"Always，"answeredMountDunstan。
　　Thefactthatheaddednothingelseandmetarapidsideglancewithunmovingred—browneyesgazingoutfromunderruggedbrows，perhapsirritatedAnstruthers。Hehadbeenratherenjoyinghimself，buthehadnotenjoyedhimselfenough。
　　Therewasnodenyingthathisplaythinghadnotopenlyflinched。Plainlyhewasnotgoodatflinching。Anstrutherswonderedhowfaramanmightgo。Hetriedagain。
　　"Shelikestheplace，thoughshehasanaturaldisdainforitscondition。ThatispracticalAmerican。Thingswhicharegoingtopiecesbecausemoneyisnotspentuponthem——meremoney，ofwhichallthepeoplewhocountforanythinghavesomuch——areinevitablyratherdisdained。Theyare`outofit。’Butshelikestheestate。"AshewatchedMountDunstanhefeltsurehehadgotitatlast——therightthing。"Ifyouwereadukewithfiftythousandayear，"withadistinctlynasty，amicablyhumorous，faintlaugh，"shewould——bytheLord，Ibelieve，shewouldtakeitover——andyouwithit。"
　　MountDunstangotup。Inhisroughwalkingtweedshelookedover—big——andheavy——andperilous。FortwosecondsNigelAnstrutherswouldnothavebeensurprisedifhehadwithoutwarningslappedhisface，orknockedhimover，orwhirledhimoutofhischairandkickedhim。Hewouldnothavelikedit，but——fortwoseconds——itwouldhavebeennosurprise。Infact，heinstinctivelybracedhisnottoofirmmuscles。Butnothingofthesortoccurred。Duringthetwoseconds——perhapsthree——MountDunstanstoodstillandlookeddownathim。Thebriefspaceatanend，hewalkedovertothehearthandstoodwithhisbacktothebigfireplace。
　　"Youdon’tlikeher，"hesaid，andhismannerwasthatofamandealingwithamatteroffact。"Whydoyoutalkabouther？"
　　Hehadgotawayagain——quiteaway。
　　AnuglyflushshotoverAnstruthers’face。Therewasonemorethingtosay——whetheritwasidiotictosayitornot。
　　Thingscanalwaysbedeniedafterwards，shoulddenialappearnecessary——andforthemomenthisspecialdevilpossessedhim。
　　"Idonotlikeher！"Andhismouthtwisted。"DoInot？
　　Iamnotanoldwoman。Iamaman——likeothers。Ichancetolikeher——toomuch。"
　　Therewasashortsilence。MountDunstanbrokeit。
　　"Then，"heremarked，"youhadbetteremigratetosomecountrywithaclimatewhichsuitsyou。IshouldsaythatEngland——forthepresent——doesnot。"
　　"IshallstaywhereIam，"answeredAnstruthers，withaslighthoarsenessofvoice，whichmadeitnecessaryforhimtoclearhisthroat。"Ishallstaywheresheis。Iwillhavethatsatisfaction，atleast。Shedoesnotmind。Iamonlyaracketty，middle—agedbrother—in—law，andshecantakecareofherself。AsItoldyou，shehasthespiritofthehuntress。"
　　"Lookhere，"saidMountDunstan，quitewithouthaste，andwithanironcivility。"Iamgoingtotakethelibertyofsuggestingsomething。Ifthisthingistrue，itwouldbeaswellnottotalkaboutit。"
　　"Aswellforme——orforher？"andtherewasaserenesignificanceinthequery。
　　MountDunstanthoughtafewseconds。
　　"Iconfess，"hesaidslowly，andheplantedhisfineblowbetweentheeyeswellandwithdirectness。"Iconfessthatitwouldnothaveoccurredtometoaskyoutodoanythingorrefrainfromdoingitforhersake。"
　　"Thankyou。Perhapsyouareright。Onelearnsthatonemustprotectone’sself。Ishallnottalk——neitherwillyou。I
　　knowthat。Iwasafooltoletitout。Thestormisover。
　　Imustridehome。"Herosefromhisseatandstoodsmiling。
　　"Itwouldsmashupthingsnicelyifthenewbeauty’sappearanceinthegreatworldwereprecededbychatteroftheunseemlyaffectionofsomeadorerofillrepute。Unfairlyenoughitisalwaysthewomanwhoishurt。"
　　"Unless，"saidMountDunstancivilly，"thereshouldarisethepoor，primevalbrute，inhisneolithicwrath，toseizeonthemantoblame，andbreakeveryboneandsinewinhisdamnedbody。"
　　"Thenewspaperswouldenjoythatmorethanshewould，"
　　answeredSirNigel。"Shedoesnotlikethenewspapers。
　　Theyaretooreadytodisparagethemulti—millionaire，andcackleaboutmembersofhisfamily。"
　　Theunhiddenhatredwhichstillprofessedtohideitselfinthedepthsoftheirpupils，astheyregardedeachother，haditsbirthinapassionaselementalasthequakingsoftheearth，ortherageoftwolionsinadesert，lashingtheirflanksintheblazingsun。Itwaswellthatatthismomenttheyshouldpartways。
　　SirNigel’shorsebeingbrought，hewentonthewaywhichwashis。
　　"ItwasamistaketosaywhatIdid，"hesaidbeforegoing。
　　"Ioughttohaveheldmytongue。ButIamunderthesameroofwithher。Atanyrate，thatisaprivilegenoothermanshareswithme。"
　　Herodeoffsmartly，hishorse’shoofssplashingintherainpoolsleftintheavenueafterthestorm。Hewasnotsosureafterallthathehadmadeamistake，andforthemomenthewasnotinthemoodtocarewhetherhehadmadeoneornot。
　　Hisagreeablesmileshoweditselfashethoughtoftheobstinate，proudbrutehehadleftbehind，sittingaloneamonghisshutdoorsandclosedcorridors。Theyhadnotshakenhandseitheratmeetingorparting。Queerthingitwas——thekindofenmityamancouldfeelforanotherwhenhewasupsetbyawoman。Itwasamusingenoughthatitshouldbeshewhowasupsettinghimafteralltheseyears——impudentlittleBetty，withtheferociousmanner。
　　CHAPTERXXXVIII
　　ATSHANDY’S
　　Onalate—summereveninginNewYorktheatmospheresurroundingacertaincornertableatShandy’scheaprestaurantinFourteenthStreetwasstirredbyasenseofexcitement。
　　ThecornertableinquestionwasthefavouritemeetingplaceofagroupofyoungmenoftheG。Seldentype，whousuallytookpossessionofitatdinnertime——havingdecidedthatShandy’ssuppliedmoredecentfoodforfiftycents，orevenfortwenty—five，thanwastobefoundatotherplacesofitsorder。
　　Shandy’swas"aboutallright，"theysaidtoeachother，andpatroniseditaccordingly，threeorfourofthemgenerallydiningtogether，withafriendlyandadroitmanipulationof"portions"
　　and"halfportions"whichenabledthemtoaddvarietytotheirbilloffare。
　　Thestreetoutsidewaslighted，thetideofpassers—bywaslessfullandmoreleisurelyinitsmovementsthanitwasduringtheseething，workinghoursofdaylight，buttheelectriccarsswungpasteachotherwithwhizandclangofbellalmostunceasingly，theirsoundbeingswelled，atshortintervals，bytheroarandrumblingrattleofthetrainsdashingbyontheelevatedrailroad。This，however，tothefrequentersofShandy’s，wastheusualaccompanimentofevery—dayNewYorklifeandwasregardedasarathercheerfulsortofthing。
　　Thiseveningthefourclaimantsofthefavouritecornertablehadmettogetherearlierthanusual。JemBelter，who"hammered"atypewriteratSchwab’sBrewery，TomWetherbee，whowas"inadowntownoffice，"BertJohnson，whowas"outfortheDelkoff，"andNickBaumgarten，whohavingforsometime"beaten"certainstreetsasassistantsalesmanforthesameillustriousmachine，hadbeenrecentlyelevatedtoa"territory"ofhisown，andwasthereforeinhighspirits。
　　"Say！"hesaid。"Let’sgivehimafinedinner。Wecanmakeitbetweenus。Beefsteakandmushrooms，andpotatoeshashedbrown。Helikesthem。GoodoldG。S。Ishallberightgladtoseehim。Hopeforeigntravelhasnotgivenhimtheswellhead。"
　　"Don’tbelieveit’shurthimabit。Hisletterdidn’tsoundlikeit。LittleGeorgieain’tafool，"saidJemBelter。
　　TomWetherbeewaslookingovertheletterreferredto。
　　Ithadbeenwrittentothefourconjointly，towardstheterminationofSelden’svisittoMr。Penzance。Theyoungmanwasnotanardentorfluentcorrespondent；butTomWetherbeewaschucklingashereadtheepistle。
　　"Say，boys，"hesaid，"thisbigthinghe’skeepingbacktotelluswhenheseesusisallright，butwhattakesmeisoldGeorgepayingavisittoaparson。Heain’tnoYoungMen’sChristianAssociation。"
　　BertJohnsonleanedforward，andlookedattheaddressontheletterpaper。
　　"MountDunstanVicarage，"hereadaloud。"Thatlooksprettyswell，doesn’tit？"withalaugh。"Say，fellows，youknowJepsonattheoffice，thechapthatprideshimselfonreadingsuchalot？HesaiditremindedhimofthenamesofplacesinEnglishnovels。ThatJohnny’sthebiggestsnobyoueversetyourtoothinto。WhenItoldhimaboutthelordfellowthatownsthecastle，andthatGeorgeseemedtohaveseenhim，henearlyfelloverhimself。NeverhadanyuseforGeorgebefore，butjustyouwatchhimmakeuptohimwhenheseeshimnext。"
　　Peopleweredroppinginandtakingseatsatthetables。
　　Theywereallofoneclass。Youngmenwholivedinhallbedrooms。Youngwomenwhoworkedinshopsoroffices，acouplehereandthere，who，livingfaruptown，hadcometoShandy’stodinner，thattheymightgotocheapseatsinsometheatreafterwards。Inthelattercase，thegirlsworetheirbesthats，hadbrighteyes，andcheekslightlyflushedbytheirsenseoffestivity。Twoorthreewereveryprettyintheirthinsummerdressesandfloweredorfeatheredheadgear，tiltedatpicturesqueanglesovertheirthickhair。Wheneachoneenteredtheeyesoftheyoungmenatthecornertablefollowedherwithcuriosityandinterest，buttheglancesatherescortwerealwaysofadisparagingnature。
　　"There’sabeaut！"saidNickBaumgarten。"Getontothatpinkstuffonherhat，willyou。Shedoneitbecauseit’sjustthecolourofhercheeks。"
　　Theyalllooked，andthegirlwasawareofit，andbegantolaughandtalkcoquettishlytotheyoungmanwhowashercompanion。
　　"IwonderwhereshegotClarence？"saidJemBelterinsarcasticallusiontoherescort。"ThethingsthoselookershavefastenedontothemgetsME。"
　　"IfitwasoneofUS，now，"saidBertJohnson。Uponwhichtheybrokeintosimultaneousgood—naturedlaughter。
　　"It’squeer，isn’tit，"youngBaumgartenputin，"howafellowalwaysfeelssorewhenheseesanotherfellowwithapeachlikethat？It’sjuststraighthumannature，Iguess。"
　　Thedoorswungopentoadmitanewcomer，atthesightofwhomJemBelterexclaimedjoyously："GoodoldGeorgie！
　　Hereheis，fellows！Getontohisgladrags。"
　　"Gladrags"issupposedtobuoyantlydescribesuchattireas，byitsfreshnessoreleganceofstyle，isrenderedasuitableadornmentforfestiveoccasionsorloftierleisuremoments。
　　"Gladrags"maymeaneveningdress，whenayounggentleman’swardrobecanaspiretosplendoursomarked，butitalsoappliestoone’sbestandlatest—purchasedgarb，incontradistinctiontothelessornamentalhabilimentsworneveryday，anddesignatedas"officeclothes。"
　　G。Selden’seconomieshadnotenabledhimtogivehimselfintothehandsofaBondStreettailor，butacarefulstudyofcutandmaterial，asspreadbeforetheeyeinelegantcolouredillustrationsinthewindowsofrespectableshopsinlessambitiousquarters，hadresultedinthepurchaseofawell—madesuitofsmartEnglishcut。Hehadaniceyoungfigure，andlookedextremelyneatandtremendouslynewandclean，somuchso，indeed，thatseveralpersonsglancedathimalittleadmiringlyashewasmethalfwaytothecornertablebyhisfriends。
　　"Hello，oldchap！Gladtoseeyou。Whatsortofavoyage？Howdidyouleavetheroyalfamily？Gladtogetback？"
　　Theyallgreetedhimatonce，shakinghandsandslappinghimontheback，astheyhustledhimgleefullybacktothecornertableandmadehimsitdown。
　　"Say，garsong，"saidNickBaumgartentotheirfavouritewaiter，whocameatonceinanswertohissummons，"let’shaveaporterhousesteak，halfthesizeofthistable，andwithplentyofmushroomsandpotatoeshashedbrown。Here’sMr。
　　SeldenjustreturnedfromvisitingatWindsorCastle，andifwedon’ttreathimwell，he’lllookdownonus。"
　　G。Seldengrinned。"Howhaveyoubeengettingon，Sam？"hesaid，noddingcheerfullytotheman。Theywereoldandtriedfriends。SamknewallaboutthedayswhenafellowcouldnotcomeintoShandy’satall，ormustsatisfyhisstrongyounghungerwithabowlofsoup，orcoffeeandaroll。Samdidhisbestfortheminthematterofthesizeofportions，andtheydidtheirgood—naturedutmostforhimintheaffairofthepooledtip。
　　"Beengettingonaswellascanbeexpected，"Samgrinnedback。"Hopeyouhadafinetime，Mr。Selden？"
　　"Fine！Ishouldsmile！Finewasn’tinit，"answeredSelden。"ButI’mlookingforwardtoaShandyporterhousesteak，allthesame。"
　　"DidtheygiveyouabetteroneintheStrawnd？"askedBaumgarten，inwhathebelievedtobeacorrectCockneyaccent。
　　"Youbettheydidn’t，"saidSelden。"Shandy’stakesalotofbeating。"ThatlastisEnglish。
　　Thepeopleattheothertablescastinvoluntaryglancesatthem。Theireager，heartyyoungpleasureinthefestivityoftheoccasionwasahealthythingtosee。Astheysatroundthecornertable，theyproducedtheeffectofgatheringcloseaboutG。Selden。Theyconcentratedtheircombinedattentionuponhim，BelterandJohnsonleaningforwardontheirfoldedarms，towatchhimashetalked。
　　"BillyPagecamebackinAugust，lookingprettybum，"
　　NickBaumgartenbegan。"He’dbeenpaintinggayPareebrickred，andhe’dspentmoremoneythanhe’dmeantto，andthatwasn’thalfenough。Landeddeadbroke。Hesaidhe’dhadagreattime，buthe’dcomehomewithratheradarkbrowntasteinhismouth，thathe’dliketogetridof。"
　　"Hethoughtyouwereafooltogooffcyclingintothecountry，"putinWetherbee，"butItoldhimIguessedthatwaswherehewas’wayoff。Ibelievedyou’dhadthebesttimeofthetwoofyou。"
　　"Boys，"saidSelden，"Ihadthetimeofmylife。"Hesaiditalmostsolemnly，andlaidhishandonthetable。"ItwaslikeoneofthoseyarnsBerttellsus。HalfthetimeI
　　didn’tbelieveit，andhalfthetimeIwasashamedofmyselftothinkitwasallhappeningtomeandnoneofyourfellowswereinit。"
　　"Oh，well，"saidJemBelter，"luckchasessomefellows，anyhow。LookatNick，there。"
　　"Well，"Seldensummedthewholethingup，"IjustFELL
　　intoitwhereitwassodeepthatIhadtostrikeoutallIknewhowtokeepfromdrowning。"
　　"Tellusthewholething，"NickBaumgartenputin；"frombeginningtoend。Yourletterdidn’tgiveanythingaway。"
　　"Aletterwouldhavespoiledit。Ican’twritelettersanyhow。IwantedtowaittillIgotrightherewithyoufellowsroundwhereIcouldanswerquestions。Firstoff，"withthedeliberationbefittingsuchanopening，"I’vesoldmachinesenoughtopaymyexpenses，andleavesomeover。"
　　"Youhave？Geewhiz！Say，giveusyourprescription。
　　GladIknowyou，Georgy！"
　　"Andwhodoyousupposeboughtthefirstthree？"Atthispoint，itwashewholeanedforwarduponthetable——hisclimaxbeingathingtoconcentrateupon。"ReubenS。
　　Vanderpoel’sdaughter——MissBettina！And，boys，shegavemealettertoReubenS。，himself，andhereitis。"
　　Heproducedaflatleatherpocketbookandtookanenvelopefromaninnerflap，layingitbeforethemonthetablecloth。
　　Hisknowledgethattheywouldnothavebelievedhimifhehadnotbroughthisproofwasfoundedoneverydayfacts。
　　Theywouldnothavedoubtedhisveracity，butthepossibilityofsuchdeliriousgoodfortune。Whattheywouldhavebelievedwouldhavebeenthathewasplayingahilariousjokeonthem。Jokesofthiskind，butnotofthisproportion，werecommonentertainments。
　　Theirfirstimpulsehadbeentowardsanoutburstoflaughter，butevenbeforeheproducedhisletteracertaintruthfulseriousnessinhislookhadstartledthem。Whenhelaidtheenvelopedowneachmancaughthisbreath。ItcouldnotbedeniedthatJemBelterturnedpalewithemotion。Jemhadneverbeenoneoftheluckyones。
　　"Sheletmereadit，"saidG。Selden，takingtheletterfromitsenvelopewithgreatcare。"AndIsaidtoher：`MissVanderpoel，wouldyouletmejustshowthattotheboysthefirstnightIgotoShandy’s？’Iknewshe’dtellmeifitwasn’tallrighttodoit。She’dknowI’dwanttobetold。Andshejustlaughedandsaid：`Idon’tmindatall。Ilike"theboys。"Hereisamessagetothem。`Goodlucktoyouall。’"
　　"Shesaidthat？"fromNickBaumgarten。
　　"Yes，shedid，andshemeantit。Lookatthis。"
　　Thiswastheletter。Itwasquiteshort，andwritteninaclear，definitehand。
　　"DEARFATHER：ThiswillbebroughttoyoubyMr。G。
　　Selden，ofwhomIhavewrittentoyou。Pleasebegoodtohim。
　　"Affectionately，"BETTY。"
　　Eachyoungmanreaditinturn。Noneofthemsaidanythingjustatfirst。Akindofawehaddescendeduponthem——
　　notintheleastaweofVanderpoel，who，withothermulti—
　　millionaires，wereservedupeachweekwithcheerfulneighbourlycommentorequallyneighbourlydisrespect，inhugeSundaypapersreadthroughouttheland——butaweoftheunearthlyluckwhichhadfallenwithoutwarningtogoodoldG。S。，wholivedliketherestoftheminahallbedroomontenper，earnedbytrampingthestreetsfortheDelkoff。
　　"Thatgirl，"saidG。Seldengravely，"thatgirlisawinnerfromWinnersville。Itakeoffmyhattoher。Ifit’stheschemethatsomepeople’sgottohavemillions，andothershavegottosellDelkoffs，thatgirl’soneofthosethat’sentitledtothemillions。It’sallrightsheshouldhave’em。
　　There’snokickcomingfromme。"
　　NickBaumgartenwasthefirsttoresumewhollynormalconditionofmind。
　　"Well，Iguessafteryou’vetoldusaboutherthere’llbenokickcomingfromanyofus。Ofcoursethere’ssomethingaboutyouthatroyalfamiliescryfor，andtheywon’tbehappytilltheyget。Allofusboysknowsthat。Butwhatwewanttofindoutishowyouworkeditsothattheysawthekindofpearl—studdedhairpinyouwere。"
　　"Workedit！"Seldenanswered。"Ididn’tworkit。I’vegotagoodbitofnerve，butInevershouldhavehadenoughtoinventwhathappened——justHAPPENED。Ibrokemylegfallingoffmybike，andfellrightintoawholebunchofthem——earlsandcountessesandviscountsandVanderpoels。AnditwasMissVanderpoelwhosawmefirstlyingontheground。
　　AndIwasinStornhamCourtwhereLadyAnstrutherslives——andsheusedtobeMissRosalieVanderpoel。"
　　"Boys，"saidBertJohnson，withfriendlydisgust，"he’sbeenuptohisneckin’em。"
　　"Cheerup。Theworstisyettocome，"chaffedTomWetherbee。
　　Neverhadsuchadinnertakenplaceatthecornertable，or，infact，atanyothertableatShandy’s。Sambroughtbeefsteaks，whichwereprincely，mushrooms，andhashedbrownpotatoesinportionswhosegenerosityreachedtheheart。SamwasongoodtermswithShandy’scarver，andhadworkeduponhisnoblerfeelings。Steinsoflagerbeerwereventuredupon。Therewasheartysatisfyingoffinehungers。Twoofthepartyhadeatennothingbutone"QuickLunch"throughouttheday，oneofthembecausehewasshortoftime，theotherforeconomy’ssake，becausehewasshortofmoney。
　　Themealwasasplendidthing。Thetellingofthestorycouldnotbewhollycheckedbytheeatingoffood。Itadvancedbetweenmouthfuls，questionsbeingaskedanddetailsgiveninanswers。Shandy’sbecamemorecrowded，asthehouradvanced。Peopleallovertheroomcastinterestedlooksatthepartyatthecornertable，enjoyingitselfsohugely。
　　Groupssittingatthetablesnearesttoitfoundthemselvesexcitedbythethingstheyheard。
　　"ThatyoungfellowinthenewsuithasjustcomebackfromEurope，"saidamantohiswifeanddaughter。"Heseemstohavehadagoodtime。"
　　"Papa，"thedaughterleanedforward，andspokeinalowvoice，"Iheardhimsay`LordMountDunstansaidLadyAnstruthersandMissVanderpoelwereatthegardenparty。’
　　Whodoyousupposeheis？"
　　"Well，he’saniceyoungfellow，andhehasEnglishclotheson，buthedoesn’tlooklikeoneoftheFourHundred。Willyouhavepieorvanillaicecream，Bessy？"
　　Bessy——whochosevanillaicecream——lostallknowledgeofitsflavourinherabsorptionintheconversationatthenexttable，whichshecouldnothaveavoidedhearing，evenifshehadwished。
　　"Shebentoverthebedandlaughed——justlikeanyothernicegirl——andshesaid，`YouareatStornhamCourt，whichbelongstoSirNigelAnstruthers。LadyAnstruthersismysister。IamMissVanderpoel。’And，boys，sheusedtocomeandtalktomeeveryday。"
　　"George，"saidNickBaumgarten，"youtakeaboutseventy—
　　fivebottlesofWarner’sSafeCure，andrubyourselfalloverwithSt。Jacob’sOil。Lucklikethatain’tHEALTHY！"……
　　Mr。Vanderpoel，sittinginhisstudy，woretheinterestedlygravelookofamanthinkingofabsorbingthings。Hehadjustgivenordersthatayoungmanwhowouldcallinthecourseoftheeveningshouldbebroughttohimatonce，andhewasincidentallyconsideringthisyoungman，ashereflecteduponmattersrecalledtohismindbyhisimpendingarrival。
　　Theyweremattershehadthoughtofwithgraduallyincreasingseriousnessforsomemonths，andtheyhad，atfirst，beentheresultofthelettersfromStornham，whicheach"steamerday"brought。Theyhadbeenofimmenseinteresttohim——
　　theseletters。Hewouldhavefoundthemabsorbingasastudy，evenifhehadnotdeeplylovedBetty。Hereadinthemthingsshedidnotstateinwords，andtheysethimthinking。
　　Hewasnotsuspectedbymenlikehimselfofconcealinganimaginationbeneaththetrainedsteadinessofhisexterior，buthepossessedmorethantheworldknew，anditsingularlycombineditselfwithpowersoflogicaldeduction。
　　Ifhehadbeenwithhisdaughter，hewouldhaveseen，daybyday，whereherthoughtswereleadingher，andinwhatdirectionshewasdeveloping，but，atadistanceofthreethousandmiles，hefoundhimselfaskingquestions，andendeavouringtoreachconclusions。HisaffectionforBettywasthecentralemotionofhisexistence。Hehadnevertoldhimselfthathehadoutgrownthekindandprettycreaturehehadmarriedinhisearlyyouth，andcertainlyhistendercareforherandpleasureinhersimplegoodnesshadneverwavered，butBettyhadgivenhimacompanionshipwhichhadcountedgreatlyinthesumofhishappiness。Becauseimaginationwasnotsuspectedinhim，nooneknewwhatshestoodforinhislife。Hehadnoson；hestoodattheheadofagreathouse，sotospeak——theAmericanparallelofwhatagreathouseisinnon—republicancountries。Thepowerofitcountedforgreatthings，notinAmericaalone，butthroughouttheworld。Asinternationalintimaciesincreased，theinfluenceofsuchhousesmightendinaidinginthemakingofhistory。
　　Enormousconstantlyincreasingwealthandhugefinancialschemescouldnotconfinetheirinfluence，butmustreachfar。
　　Themanwhosehandheldthelevercontrollingthemwasdoingwellwhenhethoughtofthemgravely。Suchamanhadtodowithmorethanhisownmerelifeandliving。
　　Thismanhadconfrontedmanyproblemsastheyearshadpassed。Hehadseenmenlikehimselfdie，leavingbehindthemtheforcetheyhadcontrolled，andhehadseenthisforce——
　　controllednolonger——letlooseupontheworld，sometimesapowerofevil，sometimesscatteringitselfaimlesslyintonothingnessandfolly，whichwroughtharm。Hewasnotanambitiousman，but——perhapsbecausehewasnotonlyamanofthought，butaVanderpoelofthebloodofthefirstReuben——thesewerethingshedidnotcontemplatewithoutrestlessness。WhenRosyhadgoneawayandseemedlosttothem，hehadbeengladwhenhehadseenBettygrowing，daybyday，intoastrongthing。Femininethoughshewas，shesometimessuggestedtohimthesonwhomighthavebeenhis，butwasnot。Astheclosenessoftheircompanionshipincreasedwithheryears，hisadmirationforhergrewwithhislove。Powerleftinherhandsmustworkfortheadvancementofthings，andwouldnotbeidlydisseminated——ifnoantagonisticinfluencewroughtagainsther。Hehadfoundhimselfreflectingthat，afterallwassaid，themarriageofsuchagirlhadasortofparallelinthatofsomeyoungroyalcreature，whoseunionmightmakeormarthings，whichmustbeconsidered。Themanwhomustinevitablystronglycolourherwholebeing，andvitallymarkherlife，would，inasense，layhishandupontheleveralso。
　　Ifhebroughtsorrowanddisorderwithhim，theleverwouldnotmovesteadily。Fortunessuchashisgrowrapidly，andhewasarichermanbymillionsthanhehadbeenwhenRosaliehadmarriedNigelAnstruthers。Thememoryofthatmarriagehadbeenapainfulthingtohim，evenbeforehehadknownthewholetruthofitsresults。Themanhadbeenacommonadventurerandscoundrel，despitethefactsofgoodbirthandtheairofdecentbreeding。Ifamanwhowasasmuchascoundrel，butcleverer——itwouldbenecessarythatheshouldbemuchcleverer——madethebestofhimselftoBetty————！Itwasfollytothinkonecouldguesswhatawoman——oraman，either，forthatmatter——wouldlove。HeknewBetty，butnomanknowsthethingwhichcomes，asitwere，inthedarkandclaimsitsown——whetherforgoodorevil。Hehadlivedlongenoughtoseebeautiful，strong—
　　spiritedcreaturesdostrangethings，followstrangegods，sweptawayintoseasofpainbystrangewaves。