第1章

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-