第6章

“He’sasleep。“

“Allright。Let’imsleep。Well，let’sgooutan’set’up。Come，Dad，slingawaythatBibleandcometogrub。Mother，whatthedevulareyousnifflingat？Say，now，lookhere。IfIhearanymoreaboutthisrow，I’llsimplyletyouwalkdowntomeeting。Come，Will，setup。“

Heledthewayoutintothelittlekitchenwherethedinnerwasset。

“Whatwastherowabout？Hain’tbeenbreakin’somedish，Agg？“

“Yes，shehas。“

“Oneo’theblueones？“winkedEd。

“No，thankgoodness，itwasawhiteone。“

“Well，now，I’llgitintothatdod-gastedcubberdsomedayan’breakthewholeeternaloutfit。Iain’tgoin’tohavethisdamnedjawin’

goin’on，“heended，brutallyunconsciousofhisown“jawin’。“

Afterthisthedinnerproceededincomparativesilence，Agnessobbingunderbreath。Theroomwassmallandveryhot；thetablewaswarpedsobadlythatthedisheshadatendencytoslidetothecenter；thewallswerebareplastergrayedwithtime；thefoodwaspoorandscant，andthefliesabsolutelyswarmeduponeverything，likebees。Otherwisetheroomwascleanandorderly。

“Theysayyou’vemadeapileo’moneyoutWest，Bill。I’mgladofit。Wefellersbackheredon’tmakeanything。It’sadamtightsqueeze。Agg，itseemstomethefliesaredevilishthicktoday。

Can’tyoudrive’emout？“

Agnesfeltthatshemustvindicateherselfalittle。“Idodrive’emout，buttheycomerightinagain。Thescreendoorisbroken，andtheycomerightin。“

“ItoldDadtofixthatdoor。“

“Buthewon’tdoitforme。“

Edrestedhiselbowsonthetableandfixedhisbrightblackeyesonhisfather。

“Say，whatd’youmeanbyactin’likeamule？IswearI’lltradeyouofff’rayallerdog。WhatdoIkeepyouroundhere。foranyway-tolookpurty？“

“IguessI’veasgoodarighthereasyouhave，EdKinney。“

“Oh，gosoaky’rhead，oldman。Ifyoudon’ttendoutherealittlebetter，downgoesyourmeathouse!Iwon’tdriveyoudowntomeetin’tillyoupromisetofixthatdoor。Hearme!“

Daddybegantosnivel。Agnescouldnotlookupforshame。Willfeltsick。Edlaughed。

“Ikinbringtheoldmantotermsthatway；hecan’twalkverywelllateyears，an’hecan’tdrivemycolt。YouknowwhatacussIusedtobeaboutfastnags？Well，I’mjustthesame。Hobkirk’sgotacoltIwant。Say，thatre-mindsme：yourteam’souttherebythefence。I

forgot。I’llgoandput’emup。“

“No，nevermind；Ican’tstaybutafewminutes。“

“Goin’toberoundthecountrylong？“

“Aweek-maybe。“

Agneslookedupamomentandthenlethereyesfall。

“Goin’backWest，Is’pose？“

“No。MaygoEast，toEuropemebbe。“

“Thedevuly’say!Youmust’a’madeaten-strikeoutWest。“

“Theysayitdidn’tcomelawful，“pipedDaddyoverhisblackberriesandmilk。

“Oh，youshetup。Whowantsyourput-in？Don’tworkinanyo’

yourBibleonus。“

Daddyrosetogointotheotherroom。

“Holdon，oldman。Yougoin’tofixthatdoor？“

“’CourseIbe，“quaveredhe。

“Wellsee’ty’do，that’sall。Nowgitony’rduds，an’

I’llgoan’hitchup。“Herosefromthetable。“Don’tkeepmewaiting。“

Hewentoutunceremoniously，andAgneswasalonewithWill。

“Doyougotochurch？“heasked。Sheshookherhead。“No，Idon’tgoanywherenow。Ihavetoomuchtodo；Ihaven’tstrengthleft。

AndI’mnotfitanyway。“

“Agnes，Iwanttosaysomethingtoyou；notnow-afterthey’regone。“

Hewentintotheotherroom，leavinghertowashthedinnerthings。

Sheworkedoninacurious，almostdazedway，adreamofsomethingsweetandirrevocableinhereyes。Herepresentedsomuchtoher。Hisvoicebroughtuptimesandplacesthatthrilledherlikesong。Hewasassociatedwithallthatwassweetestandmostcarefreeandmostgirlishinherlife。

Eversincetheboyhadhandedherthatnoteshehadbeenrelivingthosedays。Inthemidstofherdrudgeryshestoppedtodream-toletsomepicturecomebackintohermind。Shewasastudentagainattheseminary，andstoodintherecitationroomwithsuffocatingbeatoftheheart。Willwaswaitingoutside-waitinginatremorlikeherown，towalkhomewithherunderthemaples。

Thensherememberedthepainfullysweetmixtureofprideandfearwithwhichshewalkeduptheaisleofthelittlechurchbehindhim。Herprettynewgownrustled，thedimlightofthechurchhadsomethinglikeromanceinit，andhewassostrongandhandsome。

HerheartwentoutinagreatsilentcrytoGod-“Oh，letmebeagirlagain!“

Shedidnotlookforwardtohappiness。Shehadn’tpowertolookforwardatall。

Assheworked，sheheardthehigh，shrillvoicesoftheoldpeopleastheybustledaboutandnaggedateachother。

“Ma，where’smyspecticles？“

“Iain’tseeny’rspecticles。“

“Youhave，too。“

“Iain’tneither。“

“Youhad’emthisforenoon。“

“Didn’tnosuchthing。Themwasmyownbrass-bowedones。Youhadyournjest’foregoin’todinner。Ifyou’dput’emintoaproperplaceyou’dfind’emagain。“

“Iwant’oknowifIwould，“theoldmansnorted’。

“Wal，you’dorterknow。“

“Oh，you’reawfulsmart，ain’tyeh？Youneverhavenotrouble，andusemine-doyeh？-an’lose’emso’tIcan’t“AndifthisisthethingthatgoesonwhenI’mhere，itmustbehellwhenvisitorsaregone，“thoughtWill。

“Willy，ain’tyougoin’tomeetin’？“

“No，nottoday。IwanttovisitalittlewithAgnes，thenI’vegottodrivebacktoJohn’s。“

“Wal，wemustbegoin’。Don’tyouleavethemdishesf’tmetowash，“shescreamedatAgnesasshewentoutthedoor。“An’ifwedon’tgethomebyfive，themcaavesorterbefed。“

AsAgnesstoodatthedoortowatchthemdriveaway，Willstudiedher，asmotheringacheinhisheartashesawhowthinandbentandwearyshewas。Inhissoulhefeltthatshewasadyingwomanunlessshehadrestandtendercare。

Assheturned，shesawsomethinginhisface-apityandanagonyofself-accusation-thatmadeherweakandwhite。Shesankintoachair，puttingherhandonherchest，asifshefeltafailingofbreath。Thenthebloodcamebacktoherface，andhereyesfilledwithtears。

“Don’t-don’tlookatmelikethat，“shesaidinawhisper。Hispityhurther。

Atsightofhersittingtherepathetic，abashed，bewildered，likesomegentleanimal，Will’sthroatcontractedsothathecouldnotspeak。Hisvoicecameatlastinoneterriblecry-“Oh，Agnes!forGod’ssakeforgiveme!“Hekneltbyhersideandputhisarmabouthershouldersandkissedherbowedhead。Acuriousnumbnessinvolvedhiswholebody；hisvoicewashusky，thetearsburnedinhiseyes。Hiswholesoulandbodyachedwithhispityandremorseful，self-accusingwrath。

“Itwasallmyfault。Layitalltome……Iamtheonetobearit……

Oh，I’vedreamedathousandtimesofsayin’thistoyou，Aggie!I

thoughtifIcouldonlyseeyouagainandaskyourforgiveness，I’d-“

Hegroundhisteethtogetherinhisassaultuponhimself。“Ithrewmylifeawayan’killedyou-that’swhatIdid!“

Heroseandragedupanddowntheroomtillhehadmasteredhimself。

“WhatdidyouthinkImeantthatdayofthethrashing？“hesaid，turningsuddenly。Hespokeofitasifitwerebutamonthortwopast。

Sheliftedherheadandlookedathiminaslowway。Sheseemedtoberemembering。Thetearslayonherhollowcheeks。

“Ithoughtyouwasashamedofme。Ididn’tknow-why-“

Heutteredasnarlofsell-disgust。

“Youcouldn’tknow。NobodycouldtellwhatImeant。Butwhydidn’tyouwrite？Iwasreadytocomeback。Ionlywantedanexcuse-onlyaline。“

“HowcouldI，Will-afteryourletter？“

Hegroanedandturnedaway。

“AndWill，I-Igotmadtoo。Icouldn’twrite。“

“Oh，thatletter-Icanseeeverylineofit!F’rGod’ssake，don’tthinkofitagain!ButIdidn’tthink，evenwhenIwrotethatletter，thatI’dfindyouwhereyouare。Ididn’tthink，Ihopedanyhow，EdKinneywouldn’t-“

Shestoppedhimwithastartledlookinhergreateyes。“Don’ttalkabouthim-itain’tright。Imeanitdon’tdoanygood。WhatcouldI

do，afterFatherdied？MotherandI。Besides，Iwaitedthreeyearstohearfromyou，Will。“

Hegaveastrange，chokingcry。Itburstfromhisthroat-thatterriblething，aman’ssobofagony。Shewenton，curiouslycalmnow。

“Edwasgoodtome；andheofferedahome，anyway，forMother-“

“AndallthetimeIwaswaitingforsomelinetobreakdownmycussedpride，soIcouldwritetoyouandexplain。ButyoudidgowithEdtothefair，“heendedsuddenly，seekingamorselofjustificationforhimself。

“Yes。ButIwaitedan’waited；andIthoughtyouwasmadatme，andsowhentheycameI-no，Ididn’treallygowithEd。Therewasawagonloadofthem。“

“ButIstarted，“heexplained，“butthewheelcameoff。Ididn’tsendwordbecauseIthoughtyou’dfeelsureI’dcome。Ifyou’donlytrustedmealittlemore-No!itwasallmyfault。Iactedlikeacrazyfool。Ididn’tstoptoreasonaboutanything。“

Theysatinsilencealtertheseexplanations。Thesoundofthesnappingwingsofthegrasshopperscamethroughthe~windows，andalocusthighinapoplarsentdownhisringingwhir。

“Itcan’tbehelpednow，Will，“Agnessaidatlast，hervoicefullofthewoman’sresignation。“We’vegottobearit。“

Willstraightenedup。“Bearit？“Hepaused。“Yes，Is’poseso。Ifyouhadn’tmarriedEdKinney!Anybodybuthim。Howdidyoudoit？“

“Oh’Idon’tknow，“sheanswered，wearilybrushingherhairbackfromhereyes。“ItseemedbestwhenIdidit-anditcan’tbehelpednow。“Therewasinfinite，dulldespairandresignationinhervoice。

Willwentovertothewindow。HethoughthowbrightandhandsomeEdusedtobe，andhefeltafterallthatitwasnowonderthatshemarriedhim。Lifepushesusintosuchthings。Suddenlyheturned，somethingresoluteandimperiousinhiseyesandvoice。

“Itcanbehelped，Aggie，“hesaid。“Nowjustlistentome。We’vemadeanawfulmistake。We’velostsevenyearso’life，butthat’snoreasonwhyweshouldwastetherestofit。Nowholdon；don’tinterruptmejustyet。Icomebackthinkingjustasmuchofyouasever。Iain’tgoingtosayawordmoreaboutEd；letthepaststaypast。I’mgoingtotalkaboutthefuture。“

Shelookedathiminadazeofwonderashewenton。“NowI’vegotsomemoney，I’vegotathirdinterestinaranch，andI’vegotastandingoffertogobackontheSanteFeeroadasconductor。

Thereisateamstandingoutthere。I’dliketomakeanothertriptoCedarville-withyou-“

“Oh，Will，don’t!“shecried；“forpity’ssakedon’ttalk-“

“Wait!“hesaidimperiously。“NowlookatitHereyouareinhell!

Cagedupwithtwooldcrowspickingthelifeoutofyou。They’llkillyou-Icanseeit；you’rebeingkilledbyinches。Youcan’tgoanywhere，youcan’thaveanything。Lifeisjusttortureforyou-“

Shegavealittlemoanofanguishanddespairandturnedherfacetoherchairback。Hershouldersshookwithweeping，butshelistened。Hewenttoherandstoodwithhishandonthechairback。

Hisvoicetrembledandbroke。“There’sjustonewaytogetoutofthis，Agnes。Comewithme。Hedon’tcareforyou；hiswholeideaofwomenisthattheyarecreatedforhispleasureandtokeephouse。Yourwholelifeisagony。Come!Don’tcry。There’sachanceforlifeyet。“

Shedidn’tspeak，buthersobswerelessviolent；hisvoicegrowingstrongerreassuredher。

“I’mgoingEast，maybetoEurope；andthewomanwhogoeswithmewillhavenothingtodobutgetstrongandwellagain。I’vemadeyousufferso，Ioughttospendtherestofmylifemakingyouhappy。Come!Mywifewillsitwithmeonthedeckofthesteamerandseethemoonrise，andwalkwithmebythesea，tillshegetsstrongandhappyagain-tillthedimplesgetbackintohercheeks。###第7章

neverwillresttillIseehereyeslaughagain。

Sheroseflushed，wide-eyed，breathinghardwiththeemotionhisvibrantvoicecalledup，butshecouldnotspeak。Heputhishandgentlyuponhershoulder，andshesankdownagain。Andhewentonwithhi~sappeal。Therewassomethinghypnotic，dominatinginhisvoiceandeyes。

Onhisparttherewasnopassionofanignoblesort，onlyapassionofpityandremorse，andasweet，tender，reminiscentlove。Hedidnotlovethewomanbeforehimsomuchasthegirlwhoseghostshewas-thewomanwhosepromiseshewas。Heheldhimselfresponsibleforitall，andhethrobbedwithdesiretorepairtheravagehehadindirectlycaused。Therewasnothingequivocalinhisposition-nothingtodisown。Howothersmightlookatithedidnotconsideranddidnotcare。Hisimpetuoussoulwascarriedtoapointwherenothingcameintomarordivert。

“Andthenafteryou’rewell，afterourtrip，we’llcomebacktoHouston，andI’llbuildmywifeahousethat’Ilmakehereyesshine。

Mycattleandmysalarywillgiveusagoodliving，andshecanhaveapianoandbooks，andgotothetheaterandconcerts。

Come，whatdoyouthinkofthat？“

ThensheheardhiswordsbeneathhisvoiceSomehow，andtheyproducedpicturesthatdazzledher。Luminousshadowsmovedbeforehereyes，driftingacrossthegraybackgroundofherpoor，starved，work-wearylife。

Ashisvoiceceasedtherosycloudsfaded，andsherealizedagainthefaded，mustylittleroom，thecalico~coveredfurniture，andlookingdownatherowncheapandill-fittingdress，shesawheruglyhandslyingthere。Thenshecriedoutwithagushoftears：

“Oh，Will，I’msooldandhomelynow，Iain’tfittogowithyounow!Oh，whycouldn’twehavemarriedthen？“

Shewasseeingherselfasshewasthen，andsowashe；butitdeepenedhisresolution。Howbeautifulsheusedtobe!Heseemedtoseeherthereasifshestoodinperpetualsunlight，withaw~armsheeninherhairanddimplesinhercheeks。

Shesawherthinredwrists，hergauntandknottedhands。Therewasapitifuldroopinthethinpalelips，andthetearsfellslowlyfromherdroopinglashes。Hewenton：

“Well，it’snousetocryoverwhatwas。Wemustthinkofwhatwe’regoingtodo。Don’tworryaboutyourlooks；you’llbetheprettiestwomaninthecountrywhenwegetback。Don’twait，Aggie；makeupyourmind。“

Shehesitated，andwaslost。

“Whatwillpeoplesay？“

“Idon’tcarewhattheysay，“heflamedout。“They’dsay，stayhereandbekilledbyinches。Isayyou’vehadyourshareofsuffering。

They’dsay-theliberalones-stayandgetadivorce；buthowdoweknowwecangetoneafteryou’vebeendraggedthroughthemudofatrial？Wecangetonejustaswellinsomeotherstate。Whyshouldyoubewornoutatthirty？Whatrightorjusticeisthereinmakingyoubearallyourlifetheconsequencesofour-myschoolboyfolly？“

Ashewenton，hisargumentrosetothelevelofBrowning’sphilosophy。

“Wecanmakethisexperiencecountforusyet。Butwemustn’tletamistakeruinus-itshouldteachus。Whatrighthasanyonetokeepyouinahole？Goddon’texpectatoadtostayinastumpandstarveifitcangetout。Hedon’taskthesnakestosufferasyoudo。“

Shehadlostthethreadsofrightandwrongoutofherhands。Shewaslostinamaze。Shewasnotmovedbypassion。Fleshhadceasedtostirher；buttherewasvastpowerinthenewandthrillingwordsherdelivererspoke。Heseemedtoopenadoorforher，andthroughitturretsshoneandgreatshipscrossedondimblueseas。

“Youcan’tlivehere，Aggie。You’lldieinlessthanfiveyears。Itwouldkillmetoseeyoudiehere。Come!It’ssuicide。“

Shedidnotmove，savetheconvulsivemotionofherbreathandthenervousactionofherfingers。Shestareddownataspotinthecarpet；shecouldn’tfacehim。

Hegrewinsistent，asternernotecreepingintohisvoice。

“IfIleavethistime，ofcourseyouknowInevercomeback。“

Herhoarsebreathing，growingquickereachmoment，washeronlyreply。

“I’mdone，“hesaidwithanoteofangrydisappointment。Hedidnotgiveherup，however。“I’vetoldyouwhatI’ddoforyou。Nowifyouthink-“

“Oh，givemetimetothink，Will!“shecriedout，liftingherface。

Heshookhishead。“No。Youmightaswelldecidenow。Itwon’tbeanyeasiertomorrow。Come，oneminutemoreandIgoouto’thatdoor-unless-“Hecrossedtheroomslowly，doubtfulhimselfofhisdesperatelastmeasure。“Myhandisontheknob。ShallIopenit？“

Shestoppedbreathing；herfingersclosedconvulsivelyonthechair。Asheopenedthedoorshesprangup。

“Don’tgo，Will!Don’tgo，pleasedon’t!Ineedyouhere-I-“

“Thatain’tthequestion。Areyougoingwithme，Agnes？“

“Yes，yes!Itriedtospeakbefore。Itrustyou，Will；you’r-“

Heflungthedooropenwide。“Seethesunlightoutthereshiningonthatfieldo’wheat？That’swhereI’lltakeyou-outintothesunshine。YoushallseeitshiningontheBayofNaples。Come，getonyourhat；don’ttakeanythingmore’nyouactuallyneed。Leavethepastbehindyou。“

Thewomanturnedwildlyanddartedintothelittlebedroom。Themanlistened。Hewhistledinsurprisealmostcomical。Hehadforgottenthebaby。Hecouldhearthemothertalking，cooing。

“Mommie’s’ittlepet。Shewasn’tgoin’toleaveher’ittleman-no，shewasn’t!There，there，don’t’ecry。Mommieain’tgoin’awayandleavehim-wickedMommieain’t-’ittletreasure!“

Shewasconfusedagain；andwhenshereappearedatthedoor，withthechildinherarms，therewasawanderinglookonherfacepititultosee。Shetriedtospeak，triedtosay，’’Pleasego，Will，“

Hedesignedlyfailedtounderstandherwhisper。Hesteppedforward。“Thebaby!Sureenough。Why，certainly!tothemotherbelongsthechild。Blueeyes，thankheaven!“

Heputhisarmaboutthemboth。Sheobeyedsilently。Therewassomethingirresistibleinhisfrank，cleareyes，hissunnysmile，hisstrongbrownhand。Heslammedthedoorbehindthem。

“Thatclosesthedooronyoursufferings，“hesaid’smilingdownather。“Goodbyetoitall。“

Thebabylaughedandstretchedoutitshandstowardthelight。

“Boo，boo!“hecried。

“What’shetalkingabout？“

Shesmiledinperfecttrustandfearlessness，seeingherchild’sfacebesidehisown。“Hesaysit’sbeautiful。“

“Oh，hedoes？Ican’tfollowhisFrenchaccent。“

Shesmiledagain，inspiteofherself。Willshudderedwithathrilloffear，shewassoweakandworn。Butthesunshoneonthedazzling，rustlingwheat，thefathomlessskyblue，asasea，bentabovethem-andtheworldlaybeforethem。

“Keepthemain-travelledroadupthecoulee-it’sthesecondhouseaftercrossin’thecrick。“

THEridefromMilwaukeetotheMississippiisafinerideatanytime，superbinsummer。ToleanbackinarecliningchairandwhirlawayinabreezyJulyday，pastlakes，grovesofoak，pastfieldsofbarleybeingreaped，pasthayfields，wheretheheavygrassistopplingbeforetheswiftsickle，isapanoramaofdelight，aroadfullofdelicioussurprises，wheredownasuddenvistalakesopen，oradistantwoodedhillloomsdarklyblue，orswiftstreams，foamingdeepdownthesolidrock，sendwhiffsofcoolbreezesinatthewindow。

Ithasmajesty，breadth。Thefarminghasnothingapparentlypettyaboutit。Allseemsvigorous，youthful，andprosperous。Mr。

HowardMcLaneinhischairlethisnewspaperfallonhislapandgazedoutuponitwithdreamingeyes。Ithadacertainmysteriousglamourtohim；thelakeswerecoolerandbrightertohiseye，thegreensfresher，andthegrainmoregoldenthantoanyoneelse，forhewascomingbacktoitallafteranabsenceoftenyears。Itwas，besides，hisWest。HestilltookprideinbeingaWesternman。

HismindalldayflewaheadofthetraintothelittletownfarontowardtheMississippi，wherehehadspenthisboyhoodandyouth。

AsthetrainpassedtheWisconsinRiver，withitscuriouslycarvedcliffs，itscold，dark，swift-swirlingwatereatingslowlyundercedar-clothedbanks，Howardbegantofeelcuriouslittlemovementsoftheheart，likealoverashenearshissweetheart。

Thehillschangedincharacter，growingmoreintimatelyrecognizable。TheyrosehigherasthetrainlefttheridgeandpasseddownintotheBlackRivervalley，andspecificallyintotheLaCrossevalley。Theyceasedtohaveanyhintofupheavalsofrock，andbecamesimplypartsoftheancientlevelleftstandingafterthewaterhadpracticallygivenupitspostglacial，scoopingaction。

Itwasaboutsixo’clockashecaughtsightofthedearbrokenlineofhillsonwhichhisbabyeyeshadlookedthirty-fiveyearsago。A

fewminuteslaterandthetraindrewupatthegrimylittlestationsetinatthehillside，and，givinghimjusttimetoleapoff，plungedonagaintowardtheWest。Howardfeltaridiculousweaknessinhislegsashesteppedoutuponthebroilinghotsplinteryplanksofthestationandfacedthefewidlersloungingabout。HesimplystoodandgazedwiththesameintensityandabsorptiononeoftheidlersmightshowstandingbeforetheBrooklynBridge。

Thetowncaughtandheldhiseyesfirst。Howpooranddullandsleepyandsqualiditseemed!Theonemainstreetendedatthehillsideathisleftandstretchedawaytothenorth，betweentworowsoftheusualvillagestores，unrelievedbyatreeoratouchofbeauty。Anunpavedstreet，drab-colored，miserable，rottingwoodenbuildings，withtheinevitablebattlements-thesame，onlyworse，wasthetown。

Thesame，onlymorebeautifulstill，wasthemajesticamphitheaterofgreenwoodedhillsthatcircledthehorizon，andtowardwhichheliftedhiseyes。Hethrilledatthesight。

“Glorious!“hecriedinvoluntarily。

AccustomedtotheWhiteMountains，totheAllghenies，hehadwonderedifthesehillswouldretaintheirold-timecharm。Theydid。Hetookoffhishattothemashestoodthere。Richlywooded，withgentlyslopinggreensides，risingtomassivesquareorroundedtopswithdimvistas，theygloweddownuponthesqualidtown，gracious，loftyintheirgreeting，immortalintheirvividanddelicatebeauty。

Hewasagoodlyfigureofamanashestoodtherebesidehisvalise。Portly，erect，handsomelydressed，andwithsomethingunusuallywinninginhisbrownmustacheandblueeyes，somethingscholarlysuggestedbythepinch-noseglasses，somethingstronginthereposeofthehead。Hesmiledashesawhowunchangedwasthegroupingoftheoldloafersonthesaltbarrelsandnailkegs。Herecognizedmostofthem-alittledirtier，alittlemorebent，andalittlegrayer。

Theysatinthesameattitudes，spattobaccowiththesamecalmdelight，andjokedeachother，breakingintoshortandsuddenfitsoflaughter，andpoundedeachotherontheback，justaswhenhewasastudentattheLaCrosseSeminaryandgoingtoandfrodailyonthetrain。

Theyruminatedonhimashepassed，speculatinginaperfectlyaudiblewayuponhisbusiness。

“Lookslikeadrummer。“

“No，heain’tnodrummer。SeethemBostonglasses？“

“That’sso。Guesshe’sateacher。“

“Lookslikeamoneyedcuss。“

“Bos’n，Iguess。“