyhermother。However,Mrs。Sheridandescendedafewminuteslaterandjoinedherhusbandinthelibrary。Bibbs,stillsittinginhisgoldchair,sawherpass,rousedhimselffromreverie,andstrolledinafterher。

"Shelockedherdoor,"saidMrs。Sheridan,shakingherheadwoefully。"Shewouldn\'tevenanswerme。Theywasn\'tasoundfromherroom。"

"Well,"saidherhusband,"shecansettlehermindtoit。Sheneverspeakstothatfellowagain,andifhetriestotelephoneherto—morrow——Here！Youtellthehelpifhecallsuptoringoffandsayit\'smyorders。No,youneedn\'t。I\'lltell\'emmyself。"

"Betternot,"saidBibbs,gently。

Hisfatherglaredathim。

"It\'snogood,"saidBibbs。"Mother,whenyouwereinlovewithfather——"

"Mygoodness！"shecried。"Youain\'ta—goin\'tocompareyourfathertothat——"

"Edithfeelsabouthimjustwhatyoudidaboutfather,"saidBibbs。"AndifYOURfatherhadtoldyou——"

"Iwon\'tLISTENtosuchsillytalk！"shedeclared,angrily。

"Soyou\'rehandin\'outyouradvice,areyou,Bibbs？"saidSheridan。"Whatisit？"

"Letherseehimallshewants。"

"You\'rea——"Sheridangaveitup。"Idon\'tknowwhattocallyou！"

"Letherseehimallshewants,"Bibbsrepeated,thoughtfully。"You\'reupagainstsomethingtoostrongforyou。IfEdithwereaweaklingyou\'dhaveachancethisway,butsheisn\'t。She\'sgotalotofyourdetermination,father,andwithwhat\'sgoingoninsideofhershe\'llbeatyou。Youcan\'tkeepherfromseeinghim,aslongasshefeelsabouthimthewayshedoesnow。

Youcan\'tmakeherthinklessofhim,either。Nobodycan。Youronlychanceisthatshe\'lldoitforherself,andifyougivehertimeandgoeasysheprobablywill。Marriagewoulddoitforherquickest,butthat\'sjustwhatyoudon\'twant,andasyouDON\'Twantit,you\'dbetter——"

"Ican\'tstandanymore！"Sheridanburstout。"Ifit\'scometoBIBBSadvisin\'

mehowtorunthishouseIbetterresign。Mamma,where\'sthatniggerGeorge？

MaybeHE\'SgotsomeplanhowIbettermanagemyfamily。Bibbs,forGod\'ssakegoandlaydown！\'Letherseehimallshewants\'！Oh,Lord！here\'swisdom;

here\'s——"

"Bibbs,"saidMrs。Sheridan,"ifyouhaven\'tgotanythingtodo,youmightstepoverandtakeSibyl\'swrapshome——sheleft\'eminthehall。Idon\'tthinkyouseemtoquietyourpoorfatherverymuchjustnow。"

"Allright。"AndBibbsboreSibyl\'swrapsacrossthestreetanddeliveredthemtoRoscoe,whomethimatthedoor。Bibbssaidonly,"Forgotthese,"

and,"Goodnight,Roscoe,"cordiallyandcheerfully,andreturnedtotheNewHouse。Hismotherandfatherwerestilltalkinginthelibrary,butwithdiscretionhepassedrapidlyonandupwardtohisownroom,andthereheproceededtowriteinhisnote—book。

ThereseemstobeanothercuriousthingaboutLove[Bibbswrote]。

Loveisblindwhileitlivesandonlyopensitseyesandbecomesverywideawakewhenitdies。Letitaloneuntilthen。

Youcannotreasonwithloveorwithanyotherpassion。Thewisewillnotwishforlove——norforambition。Thesearepassionsandbringothersintheirtrain——hatredsandjealousies——allblind。Friendshipandaquietheartforthewise。

Whataturbulenceislove！Itisdangerousforablindthingtobeturbulent;thereareprecipicesinlife。Onewouldnotcrossamountain—passwithathickclothoverhiseyes。Loversdo。Friendshipwalksgentlyandwithopeneyes。

Towalktochurchwithafriend！Tositbesideherthere！Torisewhensherises,andtotouchwithone\'sthumbandfingerstheotherhalfofthehymn—bookthatsheholds！Whatlover,withhisfierceways,couldknowthistranscendenthappiness？

Friendshipbringseverythingthatheavencouldbring。Thereisnolaborthatcannotbecomealivingraptureifyouknowthatafriendisthinkingofyouasyoulabor。Soyousingatyourwork。

Fortheworkispartofthethoughtsofyourfriend;soyouloveit！

Loveisdemandingandclaimingandinsistent。Friendshipisallkindness——itmakestheworldgloriouswithkindness。Whatcoloryouseewhenyouwalkwithafriend！Youseethatthegrayskyisbrilliantandshimmering;youseethatthesmokehaswarmbrownsandismarvelouslysculptured——theairbecomesiridescent。Youseethegoldinbrownhair。Lightfloodseverything。

Whenyouwalktochurchwithafriendyouknowthatlifecangiveyounothingricher。Youpraythattherewillbenochangeinanythingforever。

Whatanadorablethingitistodiscoveralittlefoibleinyourfriend,abitofvanitythatgivesyouonethingmoreabouthertoadore！Onacoldmorningshewillperhapswalktochurchwithyouwithoutherfurs,andshewillblushandreturnanevasiveanswerwhenyouaskherwhyshedoesnotwearthem。Youwillsaynomore,becauseyouunderstand。Shelooksbeautifulinherfurs;

youlovetheirdarknessagainsthercheek;butyoucomprehendthattheyconcealthelovelinessofherthroatandthefinelineofherchin,andthatshealsohascomprehendedthis,and,wishingtolookstillmorebewitching,discardsherfursattheriskoftakingcold。Soyouholdyourpeace,andtrytolookasifyouhadnotthoughtitout。

Thistheoryissatisfactoryexceptthatitdoesnotaccountfortheabsenceofthemuff。Ah,well,theremustalwaysbeamysterysomewhere！Mysteryisapartofenchantment。

Manuallaborisbest。Yourheartcansingandyourmindcandreamwhileyourhandsareworking。Youcouldnothaveasingingheartandadreamingmindalldayifyouhadtoschemeoutdollars,orifyouhadtoaddcolumnsoffigures。Thosethingstakeyourattention。Youcannotbethinkingofyourfriendwhileyouwritelettersbeginning"Yoursofthe17thinst。rec\'dandcontentsdulynoted。"Buttoworkwithyourhandsallday,thinkingandsinging,andthen,afternightfall,toheartheineffablekindnessofyourfriend\'sgreeting——alwaysthere——foryou！Whowouldwakefromsuchadreamasthis？

Dawnandthesea——musicinmoonlitgardens——nightingalesserenadingthroughalmond—grovesinbloom——whatcouldbringsuchthingsintothecity\'sturmoil？Yettheyarehere,androsesblossominthesoot。Thatiswhatitmeansnottobealone！Thatiswhatafriendgivesyou！

Havingthusdemonstratedthathewasabouttwenty—fiveandhadformedasomewhatindefinitedefinitionoffriendship,butoneentirelyhisown（andperhapsMary\'s）Bibbswenttobed,andwastheonlySheridantosleepsoundlythroughthenightandtowakeatdawnwithalightheart。

Hischeerfulnesswasvaguelydiminishedbythetroublousstateofaffairsofhisfamily。Hehadrecognizedhisconditionwhenhewrote,"Whowouldwakefromsuchadreamasthis？"Bibbswasasympatheticperson,easilytouched,buthewasindeedlivinginadream,andallthingsoutsideofitwereveiledandremote——forthatisthewayofyouthinadream。AndBibbs,whohadneverbeforebeenofanyage,eitheroldoryoung,hadcometohisyouthatlast。

Hewentwhistlingfromthehousebeforeevenhisfatherhadcomedown—stairs。

Therewasafogoutdoors,saturatedwithafinepowderofsoot,andthoughBibbsnoticedabsentlythedimshapeofanautomobileatthecurbbeforeRoscoe\'shouse,hedidnotrecognizeitasDr。Gurney\'s,butwentcheerilyonhiswaythroughthedingymist。Andwhenhewasoncemoreinstalledbesidehisfaithfulzinc—eaterhewhistledandsangtoit,asotherworkmendidtotheirownmachinessometimes,whenthingswentwell。Hiscomradesintheshopglancedathimamusedlynowandthen。Theylikedhim,andheatehislunchatnoonwithagroupofSocialistswhoapprovedofhisideasandtalkedofelectinghimtotheirassociation。

Theshortdaysoftheyearhadcome,anditwasdarkbeforethewhistlesblew。

Whenthesignalcame,Bibbswenttotheoffice,wherehedivestedhimselfofhisoveralls——hissingledivergencefromtheroutineofhisfellow—workmen——andafterthatheusedsoapandwatercopiously。Thiswashistransformationscene:hepassedintotheofficearatherfrailyoungworking—mannoticeablybegrimed,andpassedoutofittothepavementacheerfullypre—occupiedsampleofgentry,fastidioustothepointofelegance。

Thesidewalkwascrowdedwiththebearersofdinner—pails,menandboysandwomenandgirlsfromthework—roomsthatclosedatfive。Manyhurriedandsomeloitered;theywentbotheastandwest,jostlingoneanother,andBibbs,turninghisfacehomeward,wasforcedtogoslowly。

Comingtowardhim,asslowly,throughthecrowd,atallgirlcaughtsightofhislong,thinfigureandstoodstilluntilhehadalmostpassedher,forinthethickcrowdandthethickergloomhedidnotrecognizeher,thoughhisshoulderactuallytouchedhers。Hewouldhavegoneby,butshelaugheddelightedly;andhestoppedshort,startled。Twoboys,onechasingtheother,sweptbetweenthem,andBibbsstoodstill,peeringabouthimindeepperplexity。Sheleanedtowardhim。

"IknewYOU！"shesaid。

"Goodheavens！\'criedBibbs。"Ithouhgtitwasyourvoicecomingoutofastar！"

"There\'sonlysmokeoverhead,"saidMary,andlaughedagain。"Therearen\'tanystars。"

"Ohyes,therewere——whenyoulaughed！"

Shetookhisarm,andtheywenton。"I\'vecometowalkhomewithyou,Bibbs。

Iwantedto。"

"Butwereyouhereinthe——"

"Inthedark？Yes！Waiting？Yes！"

Bibbswasradiant;hefeltsuffocatedwithhappiness。Hebegantoscoldher。

"Butit\'snotsafe,andI\'mnotworthit。Youshouldn\'thave——Yououghttoknowbetter。Whatdid——"

"Ionlywaitedabouttwelveseconds,"shelaughed。"I\'djustgothere。"

"Buttocomeallthiswayandtothispartoftowninthedark,you——"

"Iwasinthispartoftownalready,"shesaid。"Atleast,Iwasonlysevenoreightblocksaway,anditwasdarkwhenIcameout,andI\'dhavehadtogohomealone——andIpreferredgoinghomewithyou。"

"It\'sprettybeautifulforme,"saidBibbs,withadeepbreath。"You\'llneverknowwhatitwastohearyourlaughinthedarkness——andthento——toseeyoustandingthere！Oh,itwaskike——itwaslike——HowcanITELLyouwhatitwaslike？"Theyhadpassedbeyondthecrowdnow,andacrossing—lampshoneuponthem,whichrevealedthefactthatagainshewaswithoutherfurs。Herewasapuzzle。WhydidthatadorablelittlevanityofhersbringheroutwithoutthemintheDARK？Butofcourseshehadgoneoutlongbeforedark。Forundefinablereasonsthisexplanationwasnotquitesatisfactory;however,allowingittostand,hissolicitudeforhertookanotherturn。"Ithinkyououghttohaveacar,"hesaid,"especiallywhenyouwanttobeoutafterdark。

Youneedoneinwinter,anyhow。Haveyoueveraskedyourfatherforone？"

"No,"saidMary。"Idon\'tthinkI\'dcareforoneparticularly。"

"Iwishyouwould。"Bibbs\'stonewasearnestandtroubled。"Ithinkinwinteryou——"

"No,no,"sheinterrupted,lightly。"Idon\'tneed——"

"Butmymothertriedtoinsistonsendingoneoverhereeveryafternoonforme。Iwouldn\'tlether,becauseIlikethewalk,butagirl——"

"Agirllikestowalk,too,"saidMary。"LetmetellyouwhereI\'vebeenthisafternoonandhowIhappenedtobenearenoughttomakeyoutakemehome。

I\'vebeentoseealittleoldmanwhomakespicturesofthesmoke。Hehasasortofwarehouseforastudio,andhelivestherewithhismotherandhiswifeandtheirsevenchildren,andhe\'sgloriouslyhappy。I\'dseenoneofhispicturesatanexhibition,andIwantedtoseemoreofthem,soheshowedthemtome。Hehasalmosteverthingheeverpainted;Idon\'tsupposehe\'ssoldmorethanfourorfivepicturesinhislife。Hegivesdrawing—lessonstokeepalive。"

"Howdoyoumeanhepaintsthesmoke？"Bibbsasked。

"Literally。Hepaintsfromhisstudiowindowandfromthestreet——anywhere。

Hejustpaintswhat\'saroundhim——andit\'sbeautiful。"

"Thesmoke？"

"Wonderful！Heseestheskythroughit,somehow。Hedoestheuglyroofsofcheaphousesthroughahazeofsmoke,andhedoessmokysunsetsandsmokysunrises,andhehasotherthingswiththeheavy,solid,slowcolumnsofsmokegoingfaroutandgrowingmoreetherealandmixingwiththehazylightinthedistance;andhehasotherswiththebrokensky—lineofdown—town,allmistedwiththesmokeandpuffsandjetsofvaporthathavecolorslikeanorchardinmid—April。I\'mgoingtotakeyoutheresomeSundayafternoon,Bibbs。"

"You\'reshowingmethetown,"hesaid。"Ididn\'tknowwhatwasinitatall。"

"Thereareworkersinbeautyhere,"shetoldhim,gently。"Thereareotherpaintersmoreprosperousthanmyfriend。Thereareallsortsofthings。"

"Ididn\'tknow。"

"No。Sincethetownbegangrowingsogreatthatitcalleditself\'greater,\'

onecouldlivehereallone\'slifeandknowonlythesideofitthatshows。"

"Thebeauty—workersseemburiedverydeep,"saidBibbs。"AndIimaginethatyourfriendwhomakesthesmokebeautifulmustbeburieddeepestofall。Myfatherlovesthesmoke,butIcan\'timaginehisbuyingoneofyourfriend\'spictures。He\'dbuythe\'BayofNaples,"buthewouldn\'tgetoneofthose。

He\'dthinksmokeinapicturewashorrible——unlesshecoulduseitforanadvertisement。"

"Yes,"shesaid,thoughtfully。"Andreallyhe\'sthetown。TheyAREburiedprettydeep,itseems,sometimes,Bibbs。"

"Andyetit\'sallwonderful,"hesaid。"It\'swonderfultome。"

"Youmeanthetowniswonderfultoyou？"

"Yes,becauseeverythingis,sinceyoucalledmeyourfriend。Thecityisonlyarumbleonthehorizonforme。Itcan\'tcomeanycloserthanthehorizonsolongasyouletmeseeyoustandingbymyoldzinc—eateralldaylong,helpingme。Mary——"Hestoppedwithagasp。"That\'sthefirsttimeI\'vecalledyou\'Mary\'！"

"Yes。"Shelaughed,alittletremuously。"ThoughIwantedyouto！"

"Isaiditwithoutthinking。Itmustbebecauseyoucametheretowalkhomewithme。Thatmustbeit。""Womenliketohavethingssaid,"Maryinformedhim,hertremulouslaughtercontinuing。"WereyougladIcameforyou？"

"No——not\'glad。\'IfeltasifIwerebeingcarriedstraightupandupandup——overtheclouds。Ifeellikethatstill。IthinkI\'mthatwaymostofthetime。IwonderwhatIwaslikebeforeIknewyou。ThepersonIwasthenseemstohavebeensomebodyelse,notBibbsSheridanatall。Itseemslong,longago。Iwasgloomyandsickly——somebodyelse——somebodyIdon\'tunderstandnow,acowardafraidofshadows——afraidofthingsthatdidn\'texist——afraidofmyoldzinc—eater！AndnowI\'monlyafraidofwhatmightchangeanything。"

Shewassilentamoment,andthen,"You\'rehappy,Bibbs？"sheasked。

"Ah,don\'tyousee？"hecried。"Iwantittolastforathousand,thousandyears,justasitis！You\'vemademesorich,I\'mamiser。Iwouldn\'thaveonethingdifferent——nothing,nothing！"

"DearBibbs！"shesaid,andlaughedhappily。

Bibbscontinuedtoliveintheshelterofhisdream。HehadtoldEdith,afterhisineffectiveefforttobeusefulinheraffairs,thathehaddecidedthathewas"amemberofthefamily";butheappearedtohaverelapsedtotheretiredlistafterthatoneattemptatparticipancy——hewasfarenoughdetachedfrommembershipnow。ThesewereturbulentdaysintheNewHouse,butBibbshadnopartwhateverintheturbulence——heseemedanabsent—mindedstranger,presentbyaccidentandnotwhollyawarethathewaspresent。Hewouldsit,faintlysmilingoverpleasantimaginingsanddearreminiscencesofhisown,whilebattleragedbetweenEdithandherfather,orwhileSheridanunloosedjeremiadsuponthesullenRoscoe,whodrankheavilytoendurethem。

Thehappydreamerwanderedintostorm—areaslikeasomnambulist,andwanderedoutagainunawakened。HewassorryforhisfatherandforRoscoe,andforEdithandforSibyl,buttheirsufferingsandoutcriesseemedfaraway。

SibylwasunderGurney\'scare。RoscoehadsentforhimonSundaynight,notlongafterBibbsreturnedtheabandonedwraps;andduringthefirstdaysofSibyl\'sillnessthedoctorfounditnecessarytobewithherfrequently,andtoinstallamuscularnurse。Andwhetherhewouldorno,Gurneyreceivedfromhishystericalpatientavarietyofpungentinformationwhichwouldhavestaggeredanybodybutafamilyphysician。AmongotherthingshewasgiventocomprehendthechangeinBibbs,andwhythezinc—eaterwasnotputtingalumpintheoperator\'sgizzardasofyore。

Sibylwasnotdelirious——shewasathinlittleegowrithingandshriekinginpain。Lifehadhurther,andhaddrivenherintohurtingherself;herconditionwasonlytheadult\'sterribleexaggerationofthatofachildafterabadbruise——theremustbescreamingandtellingmotherallaboutthehurtandhowithappened。SibylbabbledherselfhoarsewhenGurneywithheldmorphine。Shewentfromthebeginningtotheendinabreath。Noproteststoppedher;nothingstoppedher。

"Yououghttoletmedie！"shewailed。"It\'scruelnottoletmedie！WhatharmhaveIeverdonetoanybodythatyouwanttokeepmealive？Justlookatmylife！IonlymarriedRoscoetogetawayfromhome,andlookwhatthatgotmeinto！——lookwhereIamnow！Hebroughtmetothistown,andwhatdidI

haveinmylifebuthisFAMILY？Andtheydidn\'tevenknowtherightcrowd！

Iftheyhad,itmighthavebeenSOMETHING！Ihadnothing——nothing——nothingintheworld！Iwantedtohaveagoodtime——andhowcouldI？Where\'sanygoodtimeamongtheseSheridans？Theyneverevenhadwineonthetable！IthoughtIwasmarryingintoarichfamilywhereI\'dmeetattractivepeopleI\'dreadabout,andtravel,andgotodances——and,oh,myLord！allIgotwastheseSheridans！IdidthebestIcould;Idid,indeed！Oh,IDID！Ijusttriedtolive。Everywoman\'sgotarighttolive,sometimeinherlife,Iguess！

Thingswerejustbeginningtolookbrighter——we\'dmoveduphere,andthatfrozencrowdacrossthestreetwereafterJimfortheirdaughter,andthey\'dhavestarteduswiththerightpeople——andthenIsawhowEdithwasgettinghimawayfromme。Shedidit,too！Shegothim！Agirlwithmoneycandothattoamarriedwoman——yes,shecan,everytime！AndwhatcouldIdo？Whatcananywomandoinmyfix？Icouldn\'tdoANYTHINGbuttrytostandit——andI

couldn\'tstandit！Iwenttothaticicle——thatVertreesgirl——andshecouldhavehelpedmealittle,anditwouldn\'thavehurther。Itwouldn\'thavedoneheranyharmtohelpmeTHATlittle！ShetreatedmeasifI\'dbeendirtthatshewouldn\'teventakethetroubletosweepoutofherhouse！LetherWAIT！"

Sibyl\'svoice,hoarsefrombabbling,becamenomorethanahuskywhisper,thoughshestrovetomakeitlouder。Shestruggledhalfupright,andthenurserestrainedher。"I\'dgetupoutofthisbedtoshowhershecan\'tdosuchthingsotme！Iwasabsolutelyladylike,andshewalkedoutandleftmetherealone！She\'llSEE！ShestartedafterBibbsbeforeJim\'scasketwasfairlyunderground,andshethinksshe\'slandedthatpoorloon——butshe\'llsee！She\'llsee！IfI\'meverabletowalkacrossthestreetagainI\'llshowherhowtotreatawomanintroublethatcomestoherforhelp！Itwouldn\'thavehurtherany——itwouldn\'t——itwouldn\'t。AndEdithneedn\'thavetoldwhatshetoldRoscoe——itwouldn\'thavehurthertoletmealone。AndHEtoldherI

boredhim——telephoninghimIwantedtoseehim。Heneedn\'thavedoneit！Heneedn\'t——needn\'t——"Hervoicegrewfainter,forthatwhile,withexhaustion,thoughshewouldgooveritallagainassoonasherstrengthreturned。Shelaypanting。Then,seeingherhusbandstandingdisheveledinthedoorway,"Don\'tcomein,Roscoe,"shemurmured。"Idon\'twanttoseeyou。"Andasheturnedawaysheadded,"I\'mkindofsorryforyou,Roscoe。"

Herantagonist,Edith,wasnotmorecoherentinherownwailings,andshehadtheadvantageofamotherforlistener。Shehadalsothedisadvantageofamotherforduenna,andMrs。Sheridan,underherhusband\'ssharptutelage,provedaneffectiveone。EdithwasreducedtotelephoningLamhornfromshopswhenevershecouldjugglehermotherintoamomentarydistractionoveracounter。

EdithwasincomparablymoreinlovethanbeforeLamhorn\'sexpulsion。Herwholebeingwasnothingbutthedeterminationtohurdleeverythingthatseparatedherfromhim。Shewasinastatethatcouldbealteredbyonlythelightestandmostdelicatediplomacyofsuggestion,butSheridan,likelegionsofotherparents,intensifiedherpassionandfedithourlyfuelbyopposingtoitanintolerableforce。Hesworesheshouldcool,andthussetheronfire。

Edithplannedneatly。Shefoughthard,everyotherevening,withherfather,andkeptherbedbetweentimestolethimseewhathisviolencehaddonetoher。Then,whenthemeresightofhersethimtobreathingfast,shesaidpitiablythatshemightbearhertroublebetterifshewentaway;itwasimpossibletobeinthesametownwithLamhornandnotthinkalwaysofhim。

PerhapsinNewYorkshemightforgetalittle。Shehadwrittentoaschoolfriend,establishedquietlywithanauntinapartments——andamonthorsooftheatersandrestaurantsmightbringpeace。Sheridanshoutedwithrelief;hegaveheracopiouscheque,andsheleftuponaMondaymorning,wearingvioletswithhermourningandhavingkissedeverybodygood—byexceptSibylandBibbs。

ShemighthavekissedBibbs,buthefailedtorealizethatthedayofherdeparturehadarrived,andwassurprised,onreturningfromhiszinc—eater,thatevening,tofindhergone。"Isupposethey\'llbemariedther,"hesaid,casually。

Sheridan,seated,warminghisstockingedfeetatthefire,jumpedup,fuming。

"Eitheryougoouto\'here,orIwill,Bibbs！"hesnorted。"Idon\'twanttobeinthesameroomwiththeparticularkindofidiotyouare！She\'sthroughwiththatriff—raff;allsheneededwastobekeptawayfromhimafewweeks,andIKEPTheraway,anditdidthebusiness。ForHeaven\'ssake,goonouto\'

here！"

Bibbsobeyedthegestureofahandstillbandaged。AndtheblacksilkslingwasstillroundSheridan\'sneck,butnotwordofGurney\'sandnoexcruciatingtwingeofpaincouldkeepSheridan\'shandinthesling。Thewounds,slightenoughoriginally,hadbecomeinfectedthefirsttimehehaddislodgedthebandages,andhealingwaslongdelayed。Sheridanhadthehabitofgesture;hecouldnot"taketimetoremember,"hesaid,thathemustbecareful,andhehadalsoacuriousindignationwithhishurt;herefusedtopayitthecomplimentofadmittingitsexistence。

TheSaturdayfollowingEdith\'sdepartureGurneycametotheSheridanBuildingtodressthewoundsandtohaveatalkwithSheridanwhichthedoctorfelthadbecomenecessary。Buthewasalittlebeforetheappointedtimeandwasobligedtowaitafewminutesinananteroom——therewasadirectors\'meetingofsomesortinSheridan\'soffice。Thedoorwasslightlyajar,leakingcigar—smokeandoratory,thelatterallSheridan\'s,andGurneylistened。

"No,sir;no,sir;no,sir！"heheardthebigvoicerumbling,andthen,breakingintothunder,"ItellyouNO！Someo\'youmenmakemesick！You\'dloseyourconfidenceinAlmightyGodifadoodle—bugflippedhishindlegatyou！Yousaymoney\'stightalloverthecountry。Well,whatifitis？

There\'snoreasonforittobetight,andit\'snotgoin\'tokeepOURmoneytight！You\'realwaysrunnin\'tothewoodshedtohideyournickelsinacrackbecausesomefoolnewspapersaysthemarket\'salittleskeery！Youlistentoeverystreet—cornercroakerandthencomeandsethereandtrytoscareMEoutofabigthing！We\'reINonthis——understand？ItellyouthereneverWAS

bettertimes。Thesearegoodtimesandbigtimes,andIwon\'tstandforanyotherkindo\'talk。Thiscountry\'sonitsfeetasitneverwasbefore,andthiscity\'sonitsfeetandgoin\'tostaythere！"AndGurneyheardaseriesofwhacksandthumpsuponthedesk。"\'Badtimes\'！"Sheridanvociferated,withaccompanyingthumps。"Rabbittalk！Thesetimesareglorious,Itellyou！

We\'reinthepromisedland,andwe\'regoin\'toSTAYthere！That\'sall,gentlemen。Theloangoes！"

Thedirectorscameforth,flushedandmurmurous,andGurneyhastenedin。Hisguesswascorrect:Sheridanhadbeenthumpingthedeskwithhisrighthand。

Thephysicianscoldedwearily,makinggoodthefreshdamageasbesthemight;