Henriettapleadedasmovinglyasshecouldforanimmediatereturntotheirdomesticstate,butheputheroffwithendearingspeeches,promisednothingbuteternalaffection,andsentherbacktoLondonbythetwelveo'clockexpress。Thenhiscountenancechanged;hewalkedbacktoLyvern,andthencetothechalet,likeamanpursuedbydisgustandremorse。Laterintheafternoon,toraisehisspirits,hetookhisskatesandwenttoWickens'spond,where,itbeingSaturday,hefoundtheicecrowdedwiththeAltonstudentsandtheirhalf—holidayvisitors。
Fairholme,describingcircleswithhishabitualairofcompressedhardihood,stoppedandstaredwithindignantsurpriseasSmilashlurchedpasthim。
"Isthatmanherebyyourpermission？"hesaidtoFarmerWickens,whowaswalkingaboutasifsuperintendingaharvest。
"Heisherebecausehelikes,Itakeit,"saidWickensstubbornly。"Heisaneighborofmineandafriendofmine。Isthereanyobjectionstomyhavingafriendonmyownpond,seein'
thatthereisnighontwoorthreetonofotherpeople'sfriendsonit108withoutasmuchasawith—your—leaveoraby—your—
leave。"
"Oh,no,"saidFairholme,somewhatdashed。"Ifyouaresatisfiedtherecanbenoobjection。"
"I'mgladonit。Ithoughttheremoutbe。"
"Letmetellyou,"saidFairholme,nettled,"thatyourlandlordwouldnotbepleasedtoseehimhere。HesentoneofSirJohn'sbestshepherdsoutofthecountry,afterfillinghisheadwithideasabovehisstation。IheardSirJohnspeakverywarmlyaboutitlastSunday。"
"Mayhapyoudid,MusterFairholme。Ihavealeaseofthisland——andgravelly,poorstuffitis——andIamnowaysbeholdentoSirJohn'slikingsanddislikings。AverygoodthingtooforSirJohnthatIhavealease,forthereain'tamaninthecountry'udtak'apresento'thefarmifitwasfreeto—morrow。
Andwhat'sa'more,thoughthatyoungmandotalkfoolishthingsabouttherightsoffarmlaborersandsuch—likenonsense,ifSirJohnwastohearhimlayin'itdownconcernin'rentandimprovements,andthewaywetenantfarmersisputupon,p'rapshe'dspeakwarmerthanevernextSunday。"
AndWickens,withasmileexpressiveofhissenseofhavingretortedeffectivelyupontheparson,noddedandwalkedaway。
JustthenAgatha,skatinghandinhandwithJaneCarpenter,heardthesewordsinherear:"Ihavesomethingveryfunnytotellyou。
Don'tlookround。"
SherecognizedthevoiceofSmilashandobeyed。
"Iamnotquitesurethatyouwillenjoyitasitdeserves,"headded,anddartedoffagain,aftercastinganeloquentglanceatMissCarpenter。
Agathadisengagedherselffromhercompanion,madeacircuit,andpassednearSmilash,saying:"Whatisit？"
Smilashflittedawaylikeaswallow,tracedseveralcirclesaroundFairholme,andthenreturnedtoAgathaandproceededsidebysidewithher。
"IhavereadtheletteryouwrotetoHetty,"hesaid。
Agatha'sfacebegantoglow。Sheforgottomaintainherbalance,andalmostfell。
"Takecare。Andsoyouarenotfondofme——intheromanticsense？"
Noanswer。Agathadumbandafraidtolifthereyelids。
"Thatisfortunate,"hecontinued,"because——goodevening,MissWard;Ihavedonenothingbutadmireyourskatingforthelasthour——becausemenweredeceiversever;andIamnoexception,asyouwillpresentlyadmit。"
Agathamurmuredsomething,butitwasunintelligibleamidthedinofskating。
"Youthinknot？Well,perhapsyouareright;Ihavesaidnothingtoyouthatisnotinameasuretrue。Youhavealwayshadapeculiarcharmforme。ButIdidnotmeanyoutotellHetty。Canyouguesswhy？"
Agathashookherhead。
"Becausesheismywife。"
Agatha'sanklesbecamelimp。WithaneffortshekeptuprightuntilshereachedJane,towhomsheclungforsupport。
"Don't,"screamedJane。"You'llupsetme。"
"Imustsitdown,"saidAgatha。"Iamtired。Letmeleanonyouuntilwegettothechairs。"
"Bosh！Icanskateforanhourwithoutsittingdown,"saidJane。
However,shehelpedAgathatoachairandlefther。ThenSmilash,asifdesiringarestalso,satdownclosebyonthemarginofthepond。
"Well,"hesaid,withouttroublinghimselfastowhethertheirconversationattractedattentionornot,"whatdoyouthinkofmenow？"
"Whydidyounottellmebefore,Mr。Trefusis？"
"Thatisthecreamofthejoke,"hereplied,poisinghisheelsontheicesothathisskatesstoodverticallyatlegs'lengthfromhim,andlookingatthemwithacynicalair。"Ithoughtyouwereinlovewithme,andthatthetruthwouldbetoosevereablowtoyou。Ha！ha！And,forthesamereason,yougenerouslyforboretotellmethatyouwerenomoreinlovewithmethanwiththemaninthemoon。Eachplayedafarce,andpalmeditoffontheotherasatragedy。"
"Therearesomethingssounmanly,sounkind,andsocruel,"saidAgatha,"thatIcannotunderstandanygentlemansayingthemtoagirl。Pleasedonotspeaktomeagain。MissWard！Cometomeforamoment。I——Iamnotwell。"
Wardhurriedtoherside。Smilash,afterstaringatherforamomentinastonishment,andinsomeconcern,skimmedawayintothecrowd。WhenhereachedtheoppositebankhetookoffhisskatesandaskedJane,whostrayedintentionallyinhisdirection,totellMissWyliethathewasgone,andwouldskatenomorethere。Withoutaddingawordofexplanationheleftherandmadeforhisdwelling。Ashewentdownintothehollowwheretheroadpassedthroughtheplantationonthecollegesideofthechalethedescriedaboy,intheuniformofthepostoffice,slidingalongthefrozenditch。Apresentimentofeviltidingscameuponhimlikeadarkeningofthesky。Hequickenedhispace。
"Anythingforme？"hesaid。
Theboy,whoknewhim,fumbledinalettercaseandproducedabuffenvelope。Itcontainedatelegram。
FromJansenius,London。
TOJ。Smilash,ChamoounixVilla,Lyvern。
_________________________________________
Henriettadangerouslyillafterjourneywantstoseeyoudoctorssaymustcomeatonce_________________________________________
Therewasapause。Thenhefoldedthepapermethodicallyandputitinhispocket,asifquitedonewithit。
"Andso,"hesaid,"perhapsthetragedyistofollowthefarceafterall。"
Helookedattheboy,whoretreated,notlikinghisexpression。
"DidyouslideallthewayfromLyvern？"
"Onlytocomequicker,"saidthemessenger,faltering。"IcameasquickasIcould。"
"Youcarriednewsheavyenoughtobreakthethickesticeeverfrozen。Ihaveamindtothrowyouoverthetopofthattreeinsteadofgivingyouthishalf—crown。"
"Youletmealone,"whimperedtheboy,retreatinganotherpace。
"GetbacktoLyvernasfastasyoucanrunorslide,andtellMr。
Marshtosendmethefastesttraphehas,todrivemetotherailwaystation。Hereisyourhalf—crown。Offwithyou;andifI
donotfindthetrapreadywhenIwantit,woebetideyou。"
Theboycameforthemoneymistrustfully,andranoffwithitasfastashecould。Smilashwentintothechaletandneverreappeared。Instead,Trefusis,agentlemaninanulster,carryingarug,cameout,lockedthedoor,andhurriedalongtheroadtoLyvern,wherehewaspickedupbythetrap,andcarriedswiftlytotherailwaystation,justintimetocatchtheLondontrain。
"Eveningpaper,sir？"saidavoiceatthewindow,ashesettledhimselfinthecornerofafirst—classcarriage。
"No,thankyou。"
"Footwarmer,sir？"saidaporter,appearinginthenews—vender'splace。
"Ah,that'sagoodidea。Yes,letmehaveafootwarmer。"
Thefootwarmerwasbrought,andTrefusiscomposedhimselfcomfortablyforhisjourney。Itseemedveryshorttohim;hecouldhardlybelieve,whenthetrainarrivedinLondon,thathehadbeennearlythreehoursontheway。
TherewasasenseofChristmasaboutthetravellersandthepeoplewhowereattheterminustomeetthem。TheporterwhocametothecarriagedoorremindedTrefusisbyhismannerandvoicethattheseasonwasoneatwhichitbecomesagentlemantobefestiveandliberal。
"Wotluggage,sir？Hansomorfourweoll,sir？"
ForamomentTrefusisfeltavagabondimpulsetoresumethelanguageofSmilashandfabletothemanofhampersofturkeyandplum—puddinginthevan。Butherepressedit,gotintoahansom,andwasdriventohisfather—in—law'shouseinBelsizeAvenue,studyinginagloomilycriticalmoodtheanxietythatsurgeduponhimandmadehisheartbeatlikeaboy'sashedrewnearhisdestination。Thereweretwocarriagesatthedoorwhenhealighted。Thereticentexpressionofthecoachmensentatremorthroughhim。
Thedooropenedbeforeherang。"Ifyouplease,sir,"saidthemaidinalowvoice,"willyoustepintothelibrary;andthedoctorwillseeyouimmediately。"
OnthefirstlandingofthestaircasetwogentlemenwerespeakingtoMr。Jansenius,whohastilymovedoutofsight,notbeforeaglimpseofhisairofgrief174anddiscomfiturehadgivenTrefusisastrangetwinge,succeededbyasensationofhavingbeentwentyyearsawidower。Hesmiledunconcernedlyashefollowedthegirlintothelibrary,andaskedherhowshedid。
Shemurmuredsomereplyandhurriedaway,thinkingthatthepooryoungmanwouldalterhistonepresently。
Hewasjoinedatoncebyagraywhiskeredgentleman,scrupulouslydressedandmannered。Trefusisintroducedhimself,andthephysicianlookedathimwithsomeinterest。Thenhesaid:
"Youhavearrivedtoolate,Mr。Trefusis。Allisover,Iamsorrytosay。"
"Wasthelongrailwayjourneyshetookinthiscoldweatherthecauseofherdeath？"
Somebitterwordsthatthephysicianhadheardupstairsmadehimawarethatthiswasadelicatequestion。Buthesaidquietly:
"Theproximatecause,doubtless。Theproximatecause。"
"Shereceivedsomeunwelcomeandquiteunlooked—forintelligencebeforeshestarted。Hadthatanythingtodowithherdeath,doyouthink？"
"Itmayhaveproducedanunfavorableeffect,"saidthephysician,growingrestiveandtakinguphisgloves。"Thehabitofreferringsucheventstosuchcausesiscarriedtoofar,asarule。"
"Nodoubt。Iamcuriousbecausetheeventisnovelinmyexperience。Isupposeitisacommonplaceinyours。Pardonme。
175Thelossofaladysoyoungandsofavorablycircumstancedisnotacommonplaceeitherinmyexperienceorinmyopinion。"
Thephysicianhelduphisheadashespoke,inprotestagainstanyassumptionthathissympathieshadbeenbluntedbyhisprofession。
"Didshesuffer？"
"Forsomehours,yes。Wewereabletodoalittletoalleviateherpain——poorthing！"HealmostforgotTrefusisasheaddedtheapostrophe。
"Hoursofpain！Canyouconceiveanygoodpurposethatthosehoursmayhaveserved？"
Thephysicianshookhishead,leavingitdoubtfulwhetherhemeanttoreplyinthenegativeortodeploreconsiderationsofthatnature。Healsomadeamovementtodepart,beinguneasyinconversationwithTrefusis,whowould,hefeltsure,presentlyaskquestionsormakeremarkswithwhichhecouldhardlydealwithoutcommittinghimselfinsomedirection。Hisconsciencewasnotquiteatrest。Henrietta'spainhadnot,hethought,servedanygoodpurpose;buthedidnotwanttosayso,lestheshouldacquireareputationforimpietyandlosehispractice。Hebelievedthatthegeneralpractitionerwhoattendedthefamily,andhadcalledhiminwhenthecasegrewserious,hadtreatedHenriettaunskilfully,butprofessionaletiquetteboundhimsostronglythat,soonerthanbetrayhiscolleague'sinefficiency,hewouldhaveallowedhimtodecimateLondon。
"Onewordmore,"saidTrefusis。"Didsheknowthatshewasdying？"
"No。Iconsidereditbestthatsheshouldnotbeinformedofherdanger。Shepassedawaywithoutanyapprehension。"
"Thenonecanthinkofitwithequanimity。Shedreadeddeath,poorchild。Thewonderisthattherewasnotenoughfollyinthehouseholdtoprevailagainstyourgoodsense。"
Thephysicianbowedandtookhisleave,esteeminghimselfsomewhatfortunateinescapingwithoutbeingreproachedforhishumanityinhavingallowedHenriettatodieunawares。
Amomentlaterthegeneralpractitionerentered。Trefusis,havingaccompaniedtheconsultingphysiciantothedoor,detectedthefamilydoctorintheactofpullingalongfacejustoutsideit。
Restrainingadesiretoseizehimbythethroat,heseatedhimselfontheedgeofthetableandsaidcheerfully:
"Well,doctor,howhastheworldusedyousincewelastmet？"
Thedoctorwastakenaback,butthesolemndispositionofhisfeaturesdidnotrelaxashealmostintoned:"HasSirFrancistoldyouthesadnews,Mr。Trefusis？"
"Yes。Frightful,isn'tit？Lordblessme,we'rehereto—dayandgoneto—morrow。"
"True,verytrue！"
"SirFrancishasahighopinionofyou。"
Thedoctorlookedalittlefoolish。"Everythingwasdonethatcouldbedone,Mr。Trefusis;butMrs。Janseniuswasveryanxiousthatnostoneshouldbeleftunturned。ShewasgoodenoughtosaythathersolereasonforwishingmetocallinSirFranciswasthatyoushouldhavenocausetocomplain。"
"Indeed！"
"Anexcellentmother！Asadeventforher！Ah,yes,yes！Dearme！
Averysadevent！"
"Mostdisagreeable。Suchacolddaytoo。Pleasantertobeinheaventhanhereinsuchweather,possibly。"
"Ah！"saidthedoctor,asifmuchsoundcomfortlayinthat。"I
hopeso;Ihopeso;Idonotdoubtit。SirFrancisdidnotpermitustotellher,andI,ofcourse,deferredtohim。Perhapsitwasforthebest。"
"Youwouldhavetoldher,then,ifSirFrancishadnotobjected？"
"Well,thereare,yousee,considerationswhichwemustnotignoreinourprofession。Deathisaseriousthing,asIamsureIneednotremindyou,Mr。Trefusis。Wehavesometimeshigherdutiesthanindulgencetothenaturalfeelingsofourpatients。"
"Quiteso。Thepossibilityofeternalblissandtheprobabilityofeternaltormentareconsolationsnottobelightlywithheldfromadyinggirl,eh？However,what'spastcannotbemended。I
havemuchtobethankfulfor,afterall。Iamayoungman,andshallnotcutabadfigureasawidower。Andnowtellme,doctor,amInotinverybadreputeupstairs？"
"Mr。Trefusis！Sir！Icannotmeddleinfamilymatters。I
understandmydutiesandneveroverstepthem。"Thedoctor,shockedatlast,spokeasloftilyashecould。
"ThenIwillgoandseeMr。Jansenius,"saidTrefusis,gettingoffthetable。
"Stay,sir！Onemoment。Ihavenotfinished。Mrs。Janseniushasaskedmetoask——IwasabouttosaythatIamnotspeakingnowasthemedicaladviserofthisfamily;butalthoughanoldfriend——and——ahem！Mrs。Janseniushasaskedmetoask——torequestyoutoexcuseMr。Jansenius,asheisprostratedbygrief,andis,asIcan——asamedicalman——assureyou,unabletoseeanyone。
Shewillspeaktoyouherselfassoonasshefeelsabletodoso——atsometimethisevening。Meanwhile,ofcourse,anyordersyoumaygive——youmustbefatiguedbyyourjourney,andIalwaysrecommendpeoplenottofasttoolong;itproducesanacuteformofindigestion——anyordersyoumaywishtogivewill,ofcourse,beattendedtoatonce。"
"Ithink,"saidTrefusis,afteramoment'sreflection,"Iwillorderahansom。"
"Thereisnoill—feeling,"saidthedoctor,who,asaslowman,wasusuallyalarmedbypromptdecisions,evenwhentheyseemedwisetohim,asthisonedid。"IhopeyouhavenotgatheredfromanythingIhavesaid——"
"Notatall;youhavedisplayedtheutmosttact。ButIthinkI
hadbettergo。Janseniuscanbeardeathandmiserywithperfectfortitudewhenitisonalargescaleandhiddeninabackslum。
Butwhenitbreaksintohisownhouse,andattackshisproperty——hisdaughterwashispropertyuntilveryrecently——heisjustthemantolosehisheadandquarrelwithmeforkeepingmine。"
Thedoctorwasunabletocopewiththisspeech,whichconveyedvaguelymonstrousideastohim。SeeingTrefusisabouttoleave,hesaidinalowvoice:"Willyougoupstairs？"
"Upstairs！Why？"
"I——Ithoughtyoumightwishtosee——"Hedidnotfinishthesentence,butTrefusisflinched;theblankhadexpressedwhatwasmeant。
"ToseesomethingthatwasHenrietta,andthatisathingwemustcastoutandhide,withalittlesuperstitiousmummingtosaveappearances。Whydidyouremindmeofit？"
"But,sir,whateveryourviewsmaybe,willyounot,asamatterofform,indeferencetothefeelingsofthefamily——"
"Letthemsparetheirfeelingsfortheliving,onwhosebehalfI
haveoftenappealedtotheminvain,"criedTrefusis,losingpatience。"Damntheirfeelings！"And,turningtothedoor,hefounditopen,andMrs。Janseniustherelistening。
Trefusiswasconfounded。Heknewwhattheeffectofhisspeechmustbe,andfeltthatitwouldbefollytoattemptexcuseorexplanation。Heputhishandsintohispockets,leanedagainstthetable,andlookedather,mutelywonderingwhatwouldfollowonherpart。
Thedoctorbrokethesilencebysayingtremulously,"IhavecommunicatedthemelancholyintelligencetoMr。Trefusis。"
"Ihopeyoutoldhimalso,"shesaidsternly,"that,howeverdeficientwemaybeinfeeling,wedideverythingthatlayinourpowerforourchild。"
"Iamquitesatisfied,"saidTrefusis。
"Nodoubtyouare——withtheresult,"saidMrs。Jansenius,hardly。
"Iwishtoknowwhetheryouhaveanythingtocomplainof。"
"Nothing。"
"Pleasedonotimplythatanythinghashappenedthroughourneglect。"
"WhathaveItocomplainof？Shehadawarmroomandaluxuriousbedtodiein,withthebestmedicaladviceintheworld。Plentyofpeoplearestarvingandfreezingto—daythatwemayhavethemeanstodiefashionably;askTHEMiftheyhaveanycauseforcomplaint。DoyouthinkIwillwrangleoverherbodyabouttheamountofmoneyspentonherillness？Whatmeasureisthatofthecauseshehadforcomplaint？Inevergrudgedmoneytoher——howcouldI,seeingthatmorethanIcanwasteisgiventomefornothing？Orhowcouldyou？Yetshehadgreatreasontocomplainofme。Youwillallowthattobeso。"
"Itisperfectlytrue。"
"Well,whenIaminthehumorforit,Iwillreproachmyselfandnotyou。"Hepaused,andthenturnedforciblyonher,saying,"Whydoyouselectthistime,ofallothers,tospeaksobitterlytome？"
"IamnotawarethatIhavesaidanythingtocallforsucharemark。DidYOU,"（appealingtothedoctor）"hearmesayanything？"
"Mr。Trefusisdoesnotmeantosaythatyoudid,Iamsure。Oh,no。Mr。Trefusis'sfeelingsarenaturally——areharrowed。Thatisall。"
"Myfeelings！"criedTrefusisimpatiently。"Doyousupposemyfeelingsareatrumperysetofsocialobservances,tobeharrowedtoorderandexhibitedatfunerals？Shehasgoneaswethreeshallgosoonenough。Ifwewereimmortal,wemightreasonablypitythedead。Aswearenot,wehadbettersaveourenergiestominimizetheharmwearelikelytodobeforewefollowher。"
Thedoctorwasdeeplyoffendedbythisspeech,forthestatementthatheshouldonedaydieseemedtohimareflectionuponhisprofessionalmasteryoverdeath。Mrs。JanseniuswasgladtoseeTrefusisconfirmingherbadopinionandreportofhimbyhisconductandlanguageinthedoctor'spresence。Therewasabriefpause,andthenTrefusis,toofaroutofsympathywiththemtobeabletoleadtheconversationintoakindervein,lefttheroom。
Intheactofputtingonhisovercoatinthehall,hehesitated,andhungitupagainirresolutely。Suddenlyheranupstairs。Atthesoundofhisstepsawomancamefromoneoftheroomsandlookedinquiringlyathim。
"Isithere？"hesaid。
"Yes,sir,"shewhispered。
Apainfulsenseofconstrictioncameinhischest,andheturnedpaleandstoppedwithhishandonthelock。
"Don'tbeafraid,sir,"saidthewoman,withanencouragingsmile。"Shelooksbeautiful。"
Helookedatherwithastrangegrin,asifshehadutteredaghastlybutirresistiblejoke。Thenhewentin,and,whenhereachedthebed,wishedhehadstayedwithout。Hewasnotoneofthosewho,seeinglittleinthefacesofthelivingmisslittleinthefacesofthedead。Thearrangementoftheblackhaironthepillow,thesoftdrapery,andtheflowersplacedtherebythenursetocompletetheartisticeffecttowhichshehadsoconfidentlyreferred,werelostonhim;hesawonlyalifelessmaskthathadbeenhiswife'sface,andatsightofithiskneesfailed,andhehadtoleanforsupportontherailatthefootofthebed。
Whenhelookedagainthefaceseemedtohavechanged。Itwasnolongerawaxlikemask,butHenrietta,girlishandpatheticallyatrest。Deathseemedtohavecancelledhermarriageandwomanhood;
hehadneverseenherlooksoyoung。Aminutepassed,andthenateardroppedonthecoverlet。Hestarted;shookanothertearonhishand,andstaredatitincredulously。
"ThisisafraudofwhichIhaveneverevendreamed,"hesaid。
"Tearsandnosorrow！HereamIcrying！growingmaudlin！whilstI
amgladthatsheisgoneandIfree。Ihavethemechanismofgriefinmesomewhere;itbeginstoturnatsightofherthoughI
havenosorrow;justassheusedtostartthemechanismofpassionwhenIhadnolove。Andthatmadenodifferencetoher;
whilstthewheelswentroundshewassatisfied。Ihopethemechanismofgriefwillflagandstopinitsspinningassoonastheotherusedto。Itisstoppingalready,Ithink。Whatamockery！WhilstitlastsIsupposeIamreallysorry。Andyet,wouldIrestorehertolifeifIcould？Perhapsso;IamthereforethankfulthatIcannot。"Hefoldedhisarmsontherailandgravelyaddressedthedeadfigure,whichstillaffectedhimsostronglythathehadtoexerthiswilltofaceitwithcomposure。"Ifyoureallylovedme,itiswellforyouthatyouaredead——idiotthatIwastobelievethatthepassionyoucouldinspire,youpoorchild,wouldlast。Wearebothlucky;Ihaveescapedfromyou,andyouhaveescapedfromyourself。"
Presentlyhebreathedmorefreelyandlookedroundtheroomtohelphimselfintoamatter—of—factveinbyalittleunembarrassedaction,andthecommonplaceaspectofthebedroomfurniture。Hewenttothepillow,andbentoverit,examiningthefaceclosely。
"Poorchild！"hesaidagain,tenderly。Then,withsuddenreaction,apostrophizinghimselfinsteadofhiswife,"Poorass！
Pooridiot！Poorjackanapes！Hereisthebodyofawomanwhowasnearlyasoldasmyself,andperhapswiser,andhereamI
moralizingoveritasifIwereGodAlmightyandsheababy！Themoreyouremindamanofwhatheis,themoreconceitedhebecomes。Monstrous！Ishallfeelimmortalpresently。"
Hetouchedthecheekwithafaintattemptatroughness,tofeelhowcolditwas。Thenhetouchedhisown,andremarked:
"ThisiswhatIamhasteningtowardattheexpressspeedofsixtyminutesanhour！"Hestoodlookingdownatthefaceandtastingthissombrereflectionforalongtime。Whenitpalledonhim,herousedhimself,andexclaimedmorecheerfully:
"Afterall,sheisnotdead。Everywordsheuttered——everyideasheformedandexpressed,wasaninexhaustibleandindestructibleimpulse。"Hepaused,consideredalittlefurther,andrelapsedintogloom,adding,"andthedozenotherswhosenameswillbewithhersinthe'Times'to—morrow？Theirwordstooarestillintheair,toenduretheretoalleternity。Hm！Howtheairmustbecrammedwithnonsense！Twosoundssometimesproduceasilence;
perhapsideasneutralizeoneanotherinsomeanalogousway。No,mydear;youaredeadandgoneanddonewith,andIshallbedeadandgoneanddonewithtoosoontoleavemeleisuretofoolmyselfwithhopesofimmortality。PoorHetty！Well,good—by,mydarling。Letuspretendforamomentthatyoucanhearthat;I
knowitwillpleaseyou。"
Allthiswasinahalf—articulatewhisper。Whenheceasedhestillbentoverthebody,gazingintentlyatit。Evenwhenhehadexhaustedthesubject,andturnedtogo,hechangedhismind,andlookedagainforawhile。Thenhestooderect,apparentlynervedandrefreshed,andlefttheroomwithafirmstep。Thewomanwaswaitingoutside。Seeingthathewaslessdistressedthanwhenheentered,shesaid:
"Ihopeyouaresatisfied,sir！"
"Delighted！Charmed！Thearrangementsareextremelyprettyandtasteful。Mostconsolatory。"Andhegaveherhalfasovereign。
"Ithankyou,sir,"shesaid,droppingacurtsey。"Thepooryounglady！Shewasanxioustoseeyou,sir。Tohearhersaythatyouweretheonlyonethatcaredforher！Andsofretfulwithhermother,too。'LethimbetoldthatIamdangerouslyill,'saysshe,'andhe'llcome。'Shedidn'tknowhowtrueherwordwas,poorthing;andshewentoffwithoutbeingawareofit。"
"Flatteringherselfandflatteringme。Happygirl！"
"Blessyou,Iknowwhatherfeelingswere,sir;Ihavehadexperience。"Heresheapproachedhimconfidentially,andwhispered:"Thefamilywereagain'you,sir,andsheknewit。Butshewouldn'tlistentothem。Shethoughtofnothing,whenshewaseasyenoughtothinkatall,butofyourcoming。And——hush！
Here'stheoldgentleman。"
TrefusislookedroundandsawMr。Jansenius,whosehandsomefacewaswhiteandseamedwithgriefandannoyance。Hedrewbackfromtheprofferedhandofhisson—in—law,likeanoverworriedchildfromanill—timedattempttopetit。Trefusispitiedhim。Thenursecoughedandretired。
"HaveyoubeenspeakingtoMrs。Jansenius？"saidTrefusis。
"Yes,"saidJanseniusoffensively。
"SohaveI,unfortunately。Praymakemyapologiestoher。Iwasrude。Thecircumstancesupsetme。"
"Youarenotupset,sir,"saidJanseniusloudly。"Youdonotcareadamn。"
Trefusisrecoiled。