Asitwas,heplayedatbeinganarchitect——andsucceededinbeingacharmingfellow。
MysisterJessicaneverlostanopportunityoflaughingathisendeavorsasanarchitect。
\"Youcanbuildanenchantingvilla,butwhatwouldyoudowithacathedral?\"
\"Ishallneverhaveachanceatacathe-
dral,\"hewouldreply。\"And,besides,italwaysseemstomesomaterialandsoim-
pertinenttobuildalittlestructureofstoneandwoodinwhichtoworshipGod!\"
Youseewhathewaslike?Hewasfrivo-
lous,yetonecouldnevertellwhenhewouldbecomeeloquentlyearnest。
BrainardwentoffsuddenlyWestwardoneday。IsuspectedthatJessicawasatthebottomofit,butIaskednoquestions;andIdidnothearfromhimformonths。ThenI
gotaletterfromColorado。
\"Ihavemarriedamountainwoman,\"hewrote。\"Noneofyourpunybreedofmodernfemininity,butaremnantleftoverfromtheheroicages,——aprimitivewoman,grandandvastofspirit,capableoftrueandsteadfastwifehood。Nosophistryabouther;noknowledgeeventhatthereissophistry。
Heavens!man,doyouremembertheron-
deauxandtrioletsIusedtowritetothoseprettycreaturesbackEast?ItwouldtakeaSagamanoftheoldNorselandtowriteformymountainwoman。IfIwereanartist,Iwouldpaintherwiththenorthstarinherlocksandherfeetonpurplecloud。
IsupposeyouareatthePier。Iknowyouusuallyareatthisseason。Atanyrate,I
shalldirectthisletterthither,andwillfollowcloseafterit。Iwantmywifetoseesome-
thingoflife。AndIwanthertomeetyoursister。”
\"Dearme!\"criedJessica,whenIreadthelettertoher;\"Idon\'tknowthatIcaretomeetanythingquitesogiganticasthatmountainwoman。I\'moneofthepunybreedofmodernfemininity,youknow。Idon\'tthinkmynervescanstandtheencounter。”
\"Why,Jessica!\"Iprotested。Sheblushedalittle。
\"Don\'tthinkbadofme,Victor。But,yousee,I\'vealittlescrap-bookofthosetrioletsupstairs。”Thensheburstintoapealofirresistiblelaughter。\"I\'mnotlaughingbecauseIampiqued,\"shesaidfrankly。
\"Thoughanyonewilladmitthatitisratherirritatingtohaveamanwholeftyouinablastedconditionrecoverwithsuchextraordinarypromptness。Asaphi-
lanthropist,oneofcourserejoices,butasawoman,Victor,itmustbeadmittedthatonehasarighttofeelannoyed。But,honestly,Iamnotungenerous,andIamgoingtodohimafavor。Ishallwrite,andurgehimnottobringhiswifehere。Aprimitivewoman,withthenorthstarinherhair,wouldlookwelldownthereintheCasinoeatingapineappleice,wouldn\'tshe?It\'sallverywelltohaveasoul,youknow;butitwon\'tkeepyoufromlookinglikeaguyamongwomenwhohavegooddressmakers。
Ishudderatthethoughtofwhatthepoorthingwillsufferifhebringsherhere。”
Jessicawrote,asshesaidshewould;but,forallthat,afortnightlatershewaswalkingdownthewharfwiththe\"mountainwoman,\"
andIwassaunteringbesideLeroy。AtdinnerJessicagavemenochancetotalkwithourfriend\'swife,andIonlycaughtthequietcontraltotonesofhervoicenowandthencontrastingwithJessica\'svivacioussoprano。Adrizzlingraincameupfromtheeastwithnightfall。Littlegroupsofshiveringmenandwomensataboutintheparlorsatthecard-tables,andoneblondwomansanglovesongs。TheBrainardsweretiredwiththeirjourney,andleftusearly。Whentheyweregone,Jessicaburstintoeulogy。
\"Thatisthefirstwoman,\"shedeclared,\"Ievermetwhowouldmakeafitheroineforabook。”
\"Thenyouwillnotfeelunderobligationstoeducateher,asyouinsinuatedtheotherday?\"
\"Educateher!IonlyhopeshewillhelpmetounlearnsomeofthethingsI
know。Ineversawsuchsimplicity。Itisantique!\"
\"You\'resureit\'snotmerevacuity?\"
\"Victor!Howcanyou?Butyouhaven\'ttalkedwithher。Youmustto-morrow。
Good-night。”Shegathereduphertrail-
ingskirtsandstarteddownthecorridor。
Suddenlysheturnedback。\"ForHeaven\'ssake!\"shewhispered,inanawedtone,\"Ineverevennoticedwhatshehadon!\"
Thenextmorningearlywemadeuparidingparty,andIrodewithMrs。Brainard。
ShewasastallasI,andsatinhersaddleasifquiteunconsciousofheranimal。Theroadstretchedhardandinvitingunderourhorses\'feet。Thewindsmelledsalt。Theskywasraggedwithgraymassesofcloudscuddingacrosstheblue。Iwasbeginningtoglowwithexhilaration,whensuddenlymycompaniondrewinherhorse。
\"Ifyoudonotmind,wewillgoback,\"
shesaid。
Hertonewasdejected。Ithoughtshewastired。
\"Oh,no!\"sheprotested,whenIapolo-
gizedformythoughtlessnessinbringinghersofar。\"I\'mnottired。Icanrideallday。
WhereIcomefrom,wehavetorideifwewanttogoanywhere;butherethereseemstobenoparticularplaceto——toreach。”
\"Areyousoutilitarian?\"Iasked,laugh-
ingly。\"Mustyoualwayshavesomereasonforeverythingyoudo?Idosomanythingsjustforthemerepleasureofdoingthem,I\'mafraidyouwillhaveaverypooropinionofme。”
\"ThatisnotwhatImean,\"shesaid,flushing,andturningherlargegrayeyesonme。\"YoumustnotthinkIhaveareasonforeverythingIdo。”Shewasveryearnest,anditwasevidentthatshewasunacquaintedwiththeartofmakingconversation。\"ButwhatImean,\"shewenton,\"isthatthereisnoplace——noend——toreach。”Shelookedbackoverhershouldertowardthewest,wherethetreesmarkedtheskyline,andanexpressionoflossanddissatisfactioncameoverherface。\"Yousee,\"shesaid,apolo-
getically,\"I\'musedtodifferentthings——tothemountains。IhaveneverbeenwhereI
couldnotseethembeforeinmylife。”
\"Ah,Isee!Isupposeitisoddtolookupandfindthemnotthere。”
\"It\'slikebeinglost,thisnothavingany-
thingaroundyou。Atleast,Imean,\"shecontinuedslowly,asifherthoughtcouldnoteasilyputitselfinwords,——\"Imeanitseemsasifapartoftheworldhadbeentakendown。Itmakesyoufeellonesome,asifyouwerelivingaftertheworldhadbeguntodie。”
\"You\'llgetusedtoitinafewdays。Itseemsverybeautifultomehere。Andthenyouwillhavesomuchlifetodivertyou。”
\"Life?Butthereisalwaysthatevery-
where。”
\"Imeanmenandwomen。”
\"Oh!Still,Iamnotusedtothem。I
thinkImightbenot——notveryhappywiththem。Theymightthinkmequeer。I
thinkIwouldliketoshowyoursisterthemountains。”
\"Shehasseenthemoften。”
\"Oh,shetoldme。ButIdon\'tmeanthoseprettygreenhillssuchaswesawcom-
inghere。Theyarenotlikemymountains。
Ilikemountainsthatgobeyondtheclouds,withterribleshadowsinthehollows,andbeltsofsnowlyinginthegorgeswherethesuncannotreach,andthesnowisblueinthesunshine,orshiningtillyouthinkitissilver,andthemistsowonderfulallaboutit,changingeachmomentanddriftingupanddown,thatyoucannottellwhatnametogivethecolors。ThesemountainsofyourshereintheEastaresoquiet;mineareshoutingallthetime,withthepinesandtherivers。Theechoesaresoloudinthevalleythatsometimes,whenthewindisrising,wecanhardlyhearamantalkunlessheraiseshisvoice。TherearefourcataractsnearwhereIlive,andtheyallhavedifferentvoices,justaspeopledo;andoneofthemishappy——alittlewhitecataract——anditfallswherethesunshinesearliest,andtillnightitisshining。Buttheothersonlygetthesunnowandthen,andtheyaremorenoisyandcruel。Oneofthemisalwaysintheshadow,andthewaterlooksblack。Thatispartlybecausetherocksallunderneathitareblack。Itfallsdowntwentygreatledgesinagorgewithblacksides,andawhitemistdancesalloveritateveryleap。
Itellfatherthemististheghostofthewaters。Nomanevergoesthere;itistoocold。Thechillstrikesthroughone,andmakesyourheartfeelasifyouweredying。
Butalldownthesideofthemountain,towardthesouthandthewest,thesunshinesonthegraniteanddrawslongpointsoflightoutofit。Fathertellsmesoldiersmarchinglookthatwaywhenthesunstrikesontheirbayonets。ThosearethekindofmountainsImean,Mr。Grant。”
Shewaslookingatmewithherfacetrans-
figured,asifit,likethemountainsshetoldmeof,hadbeenlyinginshadow,andwait-
ingforthedazzlingdawn。
\"Ihadaterribledreamonce,\"shewenton;\"themostterribledreameverIhad。
Idreamtthatthemountainshadallbeentakendown,andthatIstoodonaplaintowhichtherewasnoend。Theskywasburn-
ingup,andthegrassscorchedbrownfromtheheat,anditwastwistingasifitwereinpain。Andanimals,butnootherpersonsavemyself,onlywildthings,werecrouch-
ingandlookingupatthatsky。Theycouldnotrunbecausetherewasnoplacetowhichtogo。”
\"Youwerehavingavisionofthelastman,\"Isaid。\"Iwondermyselfsometimeswhetherthisoldglobeofoursisgoingtocollapsesuddenlyandtakeuswithher,orwhetherwewilldisappearthroughslowdisastrousagesoffightingandcrushing,withhungerandblighttohelpustotheend。Andthen,atthelast,perhaps,somelucklessfellow,strongerthantherest,willstandamidtheribsoftherottingearthandgomad。”
Thewoman\'seyeswerefixedonme,largeandluminous。\"Yes,\"shesaid;\"hewouldgomadfromthelonesomenessofit。
HewouldbeafraidtobeleftalonelikethatwithGod。NoonewouldwanttobetakenintoGod\'ssecrets。”
\"Andourlastman,\"Iwenton,\"wouldhavetostandthereonthatswayingwrecktilleventhesoundofthecrumblingearthceased。Andhewouldtrytofindavoiceandwouldfail,becausesilencewouldhavecomeagain。Andthenthelightwouldgoout——\"
Theshudderthatcreptoverhermademestop,ashamedofmyself。
\"Youtalklikefather,\"shesaid,withalong-drawnbreath。Thenshelookedupsuddenlyatthesunshiningthroughariftinthoserecklessgrayclouds,andputoutonehandasiftogetitfulloftheheadlongrollickingbreeze。\"Buttheearthisnotdying,\"shecried。\"Itiswellandstrong,anditlikestogoroundandroundamongalltheotherworlds。Itlikesthesunandmoon;theyareallgoodfriends;anditlikesthepeoplewholiveonit。Maybeitistheyinsteadofthefirewithinwhokeepitwarm;ormaybeitiswarmjustfromalwaysgoing,aswearewhenwerun。Weareyoung,youandI,Mr。Grant,andLeroy,andyourbeautifulsister,andtheworldisyoungtoo!\"Thenshelaughedastrongsplendidlaugh,whichhadneverhadthejoytakenoutofitwithdrawing-roomre-
strictions;andIlaughedtoo,andfeltthatwehadbecomeverygoodcompanionsindeed,andfoundmyselfwarmingtothejoyofcompanionshipasIhadnotsinceI
wasaboyatschool。
ThatafternoonthefourofussatatatableintheCasinotogether。TheCasino,aseveryoneknows,isaplacetoamuseyourself。Ifyouhaveaduty,amission,oranaspiration,youdonottakeittherewithyou,itwouldbesoobviouslyoutofplace;
ifpovertyisaheadofyou,youforgetit;ifyouhavebrains,youhastentoconcealthem;
theywouldbeaseriousencumbrance。
Therewasabubblingofconversation,arustleandfluttersuchastherealwaysiswheretherearemanywomen。Alltheplacewasgaywithflowersandwithgownsasbrightastheflowers。Irememberedtheapprehensionsofmysister,andstudiedLeroy\'swifetoseehowshefittedintothishighlycoloredpicture。Shewastheonlywomanintheroomwhoseemedtoweardraperies。Thejauntyslashandcutoffashionableattireweremissinginthelongbrownfoldsofcloththatenvelopedherfigure。IfeltcertainthatevenfromJessica\'sstandpointshecouldnotbecalledaguy。
Picturesqueshemightbe,pastthepointofconvention,butshewasnotridiculous。
\"Judithtakesallthisveryseriously,\"saidLeroy,laughingly。\"IsupposeshewouldtakeevenParisseriously。”
Hiswifesmiledoverathim。\"LeroysaysIammelancholy,\"shesaid,softly;
\"butIamalwaystellinghimthatIamhappy。HethinksIammelancholybe-
causeIdonotlaugh。Igotoutofthewayofitbybeingsomuchalone。Youonlylaughtoletsomeoneelseknowyouarepleased。Whenyouarealonethereisnouseinlaughing。Itwouldbelikeexplain-
ingsomethingtoyourself。”
\"Youareaphilosopher,Judith。Mr。
MaxMü;llerwouldliketoknowyou。”
\"Isheafriendofyours,dear?\"
Leroyblushed,andIsawJessicacurlherlipasshenoticedtheblush。ShelaidherhandonMrs。Brainard\'sarm。
\"Haveyoualwaysbeenverymuchalone?\"sheinquired。
\"Iwasbornontheranch,youknow;
andfatherwasnotfondofleavingit。In-
deed,nowhesayshewillneveragaingooutofsightofit。Butyoucangoalongjourneywithoutdoingthat;foritliesonaplateauinthevalley,anditcanbeseenfromthreedifferentmountainpasses。
Motherdiedthere,andforthatreasonandothers——fatherhashadastrangelife——heneverwantedtogoaway。HebroughtaladyfromPennsylvaniatoteachme。Shehadwonderfullearning,butshedidn\'tmakeverymuchuseofit。IthoughtifI
hadlearningIwouldnotwasteitreadingbooks。Iwoulduseitto——tolivewith。
Fatherhadalibrary,butInevercaredforit。Hewasforeveratbookstoo。Ofcourse,\"shehastenedtoadd,noticingthelookofmortificationdeepenonherhus-
band\'sface,\"Ilikebooksverywellifthereisnothingbetterathand。ButIalwayssaidtoMrs。Windsor——itwasshewhotaughtme——whyreadwhatotherfolkhavebeenthinkingwhenyoucangooutandthinkyourself?Ofcourseoneprefersone\'sownthoughts,justasoneprefersone\'sownranch,orone\'sownfather。”
\"ThenyouaresuretolikeNewYorkwhenyougotheretolive,\"criedJessica;
\"forthereyouwillfindsomethingtomakelifeentertainingallthetime。Nooneneedfallbackonbooksthere。”
\"I\'mnotsure。I\'mafraidtheremustbesuchdreadfulcrowdsofpeople。OfcourseIshouldtrytofeelthattheywerealllikeme,withjustthesamesortoffears,andthatitwasridiculousforustobeafraidofeachother,whenatheartweallmeanttobekind。”
Jessicafairlywrungherhands。\"Hea-
vens!\"shecried。\"IsaidyouwouldlikeNewYork。Iamafraid,mydear,thatitwillbreakyourheart!\"
\"Oh,\"saidMrs。Brainard,withwhatwasmeanttobeagentlejest,\"noonecanbreakmyheartexceptLeroy。Ishouldnotcareenoughaboutanyoneelse,youknow。”
Thecomplimentwasanexquisiteone。
Ifeltthebloodcreeptomyownbraininasortofvicariousrapture,andIavoidedlookingatLeroylestheshoulddisliketohavemeseethehappinesshemustfeel。
Thesimplicityofthewomanseemedtoinvigoratemeasthecoolairofhermoun-
tainsmightifitblewtomeonsomebrightdawn,whenIhadcome,feveredandsickofsoul,fromthecity。
Whenwewerealone,Jessicasaidtome:
\"Thatmanhastoomuchvanity,andhethinksitissensitiveness。Heisgoingtoimaginethathiswifemakeshimsuffer。
There\'snoonesobrutallyselfishasyoursensitiveman。Hewantseveryonetoliveaccordingtohisideas,orheimmediatelybeginssuffering。Thatfriendofyourshasn\'tthecourageofhisconvictions。Heisgoingtobeashamedoftheveryqualitiesthatmadehimlovehiswife。”
Therewasahopthatnightatthehotel,quiteanunusualaffairastoelegance,giveninhonorofawomanfromNewYork,whowroteanovelamonth。
Mrs。Brainardlookedsohappythatnightwhenshecameintheparlor,afterthemusichadbegun,thatIfeltamoisturegatherinmyeyesjustbecauseofthebeautyofherjoy,andtheforcedvivacityofthewomenaboutmeseemedsuddenlycoarseandinsincere。Somewonderfulredstones,brilliantasrubies,glitteredinamongthediaphanousblackdriftingsofherdress。
Sheaskedmeifthestoneswerenotverypretty,andsaidshegatheredtheminoneofhermountainriver-beds。
\"Butthegown?\"Isaid。\"Surely,youdonotgathergownslikethatinriver-beds,orpickthemoffmountain-pines?\"
\"ButyoucangettheminDenver。FatheralwayssenttoDenverformyfinery。HewasveryparticularabouthowIlooked。
Yousee,Iwasallhehad——\"Shebrokeoff,hervoicefaltering。
\"Comeoverbythewindow,\"Isaid,tochangeherthought。\"Ihavesomethingtorepeattoyou。ItisasongofSydneyLanier\'s。IthinkhewasthegreatestpoetthateverlivedinAmerica,thoughnotmanyagreewithme。Butheismydearfriendanyway,thoughheisdead,andI
neversawhim;andIwantyoutohearsomeofhiswords。”
Iledheracrosstoanopenwindow。Thedancerswerewhirlingbyus。Thewaltzwasoneofthosemelancholyoneswhichspeakthespiritofthedancemoreelo-
quentlythananymerrymelodycan。Thesoundoftheseaboomingbeyondinthedarknesscametous,andlongpathsoflight,nowred,nowgreen,stretchedtowardthedistantlight-house。ThesewerethelinesIrepeated:——
\"Whatheartache——ne\'erahill!
Inexorable,vapid,vague,andchillThedrearsandlevelsdrainmyspiritlow。
Withonepoorwordtheytellmealltheyknow;
Whereattheirstupidtongues,toteasemypain,Dodrawlito\'erando\'eragain。
TheyhurtmyheartwithgriefsIcannotname;
Alwaysthesame——thesame。”
ButIgotnofurther。Ifeltmyselfmovedwithasortofpassionwhichdidnotseemtocomefromwithin,buttobecommunicatedtomefromher。Acertainunfamiliarhap-
pinessprickedthroughwithpainthrilledme,andIheardherwhispering,——
\"Donotgoon,donotgoon!Icannotstanditto-night!\"
\"Hush,\"Iwhisperedback;\"comeoutforamoment!\"Westoleintotheduskwithout,andstoodtheretrembling。I
swayedwithheremotion。Therewasalongsilence。Thenshesaid:\"Fathermaybewalkingalonenowbytheblackcataract。
Thatiswherehegoeswhenheissad。I
canseehowlonelyhelooksamongthoselittletwistedpinesthatgrowfromtherock。
Andhewillberememberingalltheeveningswewalkedtheretogether,andallthethingswesaid。”Ididnotanswer。Hereyeswerestillonthesea。
\"Whatwasthenameofthemanwhowrotethatverseyoujustsaidtome?\"
Itoldher。
\"Andheisdead?Didtheyburyhiminthemountains?No?IwishIcouldhaveputhimwherehecouldhaveheardthosefourvoicescallingdownthecanyon。”
\"Comebackinthehouse,\"Isaid;\"youmustcome,indeed,\"Isaid,assheshrankfromre-entering。
JessicawasdancinglikeafairywithLe-
roy。Theybothsawusandsmiledaswecamein,andamomentlatertheyjoinedus。
ImademyexcusesandleftmyfriendstoJessica\'scare。Shewasasortofsocialtyrantwherevershewas,andIknewonewordfromherwouldinsurethepopularityofourfriends——notthattheyneededtheinterventionofanyone。Leroyhadbeenasortofdrawing-roompetsincebeforehestoppedwearingknickerbockers。
\"Heisathisbestinadrawing-room,\"
saidJessica,\"becausetherehedealswiththeoryandnotwithaction。Andhehassuchbeautifultheoriesthatthewomen,whoareallidealists,adorehim。”
ThenextmorningIawokewithacon-
victionthatIhadbeenidlingtoolong。I
wentbacktothecityandbrushedthedustfrommydesk。Theneachmorning,I,asJessicaputit,\"formedpublicopinion\"
totheextentofonecolumnadayinthecolumnsofacertainenterprisingmorningjournal。
BrainardsaidIhadtreatedhimshabbilytoleaveupontheheelsofhiscoming。Butamanwhoworksforhisbreadandbuttermustputalimittohisholiday。Itisdif-
ferentwhenyouonlyworktoaddtoyourgeneralpicturesqueness。ThatiswhatI
wroteLeroy,anditwastheunkindestthingIeversaidtohim;andwhyIdiditIdonotknowtothisday。Iwasglad,though,whenhefailedtoanswertheletter。Itgavemeamorereasonableexcuseforfeelingoutofpatiencewithhim。
Thedaysthatfollowedwereverydull。
Itwashardtogetbackintothewayofworking。IwasgladwhenJessicacamehometosetupourlittleestablishmentandtojoinintheautumngayeties。Brainardbroughthiswifetothecitysoonafter,andwenttohousekeepinginanoddsortofaway。
\"Icouldn\'tseeanythingintheplacesavecurios,\"Jessicareported,afterherfirstcallonthem。\"Isupposethereisacooking-
stovesomewhere,andmaybeevenapantrywithpotsinit。ButallIsawwasAlaskatotemsandNavajoblankets。TheyhaveasmanyskinsaroundonthefloorandcouchesaswouldhavesatisfiedanancientBriton。Andeverybodywascallingthere。
YouknowMr。Brainardrunstocuriosinselectinghisfriendsaswellashisfurniture。
Theparlorswerefullthisafternoonofab-
normalpeople,thatistosay,withfolksonereadsabout。Iwastheonlyonetherewhohadn\'tdonesomething。Iguessit\'sbe-
causeIamtoohealthy。”
\"HowdidMrs。Brainardlikesuchamotleycrew?\"
\"Shewaswonderful——perfectlywonder-
ful!Thoseinsultingcreatureswereallstudyingher,andsheknewit。Butherdignitywasperfect,andshelookedasproudasaSiouxchief。Shelistenedtoeveryone,andtheyallthoughthersobright。”
\"Brainardmusthavebeentremendouslyproudofher。”
\"Oh,hewas——ofherandhisChilcatportiè;res。”
Jessicawasthereoften,but——well,Iwasbusy。Atlength,however,Iwasforcedtogo。Jessicarefusedtomakeanyfurtherexcusesforme。Theroomswerefilledwithsmallcelebrities。
\"Wearetheonlynonentities,\"whisperedJessica,asshelookedaround;\"itwillmakeusquitedistinguished。”
Wewenttospeaktoourhostess。Shestoodbesideherhusband,lookingtallerthanever;andherfacewaswhite。Herlongredgownofclingingsilkwassope-
culiarastogiveonetheimpressionthatshewasdressedincharacter。ItwaseasytotellthatitwasoneofLeroy\'sfancies。I
hardlyheardwhatshesaid,butIknowshereproachedmegentlyfornothavingbeentoseethem。Ihadnofurtherwordwithhertillsomeoneledhertothepiano,andshepausedtosay,——
\"Thatpoetyouspokeoftome——theoneyousaidwasafriendofyours——heismyfriendnowtoo,andIhavelearnedtosingsomeofhissongs。Iamgoingtosingonenow。”Sheseemedtohavenotimidityatall,butstoodquietly,withahalfsmile,whileayoungmanwithaRussiannameplayedastrangeminorprelude。Thenshesang,hervoiceawonderfulcontralto,coldattimes,andagainlitupwithgleamsofpas-
sion。Themusicitselfwasfitful,nowfullofjoy,nowtender,andnowsad:
\"Lookoff,dearlove,acrossthesallowsands,Andmarkyonmeetingofthesunandsea,Howlongtheykissinsightofallthelands,Ah!longer,longerwe。”
\"Shehasageniusforfeeling,hasn\'tshe?\"Leroywhisperedtome。
\"Ageniusforfeeling!\"Irepeated,angrily。\"Man,shehasaheartandasoulandabrain,ifthatiswhatyoumean!I
shouldn\'tthinkyouwouldbeabletolookatherfromthestandpointofacritic。”
Leroyshruggedhisshouldersandwentoff。ForamomentIalmosthatedhimfornotfeelingmoreresentful。Ifeltasifheowedittohiswifetotakeoffenceatmyfoolishspeech。
Itwasevidentthatthe\"mountainwoman\"
hadbecomethefashion。Ireadreportsinthepapersaboutheruniquereceptions。I
sawhernameprintedconspicuouslyamongthelistofthosewhoattendedallsortsofdinnersandmusicalesandeveningsamongthesetthataffectedintellectualpursuits。
Shejoinedanumberofwomen\'sclubsofanexclusivekind。
\"Sheisdoingwhateverherhusbandtellsherto,\"saidJessica。\"Why,theotherdayIheardherruininghervoiceon\'Siegfried\'!\"
ButfromdaytodayInoticedadifferenceinher。Shedevelopedaterribleactivity。
Shetookpersonalchargeoftheaffairsofherhouse;sheunitedwithLeroyinkeep-
ingthehousefilledwithguests;shegotontheboardofahospitalforlittlechildren,andspentapartofeverydayamongthecotswherethesuffererslay。NowandthenwhenwespentaquieteveningalonewithherandLeroy,shesewedcontinuallyonlittlewhitenight-gownsforthesepoorbabies。
Sheusedhercarriagetotakethemostex-