AsBibbscameoutoftheNewHouse,aSundaytriowasincourseofpassageuponthesidewalk:anampleyoungwoman,placidofface;ablack—clad,thinyoungman,whoseexpressionwasoneofhabitualanxiety,habitualwarinessandhabitualeagerness。Hepropelledaperambulatorcontainingthethird——andallthreewerenewlycleaned,Sundayfied,andmadefittodinewiththewife'srelatives。
　　"How'dyoulikeformetobeTHATyoungfella,mamma？"thehusbandwhispered。
　　"He'soneofthesons,andthereain'tbuttwoleftnow。"
　　ThewifestaredcuriouslyatBibbs。"Well,Idon'tknow,"shereturned。"Helookstomelikehehadhisowntroubles。"
　　"Iexpecthehas,likeanybodyelse,"saidtheyounghusband,"butIguesswecouldstandagooddealifwehadhismoney。"
　　"Well,maybe,ifyoukeeponthewayyoubeen,baby'llbeaswellfixedastheSheridans。Youcan'ttell。"SheglancedbackatBibbs,whohadturnednorth。"Hewalkskindofslowandstoopedover,like。"
　　"Somuchmoneyinhispocketsitmakeshimsag,Iguess,"saidtheyounghusband,withbitteradmiration。
　　Mary,happeningtoglancefromawindow,sawBibbscoming,andshestarted,claspingherhandstogetherinasuddenalarm。Shemethimatthedoor。
　　"Bibbs！"shecried。"Whatisthematter？IsawsomethingwasterriblywrongwhenI——Youlook——"Shepaused,andhecamein,notliftinghiseyestohers。
　　Alwayswhenhecrossedthatthresholdhehadcomewithhisheadupandhiswistfulgazeseekinghers。"Ah,poorboy！"shesaid,withagestureofunderstandingandpity。"Iknowwhatitis！"
　　Hefollowedherintotheroomwheretheyalwayssat,andsankintoachair。
　　"Youneedn'ttellme,"shesaid。"They'vemadeyougiveup。Yourfather'swon——you'regoingtodowhathewants。You'vegivenup。"
　　Stillwithoutlookingather,heinclinedhisheadinaffirmation。
　　Shegavealittlecryofcompassion,andcameandsatnearhim。"Bibbs,"shesaid。"Icanbegladofonething,thoughit'sselfish。Icanbegladyoucamestraighttome。It'smoretomethanevenifyou'dcomebecauseyouwerehappy。"Shedidnotspeakagainforalittlewhile;thenshesaid:
　　"Bibbs——dear——couldyoutellmeaboutit？Doyouwantto？"
　　Stillhedidnotlookup,butinavoice,shakenandhuskyheaskedheraquestionsogrotesquethatatfirstshethoughtshehadmisunderstoodhiswords。
　　"Mary,"hesaid,"couldyoumarryme？"
　　"Whatdidyousay,Bibbs？"sheasked,quietly。
　　Histoneandattitudedidnotchange。"Willyoumarryme？"
　　Bothofherhandsleapedtohercheeks——shegrewredandthenwhite。Sheroseslowlyandmovedbackwardfromhim,staringathim,atfirstincredulously,thenwithanintenseperplexitymoreandmoreluminousinherwideeyes;itwaslikeaspokenquestion。Theroomfilledwithstrangenessinthelongsilence——thetwoweresostrangetoeachother。Atlastshesaid:
　　"Whatmadeyousaythat？"
　　Hedidnotanswer。
　　"Bibbs,lookatme！"Hervoicewasloudandclear。"Whatmadeyousaythat？
　　Lookatme！"
　　Hecouldnotlookather,andhecouldnotspeak。
　　"Whatwasitthatmadeyou？"shesaid。"Iwantyoutotellme。"
　　Shewentclosertohim,hereyeseverbrighterandwiderwiththatintensityofwonder。"You'vegivenup——toyourfather,"shesaid,slowly,"andthenyoucametoaskme——"Shebrokeoff。"Bibbs,doyouwantmetomarryyou？"
　　"Yes,"hesaid,justaudibly。
　　"No！"shecried。"Youdonot。Thenwhatmadeyouaskme？Whatisitthat'shappened？"
　　"Nothing。"
　　"Wait,"shesaid。"Letmethink。It'ssomethingthathappenedsinceourwalkthismorning——yes,sinceyouleftmeatnoon。Somethinghappenedthat——"Shestoppedabruptly,withatremulousmurmurofamazementanddawningcomprehension。SherememberedthatSibylhadgonetotheNewHouse。
　　Bibbsswallowedpainfullyandcontrivedtosay,"Ido——Idowantyouto——marryme,if——if——youcould。"
　　Shelookedathim,andslowlyshookherhead。"Bibbs,doyou——"Hervoicewasasunsteadyashis——littlemorethanawhisper。"DoyouthinkI'm——inlovewithyou？"
　　"No,"hesaid。
　　Somewhereinthestillairoftheroomtherewasawhisperedword;itdidnotseemtocomefromMary'spartedlips,buthewasawareofit。"Why？"
　　"I'vehadnothingbutdreams,"Bibbssaid,desolately,"buttheyweren'tlikethat。Sibylsaidnogirlcouldcareaboutme。"Hesmiledfaintly,thoughstillhedidnotlookatMary。"AndwhenIfirstcamehomeEdithtoldmeSibylwassoanxioustomarrythatshe'dhavemarriedME。ShemeantittoexpressSibyl'sextremeity,yousee。ButIhardlyneededeitherofthemtotellme。Ihadn'tthoughtofmyselfas——well,notasparticularlycaptivating！"
　　Oddlyenough,Mary'spallorchangedtoanangryflush。"Thosetwo！"sheexclaimed,sharply;andthen,withthoroughgoingcontempt:"Lamhorn！That'slikethem！"Sheturnedaway,wenttothebarelittleblackmantel,andstoodleaninguponit。Presentlysheasked:"WHENdidMrs。RoscoeSheridansaythat'nogirl'couldcareaboutyou？"
　　"To—day。"
　　Marydrewadeepbreath。"IthinkI'mbeginningtounderstand——alittle。"
　　Shebitherlip;therewasangeringoodtruthinhereyesandinhervoice。
　　"Answermeoncemore,"shesaid。"Bibbs,doyouknownowwhyIstoppedwearingmyfurs？"
　　"Yes。"
　　"Ithoughtso！Yoursister—in—lawtoldyou,didn'tshe？"
　　"I——Iheardhersay——"
　　"IthinkIknowwhathappened,now。"Mary'sbreathcamefastandhervoiceshook,butshespokerapidly。"You'heardhersay'morethanthat。You'heardhersay'thatwewerebitterlypoor,andonthataccountItriedfirsttomarryyourbrother——andthen——"Butnowshefaltered,anditwasonlyafteraconvulsiveeffortthatshewasabletogoon。"Andthen——thatItriedtomarry——you！You'heardhersay'that——andyoubelievethatIdon'tcareforyouandthat'nogirl'couldcareforyou——butyouthinkIaminsuchan'extremity,'asSibylwas——thatyou——Andso,notwantingme,andbelievingthatIcouldnotwantyou——exceptformy'extremity'——youtookyourfather'sofferandthencametoaskme——tomarryyou！WhathadIshownyouofmyselfthatcouldmakeyou——"
　　Suddenlyshesankdown,kneeling,withherfaceburiedinherarmsuponthelapofachair,tearsoverwhelmingher。
　　"Mary,Mary！"hecried,helplessly。"OhNO——you——youdon'tunderstand。"
　　"Ido,though！"shesobbed。"Ido！"
　　Hecameandstoodbesideher。"Youkillme！"hesaid。"Ican'tmakeitplain。Fromthefirstofyourlovelinesstome,Iwasallself。ItwasalwaysyouthatgaveandIthattook。Iwasthedependent——Ididnothingbutleanonyou。Wealwaystalkedofme,notofyou。Itwasallaboutmyidioticdistressesandtroubles。Ithoughtofyouasakindofwonderfulbeingthathadnomortalorhumansufferingexceptbysympathy。Youseemedtoleandown——outofarosycloud——tobekindtome。IneverdreamedIcoulddoanythingforYOU！Ineverdreamedyoucouldneedanythingtobedoneforyoubyanybody。Andto—dayIheardthat——thatyou——"
　　"YouheardthatIneededtomarry——someone——anybody——withmoney,"shesobbed。
　　"Andyouthoughtwewereso——sodesperate——youbelievedthatIhad——"
　　"No！"hesaid,quickly。"Ididn'tbelieveyou'ddoneonekindthingforme——forthat。No,no,no！Iknewyou'dNEVERthoughtofmeexceptgenerously——togive。IsaidIcouldn'tmakeitplain！"hecried,despairingly。
　　"Wait！"Sheliftedherheadandextendedherhandstohimunconsciously,likeachild。"Helpmeup,Bibbs。"Then,whenshewasoncemoreuponherfeet,shewipedhereyesandsmileduponhimruefullyandfaintly,butreassuringly,asiftotellhim,inthatway,thatsheknewhehadnotmeanttohurther。
　　Andthatsmileofhers,solamentable,butsofaithfullyfriendly,mistedhisowneyes,forhisshamefacednessloweredthemnomore。
　　"Letmetellyouwhatyouwanttotellme,"shesaid。"Youcan't,becauseyoucan'tputitintowords——theyaretoohumiliatingformeandyou'retoogentletosaythem。Tellme,though,isn'tittrue？Youdidn'tbelievethatI'dtriedtomakeyoufallinlovewithme——"
　　"Never！Neverforaninstant！"
　　"Youdidn'tbelieveI'dtriedtomakeyouwanttomarryme——"
　　"No,no,no！"
　　"Ibelieveit,Bibbs。YouthoughtthatIwasfondofyou;youknewIcaredforyou——butyoudidn'tthinkImightbe——inlovewithyou。ButyouthoughtthatImightmarryyouwithoutbeinginlovewithyoubecauseyoudidbelieveIhadtriedtomarryyourbrother,and——"
　　"Mary,Ionlyknew——forthefirsttime——thatyou——thatyouwere——"
　　"Weredesperatelypoor,"shesaid。"Youcan'tevensaythat！Bibbs,itwastrue:IdidtrytomakeJimwanttomarryme。Idid！"Andshesankdownintothechair,weepingbitterlyagain。Bibbswasagonized。
　　"Mary,"hegroaned,"Ididn'tknowyouCOULDcry！"
　　"Listen,"shesaid。"ListentillIgetthrough——Iwantyoutounderstand。Wewerepoor,andweweren'tfittedtobe。Weneverhadbeen,andwedidn'tknowwhattodo。We'dbeenalmostrich;therewasplenty,butmyfatherwantedtotakeadvantageofthegrowthofthetown;hewantedtobericher,butinstead——well,justaboutthetimeyourfatherfinishedbuildingnextdoorwefoundwehadn'tanything。Peoplesaythat,sometimes,meaningthattheyhaven'tanythingincomparisonwithotherpeopleoftheirownkind,butwereallyhadn'tanything——wehadn'tanythingatall,Bibbs！Andwecouldn'tDO
　　anything。YoumightwonderwhyIdidn't'trytobeastenographer'——andI
　　wondermyselfwhy,whenafamilylosesitsmoney,peoplealwayssaythedaughters'oughttogoandbestenographers。'It'scurious！——asifawaveofthehandmadeyouintoastenographer。No,I'dbeenraisedtobeeithermarriedcomfortablyorawell—to—dooldmaid,ifIchosenottomarry。Thepovertycameonslowly,Bibbs,butatlastitwasallthere——andIdidn'tknowhowtobeastenographer。Ididn'tknowhowtobeanythingexceptawell—to—dooldmaidorsomebody'swife——andIcouldn'tbeawell—to—dooldmaid。Then,Bibbs,IdidwhatI'dbeenraisedtoknowhowtodo。Iwentouttobefascinatingandbemarried。Ididitopenly,atleast,andwithakindofdecenthonesty。ItoldyourbrotherIhadmeanttofascinatehimandthatIwasnotinlovewithhim,butIlethimthinkthatperhapsImeanttomarryhim。IthinkIdidmeantomaryhim。Ihadnevercaredforanybody,andI
　　thoughtitmightbetherereallyWASN'Tanythingmorethanakindofexcitedfondness。Ican'tbesure,butIthinkthatthoughIdidmeantomarryhimI
　　nevershouldhavedoneit,becausethatsortofamarriageis——it'ssacrilege——somethingwouldhavestoppedme。Somethingdidstopme;itwasyoursister—in—law,Sibyl。Shemeantnoharm——butshewashorrible,andsheputwhatIwasdoingintosuchhorriblewords——andtheywerethetruth——oh！ISAW
　　myself！Shewasproposingamiserablecompactwithme——andIcouldn'tbreathetheairofthesameroomwithher,thoughI'dsocheapenedmyselfshehadarighttoassumethatIWOULD。ButIcouldn't！Ilefther,andIwrotetoyourbrother——justaquickscrawl。ItoldhimjustwhatI'ddone;Iaskedhispardon,andIsaidIwouldnotmarryhim。Ipostedtheletter,buthenevergotit。Thatwastheafternoonhewaskilled。That'sall,Bibbs。NowyouknowwhatIdid——andyouknow——ME！"Shepressedherclenchedhandstightlyagainsthereyes,leaningfarforward,herheadbowedbeforehim。
　　Bibbshadforgottenhimselflongago;hisheartbrokeforher。"Couldn'tyou——Isn'tthere——Won'tyou——"hestammered。"Mary,I'mgoingwithfather。
　　Isn'ttheresomewayyoucouldusethemoneywithout——without——"
　　Shegaveachokedlittlelaugh。
　　"Yougavemesomethingtolivefor,"hesaid。"Youkeptmealive,Ithink——andI'vehurtyoulikethis！"
　　"Notyou——ohno！"
　　"Youcouldforgiveme,Mary？"
　　"Oh,athousandtimes！"Herrighthandwentoutinafalteringgesture,andjusttouchedhisownforaninstant。"Butthere'snothingtoforgive。"
　　"Andyoucan't——youcan't——"
　　"Can'twhat,Bibbs？"
　　"Youcouldn't——"
　　"Marryyou？"shesaidforhim。
　　"Yes。"
　　"No,no,no！"Shesprangup,facinghim,and,withoutknowingwhatshedid,shesetherhandsuponhisbreast,pushinghimbackfromheralittle。"I
　　can't,Ican't！Don'tyouSEE？"
　　"Mary——"
　　"No,no！Andyoumustgonow,Bibbs;Ican'tbearanymore——please——"
　　"MARY——"
　　"Never,never,never！"shecried,inapassionoftears。"Youmustn'tcomeanymore。Ican'tseeyou,dear！Never,never,never！"
　　Somehow,inhelpless,stumblingobediencetoherbeseechinggesture,hegothimselftothedoorandoutofthehouse。
　　SibylandRoscoewereuponthepointofleavingwhenBibbsreturnedtotheNewHouse。HewentstraighttoSibylandspoketoherquietly,butsothattheothersmighthear。
　　"WhenyousaidthatifI'dstoptothink,I'drealizethatnoonewouldbeapttocareenoughaboutmetomarryme,youwereright,"hesaid。"Ithoughtperhapsyouweren't,andsoIaskedMissVertreestomarryme。Itprovedwhatyousaidofme,anddisprovedwhatyousaidofher。Sherefused。"
　　And,havingthusspoken,hequittedtheroomasstraightforwardlyashehadenteredit。
　　"He'sSOqueer！"Mrs。Sheridangasped。"Whoonearthwouldthoughtofhisdoin'THAT？"
　　"Itoldyou,"saidherhusband,grimly。
　　"Youdidn'ttellushe'dgooverthereand——"
　　"Itoldyoushewouldn'thavehim。Itoldyoushewouldn'thaveJIM,didn'tI？"
　　Sibylwasaltogethertakenaback。"Doyousuposeit'strue？DoyousupposesheWOULDN'T？"
　　"Hedidn'tlookexactlylikeayoungmanthathadjustgotthingsfixedupfinewithhisgirl,"saidSheridan。"Nottome,hedidn't！"
　　"Butwhywould——"
　　"Itoldyou,"heinterrupted,angrily,"sheain'tthatkindofagirl！Ifyougottohaveproof,well,I'lltellyouandgetitoverwith,thoughI'dprettynearjustassoonnothavetotalkawholelotaboutmydeadboy'sprivateaffairs。ShewrotetoJimshecouldn'ttakehim,anditwasagood,straightletter,too。ItcametoJim'soffice;heneversawit。Shewroteittheafternoonhewashurt。"
　　"IrememberIsawherputaletterinthemail—boxthatafternoon,"saidRoscoe。"Don'tyouremember,Sibyl？Itoldyouaboutit——Iwaswaitingforyouwhileyouwereintheresolongtalkingtohermother。Itwasjustbeforewesawthatsomethingwaswrongoverhere,andEdithcameandcalledme。"
　　Sibylshookherhead,butsheremembered。Andshewasnotcastdown,for,althoughsomeremnantsofperplexitywereleftinhereyes,theyweredimmedbyanincreasingglowoftriumph;andshedeparted——aftersomefurtherfragmentarydiscourse——visablyelated。Afterall,theguiltyhadnotbeenexalted;andsheperceivedvaguely,butnonethelesssurely,thatherinjuryhadbeencopiouslyavenged。Shebestowedacontentedglanceupontheoldhousewiththecupola,assheandRoscoecrossedthestreet。
　　Whentheyhadgone,Mrs。Sheridanindulgedinreverie,butafterawhileshesaid,uneasily,"Papa,youthinkitwouldbeanyusetotellBibbsaboutthatletter？"
　　"Idon'tknow,"heanswered,walkingmoodilytothewindow。"Ibeenthinkin'
　　aboutit。"Hecametoadecision。"IreckonIwill。"AndhewentuptoBibbs'sroom。
　　"Well,yougoin'backonwhatyousaid？"heinquired,brusquely,asheopenedthedoor。"Yougoin'totakeitbackandlaydownonmeagain？"
　　"No,"saidBibbs。
　　"Well,perhapsIdidn'thaveanycalltoaccuseyouofthat。Idon'tknowasyoueverdidgobackonanythingyousaid,exactly,thoughtheLordknowsyou'velaiddownonmeenough。Youcertainlyhave！"Sheridanwasbaffled。
　　Thiswasnotwhathewishedtosay,buthiswordswereunmanageable;hefoundhimselfunabletocontrolthem,andhisquerulousabusewentoninspiteofhim。"Ican'tsayIexpectmuchofyou——notfromthewayyoualwaysbeen,uptonow——unlessyouturnoveranewleaf,andIdon'tseeanyencouragementtothinkyou'regoin'todoTHAT！Ifyougodownthereandshowasparko'realGIT—up,Ireckonthewholeoffice'llfallinafaint。Butifyou'reevergoin'toshowany,youbetterbeginrightatthebeginningandbegintoshowitto—morrow。"
　　"Yes——I'lltry。"
　　"Youbetter,ifit'sinyou！"Sheridanwassheerlynonplussed。Headalwaysbeenabletosaywhateverhewishedtosay,buthistongueseemedbewitched。
　　HehadcometotellBibbsaboutMary'sletter,andtohisownangryastonishmenthefounditimpossibletodoanythingexcepttoscoldlikeadrudge—driver。"Youbettercomedowntherewithyourmindmadeuptohustleharderthanthehardestworkin'—manthat'sunderyou,oryou'llnotgetonverygoodwithme,Itellyou！Thewaytogetahead——andyoubettersetitdowninyourbooks——thewaytogetaheadistodotentimestheworkofthehardestworkerthatworksFORyou。Butyoudon'tknowwhatworkis,yet。Allyou'veeverdonewasjuststandaroundandfeedamachineachildcouldhandle,andthencomehomeandtakeabathandgocallin'。Itellyouyou'reupagainstamightydifferentpropositionnow,andifyou'reworthyoursalt——andyounevershowedanysignsofityet——notanysignsthatstuckoutenoughtobangsomebodyontheheadandmake'emsitupandtakenotice——well,Iwanttosay,righthereandnow——andyoubetterlisten,becauseIwanttosayjustwhatIDOsay。Isay——"
　　Hemeanderedtoafullstop。Hismouthhungopen,andhismindwasahopelessblank。
　　Bibbslookeduppatiently——anold,oldlook。"Yes,father;I'mlistening。"
　　"That'sall,"saidSheridan,frowningheavily。"That'sallIcametosay,andyoubettersee'tyourememberit！"
　　Heshookhisheadwarningly,andwentout,closingthedoorbehindhimwithacrash。However,nosoundoffootstepsindicatedhisdeparture。Hestoppedjustoutsidethedoor,andstoodthereaminuteormore。Thenabruptlyheturnedtheknobandexhibitedtohissonaforeheadliberallycoveredwithperspiration。
　　"Lookhere,"hesaid,crossly。"ThatgirloveryonderwroteJimaletter——"
　　"Iknow,"saidBibbs。"Shetoldme。"
　　"Well,Ithoughtyouneedn'tfeelsomuchupsetaboutit——"Thedoorclosedonhisvoiceashewithdrew,buttheconclusionofthesentencewasneverthelessaudible——"ifyouknewshewouldn'thaveJim,either。"
　　Andhestampedhiswaydown—stairstotellhiswifetoquitherfrettin'andnotbotherhimwithanymorefool'serrands。ShewasabouttoinquirewhatBibbs"said,"butafterasecondthoughtshedecidednottospeakatall。Shemerelymurmuredawordlessassent,andverbalcommunicationwasgivenoverbetweenthemfortherestofthatafternoon。
　　BibbsandhisfatherweregonewhenMrs。Sheridanwoke,thenextmorning,andshehadadrearyday。ShemissedEdithwoefully,andsheworriedaboutwhatmightbetakingplaceintheSheridanBuilding。ShefeltthateverythingdependedonhowBibbs"tookhold,"anduponherhusband'sreturnintheeveningsheseizeduponthefirstopportunitytoaskhimhowthingshadgone。
　　Hewasnon—committal。Whatcouldanybodytellbythefirstday？He'dseenplentygoatthingswellenoughrightatthestartandthenblowup。Prettynearanybodycouldshowupfairthefirstdayorso。Therewasabigjobahead。Thismaterial,suchasitwas——Bibbs,infact——hadtobebrokenintohandlingtheworkRoscoehaddone;andthen,atleastasanoverseer,hemusttakeJim'spositionintheRealtyCompanyaswell。Hetoldhertoaskhimagaininamonth。
　　ButduringthecourseofdinnershegatheredfromsomedisjointedremarksofhisthatheandBibbshadlunchedtogetheratthesmallrestaurantwhereithadbeenSheridan'scustomtolunchwithJim,andshetookthistobeanencouragingsign。Bibbswenttohisroomassoonastheyleftthetable,andherhusbandwasnotcommunicativeafterreadinghispaper。
　　ShebecameananxiousspectatorofBibbs'sprogressasamanofbusiness,althoughitwasaprogressshecouldglimpsebutdimlyandonlyintheevening,throughhisremarksandhisfather'satdinner。UsuallyBibbswassilent,exceptwhendirectlyaddressed,butonthefirsteveningofthethirdweekofhisnewcareerheofferedanopinionwhichhadapparentlybeenthesubjectofpreviousargument。
　　"I'dlikeyoutounderstandjustwhatImeantaboutthosestorage—rooms,father,"hesaid,asJacksonplacedhiscoffeebeforehim。"Abercrombieagreedwithme,butyouwouldn'tlistentohim。"
　　"Youcantalk,ifyouwantto,andI'lllisten,"Sheridanreturned,"butyoucan'tshowmethatJimevertookupwithabadthing。Therooffellbecauseithadn'thadtimetosettleandonaccountofweatherconditions。IwantthatbuildingputjustthewayJimplannedit。"
　　"Youcan'thaveit,"saidBibbs。"Youcan't,becauseJimplannedforthebuildingtostandup,anditwon'tdoit。Theotherone——theonethatdidn'tfall——issoshotwithcrackswehaven'tdareduseitforstorage。Itwon'tstandweight。There'sonlyonethingtodo:getbothbuildingsdownasquicklyaswecan,andbuildover。Brick'sthebestandcheapestinthelongrunforthattype。"
　　Sheridanlookedsarcastic。"Fine！Whatwegoin'todoforstorage—roomswhilewe'rewaitin'forthosefewbrickstobelaid？"
　　"Rent,"Bibbsreturned,promptly。"We'lllosemoneyifwedon'trent,anyhow——theywerewaitingsolongforyoutogivethewarehousematteryourattentionaftertherooffell。Youdon'tknowwhatanamountofstuffthey'vegotpileduponusoverthere。We'dhavetorentuntilwecouldpatchupthoseprocessperils——andtheKrivitchManufacturingCompany'splantisempty,rightacrossthestreet。Itookanoptiononitforusthismorning。"
　　Sheridan'sexpressionwasqueer。"Lookhere！"hesaid,sharply。"Didyougoanddothatwithoutconsultingme？"
　　"Itdidn'tcostanything,"saidBibbs。"It'sonlyuntilto—morrowafternoonattwoo'clock。Iundertooktoconvinceyoubeforethen。"
　　"Oh,youdid？"Sheridan'stonewassardonic。"Well,justsupposeyoucouldn'tconvinceme。"
　　"Ican,though——andIintendto,"saidBibbs,quietly。"Idon'tthinkyouunderstandtheconditionofthosebuildingsyouwantpatchedup。"
　　"Now,seehere,"saidSheridan,withslowemphasis;"supposeIhadmymindsetaboutthis。JIMthoughtthey'dstand,andsupposeitwas——well,kindofamatterofsentimentwithmetoprovehewasright。"
　　Bibbslookedathimcompassionately。"I'msorryifyouhaveasentimentaboutit,father,"hesaid。"Butwhetheryouhaveornotcan'tmakeadifference。
　　You'llgetotherpeoplehurtifyoutrustthatprocess,andthatwon'tdo。
　　AndifyouwantamonumenttoJim,atleastyouwantonethatwillstand。
　　Besides,Idon'tthinkyoucanreasonablydefendsentimentinthisparticularkindofaffair。"
　　"Oh,youdon't？"
　　"No,butI'msorryyoudidn'ttellmeyoufeltit。"
　　Sheridanwaspuzzledbyhisson'stone。"Whyareyou'sorry'？"heasked,curiously。
　　"BecauseIhadthebuildinginspectorupthere,thisnoon,"saidBibbs,"andI
　　hadhimcondemnboththosebuildings。"
　　"What？"
　　"He'dbeenafraidtodoitbefore,untilheheardfromus——afraidyou'dseehelosthisjob。Buthecan'tun—condemnthem——they'vegottocomedownnow。"
　　Sheridangavehimalongandpiercingstarefrombeneathloweredbrows。
　　Finallyhesaid,"Howlongdidtheygiveyouonthatoptiontoconvinceme？"
　　"Untiltwoo'clockto—morrowafternoon。"
　　"Allright,"saidSheridan,notrelaxing。"I'mconvinced。"
　　Bibbsjumpedup。"Ithoughtyouwouldbe。I'lltelephonetheKrivitchagent。
　　Hegavemetheoptionuntilto—morrow,butItoldhimI'dsettleitthisevening。"
　　Sheridangazedafterhimashelefttheroom,andthen,thoughhisexpressiondidnotalterintheslightest,asoundcamefromhimthatstartledhiswife。
　　Ithadbeenalongtimesinceshehadheardanythingresemblingachucklefromhim,andthissound——althoughitwasgrimanddry——borethatresemblance。
　　Shebrightenedeagerly。"Lookslikehewasstartin'rightwell,don'tit,papa？"
　　"Startin'？Lord！Hegotmeonthehip！Why,HEknewwhatIwanted——that'swhyhehadtheinspectorupthere,so'the'dhavemebeatbeforeweevenstartedtotalkaboutit。Anddidyouhearhim？'Can'treasonablydefendSENTIMENT！'Andthewayhesays'Us':'TookanoptionforUs'！'StuffpileduponUs'！"
　　TherewasalwaysanalloyforMrs。sheridan。"Idon'tjustlikethewayhelooks,though,papa。"
　　"Oh,there'sgottobesomething！Onlyonechickleftathome,soyoustarttofrettin'aboutIT！"
　　"No。He'schanged。There'skindofasettishlooktohisface,and——"
　　"Iguessthat'sthecommonsensecomin'outonhim,then,"saidSheridan。
　　"You'llseesymptomslikethatinagoodmanybusinessmen,Iexpect。"