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+The Project Gutenberg EBook of John Gayther's Garden and the Stories Told
+Therein, by Frank R. Stockton
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: John Gayther's Garden and the Stories Told Therein
+
+Author: Frank R. Stockton
+
+Release Date: September 23, 2007 [EBook #22737]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ASCII
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK JOHN GAYTHER'S GARDEN ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by Alexander Bauer, Suzanne Shell and the Online
+Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+                 John Gayther's Garden and
+                 the Stories Told Therein
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration: "Are you going to ask me to marry your husband if
+you should happen to die?"]
+
+
+
+
+                 John Gayther's Garden and
+                 the Stories Told Therein
+                   By Frank R. Stockton
+
+
+                       _ILLUSTRATED_
+
+
+                  Charles Scribner's Sons
+
+                       New York 1902
+
+
+                    Copyright, 1902, by
+                  Charles Scribner's Sons
+
+                _Published November, 1902_
+
+
+                     THE DEVINNE PRESS
+
+
+
+
+                          CONTENTS
+
+
+                                                        PAGE
+
+      John Gayther's Garden                                3
+
+   I  What I Found in the Sea                              9
+         Told by John Gayther
+
+  II  The Bushwhacker Nurse                               39
+         Told by the Daughter of the House
+
+ III  The Lady in the Box                                 71
+         Told by John Gayther
+
+  IV  The Cot and the Rill                               109
+         Told by the Mistress of the House
+
+   V  The Gilded Idol and the King Conch-shell           155
+         Told by the Master of the House
+
+  VI  My Balloon Hunt                                    201
+         Told by the Frenchman
+
+ VII  The Foreign Prince and the Hermit's Daughter       223
+         Told by Pomona and Jonas
+
+VIII  The Conscious Amanda                               249
+         Told by the Daughter of the House
+
+  IX  My Translatophone                                  279
+         Told by the Old Professor
+
+   X  The Vice-consort                                   307
+         Told by the Next Neighbor
+
+  XI  Blackgum ag'in' Thunder                            341
+         Told by John Gayther
+
+
+
+
+                       ILLUSTRATIONS
+
+
+"Are you going to ask me to marry your husband
+if you should happen to die?"                   Frontispiece
+
+                                                 FACING PAGE
+
+The gardener began promptly                               74
+
+"I made him dig up whole beds of things"                 148
+
+The great beast was drawing up his hind legs
+and was climbing into the car                            214
+
+Miss Amanda listened with the most eager and
+overpowering attention                                   258
+
+And dreamed waking dreams of blessedness                 294
+
+"Do you mean," I cried, "that you would make
+him a better wife than I do?"                            336
+
+"Abner, did you ever hear about the eggs of the
+great auk?"                                              356
+
+
+
+
+                    JOHN GAYTHER'S GARDEN
+
+
+
+
+JOHN GAYTHER'S GARDEN
+
+
+The garden did not belong to John Gayther; he merely had charge of it.
+At certain busy seasons he had some men to help him in his work, but for
+the greater part of the year he preferred doing everything himself.
+
+It was a very fine garden over which John Gayther had charge. It
+extended this way and that for long distances. It was difficult to see
+how far it did extend, there were so many old-fashioned box hedges;
+so many paths overshadowed by venerable grape-arbors; and so many
+far-stretching rows of peach, plum, and pear trees. Fruit, bushes, and
+vines there were of which the roll need not be called; and flowers grew
+everywhere. It was one of the fancies of the Mistress of the House--and
+she inherited it from her mother--to have flowers in great abundance, so
+that wherever she might walk through the garden she would always find
+them.
+
+Often when she found them massed too thickly she would go in among them
+and thin them out with apparent recklessness, pulling them up by the
+roots and throwing them on the path, where John Gayther would come and
+find them and take them away. This heroic action on the part of the
+Mistress of the House pleased John very much. He respected the fearless
+spirit which did not hesitate to make sacrifices for the greater good,
+no matter how many beautiful blossoms she scattered on the garden path.
+John Gayther might have thinned out all this superfluous growth himself,
+but he knew the Mistress liked to do it, and he left for her gloved
+hands many tangled jungles of luxuriant bloom.
+
+The garden was old, and rich, and aristocratic. It acted generously in
+the way of fruit, flowers, and vegetables, as if that were something it
+was expected to do, an action to which it was obliged by its nobility.
+It would be impossible for it to forget that it belonged to a fine old
+house and a fine old family.
+
+John Gayther could not boast of lines of long descent, as could the
+garden and the family. He was comparatively a new-comer, and had not
+lived in that garden more than seven or eight years; but in that time he
+had so identified himself with the place, and all who dwelt upon it,
+that there were times when a stranger might have supposed him to be the
+common ancestor to the whole estate.
+
+John understood well the mysterious problems of the tillable earth, and
+he knew, as well as anybody could know, what answers to expect when he
+consulted the oracles of nature. He was an elderly man, and the gentle
+exercises of the garden were suited to the disposition of his mind and
+body. In days gone by he had been a sailor, a soldier, a miner, a
+ranchman, and a good many other things besides. In those earlier days,
+according to his own account, John had had many surprising adventures
+and experiences; but in these later times his memory was by far the
+most active and vigorous of all his moving forces. This memory was like
+a hazel wand in the hands of a man who is searching for hidden springs
+of water. Whenever he wished it to turn and point in any particular
+place or direction, it so turned and pointed.
+
+
+
+
+                      THIS STORY IS TOLD BY
+
+                           JOHN GAYTHER
+
+                          AND IS CALLED
+
+                     WHAT I FOUND IN THE SEA
+
+
+
+
+I
+
+WHAT I FOUND IN THE SEA
+
+
+It was on a morning in June that John Gayther was hoeing peas, drawing
+the fine earth up about their tender little stems as a mother would tuck
+the clothes about her little sleeping baby, when, happening to glance
+across several beds, and rows of box, he saw approaching the Daughter of
+the House. Probably she was looking for him, but he did not think she
+had yet seen him. He put down his hoe, feeling, as he did, that this
+June morning was getting very warm; and he gathered up an armful of
+pea-sticks which were lying near by. With these he made his way toward a
+little house almost in the middle of the garden, which was his fortress,
+his palace, his studio, or his workshop, as the case might be.
+
+It was a low building with a far-outreaching roof, and under the shade
+of this roof, outside of the little building, John liked to do his
+rainy-day and very-hot-weather work. From the cool interior came a smell
+of dried plants and herbs and bulbs and potted earth.
+
+When John reached this garden-house, the young lady was already there.
+She was not tall; her face was very white, but not pale; and her light
+hair fluffed itself all about her head, under her wide hat. She wore
+gold spectacles which greatly enhanced the effect of her large blue
+eyes. John thought she was the prettiest flower which had ever showed
+itself in that garden.
+
+"Good morning, John," she said. "I came here to ask you about plants
+suitable for goldfishes in a vase. My fishes do not seem to be satisfied
+with the knowledge that the plants through which they swim were put
+there to purify the water; they are all the time trying to eat them.
+Now it strikes me that there ought to be some plants which would be
+purifiers and yet good for the poor things to eat."
+
+John put down his bundle of pea-sticks by the side of a small stool.
+"Won't you sit down, miss?" pointing to a garden-bench near by, "and I
+will see what I can do for you." Then he seated himself upon the stool,
+took out his knife, and picked up a pea-stick.
+
+"The best thing for me to do," he said, "is to look over a book I have
+which will tell me just the kind of water plants which your goldfish
+ought to have. I will do that this evening, and then I will see to it
+that you shall have those plants, whatever they may be. I do not pretend
+to be much of a water gardener myself, but it's easy for me to find out
+what other people know." John now began to trim some of the lower twigs
+from a pea-stick.
+
+"Talking about water gardens, miss," he said, "I wish you could have
+seen some of the beautiful ones that I have come across!--more beautiful
+and lovely than anything on the top of the earth; you may be sure of
+that. I was reminded of them the moment you spoke to me about your
+goldfish and their plants."
+
+"Where were those gardens?" asked the young lady; "and what were they
+like?"
+
+"They were all on the bottom of the sea, in the tropics," said John
+Gayther, "where the water is so clear that with a little help you can
+see everything just as if it were out in the open air--bushes and vines
+and hedges; all sorts of tender waving plants, all made of seaweed and
+coral, growing in the white sand; and instead of birds flying about
+among their branches there were little fishes of every color:
+canary-colored fishes, fishes like robin-redbreasts, and others which
+you might have thought were blue jays if they had been up in the air
+instead of down in the water."
+
+"Where did you say all this is to be seen?" asked the Daughter of the
+House, who loved all lovely things.
+
+"Oh, in a good many places in warm climates," said John. "But, now I
+come to think of it, there was one place where I saw more beautiful
+sights, more grand and wonderful sights, under the water than I believe
+anybody ever saw before! Would you like me to tell you about it?"
+
+"Indeed--I--would!" said she, taking off her hat.
+
+John now began to sharpen the end of his pea-stick. "It was a good many
+years ago," said he, "more than twenty--and I was then a seafaring man.
+I was on board a brig, cruising in the West Indies, and we were off
+Porto Rico, about twenty miles northward, I should say, when we ran into
+something in the night,--we never could find out what it was,--and we
+stove a big hole in that brig which soon began to let in a good deal
+more water than we could pump out. The captain he was a man that knew
+all about that part of the world, and he told us all that we must work
+as hard as we could at the pumps, and if we could keep her afloat until
+he could run her ashore on a little sandy island he knew of not far from
+St. Thomas, we might be saved. There was a fresh breeze from the west,
+and he thought he could make the island before we sank.
+
+"I was mighty glad to hear him say this, for I had always been nervous
+when I was cruising off Porto Rico. Do you know, miss, that those waters
+are the very deepest in the whole world?"
+
+"No," said she; "I never heard that."
+
+"Well, they are," said John. "If you should take the very tallest
+mountain there is in any part of the earth and put it down north of
+Porto Rico, so that the bottom of it shall rest on the bottom of the
+sea, the top of that mountain would be sunk clean out of sight, so that
+ships could sail over it just as safely as they sail in any part of the
+ocean.
+
+"Of course a man would drown just as easily in a couple of fathoms of
+water as in this deep place; but it is perfectly horrible to think of
+sinking down, down, down into the very deepest water-hole on the face of
+the whole earth."
+
+"Didn't you have any boats?" asked the young lady.
+
+"We hadn't any," said John. "We had sold all of them about two months
+before to a British merchantman who had lost her boats in a cyclone. One
+of the things our captain wanted to get to St. Thomas for was to buy
+some more boats. He heard he could get some cheap ones there.
+
+"Well, we pumped and sailed as well as we could, but we hadn't got
+anywhere near that sandy island the captain was making for, when, one
+morning after breakfast, our brig, which was pretty low in the water by
+this time, gave a little hitch and a grind, and stuck fast on something;
+and if we hadn't been lively in taking in all sail there would have been
+trouble. But the weather was fine, and the sea was smooth, and when we
+had time to think about what had happened we were resting on the surface
+of the sea, just as quiet and tranquil as if we had been a toy ship in a
+shop-window.
+
+"What we had stuck on was a puzzle indeed! As I said before, our captain
+knew all about that part of the sea, and, although he knew we were in
+shallow soundings, he was certain that there wasn't any shoal or rock
+thereabout that we could get stuck on.
+
+"We sounded all around the brig, and found lots of water at the stern,
+but not so much forward. We were stuck fast on something, but nobody
+could imagine what it was. However, we were not sinking any deeper, and
+that was a comfort; and the captain he believed that if we had had boats
+we could row to St. Thomas; but we didn't have any boats, so we had to
+make the best of it. He put up a flag of distress, and waited till some
+craft should come along and take us off.
+
+"The captain and the crew didn't seem to be much troubled about what
+had happened, for so long as the sea did not get up they could make
+themselves very comfortable as they were. But there were two men on
+board who didn't take things easy. They wanted to know what had
+happened, and they wanted to know what was likely to happen next. I was
+one of these men, and a stock-broker from New York was the other. He was
+an awful nervous, fidgety, meddling sort of a man, who was on this
+cruise for the benefit of his health, which must have been pretty well
+worn out with howling, and yelling, and trying to catch profits like a
+lively boy catches flies. He was always poking his nose into all sorts
+of things that didn't concern him, and spent about half of his time
+trying to talk the captain into selling his brig and putting the money
+into Pacific Lard--or it might have been Mexican Balloon stock, as well
+as I remember. This man was tingling all over with anxiety to find out
+what we had stuck on; but as he could not stick his nose into the water
+and find out, and as there was nobody to tell him, he had to keep on
+tingling.
+
+"I was just as wild to know what it was the brig was resting on as the
+stock-broker was; but I had the advantage of him, for I believed that I
+could find out, and, at any rate, I determined to try. Did you ever hear
+of a water-glass, miss?"
+
+"No, I never did," said the Daughter of the House, who was listening
+with great interest.
+
+"Well, I will try to describe one to you," said John Gayther. "You make
+a light box about twenty inches high and a foot square, and with both
+ends open. Then you get a pane of glass and fasten it securely in one
+end of this box. Then you've got your water-glass--a tall box with a
+glass bottom.
+
+"The way that you use it is this: You get in a boat, and put the box in
+the water, glass bottom down. Then you lean over and put your head into
+the open end, and if you will lay something over the back of your head
+as a man does when he is taking photographs, so as to keep out the light
+from above, it will be all the better. Then, miss, you'd be perfectly
+amazed at what you could see through that glass at the bottom of the
+box! Even in northern regions, where the water is heavy and murky, you
+can see a good way down; but all about the tropics, where the water is
+often so thin and clear that you can see the bottom in some places with
+nothing but your naked eyes, it is perfectly amazing what you can see
+with a water-glass! It doesn't seem a bit as if you were looking down
+into the sea; it is just like gazing about in the upper air. If it isn't
+too deep, things on the bottom--fishes swimming about, everything--is
+just as plain and distinct as if there wasn't any water under you and
+you were just looking down from the top of a house.
+
+"Well, I made up my mind that the only way for me to find out what it
+was that was under the brig was to make a water-glass and look down into
+the sea; and so I made one, taking care not to let the stock-broker know
+anything about it, for I didn't want any of his meddling in my business.
+I had to tell the captain, but he said he would keep his mouth shut, for
+he didn't like the stock-broker any more than I did.
+
+"Well, miss, I made that water-glass. And when the stock-broker was
+taking a nap, for he was clean tired out poking about and asking
+questions and trying to find out what he might get out of the business
+if he helped to save the brig, the captain and I, with a few men,
+quietly let down into the water the aft hatch, one of those big doors
+they cover the hatchways with, and when that was resting on the water
+it made a very good raft for one man. And I got down on it, with my
+water-glass and an oar.
+
+"The first thing I did, of course, was to paddle around the brig to the
+place where she had been stove in. She wasn't leaking any more, because
+the water inside of her was just as high as the water outside; so, if we
+could do anything, this was the time to do it. I looked down into the
+water on our starboard bow, and I soon found the place where the brig
+had been stove in, probably by some water-logged piece of wreckage. I
+located the hole exactly, and I reported to the captain, who was leaning
+over the side. Then I paddled around the brig to see if I could find out
+what we were resting on.
+
+"When I had sunk my water-glass well into the water, and had got my
+head into the top of it, I looked down on a scene which seemed like
+fairyland. The corals and water plants of different colors, and the
+white glistening sand, and the fishes, big and little, red, yellow,
+pink, and blue, swimming about among the branches just as if they had
+wings instead of fins, that I told you of just now, were all there; and
+the light down under the water seemed so clear and bright that I could
+see everything under me that was as big as a pea."
+
+"That must have been an entrancing vision!" said the Daughter of the
+House.
+
+"Indeed it was," replied John Gayther. "But, would you believe me, miss?
+I didn't look at it for more than half a minute; for when I turned my
+water-glass so that I could look under the brig, I could not give a
+thought to anything else in the world except the astonishing objects
+our brig was resting on.
+
+"At first I could not believe my eyes. I paddled around and around, and
+I put down my water-glass, and I stared and I stared, until I felt as if
+my eyes were coming out of my head! At last I had to believe what I saw.
+There was no use trying to think that my eyes had made a mistake. It was
+all just as plain to me as you are now.
+
+"Down in the water, resting on the bottom of this shallow part of the
+sea, were two great ships--ships of the olden time, with enormously high
+poops, which were the stern part of old-fashioned vessels, built 'way up
+high like a four-story house. These two antiquated vessels were lying
+side by side and close together, with their tall poops reaching far up
+toward the surface of the sea; and right on top of them, resting partly
+on one ship and partly on the other, was our brig, just as firmly fixed
+as if she had been on the stocks in a shipyard!
+
+"The whole thing was so wonderful that it nearly took away my breath. I
+got around to the stern of the brig, and then I stared down at the two
+vessels under her until I forgot there was anything else in this whole
+world than those two great old-fashioned ships and myself. The more I
+looked the more certain I became that no such vessels had floated on the
+top of the sea for at least two hundred years. From what I had read
+about old-time ships, and from the pictures I had seen of them, I made
+up my mind that one of those vessels was an old Spanish galleon; and the
+other one looked to me very much as if it were an English-built ship."
+
+"And how did they ever happen to be wrecked there, side by side?" almost
+gasped the young lady.
+
+"Oh, they had been fighting," said John. "There could be no mistake
+about that. They had been fighting each other to the death, and they had
+gone down together, side by side. And there was our brig, two hundred
+years afterwards, resting quietly on top of both of them.
+
+"I was still wrapped up, body and soul, in this wonderful discovery,
+when I heard a hail from the stern of the brig, and there was that
+stock-broker, shouting to me to know what I was looking at. Of course
+that put an end to my observations, and I paddled to the side and got on
+board.
+
+"'Lend me that box,' said the stock-broker, 'and let me get down on your
+raft. What is it you've been looking at, and what did you see in that
+box?'
+
+"But he had got hold of the wrong man. 'No, sir,' said I. 'Find a box
+for yourself, if you want one.' And I held mine so that he could not see
+that the bottom of it was glass. Then the captain came along and told
+him not to try to get down on that hatch, for if he did he would topple
+into the water and get himself drowned, which would have been certain to
+happen, for he could not swim. Then the hatch was hauled on deck, and I
+went below with the captain to his cabin to tell him what I had seen.
+The stock-broker tried awfully hard to come with us, but we wouldn't let
+him.
+
+"When the captain had heard all I had to tell him, he wasn't struck
+sentimentally the least bit, as I had been. It did not make any more
+difference to him whether those two ships had been down there two
+hundred years or two years; but there was another part to the affair
+that was very interesting to him.
+
+"'Gayther,' said he, 'it's ten to one that them ships has got treasure
+aboard, and what we've got to do is to form a company and go to work and
+get it.'
+
+"'And how would you do that?' said I.
+
+"The captain was from Provincetown, Cape Cod, and it didn't take him two
+seconds to work out his whole plan.
+
+"'It's this way,' said he. 'The first thing to do is to form a company.
+I am president and you can be the other officers. When that is all fixed
+we can go to work, and we'll mend that hole in our bow. Now if you know
+just where it is, we'll work day and night in that hold, water or no
+water, and we'll stop it up. Then we'll pump the brig out, and I believe
+she'll float. Then we'll mark this place with a buoy, and we'll sail
+away as fast as we can, with our company all formed and everything fixed
+and settled. Then we'll come back with the vessels and machines, and
+we'll get out that treasure. We'll divide it into three parts. One part
+will be mine; one part will be yours; and the other part will go to the
+crew.'
+
+"'And how about the stock-broker?' said I. 'Going to let him in the
+company?'
+
+"'No, sir,' said the captain, bringing his fist down on the table.
+'Whatever else happens, he is to be kept out.'
+
+"This was a very fine plan, but it didn't altogether suit me. I didn't
+want to sail away from that spot and perhaps never see those two ships
+again. There was no knowing what more I might find out with my
+water-glass if that stock-broker could be kept from bothering me.
+
+"I told the captain this, and he looked hard at me and he said: 'It will
+take a couple of days to mend that leak and to pump out the brig. If
+this fine weather keeps on I think we can do it in that time. And if
+while we are working at it you choose to try to find out more about them
+two ships, you can do it.'
+
+"'And how can I do it?' said I.
+
+"'If you can go down in a diver's suit you can do it,' said he. 'I don't
+know whether you know anything about that business, but if you want to
+try, I have got a whole kit on board, air-pump, armor, and everything.
+It belongs to a diver that was out with me about a year ago in the Gulf
+of Mexico. He had to go North to attend to some business, and he told me
+he would let me know when he would come back and get his diving-kit. But
+he hasn't come back yet, and the whole business is stowed away here on
+board. Do you know anything about going down in a diving-suit?'
+
+"Now I had never done anything in the way of diving, but I had heard a
+good deal about it, and I had seen divers at work, and my whole soul was
+so jumping and shouting inside of me at the very idea of going down and
+searching into the secrets of those two old ships that I told the
+captain I was ready to undertake the diving business just the minute he
+could get things in shape.
+
+"Well, miss, early the next morning--and I can tell you I didn't sleep
+much that night--everything was ready for me to go down, and two of the
+crew who had done that sort of thing before were detailed to attend to
+the air-pumps and all the other business. The stock-broker he was like a
+bee on a window-pane; he was buzzing, and kicking, and bumping his head
+trying to find out what we expected to do. But the captain wouldn't tell
+him anything; you may be sure I wouldn't; and nobody else knew.
+
+"As soon as we could get things straightened out I was lowered over the
+side of the brig, and sunk out of sight into the water. The captain and
+all the crew, except the men who were attending to me, then went to work
+to mend the hole in the side of the brig. And the last thing I heard as
+I went under the water was the stock-broker howling and yelling and
+rampaging around the deck.
+
+"As I told you before, miss, I had never been down in a diving-suit; but
+I paid the greatest attention to everything I knew, and I got down to
+the bottom all right, having a hard time to keep from being scratched to
+pieces by the barnacles on the sterns of the big ships.
+
+"I clumped about for a while on the sandy bottom so as to get familiar
+with the air-tubes, signal-cords, and all that, and then I signalled to
+be hauled up a bit; and, after a good deal of trouble, I got on board
+the vessel which I was sure was a Spanish galleon. As I stood on her
+upper deck, looking around, I felt as if I was in a world of wonders.
+There was water everywhere, of course--in and around and about
+everything. But I could see so plainly that I forgot that I was not
+moving about in the open air.
+
+"I can't tell you, miss, everything I saw on that great ship, for it
+would take too long; but as soon as I could, I set to work to see if I
+could find the treasure that I hoped was on board of her. Here and there
+about the decks I saw swords and pistols and old cannon, but not a sign
+of any of the brave fellows that had fought the ship, for the fish had
+eaten them up long ago, bones and all.
+
+"While hunting about, and being careful to keep my air-tube from
+fouling, I looked into a cabin with the door open; and you will believe
+me, miss, when I tell you that a cold chill ran down my back when I saw
+something moving inside, just as if it was a man getting up to see what
+I wanted. It turned out to be a big fish, about half my size, and he did
+not ask any questions, but just swam through the open door, almost
+brushing me, and went his way."
+
+"I wonder you weren't frightened to death!" said the Daughter of the
+House.
+
+"It would be hard to kill me with fright," said John Gayther, "and I'll
+prove that to you, miss. As I moved on, still looking for the treasure,
+I came to the door of another cabin, and this was shut and bolted on the
+outside. I had a hatchet with me, and with this I knocked back the bolts
+and forced open the door; and there I saw something to make anybody
+jump. Sitting on a locker, right in front of the door, was the skeleton
+of a man. The room had been shut up so tight that no fish big enough to
+eat bones could get in; but the little things that live in the water and
+can get through any crack had eaten all of that man except his bones,
+his gold buttons, that were lying about on the floor, the golden
+embroidery of his uniform, that was still hanging about on his skeleton,
+and the iron fetters on his hands and feet. He was most likely a
+prisoner of rank who was being taken back to Spain, and he had been shut
+up there through all the fight.
+
+"The first thought that came into my mind when I looked at him was that
+he might be Columbus, and that the Spaniards had made up the story about
+their really getting him back to Spain at the time when he was to be
+brought home in irons. But thinking more about it, I knew that this
+could not be true, and so I shut the door so as to keep the poor fellow
+from any intrusions so long as he might happen to stay there.
+
+"Then I went to work in real earnest to find the treasure, and I tell
+you, miss, I did find it."
+
+"What!" exclaimed the Daughter of the House. "You really found the
+treasure on that Spanish galleon?"
+
+"Indeed I did," replied John Gayther. "It was in boxes stowed away in a
+big room in the stern. I smashed the door, and there were the boxes. I
+went to work at one of them with my hatchet; and I had just forced up
+one corner of the lid, and had seen that it was filled with big gold
+pieces, when I felt a pull on my signal-rope, and knew that they wanted
+me to come up. So I put my fingers into the crack and got out a few of
+the coins. I could not take a whole box; it would have been too heavy.
+And then I went out of that room, and signalled that I was ready to go
+up. It was time, I can tell you, miss, for I was getting mighty nervous
+and excited, and I needed rest and something to eat.
+
+"When I was safe on the deck of the brig, I found everybody gathered
+there, waiting to hear what I had to tell. They had stopped work for
+dinner, and that is the reason I had been signalled.
+
+"But I didn't say anything to anybody. As soon as my helmet was
+unscrewed and I was out of my diving-suit I went below with the
+captain; and although the stock-broker followed us close and nearly
+pushed himself into the cabin, we shut the door on him and kept him out.
+Then I told the captain everything, and I showed him the three gold
+coins, which I had kept all the time tightly clinched in my right hand.
+I can tell you the eyes of both of us were wide open when we looked at
+those coins. Two of them were dated sixteen hundred and something, and
+one of them fifteen hundred. They were big fellows, worth about ten
+dollars apiece. The captain took them and locked them up.
+
+"'Now,' said he, 'do you think you will be able to go down again to-day?
+If you want to see what's in the other ship you've got to be lively
+about it, for I think we can get the brig pumped out in twenty-four
+hours; and if a stiff breeze should spring up to-morrow afternoon--and I
+am inclined to think it will--we don't want to be caught here. If the
+other ship's a treasure-ship,' he went on to say, 'you know it would be
+a good deal better for our company; and so it might be well to find
+out.'
+
+"I didn't need any spurring to make me go down again, for I was all on
+fire to know what was on board the other ship, which I was sure was
+English, having had a good opportunity of looking at it while I was down
+there.
+
+"So as soon as I had taken a rest and had had my dinner, I went on deck
+to get ready for another diving expedition. There was the stock-broker,
+watching me like a snake watching a bird. He didn't stamp around and ask
+any more questions: he just kept his venomous eye on me as if he would
+like to kill me because I knew more than he did. But I didn't concern
+myself about him, and down I went, and this time I got myself aboard the
+English vessel just as soon as I could.
+
+"It wasn't as interesting as the old Spanish vessel, but still I saw
+enough to fill up a book if I had time to tell it. There were more signs
+of fighting than there had been on the other ship. Muskets and swords
+were scattered about everywhere, and, although she was plainly a
+merchant-vessel, she had a lot of the small cannon used in those days.
+
+"I looked about a great deal, and it struck me that she had been a
+merchantman trading with the West Indies, but glad enough to fight a
+Spanish treasure-ship if she happened to come across one. It was more
+than likely that her crew had been a regular set of half-buccaneers,
+willing to trade if there was trade, and fight if there was any fighting
+on hand. Anyway, the two vessels had had a tough time of it, and each
+of them had met her match. I could see the grappling-irons which had
+fastened them together. They had blown so many holes in each other's
+sides that they had gone to the bottom as peaceably as a pair of twins
+holding each other by the hands.
+
+"I worked hard on that English ship, and I went everywhere where I dared
+to go, but I couldn't find any signs that she had carried treasure. I
+hadn't the least doubt that she was on an outward voyage, and that the
+Spaniard was homeward bound.
+
+"At last I got down into the hold, and there I found a great number of
+big hogsheads, that were packed in so well under the deck that they had
+never moved in all these years. Of course I wanted to know what was in
+them, for, although it would not be gold or silver, it might be
+something almost as precious if it happened to be spirits of the olden
+time.
+
+"After banging and working for some time I got out the bung of one of
+these hogsheads, and immediately air began to bubble up, and I could
+hear the water running in. It was plain the hogshead was empty, and I
+clapped the bung in again as quick as I could. I wasn't accustomed to
+sounding barrels or hogsheads under water, but as I knew this was an
+empty one I sounded it with my hatchet; and then I went around and got
+the same kind of a sound from each of the others that I hammered on.
+They were all empty, every blessed one of them.
+
+"Now I was certain that this vessel had been outward bound; she had been
+taking out empty hogsheads, and had expected to carry them back full of
+West Indian rum, which was a mighty profitable article of commerce in
+those days. But she had fallen into temptation, and had gone to the
+bottom; and here were her hogsheads just as tight and just as empty as
+on the day she set sail from England.
+
+"As I stood looking at the great wall of empty hogsheads in front of me,
+wondering if it would not be better to give up searching any more on
+this vessel, which evidently had not been laden with anything valuable,
+and go again on board the Spanish ship and make some sort of a plan for
+fastening lines to those treasure-boxes so that they might be hauled up
+on board the brig, I began to feel a sort of trouble with my breath, as
+if I might suffocate if I did not get out soon. I knew, of course, that
+something was the matter with my air-supply, and I signalled for them to
+pump lively. But it was of no use; my supply of fresh air seemed to be
+cut off. I began to gasp. I was terribly frightened, you may be sure;
+for, with air gone and no answer to my signals, I must perish. I jerked
+savagely at my signal-cord to let them know that I wanted to be pulled
+up,--it was possible that I might reach the surface before being
+suffocated,--but the cord offered no resistance; I pulled it toward me
+as I jerked. It had been cut or broken.
+
+"Then I took hold of my air-tube and pulled it. It, too, was unattached
+at the other end; it had no connection with the air-pump.
+
+"Breathing with great difficulty, and with my legs trembling under me, a
+thought flashed through my mind. As rapidly as possible I drew in the
+india-rubber air-tube. Presently I had the loose end of it in my hand.
+Then I caught hold of the bung of the hogshead which I had opened and
+which was just in front of me, and the instant I pulled it out I thrust
+in the end of the air-tube. To my great delight, it fitted tightly in
+the bung-hole. And now in an instant I felt as if I was sitting upon the
+pinnacles of Paradise. Air, fresh air, came to me through the tube! Not
+in abundance, not freely, for there was some water in the tube and there
+was a good deal of gurgling. But it was air, fresh air; and every time
+an exhaled breath escaped through the valve in my helmet, a little air
+from the hogshead came in to take its place.
+
+"I stood for a while, weak with happiness. I did not know what had
+happened; I did not care. I could breathe; that was everything in the
+world to me.
+
+"By gradually raising the tube a few feet at a time I managed to empty
+the water it contained into the hogshead, and then I breathed more
+easily. As I did not wish to wait until the air in the hogshead had
+been exhausted, I went to work on the bung in the next one, and soon
+transferred the end of my tube to that, which would probably last me a
+good while, for it was almost entirely free from water.
+
+"Now I began to cogitate and wonder. I pulled in the end of the
+signal-cord, and I found it had not been rubbed and torn by barnacles;
+the end of it had been clean cut with a knife. I remembered that this
+was the case with the air-tube; as I placed it into the bung-hole of the
+first hogshead I had noticed how smoothly it had been severed.
+
+"Now I felt a tug at the rope by which I was raised and lowered. I
+didn't like this. If I should be pulled up I might be jerked away from
+my air-supply and suffocate before I got to the surface. So I took a
+turn of the rope around a stick of timber near by, and they might pull
+as much as they chose without disturbing me. There I stood, and thought,
+and wondered. But, above everything, I could not help feeling all the
+time how good that air was! It seemed to go through every part of me. It
+was better than wine; it was better than anything I had ever breathed or
+tasted. A little while ago I was on the point of perishing. Now before
+me there were tiers of hogsheads full of air! If it had not been that I
+would be obliged to eat, I might have stayed down there as long as I
+pleased.
+
+"I had stayed a long time, and I was at work on the air in a third
+hogshead--not having half used up the contents of the other two--before
+I really made up my mind as to what had happened. I was sure that there
+had been foul play, and I felt quite as sure that the stock-broker was
+at the bottom of it. Except that man, there was no one on board the brig
+who would wish to do me a harm. The stock-broker he hated me; I had seen
+that in his face as plainly as if it had been painted on a sign-board. I
+knew something which he did not know; I was trying to get something
+which was to be kept a secret from him. If I could be put out of the way
+he probably thought he might have some sort of a chance. I could not
+fathom the man's mind, but that's the way it looked to me.
+
+"I had been down there a long time, and it must have been getting toward
+the end of the afternoon; so I prepared to leave my watery retirement.
+I had made a plan, and it worked very well. I placed the end of my
+air-tube far into the bung-hole of the hogshead, so that I might not
+accidentally pull it out; I loosened myself from the bit of timber; and
+then I made my way to the bow of the vessel on which I was. Looking
+upward, I found that our brig, which was resting on the tall poops of
+the two sunken vessels, was so suspended above me that her fore chains,
+which ran under her bowsprit, were almost over my head.
+
+"Now I stood and took some long, deep breaths; then, having made
+everything ready, I jerked myself out of that diving-suit in a very few
+seconds, and, standing free, I gave a great leap upward, and went
+straight to the surface. I am a good swimmer, and with a few strokes I
+caught the chains. Stealthily I clambered up, making not the least
+noise, and peeped over the rail. There was nobody forward. The whole
+ship's company seemed to be crowded aft, where there was a great stir
+and confusion. I slipped quietly over the rail and, without being seen
+by anybody, made my way into the forecastle. I hurried to my sea-chest.
+I took off my wet things and dressed myself in an almost new suit of
+shore clothes which I had never worn on the brig. I did not lose any
+more time than I could help, but I took unusual care in dressing myself.
+I put on a new pair of yellow shoes, and turned up the bottom of my
+trousers so as to show my red socks. I had a big felt hat which I had
+bought in Mexico, with a little feather in it; and this I put on,
+pulling it rakishly over on one side. I put around my neck a long blue
+silk cravat with white spots, which I tied in the biggest bow I could
+make. Then, feeling that I ought to have something in my hands, I picked
+up a capstan-bar, and laying it across my arm after the manner of a
+cutlass, I went boldly on deck.
+
+"Making as much noise as possible, and advancing with what you might
+call a majestic tread, I strode to the stern of that brig. At first my
+approach was not noticed, for there was still a great hubbub, and
+everybody seemed to be shouting or swearing or shaking his fist. The
+stock-broker stood on one side, and his tongue was going as fast as
+anybody's; but I noticed that his hands were tied behind him, and there
+was a rope around his neck.
+
+"The captain was the first to see me. He gave me just one look; he
+turned pale; and then, with a sort of a scared grunt, down he went on
+his knees.
+
+"When the rest of the men laid eyes on me, you never saw such a scared
+lot in your life. Their mouths and their eyes went open, and their
+swarthy faces were as white as you could wash a dirty sail. Some of
+them shook so that their caps fell off, and one or two began to pray.
+
+"As to the stock-broker, he at first seemed greatly startled; but he
+recovered himself in a moment. There was nothing superstitious about
+him, and he knew well enough that I was no spirit risen from the deep,
+but a living man.
+
+"'Ha, ha!' he shouted. 'Here you are, after trying to rob and cheat us,
+and making believe to be dead, you water thief!--hiding safe and sound
+on deck while such a row is being raised here about your death, and all
+sorts of threats being made against me on account of it. Look at him, my
+brave men!' said he, turning to the crew; 'look at the fellow who has
+been trying to rob us! And he is the man you ought to hang to the
+yard-arm!'
+
+"Then he turned again to me. 'You are a fool of a thief, anyway. After
+you had gone down under this vessel I found your box with the glass in
+the bottom of it. I got down close to the water and I watched you. I saw
+you going about in that big sunken ship looking after treasure, and, no
+doubt, finding it; filling your pockets with gold and telling nobody. I
+didn't want to kill you when I cut your air-tube, as I have told these
+good sailors; but I wanted to make you stop stealing and come up, and I
+did it. The treasure under this vessel belongs to us all, and you have
+no right to make a secret business out of it, and keep it for yourself
+and the captain. Now, my good men,' he shouted to the crew, 'there is
+the fellow you ought to hang! Look at him, dressed up in fine clothes,
+while you thought he was soaked and dead at the bottom of the sea! Hang
+him up, I say! Then we'll get the treasure, and we'll divide it among
+us fair and even.'
+
+"This was a dangerous moment for me. The men had recovered from their
+fright. They saw I was no spirit, and they believed that I had been
+trying to deceive and defraud them. A good many of them drew their
+knives and came toward me, the stock-broker urging them on. The captain
+tried to restrain the men who were near him, but they pushed him aside.
+
+"I now stepped forward; I pulled my great hat still further over my
+face; I glared at the men before me; and I brought my capstan-bar with a
+tremendous thump upon the deck.
+
+"'Sirrah, varlets!' I roared. 'What mean ye? Stop where ye are, and if
+one man of ye comes nearer I'll cleave him to the chine! Caitiffs!
+varlets! hounds! dare ye threaten me? Ods-bodikins, I like it well! By
+our lady, ye are a merry set of mariners who draw your blades upon a man
+who is come upon this deck to tell ye how to fill your pockets with old
+gold! Back there, every man of ye, and put up your knives, ere I split
+your heads and toss ye into the sea!'
+
+"As I spoke these words my voice and tones were so loud and terrible
+that I almost frightened myself. The crew fell back as I advanced a step
+or two, and every man of them sheathed his knife. Even the stock-broker
+seemed to be overawed by my tremendous voice and my fierce appearance."
+
+"John Gayther," said the Daughter of the House, who had been listening
+very eagerly, "what made you talk like that, and strut about, and pound
+the deck? That's not like you. I would not have supposed that you ever
+could have acted so."
+
+"You will understand it all, miss," said the gardener, "when you
+remember that for nearly two hours I had been breathing the atmosphere
+of the sixteenth century. That atmosphere was the air which for two
+hundred years had been fastened up in those empty hogsheads. I had drawn
+it into my lungs; it had gone into my blood, my nerves, my brain. I was
+as a man who swash-buckles--a reckless mariner of the olden time. I
+longed to take my cutlass in my teeth and board a Spaniard. As I looked
+upon the villainous stock-broker before me, I felt as if I could take
+him by the throat, plunge down with him to the deck of the Spanish
+galleon, and shut him up fast and tight in the room with that manacled
+Spaniard who could not have been Columbus. I thrilled with a fierce
+longing for combat. It was the air of the sixteenth century which had
+permeated my every pore.
+
+"Now I fixed upon the stock-broker a terrible glare and stepped toward
+him. 'Money miscreant!' I yelled, 'you it was who tried first to murder
+me, and then to turn the hearts of all these good men against me!' I
+raised my capstan-bar in the air. 'Aroint thee, fiend!' I yelled. 'Get
+thee below; and if anon I see thee I will break thy dastardly skull!'
+
+"At this the stock-broker, frightened nearly out of his wits, and with
+his hands still tied and the rope around his neck, made a dive for the
+companionway, and disappeared below. I stood up very bold; I threw out
+my chest, and gazed around in triumph. The air of the sixteenth century
+had saved me! Those men would have no more dared to attack me, as I
+stood roaring out my defiance and my threat, than they would have
+ventured to give battle to the boldest and the blackest of all bloody
+buccaneers.
+
+"I now called the men around me, and I told them all my story. You may
+imagine that they opened their eyes and mouths so wide that I thought
+some of them would never get them shut again. But the captain--he was
+from Provincetown, Cape Cod, and he went straight to business.
+
+"'We've mended the leak,' said he, 'and we'll pump all night, and it may
+be to-morrow we shall float free. Then we'll form a company for the
+recovery of the treasure on that Spanish galleon. I will take one third
+of it; Mr. Gayther shall have one third; and one third shall be divided
+among the crew. Then we'll anchor a buoy near this spot and sail away,
+to come back again as soon as may be.'
+
+"Everybody agreed to this, and we all went to supper. Early the next
+morning a breeze blew very fresh from the southwest; then it increased
+to a gale; and before ten o'clock the waves began to run so high that
+one of them lifted the brig clean off the sunken ships on which she had
+been resting, and we were afloat. In ten seconds more we were lying
+broadside to the wind. Then indeed we had to skip around lively, get up
+some sails, and put her properly on the wind. Before we had time to draw
+an easy breath we were scudding along, far from the spot which we had
+intended to mark with an anchored buoy. There was a good deal of water
+in the hold, but the brig went merrily on as if glad to get away from
+those two old sea spectres of the past with which she had been keeping
+such close company.
+
+"Of course it was impossible to beat up against such a wind, and so we
+kept on toward St. Thomas. The captain had carefully taken the longitude
+and latitude of the spot where we had been stranded on the ancient
+ships, and he was sure he could find the place again by sounding in fair
+weather.
+
+"Before we reached port, he came on deck with the three gold pieces
+which I had brought up from the Spanish galleon. One of these he put
+into his own pocket; one he gave to me; and the other he gave to the
+crew to be changed into small coin and divided. The stock-broker got
+nothing, and I saw him no more on that voyage. I had sworn to break his
+head if my eyes ever fell upon him, and he was wise enough to keep out
+of my sight."
+
+"And that is all the money you ever got from the galleon?" asked the
+Daughter of the House.
+
+"Yes," said John Gayther, "that was all. I have the ancient gold piece
+in my room now, and some day I will show it to you.
+
+"As soon as we could do it, we all went with the captain to New York,
+and there we organized our company, and sold a lot of stock, and
+chartered a good steamer with derricks and everything necessary for
+raising sunken treasure. But, although the weather was fair, and we
+sounded and sounded day after day at the very point of longitude and
+latitude where we had left the two great ships of the olden time, we
+never could find them.
+
+"One day, just before we had concluded to give up the search, we saw
+another vessel not far away, also sounding. This we afterwards heard
+belonged to the stock-broker. He had chartered a steamer, and he had on
+board of her a president, a secretary, a treasurer, a board of trustees,
+and four derricks. We steamed away and soon left him, and I am very sure
+that if his company had ever declared any dividends I should have heard
+of it."
+
+"And that is the end of your story, John Gayther?" said the Daughter of
+the House, as she rose from her seat.
+
+"Yes, miss; that is the end of it," replied the gardener.
+
+The young lady said no more, but walked away in quiet reflection, while
+John Gayther picked up the only pea-stick on which he had been at work
+that morning.
+
+
+
+
+                      THIS STORY IS TOLD BY
+
+                    THE DAUGHTER OF THE HOUSE
+
+                          AND IS CALLED
+
+                      THE BUSHWHACKER NURSE
+
+
+
+
+II
+
+THE BUSHWHACKER NURSE
+
+
+The Daughter of the House, her fair cheeks a little flushed, walked
+rapidly down the broad centre path of the garden, looking for John
+Gayther, the gardener. She soon saw him at work in a bed of
+tomato-plants.
+
+"John," said she, "I have just finished composing a story, and I came
+out to tell it to you before I write it. I want to do this because you
+compose stories yourself which in some ways are a good deal like this
+of mine. But I can't tell it to you out here in the sun. Isn't there
+something you can do in your little house? Haven't you some pea-sticks
+to sharpen?"
+
+"Oh, yes, miss," said John Gayther, with great alacrity; "and if you
+will go and make yourself comfortable under the shed I will be there in
+a few minutes."
+
+It was rather difficult for John Gayther to find any pea-sticks which
+had not already been stuck into the ground or which wanted sharpening,
+but he succeeded in getting a small armful of them, and with these he
+came to where the young lady was seated. He drew up a stool and took out
+a big knife.
+
+"Now," said she, gazing through her gold-rimmed spectacles far out into
+the sunlit garden, "this is the story of a girl."
+
+John Gayther nodded approvingly. The story of a girl was exactly what he
+would like to hear, provided it was told by the young lady who sat in
+front of him.
+
+"She was of an independent turn of mind," said the Daughter of the
+House, "and there were a great many things in this world which bored
+her, not because they were uninteresting in themselves, but because she
+could not enjoy them in the way which suited her. She had thought of
+hundreds of things she would like to do if she only could do them in her
+own way and without control by other people. She was very anxious to
+perform deeds, noble deeds if possible, but she could not endure the
+everlasting control which seems to be thought necessary in this
+world--at least, for girls. The consequence of this was that she spent a
+great deal of her time in doing things which made no imprint whatever
+upon the progress of the world or upon the elevation of her own
+character.
+
+"Now it happened that at the time of my story there was a war in the
+land, and a great many people with whom my heroine was acquainted went
+forth to do battle for their country and their principles, or to act
+patriotically in some other way than fighting. I forgot to say that my
+heroine is named Almia--"
+
+"De Ponsett, I suppose," interrupted John Gayther. "Almia de Ponsett is
+the name of a beautiful new white tea-rose."
+
+"Not at all," said the young lady, drawing her eyebrows slightly
+together; "there is no 'de Ponsett' about it, and her name has nothing
+to do with tea-roses. It is simply Almia. She grew more and more
+dissatisfied every day the war went on. Everybody who was worth anything
+was doing something, and here she was doing nothing. What was there she
+could do? This became the great question of her life. If I were about to
+write out this story I would say something here about the workings of
+her mind; but that is not necessary now. But her mind worked a great
+deal, and the end of it was that she determined to be a nurse. Nursing,
+indeed, is the only thing a young woman can do in a war.
+
+"But when she began to make inquiries about army nurses--what they ought
+to do, how they ought to do it, and all that--she ran up against that
+terrible bugbear of control. Everywhere was control, control, control;
+and she really began to despair. There were examinations, and training,
+and applications to the surgeon-general, and to the assistant surgeon,
+and to special heads of departments and districts and States and
+counties, for all I know. There was positively no end to the things she
+would have to do to get a regular appointment to go forth and do her
+duty to her country. So she threw up the whole business of regular army
+nursing, and made up her mind to go out into the field of duty to which
+she had appointed herself, and do the things she ought to do in the way
+she thought they ought to be done. She likened herself to the knights of
+old who used to go forth to fight for their ladies and for the upholding
+of chivalry. She wanted to be a sort of a free-lance, but she did not
+want to hire herself to anybody. She did not fancy being anything like a
+guerilla, and then it suddenly struck her that if she did just as she
+wanted to do she would resemble a bushwhacker more than anything else. A
+bushwhacker is an honest man. When there is no war he whacks bushes,
+that is, he cuts them down; and when there is a war--"
+
+"He whacks the enemy," suggested John Gayther.
+
+The Daughter of the House smiled a little. "Yes," she said; "he tries to
+do that. But he is entirely independent; he is under nobody; and that
+suited Almia. A bushwhacker nurse was exactly what she wanted to be, and
+as soon as this was settled she made all her preparations to go to the
+war."
+
+"Of course," said John Gayther, "the young lady's parents--or perhaps
+she did not have any parents?"
+
+The Daughter of the House frowned. "Now, John," said she, "I don't want
+anything said about parents. There were no parents in this case, at
+least none to be considered. I don't say whether they were dead or not,
+but the story has nothing to do with them. Parents would be very
+embarrassing, and I don't want to stop to bother with them."
+
+John Gayther nodded his head as if he thought she was quite right, and
+she went on:
+
+"The first thing Almia did was to fit herself out after the fashion she
+thought best adapted to a bushwhacker nurse. She wore heavy boots, and a
+bicycle-skirt which just came to the top of the boots; and in this skirt
+she put ever so many pockets. She wore a little cap with a strap to go
+under the chin; and from her belt on the left side she hung a very
+little cask, which she happened to have, something like those carried by
+the St. Bernard dogs in Switzerland when they go to look for lost
+travellers; and this she filled with brandy. In her pockets she put
+every kind of thing that wounded men might want: adhesive plaster, raw
+cotton, bandages, some pieces of heavy pasteboard to make splints,
+needles and fine silk for sewing up cuts, and a good many other things
+suitable for wounded people. And in the right-hand pocket of her skirt
+she carried a pistol with five barrels."
+
+"My conscience!" exclaimed John Gayther, "that was dangerous. And then,
+you know, nurses hardly ever carry pistols."
+
+"But this was necessary," said she, "as you will see as the story goes
+on. Then, when she put on a long waterproof cloak which covered
+everything, she was ready to go to the war."
+
+John Gayther looked at the Daughter of the House steadfastly and
+wondered if the Almia of the story had cut off her beautiful hair. He
+was sure she had had an abundance of light silvery-golden hair which
+fluffed itself all about her head under her wide hat, and it would be a
+sort of shock to think of its being cut off. But he asked no questions;
+he did not want to interrupt too much.
+
+"Almia knew by the papers," continued the Daughter of the House, "that
+a great battle was expected to take place not far from a town at some
+distance from her home; and she went to this town by rail, carrying
+only a small hand-bag in addition to the things she wore under her
+waterproof. She took lodgings at a hotel, and, after an early breakfast
+the next morning, she hired a cab to take her out to the battle-field.
+The cabman drove her several miles into the country, but when he heard
+the booming of the preliminary cannon with which the battle was then
+opening, he refused to go any farther, and she was obliged to get out
+at the corner of a lane and the highroad. She paid the man his fare and
+gave him five dollars extra, and then she engaged him to call at that
+place for her at eight o'clock that evening. She was sure the battle
+would be over by that time, as it would be beginning to get dark. The
+cabman was sorry to leave her there to walk the rest of the way, but his
+horse was afraid of cannon, and he did not dare to go any farther.
+
+"Almia took off her waterproof and left it in the cab, and the cabman
+was a good deal astonished when he saw her without it. He said he
+supposed she was a reporter and that the little cask was full of ink;
+he had driven lady reporters about before this. But Almia told him she
+was a nurse, and that he must not fail to call for her at the time
+appointed. Then he drove away; and she walked rapidly along the lane,
+which seemed to lead toward the battle-field. The lane soon began to
+curve, and she left it and walked across several fields. Soon she came
+to some outposts, where the sentries wanted to know where she was going.
+Of course the sentries behind an army are not as strict as those in
+front of it, and so when she informed them she was a nurse they told her
+how to get to the field-hospital, which was a mile or more away.
+
+"But Almia did not intend to go to any hospital. She knew if she did she
+would immediately be put under orders; and now her blood was up, and she
+could stand no orders. She thought she perceived a faint smell of powder
+in the air. This made her feel wonderfully independent, and she strode
+onward with a light and fearless step. But when she came to a bosky
+copse which concealed her from the sentries, she turned away from the
+direction of the hospital, and pressed onward toward the point from
+which came the heaviest sound of cannon.
+
+"Now you must understand, John Gayther," remarked the Daughter of the
+House, taking off her broad hat, that the breeze might more freely blow
+through the masses of her silvery-golden hair, "that when people who are
+really in earnest, especially people in fiction, go forth to find things
+they want, they generally find them. And if it is highly desirable that
+these things should be out of the common they are out of the common. A
+great deal of what happens in real life, and almost everything in
+literature, depends on this principle. You, of course, comprehend this,
+because you compose stories yourself."
+
+"Oh, yes," said the gardener; "I comprehend it perfectly."
+
+"I say all this on account of what is about to happen in this story, and
+also because I don't want you to make any objection in your mind on
+account of its not being exactly according to present usages. Almia was
+pushing steadily through the clump of bushes when she heard, not far
+away, the clash of arms. Greatly excited, she silently moved on, and
+peeping out from behind some foliage, she saw in a small open space in
+the woods two men engaged in single combat. How her heart did beat! She
+was frightened nearly to death. But she did not think of flight; her
+eyes were glued upon the fascinating spectacle before her. Often had she
+heard of two brave swordsmen fighting each other to the bitter end, and
+often had she dreamed of these noble contests; but her eyes were all
+unfamiliar with such inspiring sights. This truly was war.
+
+"The combatants were both moderately young men, athletic and active, one
+with brown hair and the other with black. They had thrown aside their
+coats and vests, and each wore a broad leathern belt. Fiercely and
+swiftly their long swords clashed. Sparks flew, and the ring of the
+steel sounded far into the woods; but there was none to hear save Almia
+only, and her soul tingled with admiration and terror as the bright
+blades flashed against the background of semi-gloom which pervaded the
+woods. She scarcely breathed. Her whole soul was in her eyes."
+
+"I have seen it there before," thought John Gayther, but he said
+nothing.
+
+"Now there was a tremendous onset from each swordsman, and the ground
+echoed beneath their rapid footfalls as they stamped around. Then there
+was a lunge and a sharp nerve-tingling scrape as one blade ran along the
+other; and then, without a groan, down fell one of these brave warriors
+flat upon his back upon the grass, the wild flowers, and bits of bark.
+Instantly the impulses of a woman flashed through every vein and nerve
+of that onlooking girl. Scarcely had the tall form of the soldier
+touched the sod when she became a nurse. Springing out from her leafy
+concealment, she knelt beside the vanquished form of the fallen man. The
+other soldier, who was about to rest himself by leaning on his sword,
+sprang back; it seemed as though there had suddenly appeared before him
+a being from another world."
+
+"Where they wear bicycle-skirts," thought John Gayther.
+
+"Every trace of enthusiastic excitement had passed away from Almia, who
+now had something in this world to do, and who set about doing it
+without loss of a second. The man was only wounded, for he opened his
+eyes and said so, and drawing up his shirt-sleeve he showed Almia that
+the cut was in the lower part of his left arm. Instantly despatching the
+other soldier to a neighboring spring for water, she cleansed the wound,
+and, finding it was not very deep, she drew the edges of the cut
+together and held them in place with strips of adhesive plaster. When
+this had been done she wrapped the arm in several folds of bandage, and
+the man having risen to a sitting posture, she gave him a small draught
+of brandy from her cask.
+
+"Almia now explained how she happened to appear upon the scene, and,
+addressing the wounded man, she said she hoped she could soon find some
+way of conveying him to a hospital. 'Hospital!' he cried, springing to
+his feet under the revivifying influence of the brandy. 'No hospital for
+me! I can walk as well as anybody. And now, sir,' he said, speaking to
+his former opponent, 'am I to consider myself vanquished, and am I to go
+with you as your prisoner?' The other regarded him without answering,
+and for the moment Almia, too, was lost in reflection."
+
+At this point John Gayther, who had been in wars, began to wonder, even
+if soldiers in these days should engage in single combat with long
+swords, how one of them could be wounded in the left arm; but he did not
+interrupt the story.
+
+"The first thing that shaped itself clearly in Almia's mind was the fear
+of being left alone in these woods. Now that she was so near the edge of
+the battle, there was no knowing what she might meet with next. The
+soldier who had conquered now spoke. 'Yes, sir,' said he; 'you are my
+prisoner, and it is my duty to take you to my regiment and deliver you
+to my officers. I am sorry to do so, but such are the laws of war.' The
+other soldier bowed his head, simply remarking, 'Proceed; I will follow
+you.'"
+
+"If I should take a prisoner," thought John Gayther, "I should make him
+walk in front of me."
+
+"Then Almia stepped forward; she had made up her mind, and she was very
+resolute. 'Gentlemen,' said she, 'this cannot be. We are nearing the
+contending forces; there may be stragglers; and I do not wish to be left
+alone. You are both my prisoners.' The two soldiers looked at her in
+utter amazement. 'Yes,' said Almia, firmly; 'I mean what I say. I am, it
+is true, a nurse; but I am a bushwhacker nurse, perfectly independent,
+and free to act according to the dictates of my judgment. You are my
+prisoners; and if one of you attempts to escape it will be the duty of
+the other to assist in arresting his enemy. Do not smile; I am armed.'
+And with this she took from her pocket the pistol with the five barrels.
+The two soldiers stopped smiling. 'Yes,' continued Almia; 'I would not
+wish to do anything of the kind, but if either of you attempts to escape
+I will call upon him to halt, and if he does not do it I will fire upon
+his legs while the other soldier attacks him with his sword. You are
+enemies, and each one of you is bound by his soldiery oaths to prevent
+the escape of the other. I am absolutely impartial. If either of you
+should be wounded I would dress his wounds and nurse him carefully
+without asking to which side he belongs. But if either of you attempts
+to escape I will, as I said, fire at his legs without asking to which
+side he belongs.'
+
+"The soldier with the brown hair looked at the one with the black hair.
+'If I should attempt to escape,' said he, 'would you assist this lady in
+restraining me?' 'I would,' answered the other. 'Then I would do the
+same by you,' said the first speaker. 'Miss, I am your prisoner.' 'And I
+also,' said the black-haired soldier."
+
+"Well, well," said John Gayther, who had not cut a pea-stick for the
+last fifteen minutes; "I suppose you could not tell by their uniforms
+which one of them belonged to your side--I mean the young lady could not
+tell?"
+
+"Almia had no side," replied the Daughter of the House, "and the
+soldiers wore no coats, for they had thrown them aside in the heat of
+the combat; and she purposely took no note whatever of their trousers.
+She was determined to be absolutely impartial. 'Now, then,' said Almia
+to her prisoners, 'I am going to get just as close to the battle as I
+can. I am delighted to have you with me, not only because you can remove
+wounded prisoners to shady places where I can nurse them, but because
+you will be a protection to me. Should an unruly soldier appear from
+either army he will always be met by an enemy and by me.'
+
+"The three now pressed on, for there was no time to lose. The roar of
+the battle was increasing; reports of musketry as well as cannon rent
+the air, and the sharp whistling of rifle-balls could frequently be
+heard. Reaching a wood road, they followed this for some distance, Almia
+in advance, when suddenly they came upon a man sitting on the trunk of a
+fallen tree. He had a little blank-book in his hand, and apparently he
+was making calculations in it with a lead-pencil. At the sound of
+approaching footsteps he rose to his feet, still holding the open book
+in his hand. He was a moderately tall man, a little round-shouldered,
+and about fifty years old. He wore a soldier's hat and coat, but his
+clothes were so covered with dust it was impossible to perceive to which
+army he belonged. He had a bushy beard, and that was also very dusty. He
+wore spectacles, and had a very pleasant smile, and looked from one to
+the other of the new-comers with much interest. 'I hope,' said he,
+speaking to the soldiers, 'that this young woman is not your prisoner.'
+'No, sir,' said Almia, before the others had time to reply; 'they are my
+prisoners.' The dusty man looked at her in amazement. 'Yes,' said the
+man with the black hair; 'she speaks the truth. We are her prisoners.'
+
+"Rapidly Almia explained the situation, and when she had finished, the
+stranger nodded his head three or four times, and put his blank-book in
+his pocket. 'Well, well, well,' said he, 'this is what might be expected
+from the tendency of the times! There are sixteen thousand two hundred
+and forty more women than men in this State, and many of them are single
+and have to do something. But a bushwhacker nurse! Truly I never thought
+of anything like that!'
+
+"'And you?' asked Almia. 'I think it is right that you should give some
+account of yourself. I do not ask your name, nor do I wish to know which
+cause you have espoused. But as you appear to be a soldier I am curious
+to know how you happen to be sitting by the roadside making
+calculations.' 'I am a soldier,' answered the dusty man, 'but, under
+the circumstances,'--regarding very closely the trousers of Almia's two
+companions,--'I am very glad you do not want to know to which side I
+belong. The facts of the case are these: I am an Exceptional Pedestrian.
+I am also a very earnest student of social aspects considered in their
+relation to topography. Yesterday, when my army halted at noon, I set
+out to make some investigations in connection with my favorite research,
+and when I returned, much later than I expected, my army had gone on,
+and I have not yet been able to come up to it, although I have walked a
+great many miles.'
+
+"'I should say,' remarked the soldier with the black hair, 'that you are
+a deserter.' 'No,' replied the Exceptional Pedestrian, 'I did not desert
+my army; it deserted me. And now I wish to say that I have become very
+much interested in you all, and, if there is no objection, I should like
+to join your company for the present.' 'I have no objection myself,'
+said Almia, 'but what do you say?' she asked, addressing the two
+soldiers. 'I am afraid, miss,' replied the man with the brown hair, who
+had recognized some peculiarities in the fashion of the stranger's dusty
+clothes, 'that if he attempted to leave us I would be obliged to shoot
+him as a deserter.' 'And I,' said the other, 'would be obliged to do the
+same thing, because he is my enemy.' 'Under these circumstances,' said
+the Exceptional Pedestrian, 'I beg to insist that I be allowed to attach
+myself to your party.'
+
+"Almia felt she had reason to be proud. Here were three military men who
+were in her power, and who could not get away from her. They were like
+three mice tied together by the tails, each pulling in a different
+direction and all remaining in the place where they had been dropped.
+
+"The party now pushed forward toward the battle's edge. 'If glory is
+your object,' said the Exceptional Pedestrian to Almia, 'it would have
+been better if you had joined a regular corps of nurses. Then any
+meritorious action on your part would have been noted and reported to
+the authorities, and your good conduct would have been recognized. But
+now you can expect nothing of the kind.' 'I did not come for the sake of
+glory,' said Almia, flushing slightly; 'I came to succor the suffering,
+and to do it without trammels.'
+
+"'Trammels are often very desirable,' said he; 'they enable us to
+proceed to a greater distance along the path of duty than we would be
+apt to go if we could wander as we please from side to side.'
+
+"Almia was about to reply somewhat sharply to this remark when,
+suddenly, they heard a sound which made their nerves tingle. It was the
+clang of sabres and the thunder of countless hoofs. They were in a mass
+of tangled underbrush, and they peeped out into a wide roadway and
+beheld the approach of a regiment of cavalry. On came this tidal wave of
+noble horsemen; it reached the spot where Almia's burning eyes glowed
+through the crevices of the foliage. Wildly galloping, cavalryman after
+cavalryman passed her by. The eyes of the horses flashed fire, and their
+nostrils were widely distended as if they smelt the battle from afar.
+Their powerful necks were curved; their hoofs spurned the echoing earth;
+and their riders, with flashing blades waved high above their heads,
+shouted aloud their battle-cry, while their tall plumes floated madly
+in the surging air. And, above the thunder of the hoofs, and the
+clinking and the clanking of the bits and chains, and the creaking of
+their leathern saddles, rose high the clarion voice of their leader,
+urging them on to victory or to death.
+
+"Almia had never been so excited in her life; she could scarcely
+breathe. This was the grandeur of glorious war! Oh, how willingly would
+she have mounted a fleet steed and have followed those valiant horsemen
+as they thundered away into the distance!"
+
+John Gayther had seen many a body of cavalry on the march, but he had
+never beheld anything like this.
+
+"After her excitement Almia felt somewhat weak; she needed food; and
+when they had crossed the roadway they stopped to rest under the shade
+of a spreading oak. Unfortunately the soldiers had brought no rations
+with them, and Almia had only some Albert biscuit, which she did not
+wish to eat because she had brought them to relieve the faintness of
+some wounded soldier. 'If you will permit us,' said the soldier with the
+black hair, 'we two will go out and forage. Each of us will see to it
+that the other returns.'
+
+"While they were gone the Exceptional Pedestrian conversed with Almia.
+'During my investigations of the social aspects of this region,' he
+said, 'I put many miles between myself and the army to which I belong,
+but by closely adhering to certain geological and topographical
+principles I knew I should eventually find it. In fact, when you met
+with me I was making some final calculations which would not fail to
+show me where I should find my comrades. There is no better way to
+discover the position of an army than by observing the inclination of
+the geological strata. In this section, for instance, the general trend
+of the beds of limestone and quartz indicates the direction of the
+running streams, and these naturally flow into the valleys and plains,
+and the land, being well watered, is more fertile; consequently it was
+soonest cleared by the settlers, while the higher ground surrounding it
+is still encumbered by timber growth. An army naturally desires open
+ground for its operations, for large bodies of cavalry and artillery
+cannot deploy to advantage through wooded districts. Therefore, if we
+follow this roadway, which, as you see, slightly descends to the
+northeast, we shall soon come within sight of the opposing forces.'
+
+"'But,' said Almia, 'the roar of the battle comes over from that way,
+which must be the northwest.'
+
+"'That may be,' said the Exceptional Pedestrian, 'but the principle
+remains.'
+
+"The two soldiers now returned, bearing two large apple-pies resting
+upon two palm-leaf fans. 'These were all we could procure,' said the
+brown-haired soldier, 'and the woman would not sell her plates.' The
+pies were rapidly divided into quarters, and the hungry party began to
+eat. 'It is true,' said the Exceptional Pedestrian, 'that the character
+of the apple indicates the elevation above sea-level of the soil in
+which it grew. The people who grew these apples would have done much
+better if they had devoted themselves to the cultivation of the
+huckleberry. These they could have sold, and then have bought much
+better apples grown in the plains. I also notice that the flour of which
+this pastry is made was ground from the wheat of this region, which is
+always largely mixed with cockle. If the people would give up growing
+wheat for three or four years, cockle would probably disappear, and they
+would then have flour of a much higher grade.' Almia and the two
+soldiers could not help smiling when they perceived that while the
+Exceptional Pedestrian was making these criticisms he ate three quarters
+of a pie, which was more than his share.
+
+"When the pies had been consumed the little party pressed forward, but
+not to the northeast, for the two soldiers insisted that the battle
+raged in the northwest, and they would not go in any other direction,
+although the Exceptional Pedestrian endeavored to overwhelm them with
+arguments to prove that he was right. The din of the battle, however,
+soon proved that he was wrong. Penetrating an extensive thicket, they
+reached its outer edge, and there gazed upon a far-stretching
+battle-field.
+
+"Now this would be the place," said the Daughter of the House, "for a
+fine description, not only of the battle-field, but of the battle which
+was raging upon it; and, if I ever write this story, I shall tell how
+one army was posted on one side of a wide valley, while the other army
+was posted on the other, and how regiments and battalions and
+detachments from each side came down into the beautiful plain and fought
+and fired and struggled until the grass was stained with blood; and how
+the cannon roared from the hills and mowed down whole battalions of
+infantry below; how brave soldiers fell on every side, wounded and dead,
+while men with stretchers hurried to carry them away from beneath the
+hoofs of the charging cavalry. I would tell how the carnage increased
+every moment; how the yells of fury grew louder; and how the roar of
+the cannon became more and more terrible.
+
+"But all I can say now is that it was a spectacle to freeze the blood.
+Poor Almia could scarcely retain consciousness as she gazed upon the
+awful scenes of woe and suffering which spread out beneath her. And she
+could do nothing! Her labors would be useful only in cases of isolated
+woundings. If she were to mingle in the fray she would perish in the
+general slaughter; and if she were to go and offer assistance in the
+hospitals she would find herself but as a drop in the bucket, her
+efforts unrecognized, even if she were not driven away as an interloper.
+Besides, she did not know where the hospitals were.
+
+"As she gazed upon this scene of horror she perceived an officer,
+mounted upon a noble charger and followed by several horsemen, take
+a position upon a hillock not far from the spot where she and her
+companions were concealed. From this point of vantage the officer, who
+was evidently a general, could perceive the whole battle-field."
+
+"And get himself picked off by a sharp-shooter," thought John Gayther,
+but he did not interrupt.
+
+"The brown-haired soldier trembled with emotion, and whispered to Almia,
+'That is my Commander-in-Chief.' Even without this information Almia
+would have known that the stalwart figure upon the pawing steed was an
+officer in high command; for, after speaking a few words to one of his
+companions, the latter galloped away into the valley toward the right,
+and very soon the battle raged more fiercely in that direction, and
+the booming of the cannon and the cracking of the rifles was more
+continuous. Then another officer was sent galloping to the left, and in
+this direction, too, the battle grew fiercer and the carnage increased.
+Courier after courier was sent away, here and there, until, at last, the
+commander remained with but one faithful adherent. Since his arrival
+upon the hillock the horrors of the bloody contest had doubled, and
+Almia could scarcely endure to look into the valley.
+
+"'Is there no way,' she said in a gasping whisper, 'of stopping this?
+These two armies are like hordes of demons! Humanity should not permit
+it!'
+
+"'Humanity has nothing to do with it,' said the Exceptional Pedestrian.
+'A declaration of war eliminates humanity as a social factor. Such is
+the usage of nations.'
+
+"'I don't care for the usage of nations,' said Almia. 'It is vile!'
+
+"Now something very important happened in the battle-field. The
+Commander-in-Chief rose in his stirrups and peered afar. Then, suddenly
+turning, he sent his only remaining follower with clattering hoofs to
+carry a message. 'He is making it worse!' declared Almia. 'Now more
+brave men will fall; more blood will flow.'
+
+"'Of course,' said the Exceptional Pedestrian. 'He gives no thought to
+the falling of brave men or the flowing of blood. Upon his commands
+depends the fate of the battle!'
+
+"'And without his commands?' asked Almia, trembling in every fibre.
+
+"The Exceptional Pedestrian shrugged his shoulders and slightly smiled.
+'Without them,' he said, 'there would soon be an end to the battle. He
+is the soul, the directing spirit, of his army. Unless he directs, the
+contest cannot be carried on.'
+
+"Almia sprang to her feet, not caring whether she was seen or not. She
+looked over the battle-field, and her heart was sick within her. Not
+only did she see the carnage which desecrated the beautiful plain, but
+she saw, far, far away, the mothers and sisters of those who were dead,
+dying, and wounded; she saw the whiteness of their faces when their
+feverish eyes should scan the list of dead and wounded; she saw them
+groan and fall senseless when they read the names of loved ones. She
+could bear no more.
+
+"Suddenly she turned. 'Gentlemen,' she said, 'follow me.' And without
+another word she stepped out into the open field and walked rapidly
+toward the Commander-in-Chief, whose eyes were fixed so steadfastly on
+the battle that he did not notice her approach. The three soldiers gazed
+at her in amazement, and then they followed her. They could not
+understand her mad action, but they could not desert her.
+
+"Almia stopped at the horse's head. With her left hand she seized his
+bridle, and in a clear, loud voice she exclaimed, 'Commander-in-Chief,
+you are my prisoner!' There was no trembling, no nervousness now; body
+and soul, she was as hard as steel. The general looked down upon her in
+petrified bewilderment. He gazed at the three soldiers, and again looked
+down at her. 'Girl!' he thundered, 'what do you mean? Let go my horse!'
+As he said these words he gave his bridle a jerk; but the noble steed
+paid no attention to his master. He was not afraid of girls. In former
+days he had learned to like them; to him a girl meant sugar and savory
+clover-tops. He bent his head toward Almia, and instantly her hand was
+in her pocket and she drew forth an Albert biscuit. The horse, which had
+not tasted food since morning, eagerly took it from her hand, and
+crunched it in delight.
+
+"The Commander-in-Chief now became furious, and his hand sought the hilt
+of his sword. If Almia had been a man he would have cut her down.
+'Girl!' he cried, 'what do you mean? Are you insane? You men, remove her
+instantly.'
+
+"Then Almia spoke up bravely, never loosening her hold upon the bridle
+of the horse. 'I am not insane,' she said. 'I am a nurse, but not a
+common one; I am a bushwhacker nurse, and that means I am entirely
+independent. These men are under my control. They are from the opposing
+armies, and compel each other to obey my commands. I have determined to
+stop this blood and slaughter. If you do not quietly surrender to me I
+will fire at one of your legs, and call upon the soldier who is your
+enemy to attack you with his sword. His duty to his country will compel
+him to do so.'
+
+"The general, who was now so infuriated he could not speak, jerked
+savagely at the reins; but Almia had just given the noble animal another
+biscuit, and his nose was seeking the pocket from which it came. The
+horse was conquered!
+
+"At this moment a rifle-ball shrieked wildly overhead. The enemy had
+perceived the little party upon the hillock. The three soldiers, who
+stood a little below, shouted to Almia to come down or she would be
+killed. She instantly obeyed this warning, but she did not release her
+hold upon the general's bridle. She started down the hillock away from
+the battle, and the horse, who willingly subjected himself to her
+guidance, trotted beside her. The general did not attempt to restrain
+him, for he had been startled by the rifle-shots.
+
+"A little below the edge of the hill Almia stopped, and, turning toward
+the Commander-in-Chief, she said, 'You might as well surrender. I do not
+wish to injure you, but if you compel me to do so, I must.' And with
+this she drew the pistol from her pocket.
+
+"'Is that thing loaded?' exclaimed the general.
+
+"'It is,' answered Almia, 'and with five balls.'
+
+"'Please put it back in your pocket,' said the officer, who, for the
+first time during the terrible battle, showed signs of fear. 'A girl
+with a pistol,' said he, 'makes me shudder. Why do you stand there?' he
+shouted to the three men. 'Come here and take her away.'
+
+"But they did not obey, and the black-haired soldier stepped forward.
+'You are my enemy, sir,' he said, 'and I am bound to assist in your
+capture if I can. There are two of your own men here, but only one of
+them is armed.'
+
+"As he spoke these words a great shell struck the top of the hillock and
+blew the earth and little stones in every direction. Without a word the
+whole party retired rapidly to an open space behind a large overhanging
+rock. The general was very much disturbed. The enemy must be getting
+nearer. He almost forgot Almia.
+
+"'Look here,' he cried to the brown-haired soldier; 'creep back to the
+top of the hillock and tell me how the battle goes.' With furrowed brows
+he waited, while Almia fed his horse. The brown-haired soldier came
+quickly back. 'Tell me,' cried the general, without waiting for the
+other to speak, 'has my cavalry made its grand charge, and cut off the
+approach of the left wing of the enemy?'
+
+"'No, sir,' replied the soldier, touching his cap; 'it did not charge in
+time, and it is now all mixed up with the artillery, which is rapidly
+retiring.'
+
+"'What!' cried the general, 'retiring?'
+
+"'Yes, sir,' said the soldier; 'I am sorry to say that our whole army is
+retreating, pell-mell, as fast as it can go. The enemy is in active
+pursuit, and its left wing is now advancing up this side of the valley.
+In less than twenty minutes the retreat of our cavalry and artillery
+will be cut off by the hills, and the infantry is already scattering
+itself far and wide.'
+
+"'I must go!' shouted the general, drawing his sword from its scabbard.
+'I must rally my forces! I must--'
+
+"'No, general,' said the brown-haired soldier; 'that is impossible. If
+you were now to attempt to approach our army you would throw yourself
+into the ranks of the enemy.'
+
+"The Commander-in-Chief dropped the bridle from his listless hands, and
+bowed his head. 'Lost!' he murmured. 'Lost! And this was the decisive
+battle of the war! If I had been able to order my cavalry to charge,
+the enemy's left wing would have been cut from their main body. But
+for you,' he continued, fixing his eyes upon Almia with a look of
+unutterable sadness, 'I should have done it. You have caused me to lose
+this battle.'
+
+"Almia drew herself up, her heart swelling with emotion. This was the
+proudest moment of her life--prouder by far than she had ever expected
+any moment of her existence to be. 'Yes,' she said; 'that is what I did.
+And if this was the decisive battle of the war, then will follow peace;
+blood will cease to flow, widows and orphans will cease to suffer, and
+men who have been fighting one another like tigers without really
+understanding why they sought one another's lives will again meet as
+friends.'
+
+"'There is a great deal of sense in what you say,' exclaimed the
+Exceptional Pedestrian. 'I admit I am a soldier, but I do not approve of
+war. The statistics of social aspects prove--'
+
+"He was interrupted by the brown-haired soldier, who remarked: 'It would
+be well for us to retire, for doubtless the enemy will soon occupy the
+ridge.'
+
+"The general took no notice; apparently he was lost in thought.
+
+"'Excuse me, sir,' said the brown-haired man, 'but you must seek a place
+of safety.'
+
+"The general raised his head. 'Is there a road to the west?' he asked.
+'I must take a roundabout way, and join my army, and share its fortunes,
+whatever they may be.'
+
+"'Yes, sir,' said the Exceptional Pedestrian; 'if you skirt these woods,
+and follow the upward trend of the limestone- and quartz-beds, and then
+keep along the crest of the mountain for about eight miles, you will
+come to the village of Kirksville, where our retreating army will no
+doubt halt for the night.'
+
+"The general said no more. He turned his horse, whose bridle Almia had
+now released, and, casting another look of sadness upon the erect form
+of the bushwhacker nurse, he sped away.
+
+"I will not say anything more of the general, except that after
+following for half an hour the directions given to him by the
+Exceptional Pedestrian, he rode at full speed into the ranks of the
+enemy, and was obliged to surrender. No evil happened to him, however,
+for the war was soon ended, and he was released.
+
+"'Now,' said the Exceptional Pedestrian, who was in no way a traitor,
+but only a person accustomed to making mistakes, 'the day is drawing to
+a close, and we must hurry away.'
+
+"No one objected, and the three soldiers accompanied Almia back over the
+way she had taken when she walked to the battle-field. A little after
+eight o'clock they arrived at the main road, and there Almia found her
+cab waiting for her.
+
+"'I will probably not see you again,' said the Exceptional Pedestrian,
+shaking her very cordially by the hand; 'for as the war is now
+practically over, and my regiment probably scattered, I shall go West.
+There are many features of our social aspects out there which I wish to
+study. But before I leave you, miss, I wish to thank you for having made
+yourself so highly instrumental in bringing this terrible and inhuman
+war to a close.'
+
+"'Good-by,' said Almia. 'But I think it may be said that it was an
+Albert biscuit which gave us peace. If that horse had not been used to
+being fed by girls, my efforts might have come to nothing.'
+
+"When the two younger soldiers bade good-by to Almia they did not say
+much, but it seemed to her they felt a good deal. At any rate, she knew
+she felt a good deal. She had known them but a little while, but they
+had come into her life in such a strange way; for a time she had ruled
+their destinies, and they had been so good to her! They had stood by
+her, regardless of everything but her wishes; and then, they were both
+so handsome, such gallant soldiers. She took their hands, she gazed into
+their honest faces, a few words of farewell were spoken, and then they
+helped her into the cab, the door was shut, and she drove away.
+
+"As she turned and looked out of the little window in the back of the
+cab she saw one of them gazing after her; but the dusk of the evening
+had come on so rapidly she could not be certain which one of them it
+was. At a turn in the road she sank into her seat. She was tired; she
+was faint; and, instinctively thrusting her hand into her pocket, she
+found there one Albert biscuit which had been left. She drew it out,
+but when she looked at it, it seemed to her as though it would be a
+sacrilege to eat it; its companions had done so much for humanity. But
+she did eat it, and felt stronger.
+
+"For the rest of the drive she sat and wondered and wondered which it
+was who had looked back, the brown-haired soldier or the black-haired
+one. Then she tried to think which she would like it to be, but she
+could not make up her mind.
+
+"Before parting with the soldiers Almia had exchanged cards with them,
+and they had assured her they would let her know how fortune should
+treat them. Day after day she watched and waited for the letter-carrier;
+but a fortnight passed, and he brought her nothing--at least, nothing
+she cared for.
+
+"At last a letter came. It was from one of the soldiers; she knew that
+by the address and its general appearance, but of course she did not
+know the handwriting. She held it in her hand and gazed upon it, and her
+heart beat fast as she asked herself the question, 'Which one has
+written first?'
+
+"Presently she opened it. It was from the brown-haired soldier. Her face
+flushed and her heart said to her, 'This is right; this is what you
+hoped for.' Then she read the letter, which was long. It told of many
+things; and, among others, it informed Almia how grateful were the
+writer's wife and two little girls for the kindness she had shown the
+husband and father. She had dressed his wounds; she had saved him from
+being made a prisoner. For the rest of their lives they would never
+forget her.
+
+"The letter dropped from Almia's hand; she had received a shock, and for
+a time she could not recover from it. She sat still, looking out into
+the nothingness of the distant sky. Then her face flushed again, and her
+heart told her it had made a mistake. She was well pleased that this was
+the one who had written that he was married.
+
+"Hour after hour and day after day Almia became more and more convinced
+that she was right. It was the black-haired soldier on whom her thoughts
+were constantly fixed. And no wonder. In the first place, he was the
+better soldier of the two. She hated war; but, if men must fight, it is
+glorious to conquer, and she had seen his quick and practised blade lay
+low his enemy. The thought of his power made her heart swell. Moreover,
+he had stood by her in the moment of greatest peril; he it was who had
+said to the Commander-in-Chief, armed and mounted though he was, that
+he would attack him if her commands were not obeyed. Then, too, he was
+a little taller than the other, and handsomer; his chest was broad, he
+stood erect.
+
+"Day after day she watched and waited, but no letter came. At last,
+however, there was a ring at the bell, and the black-haired soldier was
+announced. By a supreme effort Almia controlled herself; she bade her
+heart be still, and she went down to meet him. She was dressed in white;
+there were flowers in her hair and in her belt. She could not help
+wondering what he would think of the difference between her and the girl
+he had known as a bushwhacker nurse.
+
+"When her eyes fell upon him and their hands met she was the one who had
+the right to be the more amazed. She had thought him handsome before; he
+was glorious now. Arrayed in fashionable, well-fitting clothes, wearing
+only a mustache, and with his hair properly cut, he was a vision of
+manly beauty. Instantly, without any volition on her part, her heart
+went out to him; she knew that it belonged to him.
+
+"For twenty minutes, perhaps a little longer, Almia sat with the man she
+loved; and as she listened to him, saying but little herself, colder and
+colder grew the heart she had given him. Soon she discovered that he
+looked upon her as a young lady in whom he took an interest on account
+of the adventures they had had together, but still as a chance
+acquaintance. He had come to see her because he had happened to be in
+the town in which she lived. When he went away she did not ask him to
+come again, and it was plain that he did not expect such an invitation.
+The few remarks he made about his future plans precluded the
+supposition that they might meet again. He was pleasant, he was polite,
+he was even kind; but when he departed he left her with a heart of
+stone. There was now nothing in the world for which she cared to live.
+She despised herself for such a feeling, but existence was a blank. She
+had loved; perhaps, unwittingly, she had shown her love; and now by day
+and by night she moaned and mourned that the bushwhacker nurse had ever
+met the two brave soldiers with their glittering swords--that she had
+not passed them by and gone out into the battle-field to be laid low by
+some chance bullet."
+
+For some little time the Daughter of the House had been speaking in a
+voice which grew lower and lower, and now she stopped. There were tears
+in her eyes, brought there by the story she herself was telling. John
+Gayther dropped his pea-stick and leaned forward.
+
+"Now miss," said he, "I really think your story is not quite right. You
+must have forgotten something--a good many things. Think it over, and I
+am sure you will agree with me that that is not the true ending."
+
+She looked at him in surprise. "What do you mean?" she asked.
+
+"I mean this," replied the gardener. "If you will put your mind to it,
+and seriously consider the whole situation, I believe you will see, just
+as well as I do, that it really turned out very differently from the way
+you have just told it. That black-haired soldier did not go away in
+twenty minutes. It must have been somebody else at some other time who
+went away so soon. It would have been simply impossible for him to have
+done it. The longer he sat and looked at Miss Almia, the more he gazed
+into her beautiful eyes, the more fervently he must have thought that if
+it depended upon him he would never leave her, never, never again. And
+she, as she gazed into his handsome features, thrilling with the emotion
+he could not hide, must have known what was passing in his heart. It did
+not even need the words he soon spoke to make her understand she was the
+one thing in the world he loved, and that, in spite of sickness and
+obstacles of all sorts, he had come that day to tell her so. And when
+they had sat together for hours, and at last he was obliged to go, and
+they stood together, his impassioned eyes looking down into her orbs of
+heavenly blue, you know what must have happened, miss, now, don't you,
+really? And isn't this the true, true end of the story?"
+
+The eyes of the Daughter of the House were sparkling; a little flush had
+come upon her cheeks, and a smile upon her lips.
+
+"I do really believe that is the true ending, John," said she; "but how
+did you ever come to know so much about such things?"
+
+"I can't tell you that, miss," said the gardener; "but sometimes I
+notice things I cannot see, as when I look upon a flower bud not yet
+open and know exactly what is inside of it."
+
+With the smile still on her lips and the flush still on her cheeks, the
+Daughter of the House walked away through the garden. She had determined
+to make her story end sadly, but John Gayther had known her heart better
+than she knew it herself.
+
+
+
+
+                      THIS STORY IS TOLD BY
+
+                           JOHN GAYTHER
+
+                          AND IS CALLED
+
+                        THE LADY IN THE BOX
+
+
+
+
+III
+
+THE LADY IN THE BOX
+
+
+John Gayther was busy putting the finishing touches to a bed in which he
+intended to sow his latest planting of bush-beans, or string-beans, or
+snaps, as they are called in different parts of the country. These were
+very choice seeds which had been sent to him by a friend abroad, and,
+consequently, John wanted to get them into the ground as soon as
+possible. But when he saw entering the garden not only the Daughter of
+the House but also her mother, the Mistress of the House, a sudden
+conviction shot through him that there would be no beans planted that
+morning.
+
+The elder of these two ladies was not very elderly, and she was
+handsomer than her daughter. She was pleasant to look upon and pleasant
+to talk to, but she had a mind of her own; John Gayther had found that
+out long before. She was very fond of flowers, and there were many beds
+of them which were planted and treated according to her directions and
+fancies. These beds did not, in fact, form part of the gardener's
+garden; they belonged to her, and nobody else had anything to say about
+them. Many things grew there which were not often found in gardens:
+weeds, for instance, from foreign countries, and some from near-by
+regions, which the Mistress of the House thought might be made to grow
+into comely blossoms if they were given the chance. Here she picked and
+planted, and put in and pulled out, according to her own will; and her
+pulling out was often done after a fashion which would have discouraged
+any other gardener but John Gayther, who had long since learned that
+the Mistress of the House knew what she wanted, and that it would be
+entirely useless for him to trouble himself about her methods.
+
+The gardener was not altogether happy when he saw these two ladies
+coming toward him. He felt sure that they were coming for a story, for
+when the elder lady came to the garden it was not her habit to bring
+her daughter with her; and neither of them was likely, on ordinary
+occasions, to walk along in a straightforward way, loitering neither
+here nor there. Their manner and their pace denoted a purpose.
+
+John Gayther had never dug into a garden-bed as earnestly and anxiously
+as he now dug into his mind. These ladies were coming for a story. The
+younger one had doubtless told her mother that there had been stories
+told in the garden, and now another one was wanted, and it was more than
+likely that he was expected to tell it. But he did not feel at all easy
+about telling a story to the Mistress of the House. He knew her so well,
+and the habits of her mind, that he was fully assured if his fancies
+should blossom too luxuriantly she would ruthlessly pull them up and
+throw them on the path. Still he believed she would like fancies, and
+highly colored ones; but he must be very careful about them. They must
+be harmonious; they must not interfere with each other; they might be
+rare and wonderful, but he must not give them long Latin names which
+meant nothing.
+
+One thing which troubled him was the difficulty of using the first
+person when telling a story to the Mistress of the House. He could tell
+his stories best in that fashion, but he did not believe that this
+hearer would be satisfied with them; she would not be likely to give
+them enough belief to make them interesting. He had a story all ready to
+tell to the Daughter of the House, for he had been sure she would want
+one some day soon, and this one, told in a manner which would please
+him, he thought would please her; but it was very different with her
+mother. He must be careful.
+
+When the two ladies came to the bed where the beans were to be planted,
+the gardener found that he had not mistaken their errand.
+
+"John," said the Mistress of the House, "I hear you tell a very good
+story, and I want you to tell me one. Let us find a shady place."
+
+There was a pretty summer-house on the upper terrace, a shady place
+where the air was cool and the view was fine; and there they went: but
+there was no need of John Gayther's making any pretence of trimming up
+pea-sticks this time.
+
+"I have a story," said he, his stool at a respectful distance from the
+two ladies, who were seated on a bench outside the little house.
+
+"Is it about yourself?" asked the Daughter of the House.
+
+"No, miss, not this time," he answered.
+
+"I am sorry for that," she said, "for I like to think of people doing
+the things they tell about. But I suppose we can't have that every
+time."
+
+"Oh, no," said her mother; "and if John has an interesting story about
+anybody else, let him tell it."
+
+The gardener began promptly. "The name of this story is 'The Lady in the
+Box,'" said he, "and, with the exception of the lady, the principal
+personage in it was a young man who lived in Florence toward the end of
+the last century."
+
+"And how did you come to know the story?" asked the Daughter of the
+House. "Has it ever been told before?"
+
+Now there was need to assert himself, if John Gayther did not wish to
+lose grace with his hearers, and he was equal to the occasion. "It has
+never been printed," said he, quietly but boldly. "It came to me in the
+most straightforward way, step by step."
+
+"Very good," said the Mistress of the House; "I like a story to come in
+that way."
+
+"The young man, whose name was Jaqui," continued John Gayther, "was of
+good parts, but not in very good circumstances. He was a student of
+medicine, and was the assistant of a doctor, which means that he did
+all the hard work, such as attending to the shop, mixing the drugs, and
+even going out to see very poor patients in bad weather. Jaqui's
+employer--master, in fact--was Dr. Torquino, an elderly man of much
+reputation in his town. The doctor expected Jaqui to be his successor,
+and as the years went on the younger man began to visit patients in good
+circumstances who fell sick in fine weather. At last Dr. Torquino made a
+bargain with Jaqui by which the latter was to pay certain sums of money
+to the old man's heirs, and then the stock and good-will of the
+establishment were formally made over to him; and, shortly afterwards,
+the old doctor died. But before his death he told Jaqui everything that
+it was necessary for him to know in regard to the property and the
+business to which he had succeeded.
+
+[Illustration: The gardener began promptly.]
+
+"Torquino's house was a very good one, consisting of three floors. On the
+ground floor were the shop, the private office, and the living-rooms. The
+old doctor and Jaqui lodged on the third floor. The second floor was very
+handsomely furnished, but was not then occupied--at least, not in the
+ordinary way. It belonged to Dr. Paltravi, the old doctor's former
+partner; a somewhat younger man, and married. He had been greatly
+attached to his wife, and had furnished these rooms to suit her fancy. He
+was a scientific man, and much more devoted to making curious experiments
+than he was to the ordinary practice of medicine and surgery. In a small
+room on this floor, at the very back of the house, was Donna Paltravi, in
+a box."
+
+"Was she dead?" exclaimed the Daughter of the House.
+
+"It was believed by Dr. Torquino that she was not, but he could not be
+sure of it."
+
+"And her husband?" asked the elder lady. "Was he dead?"
+
+"No," replied the gardener; "at least, there was no reason to suppose
+so. About forty years before the time of this story he had left
+Florence, and this was the way of it: Donna Paltravi was a young and
+handsome woman, but her health was not as satisfactory as it might have
+been, for she had a tendency to fall into swoons, and to remain in
+them, sometimes for many hours, coming out of a trance as lively as
+before she went into it. Now this disposition had a powerful effect upon
+her husband, and he studied her very closely, with an interest which
+almost devoured the other powers of his mind. He experimented upon her,
+and became so expert that he not only could bring her out of her trances
+whenever he chose, but he could keep her in them; and this he did,
+sometimes as long as a week, in order to prove to himself that he could
+do it."
+
+"Shame upon him!" exclaimed the Daughter of the House.
+
+"Never mind," said her mother; "let John go on."
+
+"Well," continued the gardener, "the old doctor told Jaqui a great many
+things about Paltravi and his wife, and how she came to be at that time
+in the box. Paltravi had conceived a great scheme, one which he had
+believed might have immense influence on the happiness of the world. He
+determined that when his wife next went into a trance he would try to
+keep her so for fifty years, and then revive her, in the midst of her
+youth and beauty, to enjoy the world as she should find it."
+
+"There was nothing new about that," said the Mistress of the House.
+"That is a very old story, and the thing has been written about again
+and again and again."
+
+"That is very true, madam," answered John Gayther, "and Dr. Paltravi had
+heard many such stories, but most of them were founded upon traditions
+and myths and the vaguest kind of hearsay, and some were no more than
+the fancies of story-tellers. But the doctor wanted to work on solid
+and substantial ground, and he believed that his wife's exceptional
+opportunities should not be sacrificed."
+
+"Sacrificed!" exclaimed the Daughter of the House. "I like that!"
+
+"Of course I will not attempt to explain the doctor's motives, or try
+to excuse him," said the gardener. "I can only tell what he did. He
+protracted one of his wife's trances, and when it had continued for a
+month he determined to keep it up for half a century, if it could be
+done; and he went earnestly to work for the purpose. The old doctor had
+not altogether approved of his partner's action, but I don't believe he
+disapproved very much, for he also possessed a good deal of the spirit
+of scientific investigation. When everything had been arranged, and the
+lady had been placed in a large and handsome box which had been designed
+with great care by her husband and constructed under his careful
+supervision, she was carried into the little room which had been her
+boudoir; and there her husband watched and guarded her for nearly a
+year. In all that time there was not the slightest change in her so far
+as mortal eye could see, but there came a change over her husband. He
+grew uneasy and restless, and could not sleep at night; and, at last, he
+told Dr. Torquino he would have to go away; he could not stay any longer
+and see his beautiful wife lying motionless before him. The desire to
+revive her had become so great he found it impossible to withstand it,
+and therefore, in the interest of science and for the advantage of the
+world, he must put it out of his power to interfere with the success of
+his own great experiment.
+
+"He wrote down on parchment everything that was necessary for the person
+to know who had charge of this great treasure, and he made Dr. Torquino
+swear to guard and to protect Donna Paltravi for forty-nine years, if
+he should live so long, and, if he did not, that he would deliver his
+charge into the hands of some worthy and reliable person. If, at the end
+of the lady's half-century of inanimation, Paltravi should not make his
+appearance, on account of having died, (for nothing else would keep him
+away), then the person in charge of the lady was to animate her in the
+manner which was fully and minutely described on the parchment. Paltravi
+then departed, and since that time nothing had been heard of him.
+
+"When Jaqui came into possession of Dr. Torquino's house, he felt he
+owned the contents of only two floors, and that the second floor,
+especially the little room in the rear, was a great responsibility which
+he did not desire at all, and of which he would have rid himself if
+Dr. Torquino had not made him swear that he would guard it sacredly
+for the ten years which still remained of the intended period of
+inanimation.
+
+"He had seen the lady in the box, for the old doctor had taken him into
+her room, and they had removed the top of the box and had looked at
+her through the great plate of glass which covered her. She was very
+beautiful and richly dressed, and seemed as if she were merely asleep.
+But, in spite of her beauty and the interest which attached to her, he
+wished very much somebody else had her to take care of. Such thoughts,
+however, were of no use; she went with the business and the property,
+and he had nothing to say about it.
+
+"Jaqui did not have a very good time after the old doctor's death,"
+continued John Gayther. "It was not even as good as he had expected it
+to be. For nearly fifteen years he had been living in that house with
+Dr. Torquino, and in all that time the lady in the box had never
+troubled him; but now she did trouble him. Various legal persons came
+to attend to the transfer of the property, and, although they found
+everything all straight and right so far as the old doctor's possessions
+were concerned, they were not so well satisfied in regard to the
+contents of the second floor, some of them thinking the government
+should have something to say in regard to the property of a man who had
+been away for forty years; but as Paltravi had made Torquino his heir
+when he left Florence, and Jaqui had the papers to show, this matter was
+settled. But, for all that, Jaqui was troubled, and it was about the box
+of the lady. It was such a peculiar-looking box that several questions
+were asked as to its contents; and when Jaqui boldly asserted that it
+contained anatomical preparations, he was asked why it happened to be in
+that handsome little room. But by the help of money and his generally
+good reputation Jaqui got rid of the legal people.
+
+"But after this he had to face the neighbors. These heard of the box,
+and it revived memories, in the minds of some of the elders, of strange
+stories about Dr. Paltravi. His wife had died several times, according
+to some of them, and she had at last been carried to her native town in
+Lombardy for burial. But nobody knew the name of that town, and there
+were one or two persons who said she never had been buried, but that her
+husband had preserved her skeleton, and had had it gilded, he was so
+very fond of her. Jaqui had a good deal of trouble with these people,
+who had never dared to trouble old Dr. Torquino with their idle
+curiosity, for he was a man with a high temper and would stand no
+meddling.
+
+"But when the neighbors had ceased to talk, at least to him, there came
+a third class of troublers, worse than either of the others. These were
+some scientific people who long ago had heard of the experiment
+Dr. Paltravi had been making with his wife. Several of these wrote to
+Jaqui, and two of them came to see him. These insisted on looking at the
+lady in the box, and Jaqui was obliged to show her. The two scientists
+were very much interested--extremely so; but they did not in the least
+believe the lady was alive. They considered the beautiful figure the
+most admirable specimen of the preservation of the human body after
+death that they had ever seen, and that Paltravi was entitled to the
+greatest credit for the success of his experiment. They were anxious to
+be informed of the methods by which this wonderful result had been
+obtained. But this, Jaqui firmly informed them, was now his secret and
+his property, and he would not divulge it. The scientists acknowledged
+the justice of this position, and did not urge their point; but each of
+them, when he went away, resolved that in the course of a few years he
+would come back, and if the body of the lady was still in good
+preservation, he would buy it if he could. Jaqui might be poor by that
+time, or dead.
+
+"Jaqui now thought his troubles were over; but he was mistaken. A new
+persecutor appeared, who belonged to a fourth class, fortunately not a
+very large one. This person was a young man who was not only a fool but
+a poet."
+
+"Unfortunate creature!" exclaimed the Mistress of the House.
+
+"I don't know, madam," said John Gayther. "He was very happy. It was the
+people with whom he associated in this world who were unfortunate. This
+young man, whose name was Florino, lived in Milan, and it would have
+been much better for Jaqui if he had lived in Patagonia. By great bad
+luck he had overheard one of the scientists who had visited Jaqui
+talking about what he had seen at his house, and the poet instantly
+became greatly interested in the story. He plied the learned man with
+all manner of questions, and very soon made up his mind that he would go
+to Florence to see the lady in the box. He believed she would make a
+most admirable subject for a poem from his pen.
+
+"When Florino presented himself to Jaqui he came as the general of an
+army who settles down before a town to invest it and capture it, if he
+shall live long enough. At first Jaqui tried to turn him away in the
+usual manner; but the poet was not to be turned away. He had no feelings
+which could be hurt, and Jaqui was afraid to hurt his body on account of
+the police. The young man begged, he argued, he insisted, he persisted.
+All he wanted was to see, just once, the face of the beautiful lady who
+had been so wonderfully preserved. He visited the unfortunate Jaqui by
+day and by night; and at last, when Florino solemnly promised that if he
+should be given one opportunity of seeing the lady he would go away and
+never trouble Dr. Jaqui any more, the latter concluded that to agree to
+this proposition would be the best way to get rid of the youth, and so
+consented to allow him to gaze upon the face which forty years before
+had been animated by the soul of Donna Paltravi.
+
+"When the upper part of the lid of the box had been removed and the face
+of the lady appeared under the plate of glass, the soul of the young
+poet who tremblingly bent over it was filled with rapturous delight.
+Never in his life had he seen anything so beautiful, and, more than
+this, he declared he had never dreamed of features so lovely. For a
+time it interested Jaqui to listen to the rhapsodies and observe the
+exaltation of the fool-poet, but he soon had enough of this amorous
+insanity, and prepared to close the box. Then Florino burst into wild
+entreaties--only ten minutes more, five minutes, three minutes,
+anything! So it went on until the poet had been feasting his eyes on the
+lady for nearly half an hour. Then Jaqui forcibly put him out of the
+room, closed the box, and locked the door.
+
+"Florino had no more idea of keeping his word than he had of becoming a
+blacksmith. He persecuted Jaqui more than he had before, and when his
+solicitations to see the lady again were refused he went so far as to
+attempt to climb up to her window. Of course Jaqui could have called in
+the aid of the police, but it would have made it very unpleasant for him
+to bring the whole affair into court, and Florino knew this as well as
+he did. After a short time the poet tried a new line of tactics, and
+endeavored to persuade Jaqui that it was his duty to revive the lady;
+when this idea once got well into the head of the young man he became
+a worse lunatic than before. Jaqui attempted to reason with him; but
+Florino would listen to nothing he had to say, and went on being a
+fool, and a poet, and a lover, at the same time; and Jaqui began to be
+afraid that some day he would get into the room by foul means, break
+open the box, seize upon the sealed parchment which lay under the lid,
+and try to revive the lady himself.
+
+"It is quite possible this might have happened had not something very
+unexpected occurred. Dr. Paltravi came back to his old home. Jaqui
+recognized him immediately from the description which Torquino had given
+of him. He was now nearly seventy years old, but he was in good health
+and vigor; his tall form was still upright, and the dark eyes, which the
+old doctor had particularly described, were as bright and as piercing as
+ever they had been.
+
+"He told Jaqui he had hoped to postpone the revival of his wife until
+the expiration of the fifty years, but that of late his resolution had
+been weakening. It had become very hard for him to think he must wait
+ten years more before he came back to his home and his wife. Science was
+a great thing, but the love of a man for a woman such as he loved was
+still greater; and when he heard of the death of Dr. Torquino he had
+instantly made up his mind he would not leave his wife in the custody of
+any one but his old friend and partner. So here he was, fully resolved
+to lose no time in reviving his wife and in spending his life here with
+her in their old home so long as they might survive.
+
+"Jaqui was now a happy man. Here was the owner of the lady, ready to
+take her off his hands and relieve him of all the perplexing
+responsibility and misery which her possession had caused him. As he
+looked at the stalwart figure of the returned husband it made him laugh
+to think of the fool-poet.
+
+"Dr. Paltravi and Jaqui were both practical men, and that evening they
+laid out the whole plan for the revivification of the lady in the box.
+Jaqui was so glad to be rid of her that he willingly undertook to do
+anything to assist Paltravi in starting out on his new career of
+domestic happiness.
+
+"It was agreed that it was most important that when she woke again to
+life Donna Paltravi should not be too much surprised, and her husband
+did everything he could to prevent anything of the kind. He had her old
+bedroom swept and garnished and made to look as much as possible as it
+had been when she last saw it. Then he went out into the town, and was
+fortunate enough to engage as maid a young girl who was the daughter of
+the woman who had been his wife's maid forty years before. Then it was
+decided that this girl, having been well instructed as to what was
+expected of her, should be the first to see the lady when she should
+revive; and that after that, when it should be deemed a suitable moment,
+Jaqui should have an interview with her in the capacity of physician,
+and explain the state of affairs so that she should not be too greatly
+excited and shocked by the change in the appearance of her husband.
+Then, when everything had been made plain, Paltravi was to go to her."
+
+"Those two were a couple of brave men," remarked the Mistress of the
+House.
+
+"They were very fortunate men, I think," said her daughter. "What would
+I not give to be the first to talk to a woman who had slept for forty
+years!"
+
+"Perhaps she is going to sleep indefinitely," answered the Mistress of
+the House. "But we will let John go on with his story."
+
+"All these plans were carried out," continued John Gayther. "The next
+day the lady was taken out of the box, removed to her own chamber, and
+placed upon a couch. The garments she wore were just as fresh and well
+preserved as she was, and as Dr. Paltravi stood and looked at her, his
+heart swelling with emotion, he could see no reason why she should not
+imagine she had fallen asleep forty minutes before instead of forty
+years. The two doctors went to work, speaking seldom and in whispers,
+their faces pale and their hearts scarcely beating, so intense was their
+anxiety regarding the result of this great experiment. Jaqui was almost
+as much affected as Dr. Paltravi, and, in fact, his fears were greater,
+for he was not supported by the faith of the other. He could not help
+thinking of what would follow if everything did not turn out all right.
+
+"But there was no need of anxiety. In a little while respiration
+was established; the heart began to beat gently; the blood slowly
+circulated; there was a little quiver about the lips--Donna Paltravi
+was alive! Her husband, on his knees beside her, lifted his eyes to
+heaven, and then, his head falling forward, he sank upon the floor."
+
+"Oh," ejaculated the Daughter of the House, "I hope he did not die. That
+would have been good tragedy, but how dreadful!"
+
+"No," answered the gardener, "he did not die; and Jaqui, his excitement
+giving him the strength of a giant, took the insensible man in his arms
+and carried him out of the room."
+
+The Mistress of the House gave a little sigh of relief. "I am so glad he
+did," said she; "I was actually beginning to be afraid. I really do not
+want to be present when she first sees him."
+
+John Gayther perfectly understood this remark, and took it to heart. It
+implied a little lack of faith in his dramatic powers, but it made
+things a great deal easier for him.
+
+"Without reentering the room," continued he, "Jaqui partly closed the
+door, and gazed at the lady through a little crack."
+
+"I do not know about that," said the Mistress of the House; "he should
+have gone in boldly."
+
+"Excuse me," said John Gayther, "but I think not. This was a very
+important moment. Nobody knew what would happen. She must not be shocked
+by seeing a stranger. At the same time, the eye of a professional man
+was absolutely necessary. Donna Paltravi slightly moved and sighed; then
+she opened her eyes and gazed for a few minutes at the ceiling; after
+which she turned her head upon the cushion of the couch, and in a clear,
+soft voice called out, 'Rita!' This was the name of the girl now in
+waiting, as it had been the name of her mother, and she instantly
+appeared from the adjoining room. She had seen all that had happened,
+and was trembling so much she could scarcely stand; but she was a girl
+of nerve, and approached and stood by her mistress. 'Rita,' said the
+lady, without looking at her, 'I am hungry; bring me some wine and a few
+of those cakes you bought yesterday.'
+
+"Dr. Paltravi had remembered everything that had pleased his wife; he
+had thought of the little cakes, and had scoured the town early in the
+morning to get some which resembled them; he knew her favorite wine, and
+had given Rita her instructions. Without delay the maid brought the
+refreshments, and in a few minutes the lady was sitting on the couch, a
+glass of wine in her hand. 'Rita,' said she, after eating and drinking
+a little, 'you are dressed very awkwardly this morning. Have you been
+trying to make your own clothes?'
+
+"The doctor had searched diligently in his wife's closets for some
+garments belonging to her former maid, and he had thought he had
+succeeded in getting Rita to dress as her mother had dressed; but he did
+not remember these things as accurately as his wife remembered them.
+'You know I do not like carelessness in dress,' continued Donna
+Paltravi, 'and now that I look at you more closely--'
+
+"'She is truly alive,' said Jaqui, 'and in full possession of her
+senses.' And with this he closed the door.
+
+"When the doctor recovered, both he and Jaqui were very glad to take
+some wine, for they had been under a dreadful strain."
+
+"_Had been!_" exclaimed the Mistress of the House, who understood the
+heart of woman, and knew very well that the great strain had not yet
+come. "But what happened next, John?"
+
+"The next thing happened too soon," replied the gardener. "In less than
+fifteen minutes the maid came to the two doctors and told them her lady
+demanded to see her husband; and if he were not in the house he must be
+sent for immediately. This greatly disturbed Jaqui, and he turned pale
+again. If he could have had his own way at that moment he would have put
+the lady back in her box and locked the door of the little room. He did
+not feel ready to tell the story he had to tell; but there was no help
+for it: he must do it, and that immediately. 'Go in, Jaqui,' said
+Dr. Paltravi; 'prepare her mind as well as you can, and then I will see
+her.'
+
+"'Hurry, please, sir,' said the maid; 'she is very impatient, and I
+cannot explain to her.'
+
+"Thus reassured, Jaqui followed the maid."
+
+"The quick temper of Donna Paltravi reminds me of Edmond About's story
+of 'The Man with the Broken Ear,'" said the Mistress of the House. "The
+hero of that story was a soldier who had been preserved in a dried
+condition for many years, and who proved to be a very bad subject when
+he had been dampened and revived."
+
+"I have read that novel," said John Gayther, considerably to the
+surprise of both his hearers, "and it belongs to the same class as
+mine,--of course you know all stories are arranged in classes,--but the
+one I am telling you is much more natural and true to life than the one
+written by the Frenchman."
+
+"I am quite ready to believe that," said the Mistress of the House. "Now
+please go on."
+
+The Daughter of the House did not say anything, but she looked very
+earnestly at the gardener; the conviction was forcing itself upon her
+that John Gayther himself had a story, and she hoped that some day she
+might hear it.
+
+"Jaqui was very much surprised when he saw Donna Paltravi. He had seen
+her face so often that he was perfectly familiar with it, but now he
+found it had changed. In color it was not as lifelike as it had been in
+the box. She was pale, and somewhat excited. 'My maid tells me you are a
+doctor, sir,' said she. 'But why do you come to me? If I need a doctor,
+and my husband is away, why is not Dr. Torquino here?'
+
+"'Madam,' said Jaqui, his voice faltering a little, 'you will excuse the
+intrusion of a stranger when I tell you that Dr. Torquino is dead.'"
+
+"Rather abrupt," said the Mistress of the House.
+
+"He could not help it, madam," said John Gayther; "it popped out of his
+head. But it did not matter; Donna Paltravi had a quick perception.
+'Oh,' she exclaimed, 'and I not know it!' Then she stopped and looked
+steadfastly at Jaqui. 'I see,' she said slowly; 'I have been in one of
+my trances.' Then she grew still paler. 'But my husband, he is not dead?
+Tell me he is not dead!' she cried.
+
+"'Oh, no,' exclaimed Jaqui; 'he is alive and well, and will be with you
+very soon.' Donna Paltravi's face lighted with an expression of great
+happiness; her color returned; and she looked almost as handsome as when
+she had been lying in the box. 'Blessed be the holy Mary!' said she. 'If
+he is well it does not matter what has happened. How long have I been in
+a trance?'
+
+"'I cannot say exactly,' replied Jaqui, very much afraid to speak the
+truth; 'in fact, I was not here when you went into it: but--'
+
+"'Oh, never mind, never mind!' she exclaimed. 'My husband will tell
+me everything. I would much rather he should do so. But what
+ugly-fashioned clothes you are wearing, sir! Does everybody dress in
+that way now, or is it only doctors? I am sure I must have been asleep
+for a good while, and that I shall see some wonderful things. It is
+quite delightful to think of it. I can scarcely wait until my husband
+comes. I want him to tell me everything.'
+
+"When the greatly relieved Jaqui returned with this news he threw
+Dr. Paltravi into a state of rapture. His wife knew what had happened;
+she had not been shocked; she understood; and, above everything else,
+she longed to see him! After all these forty years he was now--this
+minute--to be with her again! She was longing to see him! With all the
+vigor of youth he bounded up the stairs.
+
+"Now," said John Gayther, "we will pass over an interval of time."
+
+"I think that will be very well indeed!" the Mistress of the House said
+approvingly.
+
+"Not a long one, I hope," said her daughter, "for this is a breathless
+point in the story. I have worked it out in my own mind in three
+different ways already."
+
+The gardener smiled with pleasure. He had a high regard for the mind of
+the Daughter of the House.
+
+"Well," said he, "the interval is very short; it is really not more than
+twenty minutes. At the end of that brief space of time Jaqui was
+surprised to see Dr. Paltravi reenter the room he had so recently left
+in all the wild excitement of an expectant lover. But what a changed man
+he was! Pale, haggard, wild-eyed, aged, he sank into a chair and covered
+his face with his hands."
+
+"I was afraid of that! I was afraid of that!" exclaimed the Mistress of
+the House.
+
+"And I, too," said her daughter, with tears in her eyes; "that was one
+of the ways in which I worked it out. But it is too dreadful. John
+Gayther, don't you think you have made a mistake? If you were to
+consider it all carefully don't you really believe it could not be that,
+at least not quite that?"
+
+"I am sorry," said the gardener, "but I am sure this story could not
+have happened in any other way, and I think if you will wait until it is
+finished you will agree with me.
+
+"For a few minutes the distressed husband could not speak, and then in
+faltering tones he told Jaqui what had happened. His wife had been so
+shocked and horrified at his appearance that she had come near fainting.
+What made it worse was that it was evident she did not regard him as
+some strange old man. She had recognized him instantly. His form, his
+features, his carriage were perfectly familiar to her. She had known
+them all in her young dark-haired husband of forty years before; and
+here was that same husband gray-headed, gray-bearded, and repulsively
+old! She had turned away her head; she would not look at him. As soon as
+she could speak she had demanded to know how long she had been in her
+trance, and when the matter was explained her anger was unbounded.
+
+"Dr. Paltravi never told Jaqui all that she said, but she must have used
+very severe language. She declared he had used her shamefully and
+wickedly in keeping her asleep for so long, and then wakening her to be
+the wife of a miserable old man just ready to totter into the grave. But
+she would not be his wife. She vowed she would have nothing to do with
+him. He had deserted her; he had treated her cruelly; and the holy
+father, the Pope, would look upon it in that light, and would separate
+her from him. With bitter reproaches she had told him to go away, and
+never to let her see him again."
+
+"She ought to have been ashamed of herself," said the Daughter of the
+House. "I have no sympathy with her. Instead of upbraiding him she ought
+to have been grateful to him for the wonderful opportunities he had
+given her."
+
+"But, John," said the Mistress of the House, "I do not believe the Pope
+could have separated them. The Roman Catholic Church does not sanction
+divorce."
+
+"Not as a rule, madam," replied the gardener; "but I will touch on this
+point again. There was a good deal to be said on her side, it is true;
+but I am not going to take sides with any of the persons in my story.
+She had driven away the poor doctor, and declared she would have nothing
+to do with him; and so the unhappy man told Jaqui he was going back to
+Milan, where he had been living, and would trouble his wife no more.
+Then up jumped Jaqui in a terrible state of mind. Was he never to get
+rid of this lady? He declared to Paltravi he could not accept the
+responsibility. When she had been in the box it had been bad enough, but
+now it was impossible. He would go away to some place unknown. He would
+depart utterly and leave everything behind him.
+
+"But on his knees Dr. Paltravi implored Jaqui to stay where he was, and
+to protect his wife for a time at least. He would send money, he would
+do everything he could, and perhaps, after a time, some arrangement
+could be made; but now he must go. He had been ordered to leave, and he
+must do so. It had not been two days since Paltravi and Jaqui had met,
+but already it seemed to them that they were old friends. Strange
+circumstances had bound them together, and Jaqui now found he could not
+refuse the charge which was thrust upon him; and Dr. Paltravi departed.
+
+"Donna Paltravi did not allow her anger to deprive her of her
+opportunities. There were so many new things she wanted to see that she
+set about seeing them with great earnestness and industry, and she
+enjoyed her new world very much indeed. The news of her revivification
+spread abroad rapidly, for such a thing could not be concealed; and many
+people came to see her. She was beautiful and popular, and adopted new
+fashions as soon as she learned them. Jaqui had nothing to say to all
+this; he had no right now to keep people from seeing her.
+
+"Very soon there came to her the fool-poet. Now Jaqui began to hope. He
+had been assured by his priest that, under the circumstances, the church
+would dissolve this young lady's marriage with Paltravi, and if Florino
+would marry her Jaqui might look forward to a peaceful life. Now whether
+the priest had a right to say this I will not take it on myself to say;
+but he did say it: and so Jaqui did not feel called upon to interfere
+with the courtship of the fool-poet. He decided that as soon as possible
+he would go away from that house. He had a dislike for houses with three
+floors, and his next habitation should be carefully selected; if so much
+as a preserved bug or a butterfly in a box should be found on the
+premises, that symbol of evil should be burned and its ashes scattered
+afar.
+
+"Jaqui had every reason to hope. Florino literally threw himself at the
+feet of the fair Donna Paltravi; and she was delighted with him. He was
+somewhat younger than she was, but that had been the case with her first
+lover, and she had not objected. The two young people got on famously
+together, although there was now a duenna as well as a maid on the
+second floor. Jaqui was greatly comforted. He spent a good deal of his
+spare time going about Florence looking for a desirable house with two
+floors. The courtship went on merrily, and there was talk of the
+wedding; and, while Jaqui could not help pitying the poor old man in
+Milan, he could not altogether blame the gay young woman in Florence,
+who was now generally looked upon as a lady who had lost her husband.
+
+"It was nearly three weeks after the lady had come out of her box when a
+strange thing happened: four days elapsed without Florino coming to the
+house! Jaqui was greatly disturbed and nervous. Suppose the young man
+had found some other lady to love, or suppose his parents had shut him
+up! Such suspicions were very disquieting, and Jaqui went to see
+Florino. He found the fool-poet in a fit of the doleful dumps. At first
+the young man refused to talk: but, when Jaqui pressed him, he admitted
+that he had not quarrelled with the lady; that she did not know why he
+was staying away; that he had received several notes from her, and that
+he had not answered them. Then Jaqui grew very angry and half drew his
+sword. This was a matter in which he was concerned. The lady's husband
+had placed her in his charge, and he would not stand tamely by and see
+her deserted by her lover, who had given everybody reason to believe
+that he intended to make her his own.
+
+"But Jaqui put back his sword, for the fool-poet showed no signs of
+fight, and then he used argument. Just as earnestly as he had formerly
+tried to keep these two apart did he now endeavor to bring them
+together. But Florino would listen to no reason, and at last, when
+driven to bay, he declared he would not marry an old woman--that Donna
+Paltravi had dozens of gray hairs on each temple, and there were several
+wrinkles at the corners of her eyes. He was a young man, and wanted a
+young woman for his wife.
+
+"Jaqui was utterly astounded by what he heard. His mind was suddenly
+permeated by a conviction which rendered him speechless. He rose, and
+without another word he hurried home. As soon as he could he made a
+visit to Donna Paltravi. He had not seen her for a week or more, and the
+moment his eyes fell upon her he saw that Florino was right. She was
+growing old! He spent some time with her, but as she did not allude to
+any change in herself, of course he did not; but just as he was leaving
+he made a casual remark about Florino. 'Oh, he has not been here for
+some time,' said the lady. 'I missed him at first, but now I am glad he
+does not come. He is very frivolous, and I have a small opinion of his
+poetry. I think most of it is copied, and he shows poor judgment in his
+selections.'
+
+"That evening, sitting in his private room, Jaqui thought he saw through
+everything. Up-stairs on the second floor was a lady who was actually
+seventy-one years old! Her natural development had been arrested by
+artificial influences, but as these influences had ceased to operate,
+there could be no reason to doubt that nature was resuming her authority
+over the lady, and that she was doing her best to make up for lost time.
+Donna Paltravi appeared now to be about forty-five years old."
+
+"This is getting to be very curious, John," said the Mistress of the
+House. "I have often heard of bodies which, on being exhumed, after they
+have been buried a long time, presented a perfectly natural appearance,
+but which crumbled into dust when exposed to the air and the light.
+Would not this lady's apparent youth have crumbled into dust all at once
+when it was exposed to light and air?"
+
+"I cannot say, madam," said the gardener, respectfully, "what might have
+happened in other cases, but in this instance the life of youth remained
+for a good while, and when it did begin to depart the change was
+gradual."
+
+"You forget, mamma," said the younger lady, "that this is real life, and
+that it is a story with one thing coming after another, like steps."
+
+"I did forget," said the other, "and I beg your pardon, John."
+
+The gardener bowed his head a little, and went on: "Jaqui was greatly
+interested in this new development. He made frequent visits to Donna
+Paltravi, and found, to his surprise, that she was not the vain and
+frivolous woman he had supposed her to be, but was, in reality, very
+sensible and intelligent. She talked very well about many things, and
+even took an interest in science. Jaqui lost all desire to put her back
+in her box, and spent the greater part of his leisure time in her
+company."
+
+At this the Mistress of the House smiled, but her daughter frowned.
+
+"Of course," continued the gardener, "he soon fell in love with her."
+
+"Which was natural enough," said the Mistress of the House.
+
+"Whether it was natural enough or not," cried her daughter, "it was not
+right."
+
+John Gayther looked upon her with pride. He knew that in her fair young
+mind that which ought to be rose high above thoughts of what was likely
+to be, which came into the more experienced mind of her mother.
+
+"But you see, miss," said John Gayther, "Jaqui was human. Here was a
+lady very near his own age, still beautiful, very intelligent, living in
+the same house with him, glad to see him whenever he chose to visit her.
+It was all as clear as daylight, and it was not long before he was in
+such a state of mind that he would have fallen upon Florino with a drawn
+sword if the fool-poet had dared to renew his addresses to Donna
+Paltravi."
+
+"I must say," remarked the Mistress of the House, "that although his
+action was natural enough, he was in great danger of becoming a
+prose-fool."
+
+"You are right, madam," said the gardener, "and Jaqui had some ideas
+of that kind himself. But it was of no use. She was an uncommonly
+attractive lady now that her mind came to the aid of her body. He knew
+that nature was still working hard to make this blooming middle-aged
+lady look like the old woman she really was. But love is a powerful
+antidote to reason, and this was the first time Jaqui had ever been in
+love. When he thought of it at all, he persuaded himself that it did not
+matter how old this lady might come to be; he would love her all the
+same. In fact, he was sure that if she were to turn young again and
+become frivolous and beautiful, his love would not change. It was
+getting stronger and stronger every time he saw her."
+
+"What I am thinking about," exclaimed the Daughter of the House, "is
+that poor old gentleman in Milan. No matter what the others were doing,
+or what they were thinking, they were treating him shamefully, and Jaqui
+was not his friend at all."
+
+"You may be right," said her mother; "but, don't you see, this is real
+life. You must not forget that, my dear."
+
+John Gayther smiled and went on, and the young lady listened, although
+she did not approve. "Jaqui was a handsome man, and could make himself
+very agreeable; and it is not surprising that Donna Paltravi became very
+much attached to him. He could not fail to see this, and as he was a man
+of method, he declared to himself one day that upon the next day, at the
+first moment he could find the lady alone, he would propose marriage to
+her. He had ceased to think about increase in age and all that. He was
+perfectly satisfied with her as she was, and he troubled his mind about
+nothing else.
+
+"But early the next day, before he had a chance to carry out his plans,
+he received a letter from Dr. Paltravi urging him to come immediately to
+Milan. The poor gentleman was sick in his bed, and greatly longed to
+see his friend Jaqui. The letter concluded with the earnest request that
+Jaqui should not tell Donna Paltravi where he was going, or that he had
+heard from the unfortunate writer. Jaqui set off at once, for fear he
+should not find his friend alive, and on the way his emotions were
+extremely conflicting."
+
+"And very wicked, I have no doubt," said the Daughter of the House. "He
+hoped that old man would die."
+
+"There is some truth in what you say, miss," answered John Gayther, with
+a proud glance at the Mistress of the House, who was not ashamed to
+return it, "for Jaqui could not help thinking that if old Dr. Paltravi,
+who could not expect any further happiness in this life, and who must
+die before very long anyhow, owing to his age and misfortunes, should
+choose to leave the world at this time, it would not only be a good
+thing for him, but it would make matters a great deal easier for some
+people he would leave behind him. In real life you cannot help such
+thoughts as this, miss, unless you are very, very good, far above the
+average.
+
+"Jaqui found the old doctor very sick indeed, and he immediately set
+about doing everything he could to make him feel better; but
+Dr. Paltravi did not care anything about medical treatment. It was not
+for that he had sent for Jaqui. What he desired was to make arrangements
+for the future of Donna Paltravi, and he wanted Jaqui to carry out his
+wishes. In the first place, he asked him to take charge of the lady's
+fortune and administer it to her advantage; and secondly, he desired
+that he would marry her. 'If I die knowing that the dear woman who was
+once my wife is to marry you,' said the sick man, 'and thus be protected
+and cared for, I shall leave this world grateful and happy. I can never
+do anything for her myself; but if you will take my place, my
+friend,--and I am sure Donna Paltravi will easily learn to like
+you,--that will be the next best thing. Now will you promise me?' Jaqui
+knelt by the side of the bed, took his friend's hand, and promised.
+There were tears in his eyes, but whether they were tears of joy or of
+sorrow it is not for me to say."
+
+"It is for me, though," said the Daughter of the House, very severely.
+"I know that man thoroughly."
+
+The gardener went on with his story: "Jaqui remained several days with
+Dr. Paltravi, but he could not do his poor friend any good. The sick man
+was nervous and anxious; he was afraid that some one else might get
+ahead of Jaqui and marry Donna Paltravi; and he urged his friend not to
+stay with him, where he could be of no service, but to go back to
+Florence and prepare to marry Donna Paltravi when she should become a
+widow. As Jaqui was also getting nervous, being possessed of the same
+fears, he at last consented to carry out the old doctor's wishes,--and
+his own at the same time,--and he returned to Florence.
+
+"In the meantime Donna Paltravi had been somewhat anxious about Jaqui.
+She had conceived a high regard for him, and she could think of no
+satisfactory reason why he should go away without saying anything to
+her, and stay away without writing. She hoped nothing had occurred which
+would interfere with the very agreeable sentiments which appeared to be
+springing up between them. This disturbed state of mind was very bad
+for a lady in the physical condition of Donna Paltravi. If I may use the
+simile of a clock in connection with her apparent age, I should say that
+worrying conjecture, had caused some cogs to slip, and that the clock of
+her age had struck a good many years since Jaqui's absence.
+
+"When he met her she greeted him warmly, plainly delighted to see him;
+but for a moment he was startled. This lady was really very much older
+than when he had left her; her hair was nearly gray."
+
+"Served him right!" said the Daughter of the House.
+
+"But when he began to talk to her," continued John Gayther, "his former
+feelings for her returned. She was charming, and he forgot about her
+hair. Her conversation greatly interested him; and now that his
+conscience came to the assistance of his affection (for he was doing
+exactly what Dr. Paltravi desired him to do), he was quite happy and
+spent a pleasant evening. But in the morning, as he looked at himself in
+the mirror, he remembered her gray hair."
+
+At the word "conscience" an indication of a sneer had appeared on the
+face of the young lady, but she did not interrupt.
+
+"It was about a week after this that Donna Paltravi sat alone in the
+little room on the second floor, and Dr. Jaqui sat alone in the little
+room on the first floor. She was waiting for him to come to her, and
+he was not intending to go. He believed, with reason, that she was
+expecting him to propose marriage to her, and he did not intend to offer
+himself. He was very willing to marry a middle-aged lady, but he did
+not wish to espouse an old one--at least, an old one who looked her age;
+and that Donna Paltravi was going to look her full age in a very short
+time Jaqui had now no doubt whatever. Her face was beginning to show a
+great many wrinkles, and her hair was not only gray but white in some
+places. But these changes did not in the least interfere with her good
+looks, for in some ways she was growing more handsome and stately than
+she had been before; but our good friend Jaqui--"
+
+"Not my good friend Jaqui, please," interrupted the Daughter of the
+House.
+
+"Said to himself," continued John Gayther, "that he did not want a
+mother, but a wife. A few weeks before he would have supposed such a
+thing impossible, but now a certain sympathy for Florino rose in his
+heart. So he did not go up-stairs that evening, and the lady was very
+much disturbed and did not sleep well.
+
+"In a few days Jaqui got ready to go away again, and this time he went
+to bid the lady good-by. She had heard he was about to take a journey,
+and as he greeted her he saw she had been weeping but was quite composed
+now. 'Farewell, my friend,' said she. 'I know what is happening to me,
+and I know what is happening to you. It will be well for you to stay
+away for a time, and when you return you will see that we are to be
+very good friends, greatly interested in the progress of science and
+civilization.' Then she smiled and shook hands with him.
+
+"Jaqui went to Rome and to Naples, wandering about in an objectless sort
+of way. He dreaded to go to Milan, because he had not heard that
+Dr. Paltravi was dead, and it would have been very hard for him to have
+to explain to the sick man why he had decided not to carry out his
+wishes. Apart from the disappointment he would feel when he heard that
+Donna Paltravi was not to have the kind guardianship he had planned for
+her, the old doctor would be grieved to the soul when he heard his wife
+had lost the youth he had taken from her, but which he had expected to
+return in full measure. What made it worse for Jaqui was that he could
+administer no comfort with the news. He could not sacrifice himself to
+please the old man; promise or no promise, this was impossible. He had
+not consented to marry an old lady. Again, from the very bottom of his
+heart, did Jaqui wish there never had been a lady in a box.
+
+"At last, when he could put it off no longer, he went to Milan; and
+there he found Dr. Paltravi still alive, but very low and very much
+troubled because he had not heard from Jaqui. The latter soon perceived
+it would be utterly useless to try to deceive or in any way to mislead
+the old man, who, although in sad bodily condition, still preserved his
+acuteness of mind. Jaqui had to tell him everything, and he began with
+Florino and ended with himself, not omitting to tell how the lady had
+recognized the situation, and what she had said. Then, fearing the
+consequences of this revelation, he put his hand into his leathern bag
+to take out a bottle of cordial. But Dr. Paltravi waved away medicine,
+and sat up in bed.
+
+"'Did you say,' he cried, 'she is growing old, and that you believe she
+will continue to do so until she appears to be the lady of threescore
+and ten she really is?'
+
+"'Yes,' said Jaqui; 'that is what I said, and that is what I believe.'
+
+"'Then, by all the holy angels,' cried Dr. Paltravi, jumping out of bed,
+'she shall be my wife, and nobody else need concern himself about her.'"
+
+"Hurrah!" cried the Daughter of the House, involuntarily springing to
+her feet. "I was so afraid you would not come to that."
+
+"I was bound to come to that, miss," said John Gayther.
+
+"And did they really marry again?" asked the Mistress of the House.
+
+"No," was the reply; "they did not. There was no need of it. The priests
+assured them most emphatically that there was not the slightest need of
+it. And so they came together again after this long interval, which had
+been forty years to him, but which she had lived in forty days. If they
+had been together all the time they could not have loved each other more
+than they did now. To her eyes, so suddenly matured, there appeared a
+handsome, stately old gentleman seventy years of age; to his eyes, from
+which the visions of youth had been so suddenly removed, there appeared
+a beautiful, stately old lady seventy-one years of age. It was just as
+natural as if one of them had slept all day while the other had remained
+awake; it was all the same to them both in the evening.
+
+"She soon ceased to think how cruelly she had sent him away from her,
+for she had been so young when she did it. And he now gave no thought to
+what she had done, remembering how young she was when she did it. They
+were as happy as though she had had all the past that rightfully
+belonged to her, for he had had enough for both of them."
+
+"And Jaqui?" asked the Mistress of the House.
+
+"Oh, Jaqui was the happiest of the three of them, happy himself, and
+happy in their happiness. Never again did he wish the lady in her box.
+He looked no further for a smaller house which should contain but two
+floors; he was as glad to stay where he was as they were to have him.
+They were three very happy people, all of them greatly interested in the
+progress of scientific investigation."
+
+"And not one of them deserved to be happy," said the Daughter of the
+House.
+
+"But you must remember, miss, this is a story about realities," said the
+gardener.
+
+She sighed a little sigh; she knew that where realities are concerned
+this sort of thing generally happens.
+
+"That is a very good story, John," said the Mistress of the House,
+rising from her seat; "but it seems to me that while you were talking
+you sometimes thought of yourself as Jaqui."
+
+"There is something in that, madam," answered the gardener; "it may have
+been that during the story I sometimes did think that I myself might
+have been Jaqui."
+
+"Mamma," said the Daughter of the House, as the two walked out of the
+garden, "don't you think that John Gayther is very intelligent?"
+
+"I have always thought him remarkably intelligent," her mother replied.
+"I have noticed that gardeners generally are a thoughtful, intelligent
+race of men."
+
+"I don't think it is so much the garden as because he has travelled so
+much," said the young lady, "and I have a strange feeling that he has a
+story of his own in the past. I wonder if he will ever tell it to me."
+
+"If he has such a story," said the elder lady, "he will never tell it to
+you."
+
+
+
+
+                      THIS STORY IS TOLD BY
+
+                    THE MISTRESS OF THE HOUSE
+
+                          AND IS CALLED
+
+                       THE COT AND THE RILL
+
+
+
+
+IV
+
+THE COT AND THE RILL
+
+
+A week or so later the Daughter of the House came skipping down one of
+the broad paths. John Gayther stood still and looked at her, glad to see
+her coming, as he always was, no matter on what errand she came.
+
+"John," she cried, before she reached him, "you are to stop work!" Then,
+as she came up to him, she continued: "Yes; there is to be story-telling
+this morning. We have told papa about it, and he is coming to what he
+calls the story-telling place with us, and mamma feels inspired to tell
+the story. So you may take that troubled look out of your face. Please
+put the big easy garden-chair in the shade of the summer-house. Papa
+does so like to be comfortable. And the view from there is so fine, you
+know--a beautiful land view. Papa must be tired of sea views and shore
+views, and here he will enjoy the mountains!"
+
+Having delivered all this very volubly, the Daughter of the House
+skipped away. And as John Gayther busied himself in making the
+"story-telling place" attractive he felt glad that there were others
+besides himself who liked to tell stories. There was such a thing as
+overworking a mine. He was that rare thing, a story-teller who is also a
+good listener. Moreover, John felt very diffident about telling one of
+his stories before the Master of the House, who was a man prone to speak
+his mind. Not that John disliked the Master of the House. Far from it.
+He, with the family, was pleased when the Master of the House returned
+from a long cruise and proceeded immediately to make himself very much
+at home. For the Master of the House was a captain in the navy, and as
+hearty, bluff, and good-natured as a captain should be.
+
+The captain had been at home some days, and had been in the garden
+several times, and now John Gayther was filled with admiration as he saw
+this fine, sturdy figure, clad all in white, approach the summer-house.
+With an air of supreme content this figure partly stretched itself in
+the big garden-chair, while the two ladies seated themselves on the
+bench. John Gayther stood respectfully until the Master of the House
+motioned to him to sit on his stool.
+
+"Good morning, John," he cried heartily. "We've piped all hands to
+yarns. I have heard what you can do in this line, and we shall call upon
+you before long. This time you are privileged to listen. You can let
+somebody else cut your asparagus and dig your potatoes this morning."
+
+"Papa," said his daughter, "it is too late for asparagus and too early
+for potatoes. I am afraid you forget about these things when you are at
+sea."
+
+"Not at all," said her father. "On shipboard we cut our asparagus at any
+time of the year. The steward does it with a big knife, which he jabs
+through the covers of the tin cans. As for potatoes, they are always
+with us."
+
+The Mistress of the House was now prepared to tell her story.
+
+"I am going to tell my story in the first person," she began.
+
+"There is no better person," interrupted the Master of the House.
+
+"I do not intend to describe my hero who is to tell the story,"
+continued his wife. "I will only say that he is moderately young and
+moderately handsome. Various other things about him you will find out as
+the story goes on. Now, then, he begins thus: I was driving my wife in a
+buggy in a mountainous region, and when we reached the top of a little
+rise in the road, Anita put her hand on my arm. 'Stop,' she said; 'look
+down there! That is what I like! It is a cot and a rill. You see that
+cot--not much of a house, to be sure, but it would do. And there, just
+near enough for the water to tumble over rocks and gurgle over stones to
+soothe one to sleep on summer nights, is the rill--not much of a rill,
+perhaps, but I think it could be arranged with a shovel. And then, all
+the rest is enchanting. I had been looking at it for some time before I
+spoke. There is a smooth meadow stretching away to a forest, and behind
+that there are hills, and in the distance you can just see the
+mountains. Now this is the place where I should like to live. Isn't
+there any way of making those horses stand still for a minute?'
+
+"I tried my persuasive powers on the animals, and succeeded moderately.
+'To live?' I asked. 'And for how long?'
+
+"'Until about the 3d of August,' she replied. 'That will be about three
+weeks.'
+
+"'You mean,' I said in surprise, 'something like this.'
+
+"'I do not,' answered Anita. 'I mean this very spot. To find something
+like it would require months. What I want, as I have told you over and
+over again, is a real cot with a real rill, to which we can go now and
+live for a little while that unsophisticated life for which my soul is
+longing.'
+
+"Anita and I were taking a summer outing together, and were trying to
+get into free nature, away from people we knew, and had been several
+days at a mountain hotel, and were driving about the country. My black
+cobs now declined to stand any longer.
+
+"'Drive them down into the valley. There must be a road to that house,'
+said Anita.
+
+"I drove on for a short distance, and soon came to a wagon-track which
+descended to the little house. 'Anita,' said I, 'I cannot go down that
+road; it is too rough and rocky, and we should break something. But why
+do you want to go down there, anyhow? You are not in earnest about
+living in such a place as that?'
+
+"'But I am in earnest,' she answered sweetly but decisively. 'I want to
+stay in this region and explore it. We both of us hate hotels, and I
+could be very happy in a cot like that (a little arranged, perhaps)
+until the 3d of August, when we have to go North. But I won't ask you to
+go down that road, of course. Suppose we come again to-morrow with some
+quieter horses.'
+
+"'I am sorry,' said I, 'but I cannot do that. Mr. Baxter comes
+to-morrow. You know it was planned that he should always come Tuesdays.'
+
+"She sighed. 'I suppose everything must give way to business,' she said,
+'and I shall have to wait until Wednesday. But one thing must certainly
+be agreed upon: when we get to that cot there must be no more Mr. Baxter;
+you can certainly plan for that, can't you?'
+
+"I made no immediate reply, because I was busy turning the horses in
+rather an awkward place; but when we were on the smooth highway and were
+trotting gayly back to the hotel, I discussed the matter more fully with
+Anita, and I found that what she had been talking about was not a mere
+fancy. Before coming to this picturesque mountain region she had set her
+heart upon some sort of camping out in the midst of real nature, and
+this cot-and-rill business seemed to suit her exactly.
+
+"'I want to go there and live,' she said; 'but I do not mean any Marie
+Antoinette business, with milk-pails decked with ribbons, and dainty
+little straw hats. I want to live in a cot like a cotter--that is, for
+us to live like two cotters. As for myself, I need it; my moral and
+physical natures demand it. I must have a change, an absolute change,
+and this is just what I want. I would shut out entirely the world I live
+in, and it is only in a real and true cot that this can be done as I
+want to do it.'
+
+"She talked a great deal more on the same subject, and then I told her
+that if it suited her it suited me, and that on the day after to-morrow
+we would drive out again and examine the cot. For the rest of the day
+and the greater part of the evening Anita talked of nothing but her
+projected life in the valley; and before I went to sleep I was quite as
+much in love with it as she was. The next day it rained, but Mr. Baxter
+came all the same; weather never interfered with him."
+
+"Who in the name of common sense is Mr. Baxter?" asked the Master of the
+House. "I like to know who people are when I am being told what they
+do."
+
+"I had hoped," said the Mistress of the House, "that I should be able
+to tell my story so you would find out for yourselves all about the
+characters, just as in real life if you see a man working in a garden
+you know he is a gardener."
+
+"But he may not be," said her husband; "he may be a coachman pulling
+carrots for his horses."
+
+"But, as you wish it," continued the Mistress of the House, "I do not
+mind telling you that Mr. Baxter was my hero's right-hand man and
+business manager. And now he will go on:
+
+"After Baxter and I had finished our business I told him about the cot,
+for if we carried out Anita's plan it would be necessary for him to know
+where we were. Then, putting on waterproof coats, we rode over to the
+place which had excited my wife's desire to become a cotter. We found
+the house small but in good order, with four rooms and an adjunct at one
+end. There were vines growing over it, and at the side of it a garden--a
+garden with an irregular hedge around two sides; it was a poor sort of a
+garden, mostly weeds, I thought, as I glanced at it. The stream of water
+was a pretty little brook, and Baxter, who rode to the head of it, said
+he thought it could be made much better.
+
+"The house was the home of a widow with a grown-up daughter and a son
+about fifteen. We talked to them, asking a great many questions about
+the surrounding country, and then retired to consult. We did not
+consider long; in less than ten minutes I had ordered Baxter to buy the
+house and everything in it, if the people were willing to sell; and then
+to purchase as much land around it as would be necessary to carry out my
+plans, which I then and there imparted to him in a general way, leaving
+him to attend to the details."
+
+"Your nameless hero," said the Master of the House, "must have been in
+very comfortable circumstances."
+
+"I am glad to see that my story is explaining itself," remarked his
+wife, and she continued:
+
+"Baxter looked serious for a moment, and said it was a big piece of
+work; but he did not decline it. Baxter never declined anything.
+
+"'How much time can you give me?' he asked.
+
+"'My wife will want to look at the place to-morrow,' I replied; 'that
+is, if it does not rain: for she says she does not want to see it first
+in bad weather.'
+
+"'That's a help,' said Baxter. 'The Weather Bureau promises east winds
+and rains for to-morrow and perhaps the next day. And, anyway, I know
+now what you want. I will go back to town by the one-o'clock train and
+start things going.'
+
+"'There is one thing I object to,' said I, when we were on the country
+road from which Anita had first seen the cot and the rill: 'the house
+is in full view from this road. Before we know it we will be making
+ourselves spectacles to parties from the hotel who happen to discover
+us and drive out to see how we are getting on.'
+
+"Baxter reflected. 'Oh, I can arrange that,' said he. 'I know this road;
+it turns again into the highway not far below here. It is really a
+private road for the benefit of this house and two others nearly a mile
+farther on. I will include those places in the purchase, and close up
+the road. Then I will make it a private entrance to this place, with a
+locked gate. Will that do?'
+
+"'Very well,' said I, laughing. 'But I suppose people could cut across
+the country and come in at the other end of the road if they really
+wanted to look into the valley?'
+
+"'Not after I have finished the job,' said Baxter; and I asked no
+further questions."
+
+"May I inquire," said the captain, "if that Mr. Baxter is in want of a
+position?"
+
+"I am afraid, papa," said the Daughter of the House, "that you would
+have to own a navy before you could employ him."
+
+The gardener smiled. A story built upon these lines interested him. The
+Mistress of the House went on without regard to the interruptions:
+
+"I found Anita in earnest consultation with her maid Maria and the
+mistress of the hotel, and it was at least an hour before she could see
+me. When I told her I had secured the cot, or at least arranged to do
+so, she was pleased and grateful, especially as I had had to go out into
+the rain to do it. 'I knew, of course,' she said, 'that Baxter would
+settle that all right, and so I have been making my arrangements. But
+there is one favor I want you to grant me: I don't want you to ask me
+anything about how I am going to manage matters. I don't want to deceive
+you in any possible way, and so if you do not ask me any questions it
+will make it easier for me.'
+
+"'Very good,' I replied; 'and I shall ask a similar favor of you.'
+
+"'All right,' said Anita. 'And now that matter is settled.'
+
+"The prophecies of the weather were correct. The next day, Wednesday, it
+rained, and it also rained on Thursday and Friday; but on Saturday it
+looked as if it might clear in the afternoon.
+
+"'I am not going to-day,' said Anita. 'I have been working very hard
+lately, and to-morrow I will take a good rest, and we will start in on
+Monday.'
+
+"Baxter was very glad of the four days of delay occasioned by the stormy
+weather, and said that without working on Sunday he could finish
+everything to his satisfaction. I went down to the cot the next day to
+see how he was getting on; but Anita asked me no questions, and I asked
+none of her. I had never known her to be so continuously occupied. As I
+stood with Baxter in front of the cottage, where there was a fine view
+of the surrounding country, I asked him how much land he had thought it
+desirable to purchase.
+
+"'Over there,' he said, 'I bought just beyond that range of trees, about
+half a mile, I should say. But to the west a little more, just skirting
+the highroad. To the north I bought to the river, which is three
+quarters of a mile. But over there to the south I included that stretch
+of forest-land which extends to the foot-hills of the mountains; the
+line must be about a mile from here.'
+
+"'That is a very large tract,' said I. 'How did you manage to buy it so
+quickly?'
+
+"'I had nine real-estate agents here on Thursday morning,' he replied,
+'and the sales were all consummated this morning. They all went to work
+at once, each on a separate owner. We bought for cash, and no one knew
+his neighbor was selling.'
+
+"I laughed, and asked him how he was going to keep this big estate
+private for our use. 'We want to wander free, you know, anywhere and
+everywhere.'
+
+"'That is what I thought,' said he, 'and that is why I took in such a
+variety of scenery. Nobody will interfere with you. There will be no
+inhabited house on the place except your own, and I am putting up a
+fence of chicken-yard wire around the whole estate. There is nothing
+like chicken-yard wire. It is six feet high and very difficult to climb
+over, and it is also troublesome to cut.'
+
+"I exclaimed in amazement: 'That will take a long time!'
+
+"'I have contracted to have it done by Saturday morning,' replied
+Baxter. 'The train with the wire fence and posts is scheduled to arrive
+here at eleven o'clock to-night, and work will begin immediately. Paulo
+Montani, the Italian boss who has worked for me before, has taken this
+contract, and will put twelve hundred men on.'
+
+"'The train will arrive here?' said I. 'What do you mean?'
+
+"'The M. B. & T. line runs within a mile and a half of this place, and
+my trains will all be switched off at a convenient place near here.'
+
+"'I would not have supposed there was a side-track there,' I remarked.
+
+"'Oh, no,' he replied, 'there was none; but I am now having two built.
+All the different gangs of men will sleep on the freight-cars, which
+have been fitted up with bunks. The wood-cutters and the landscape-men,
+hedgers, sodders, and all that arrived about an hour ago, and I am
+expecting the mechanics' train late this afternoon. The gardeners will
+not arrive until to-morrow; but if it keeps on raining, that will give
+them time enough. They want wet weather for their work.'"
+
+"Excuse me," said the Master of the House, who had now finished his
+cigar and was sitting upright in his chair, "but didn't you omit to
+state that your hero was the King of Siam?"
+
+"I have nothing of the kind to state," answered his wife. "He is merely
+an American gentleman.
+
+"When I heard of the great works that were going on, I exclaimed: 'Look
+here, Baxter, you must be careful about what you are doing. If you make
+this place look like a vast cemetery, all laid out in smooth grass and
+gravelled driveways, my wife won't like it. She wants to live in a cot,
+and she wants everything to be cottish and naturally rural.'
+
+"'That is just what I am going to make it,' said he. 'The highest grade
+of true naturalism is what I am aiming at in house and grounds.
+To-morrow afternoon you can look at the house. Everything will be done
+then, and the furniture will all be in place, and if you want any change
+there will be time enough.'
+
+"The next day I went to the cot; but before I reached it I stopped.
+'Baxter,' I said, 'you have done very well with this rill; it is quite a
+roaring little torrent.'
+
+"'Yes,' said he; 'and down below they are working on some waterfalls,
+but they are not quite finished.'
+
+"When I reached the house I did not exactly comprehend what I saw; it
+was the same house, and yet it was entirely different. It seemed to have
+grown fifty years older than it was when I first saw it. Its color was
+that of wood beautifully stained by age. There was a low piazza I had
+not noticed, which was covered with vines. Bright-colored old-fashioned
+flowers were growing in beds close to the house, and there was a
+pathway, bordered by box bushes, which led from the front door to a
+gateway in a stone wall which partly surrounded the green little yard. I
+had not noticed before the gateway or the stone wall, on which grew
+bitter-sweet vines and Virginia creeper.
+
+"'Now, you see,' said Baxter, 'this grass here is not smooth green turf,
+fresh from the lawn-mower. It is natural grass, with wild flowers in it
+here and there. Nearly all of it was brought from a meadow about a mile
+away from here. But now step inside a minute. Everything there is of the
+period of 1849: horsehair, you see, lots of black walnut, color all
+toned down, and all the ornaments covered with netting to keep the flies
+off.'
+
+"I was interested and amused; but I told Baxter I did not want to see
+everything now; I wished to enjoy the place with my wife when we should
+come to it. He was doing admirably, and I would leave everything to him.
+As I stood on the little portico and looked over the valley, I saw what
+seemed to be a regiment of men coming out of the woods and crossing a
+field.
+
+"'That is the first division of the wire-fence men,' said Baxter,
+'going to supper. They are divided into three sections, and one gang
+relieves another, so that the work is kept going all night by
+torchlight.'
+
+"As I went away Baxter called my attention to the gate at the entrance
+of our road. It was of light iron, and it could be opened into a clump
+of bushes where it was not likely to be noticed. 'If this gate is
+locked,' said I, 'it might make trouble; it may be necessary for some
+one to go in or out.'
+
+"'Oh,' said Baxter, 'I have provided for all that. You know Baldwin, who
+used to superintend your Lake George gardens? I have put him in charge
+of this gate, and have lodged him in a tent over there in the woods. He
+will know who to let in.'
+
+"On Monday morning Anita rose very early, and was dressed and ready for
+breakfast before I woke. The day was a fine one, and her spirits were
+high. 'You have not the slightest idea,' she said, 'how I am going to
+surprise you when we get to the cot.' I told her I had no doubt her
+surprise would be very pleasant, and there I let the matter drop. Soon
+after breakfast we drove over to the cot, this time with a coachman on
+the box. When we arrived at the gate, which was open and out of sight, I
+proposed to Anita that she should send the carriage back and walk to the
+cot.
+
+"'Good,' said she; 'I do not want to see a carriage for two weeks.'
+
+"I have not time to speak of Anita's delight at everything she saw. She
+was amazed that plain people such as I had told her owned the house
+should have lived in such a simple, natural way. 'Everything exactly
+suits everything else,' she said. 'And it is all so cheap and plain.
+There is absolutely nothing that does not suit a cot.' She was wild with
+excitement, and ran about like a girl; and when I followed her into the
+garden, which I had not seen, I found her in one of the box-bordered
+paths, clapping her hands. The place was indeed very pretty, filled with
+old-fashioned flowers and herbs and hop-poles, and all sorts of country
+plants and blossoms.
+
+"At last we returned to the house. 'Now, Anita,' said I, 'we are here in
+our little cot--'
+
+"'Where we are going to be as happy as two kittens,' she interrupted.
+
+"'And as I want everything to suit you,' I continued, 'I am going to
+leave the whole matter of the domestic arrangements in your hands. You
+have seen the house, and you will know what will be necessary to do.
+Mention what servants you want, and I will send for them.'
+
+"'First tell me,' said Anita, 'what you did with the people who were
+here? You said there were three of them.'
+
+"I could not very well answer this question, for I did not know exactly
+what Baxter had done with them. I was inclined to think, however, that
+he had sent them to the hotel until arrangements could be made for them
+to go somewhere else. But I was able to assure Anita that they had gone
+away.
+
+"'Good,' said she. 'I have been thinking about them, and I was afraid
+they might find some reason or other to stay about the place, and that
+would interfere with my plans. And now I will tell you what servants I
+want. I don't want any. I am going to do the work of this house myself.
+Now don't open your mouth so wide. There is nothing to frighten you in
+what I have said. I am thirty-two years old, and although I am not very
+large, I am perfectly strong and healthy, and I cannot imagine anything
+in this world that would give me more pleasure than to live in this cot
+with you for two weeks, and to cook our meals and do everything that is
+necessary to be done. There are thousands and hundreds of thousands of
+women who do all that and are just as happy as they can be. That is the
+kind of happiness I have never had, and I want it now.'
+
+"I sat upright in my slippery horsehair chair and spoke no word. Surely
+Anita had astonished me more than I could possibly astonish her! Before
+me sat my beautiful wife: the mistress of my great house in town, with
+its butlers and footmen, its maids and its men, its horses, its
+carriages, its grand company, and its stately hospitality; the lady of
+my famous country estate, with more butlers and footmen and gardeners
+and stewards and maids and men and stables and carriages and herds and
+flocks, its house-parties of distinguished guests--here was this wife
+of mine, so well known in so many fashionable centres; a social star
+at home and abroad; a delicately reared being, always surrounded by
+servitors of every grade, who had never found it necessary to stoop to
+pick up so much as a handkerchief or a rosebud; and here was this
+superfine lady of high degree, who had just announced to me that she
+intended to cook our meals, to pare our potatoes, to wash our dishes,
+and, probably, to sweep our floors. No wonder I opened my mouth.
+
+"'I hope, now,' said Anita, putting her feet out in front of her to
+keep herself from slipping off the horsehair sofa, 'that you thoroughly
+understand. I do not want any assistance while we are in this cot. I
+have sent away Maria, who has gone to visit her parents, and no woman in
+service is to come on this place while I am here. I have been studying
+hard with Mrs. Parker at the hotel, who seems to be an excellent
+housekeeper and accustomed to homely fare, and I have learned how to
+make and to cook a great many things which are simple and nutritious; I
+have had appropriate dresses made, and Maria has gone to town and bought
+me a great variety of household linen, all good and plain, for our
+damask table-cloths would look perfectly ridiculous here. I have also
+laid in a great many other things which you will see from time to
+time.'"
+
+"What a wonderful moment this would have been for a great slump in
+stocks!" remarked the Master of the House. "Everything swept away but
+the cot and the rill and the dear little wife with her coarse linen and
+her determination to keep no servant. The husband of your Anita would
+have been the luckiest fellow on Wall Street. If I were working on this
+story I would have the blackest of Black Fridays just here."
+
+"'Now, Harold,' said Anita, 'I do not in the least intend to impose upon
+you. Because I choose to work is no reason why you should be compelled
+to do so.'
+
+"'I am glad to hear that,' said I.
+
+"'I knew you would be,' continued Anita. 'But of course neither of us
+will want very much done for us if we live a cotter's life with these
+simple surroundings, and so I think one man will be quite enough to do
+for you all you will want done. But of course if you think it necessary
+to have two I shall not object.'
+
+"'One will be enough,' said I, 'and I will see about sending for him
+this afternoon.'
+
+"'I am so glad,' said Anita, 'that you have not got him now, for we can
+have our first meal in the cot all by ourselves. I'll run up-stairs and
+dress, and then I will come down and do my first cooking.'
+
+"In a very short time Anita appeared in a neat dress of coarse blue
+stuff, a little short in the skirts, with a white apron over it.
+
+"'Come, now,' said she, gayly, 'let us go into the kitchen and see what
+we shall have for dinner. Shall it be dinner or lunch? Cotters dine
+about noon.'
+
+"'Oh, make it lunch,' said I. 'I am hungry, and I do not want to wait to
+get up a dinner.' Anita agreed to this, and we went to work to take the
+lid off a hamper which she told me had been packed by Mrs. Parker and
+contained everything we should want for several days.
+
+"'Besides,' she said, 'that widow woman has left no end of things, all
+in boxes and cans, labelled. She must have been a very thrifty person,
+and it was an excellent piece of business to buy the house just as it
+stood, with everything in it.'
+
+"Anita found it difficult to make a choice of what she should cook for
+luncheon. 'Suppose we have some tea?'
+
+"'Very good,' said I, for I knew that was easy to make.
+
+"'Then,' said she, on her knees beside the hamper, with her forefinger
+against her lips, 'suppose--suppose we have some croquettes. I know how
+to make some very plain and simple croquettes out of--'
+
+"'Oh, don't let us do that,' said I; 'they will take too long, and I am
+hungry.'
+
+"'Very well, then,' said Anita. 'Let us have some boiled eggs; they are
+quick.'
+
+"I agreed to this.
+
+"'The next thing,' said Anita, 'is bread and butter. Would you like some
+hot soda-biscuit?'
+
+"'No,' said I; 'you would have to make some dough and find the soda,
+and--isn't there anything ready baked?'
+
+"'Oh, yes,' she answered; 'we have Albert biscuit and--'
+
+"'Albert biscuit will do,' I interrupted.
+
+"'Now,' said she, 'we will soon have our first meal in the cot.'
+
+"'This is a very unassuming lunch,' she said, when we were at last
+seated at the table, 'but I am going to give you a nice dinner. If you
+want more than three eggs I will cook you some in a few minutes. I put
+another stick of wood in the fire so as to keep the water hot.'
+
+"I was in considerable doubt as to what sort of man it would be best
+for us to have. I would have been very glad to have my special valet,
+because he was an extremely handy man in many ways; but I thought it
+better to consider a little before sending for him: he might be
+incongruous. I had plenty of time to consider, for Anita occupied nearly
+the whole afternoon in getting up our dinner. She was very enthusiastic
+about it, and did not want me to help her at all, except to make a fire
+in the stove. After that, she said, everything would be easy. The wood
+was all in small pieces and piled up conveniently near. As I glanced
+around the kitchen I saw that Baxter had had this little room fitted up
+with every possible culinary requirement.
+
+"We had dinner a little before eight. Anita sat down, hot, red, but
+radiant with happiness.
+
+"'Now, then,' said she, 'you will find I have prepared for you a
+high-grade cotter's dinner; by which I mean that it is a meal which all
+farmers or country people might have every day if they only knew enough,
+or were willing to learn. I have looked over several books on the
+subject, and Mrs. Parker told me a great deal. Maria told me a great
+many things also. They were both poor in early life, and knew what they
+were talking about. First we will have soup--a plain vegetable soup. I
+went into the garden and picked the vegetables myself.'
+
+"'I wish you had asked me to do that,' said I.
+
+"'Oh, no,' she answered; 'I do not intend to be inferior to any
+countrywoman. Then there is roast chicken. After that a lettuce salad
+with mayonnaise dressing; I do not believe cotters have mayonnaise
+dressing, nor shall we every day; but this is an exceptional meal. For
+the next course I have made a pie, and then we shall have black coffee.
+If you want wine you can get a bottle from the wine-hamper; but I shall
+not take any: I intend to live consistently through the whole of this
+experience.'
+
+"There was something a little odd about the soup: it tasted as if a
+variety of vegetables had been washed in it and then the vegetables
+thrown away. I removed the soup-plates while Anita went out to get the
+next course. When she put the dish on the table she said something had
+given way while the fowl was cooking, and it had immediately stuck its
+legs high in the air. 'It looks funny,' she remarked, 'but in carving
+you can cut the legs off first.'
+
+"I found one side of the fowl much better cooked than the other,--in
+fact, I should have called it kiln-dried,--and the other side had
+certainly been warmed. The mayonnaise was very peculiar and made me
+think of the probable necessity of filling the lamps, and I hoped Baxter
+had had this attended to. The pie was made of gooseberry jam, the
+easiest pie in the world to make, Anita told me. 'You take the jam just
+as it is, and put it between two layers of dough, and then bake it.' The
+coffee was very like black writing-ink, and, having been made for a long
+time, was barely tepid.
+
+"Strange as it may appear, however, I ate a hearty dinner. I was very
+hungry.
+
+"'Now,' said Anita, as she folded her napkin, 'I do not believe you have
+enjoyed this dinner half as much as I enjoyed the cooking of it, and I
+am not going to wash up anything, for I will not deprive myself of the
+pleasure of sitting with you while you smoke your after-dinner cigar on
+the front porch. These dishes will not be wanted until to-morrow, and if
+you will take hold of one end of the table we will set it against the
+wall. There is a smaller table which will do for our breakfast.'
+
+"I drank several glasses of wine as I smoked, but I did not feel any
+better. If I had known what was going to happen I should have preferred
+to go hungry. I did not tell Anita I was not feeling well, for that
+would have made her suffer in mind more than I was suffering in body;
+but when I had finished my smoke, and she had gone into the house to
+light the parlor lamp, I hurried over to the barn, where Baxter had had
+a telephone put up, and I called him up in town, and told him to send me
+a chef who could hoe and dig a little in the garden.
+
+"'I thought you would want a man of that kind,' Baxter telephoned. 'Will
+Isadore do? He is at your town house now, and can leave by the
+ten-o'clock train.'
+
+"I knew Isadore. He was the second chef in my town house, a man of much
+experience, and good-natured. I told Baxter to make him understand what
+sort of place he was coming to, and to send him on without delay.
+
+"'Do you want him to live in the house?' asked Baxter. And I replied
+that I did not.
+
+"'Very good,' said he; 'I will have a tent put up for him near
+Baldwin's.'
+
+"When I went to the house I told Anita I had engaged a man.
+
+"'I am glad,' said she; 'but I have just thought of something: I cannot
+possibly cook for a man.'
+
+"'Oh, you won't have to do that,' I answered. 'He will live near here,
+just the other side of the road.'
+
+"'That will do very well,' said she. 'I do not mind being your servant,
+Harold, but I cannot be a servant's servant.'"
+
+"Do you know," said the Master of the House, "as this story goes on I
+feel poorer and poorer every minute--I suppose by comparison. In fact, I
+do not know that I can afford to light another cigar. But one thought
+comforts me," he continued: "if I had been living in that cot with my
+wife I would not have had the stomach-ache; so that balances things
+somewhat."
+
+The lady smiled.
+
+"The next morning a little after eight o'clock I came down to open the
+house, and there, standing by the porch, hat in hand, I saw Isadore.
+He was a middle-aged man, large and solid, with very flat feet and a
+smoothly shaven face, twinkling eyes, and a benevolent smile. I was very
+glad to see him, especially before breakfast. I took him away from the
+house, so that Anita might not overhear our conversation, and then I
+laid the whole case before him. He was an Alsatian, but his English was
+perfectly easy to understand.
+
+"'I know precisely what it is that is wanted,' said he, 'and Mr. Baxter
+has made the arrangements with me. It is that madame shall not suppose
+anything, but that what she wishes to be done shall be done.'
+
+"'That is the idea,' said I. 'Don't interfere with her, but have
+everything done all right.'
+
+"'And I am to be man of all work. I like that. You shall see that I am
+charmed. Now I will go and change my clothes.' And this well-dressed man
+turned away toward Baldwin's tent.
+
+"When Anita came down the servant I had engaged was at the kitchen door
+waiting for orders. He was a plainly dressed man, his whole appearance
+neat but humble. 'He looks like a foreigner,' said Anita.
+
+"'You are right,' I replied; 'he is an Alsatian.'
+
+"'And his name?'
+
+"I was about to tell her Isadore, but I stopped myself. It was barely
+possible that she might have heard the name of the man who for two years
+had composed the peculiar and delicious ices of which she was so fond;
+she might even have seen him, and the name might call up some
+recollection. 'Did you say your name was Isaac?' I called out to the
+man.
+
+"'Yes, sir,' he answered; 'it is that. I am Isaac.'
+
+"'I am going to get breakfast,' said Anita. 'Do you suppose he can build
+a fire?'
+
+"'Oh, yes,' I replied; 'that is what he is engaged for--to be the man of
+all work.'
+
+"Prompted by curiosity, I shortly afterwards looked in at the kitchen
+door. 'While you prepare the table, madame,' the man of all work was
+saying, 'shall I arrange the coffee for the hot water?'
+
+"'Do you know how to do it?' she asked.
+
+"'Oh, yes, madame,' the good Isaac replied. 'In a little hut in Alsace,
+where I was born, I was obliged to learn to do all things. My father and
+my mother had no daughter, and I had to be their daughter as well as
+their son. I learn to cook the simple food. I milk the cow, I rub the
+horse, I dig in the garden, I pick the berries in the woods.' As he
+talked Isaac was not idle; he was busy with the coffee.
+
+"'That is very interesting,' said Anita to me; 'where there are no
+daughters among the poor the sons must learn a great deal.'
+
+"I remained at the kitchen door to see what would happen next. There was
+a piece of dough upon a floury board, and when Anita went to lay the
+table the Alsatian fairly flew upon the dough. It was astonishing to see
+with what rapidity he manipulated it. When Anita came back she took the
+dough and divided it into four portions. 'There will be two rolls apiece
+for us,' she said. 'And now, Isaac, will you put them into the stove?
+The back part is where we bake things. We are going to have some lamb
+chops and an omelet,' she said to me as she approached the hamper.
+
+"'Ah, madame,' cried the Alsatian, 'allow me to lift the chops. The raw
+meat will make your fingers smell.'
+
+"'That is true,' said Anita; 'you may take them out.' And then she went
+back to the dining-room.
+
+"Isaac knelt by the hamper. Then he lifted his eyes to the skies and
+involuntarily exclaimed: '_Oh, tonnerre!_ They were not put by the ice.'
+And he gave a melancholy sniff. 'But they will be all right,' he said,
+turning to me. 'Have trust.' The man of all work handled the chops, and
+offered to beat the omelet; but Anita would not let him do this: she
+made it herself, a book open beside her as she did so. Then she told
+Isaac to put it on the stove, and asked if I were ready for breakfast.
+As she turned to leave the room I saw her assistant whip her omelet off
+the stove and slip on it another one. When or where he had made it I had
+no idea; it must have been while she was looking for the sugar.
+
+"'A most excellent breakfast,' said I, when the meal was over; and I
+spoke the exact truth.
+
+"'Yes,' said Anita; 'but I think I shall do better after I have had more
+practice. I wonder if that man really can wash dishes.' On being
+questioned, Isaac declared that in the humble cot in which he was born
+he had been obliged to wash dishes; there were no daughters, and his
+mother was infirm.
+
+"'That is good; and if any of the plates need a little rubbing up
+afterwards I can do them,' said Anita. 'Now we will take a walk over the
+place, which we have not done yet.'
+
+"When we returned Isaac was working in the garden. Anita went into the
+house, and then the man of all work approached me; he had in his hand a
+little piece of red earthenware, which he held up before me in one hand
+and touched his cap with the other. 'Sir,' said he, 'is it all pots?
+Grass, bushes, everything?'
+
+"'Oh, no,' said I. 'What is the matter?'
+
+"'Excuse me,' said he, 'but everywhere I work in the garden I strike
+pots, and I broke this one. But I will be more careful; I will not rub
+so deep.'
+
+"For two or three days Anita and I enjoyed ourselves greatly. We walked,
+we sat in the shade, we lay in hammocks, we read novels. 'That man,'
+said Anita, 'is of the greatest possible assistance to me. The fact is
+that, having been taught to do all sorts of things in his infancy, he
+does the hard work of the kitchen, and all that is necessary for me to
+do is to give the finishing touches.'
+
+"That afternoon, when I saw the well-known chef Isadore--for some years
+head cook to the Duke of Oxminster, and willing to accept a second place
+in the culinary department of my town house only on account of
+extraordinary privileges and emoluments--when I saw this man of genius
+coming down the hill carrying a heavy basket which probably contained
+meats packed in ice, I began to wonder about two things: in the first
+place, I wondered what exceptional remuneration in addition to his
+regular salary Baxter had offered Monsieur Isadore in return for his
+exceptional services in our cot; and in the second place, I wondered if
+it were exactly fair to practise such a variety of deceptions upon
+Anita. But I quieted my conscience by assuring it that I was doing
+everything for her benefit and happiness, particularly in regard to this
+man of all work, who was probably saving us from chronic dyspepsia.
+Besides, it was perfectly fair play, for if she had told me she was
+going to do all my cooking I never would have come to this cot.
+
+"It was that evening, when we were both in a good humor after a good
+dinner, that my wife somewhat disturbed my peace of mind. 'Everything is
+going on so smoothly and in such a pastoral and delightful way,' said
+she, 'that I want some of our friends to visit us. I want them to see
+for themselves how enjoyable such a life as this is. I do not believe
+any of them know anything about it.'
+
+"'Friends!' I exclaimed. 'We do not want people here. We cannot
+entertain them. Such a thing was never contemplated by either of us, I
+am sure.'
+
+"'That is true,' said Anita; 'but things are different from what I
+expected. They are ever and ever so much better. And we can entertain
+people. We have a guest-room which is fitted up and furnished as well as
+ours is. If we are satisfied, I am sure anybody ought to be. I tell you
+who will be a good person to invite for the first one--Mr. Rounders.'
+
+"'Rounders!' I exclaimed. 'He is the last man in the world for a guest
+in this cot.'
+
+"'No, he is not,' answered Anita. 'He would like it very much indeed. He
+would be perfectly willing and glad to do anything you do, and to live
+in any way you live. Besides, he told me, not very long ago, that he
+often thought of the joys of an humble life, without care, without
+anxiety, enough, no more, and a peaceful mind.'
+
+"'Very well,' said I; 'this is your picnic, and we will have Rounders
+and his wife.'
+
+"'No, indeed,' said Anita, very emphatically. 'She cannot come anyway,
+because she is in Europe. But I would not have her if she were here. If
+he comes, he is to come alone. Shall I write him a note, or will you?
+There is no time to waste.'
+
+"She wrote the note, and when it was finished Isaac carried it to
+Baldwin and told him to have it mailed.
+
+"The more I thought about this invitation the more interested I became
+in it. No one could be more unsuited to a cotter's life than Godfrey
+Rounders. He was a rich man of middle age, but he was different from any
+other rich man with whom I was acquainted. It was impossible to talk to
+him or even to be with him for five minutes without perceiving that he
+was completely controlled by the money habit. He knew this, but he could
+not help it. In business resorts, in society, and in the clubs he met
+great capitalists, millionaires, and men of wealth of all degrees,
+who were gentlemen, scholars, kind and deferential in manner, and
+unobtrusive in dress, and not to be distinguished, so far as
+conversation or appearance could serve as guides, from those high types
+of gentlemen which are recognized all over the world. Rounders longed to
+be like one of these, but he found it to be impossible. He was too old
+to reform, and the money habit had such a hold over him that I believe
+even when he slept he was conscious of his wealth. He was not a coarse,
+vulgar Dives: he had the instincts of a gentleman; but these were
+powerless. The consciousness of money showed itself on him like a
+perspiration; wipe his brows as he might, it always reappeared.
+
+"He had not been poor in his early life; his father was a man of
+moderate means, and Rounders had never known privations and hardships;
+but, in his intense desire to make people think that his character had
+not been affected by his money, he sometimes alluded to straits and
+difficulties he had known in early days, of which he was not now in the
+least ashamed. But he was so careful to keep these incidents free from
+any suspicion of real hardships or poverty that he always failed to make
+the impression he desired. I have seen him quite downcast after an
+interview with strangers, and I was well aware what was the matter with
+him. He knew that, in spite of his attempts to conceal the domination of
+his enslaving habit, these people had discovered it. Considering all
+this, I came to believe it would please Rounders very much to come to
+stay a few days with us. Life in a cot, without any people to wait upon
+him, would be a great thing for him to talk about; it might help to make
+some people believe that he was getting the better of his money habit.
+
+"In the middle of the night I happened to wake, then I happened to think
+of Rounders, then I happened to think of a story Baxter had told me, and
+then I burst out into a loud laugh. Fortunately Anita did not awake; she
+merely talked in her sleep, and turned over. The story Baxter had told
+me was this: In the past winter I had given a grand dinner, and
+Rounders was one of the guests. Isadore's specialty was ices, pastry,
+salads, and all sorts of delicate preparations, and he had excelled
+himself on this occasion, especially in the matter of sweets. At an
+unhappy moment Rounders had said to his neighbor that if she could taste
+the sort of thing she was eating as his cook made it she would know what
+it really ought to be. An obliging butler carried this remark to
+Monsieur Isadore as he was sipping his wine in his dressing-gown and
+slippers. The interesting part of this anecdote was Baxter's description
+of Isadore's rage. The furious cook took a cab and drove directly to
+Baxter's hotel. The wording of Monsieur Isadore's volcanic remarks I
+cannot state, but he butchered, cut up, roasted, carved, peppered, and
+salted Rounders's moral and social character in such a masterly way that
+Baxter laughed himself hoarse. The fiery cook would have left my service
+then and there if Baxter had not assured him that if the gilded reptile
+ever dined with him again Isadore should be informed beforehand, that he
+might have nothing to do with anything that went on the table. In
+consequence of this promise, Monsieur Isadore, having withdrawn a
+deposit of several thousand dollars from one of the trust companies with
+which Rounders was connected, consented to remain in my household.
+
+"'Now, then,' I asked myself, 'how are we going to get along with
+Rounders and my man of all work Isaac?' But the invitation had gone, and
+there was no help for it. I concluded, and I think wisely, that it would
+be unkind to trouble Anita by telling her anything about this
+complication, but I would prepare the mind of the good Isaac.
+
+"I went into the garden the next morning, where our man of all work was
+gathering vegetables, and when I told him that Mr. Godfrey Rounders was
+coming to spend a few days with us the face of Isadore--for it was
+impossible at that moment to think of him as Isaac--was a wonderful
+sight to see: his brows contracted, his countenance darkened, and his
+eyes flashed as though they were about to shoot out lightning. Then all
+color, even his natural ruddiness, departed from his face. He bowed
+gravely.
+
+"'I have heard it said you have taken some sort of dislike to
+Mr. Rounders,' said I; 'and while I have nothing to do with it, and do
+not want to know anything about it, I do not wish to force you into an
+unpleasant position, and if you would rather go away while Mr. Rounders
+is here, I will have some one sent to take your place until he leaves.
+Then we shall want you back again. In this unusual position you have
+acquitted yourself most admirably.'
+
+"While I was speaking Isadore had been thinking hard and fast; it was
+easy to see this by the varied expressions which swept over his face.
+When I had finished he spoke quite blandly:
+
+"'It is that it would be beneath me, sir, to allow any of the dislike
+of mine to interfere with the comfort or the pleasure of yourself and
+madame. I beg that you will not believe that I will permit myself even
+to think of such a thing. I remain so long as it is that you wish me. Is
+it that you intend that your visitor shall know my position in your town
+house?'
+
+"'Oh, no,' said I; 'as I have not told my wife, of course I shall not
+tell him. I am much obliged to you for your willingness to stay. It
+would be very awkward if you should go.'
+
+"'I understand that, sir,' said Isaac, 'and I would do not one thing to
+discompose madame or yourself.'
+
+"Rounders arrived according to schedule, and I met him at the gate, and
+explained that my wife insisted it would be incongruous for a carriage
+to drive up to the cot. 'I like that!' exclaimed Rounders. 'I like to
+walk a little.' I took up one of his valises, the good Isaac carried the
+two larger ones, while Rounders, with an apologetic look from right to
+left, as if there might be some person present to whom this action
+should be explained, took up some canes and umbrellas wrapped in a rug,
+and we all went down to the cot, where Anita was waiting to receive us.
+
+"'Oh, I like this,' said Rounders, quite cheerfully. 'I do not know when
+I have gone anywhere without some of my people. But I assure you I like
+it. At the bottom of our hearts we all like this sort of thing.'
+
+"Anita showed him everything, and probably bored him dreadfully; but our
+guest was determined to be pleased, and never ceased to say how much he
+liked everything. There was no foolish pride about him, he said; he
+believed in coming close to nature; and although a great many of the
+peaceful joys of humanity were denied the man of affairs, still, when
+the opportunity came, how gladly our inward natures rose up to welcome
+it! 'Your wife tells me,' said he, 'that she is cook, housekeeper,
+everything. This is charming! It must be a joy to you to know she is
+capable of it. But, my dear friend,' he said, putting his hand on my
+shoulder, 'you must not let her overwork herself. She will be very apt
+to do it; the temptation is great. I am sure if I were she the
+temptation to overwork in these new spheres would be very great.'
+
+"Rounders certainly did overwork himself, and this was in the line of
+trying to make us believe that he thoroughly liked this plan of ours of
+living in a cot by a rill, and that he was quite capable of forgetting
+his ordinary life of affluence and luxury in the simple joys of our
+rural household. He would have produced an impression on both Anita and
+me if he had not said so much about it; but I knew what he was trying to
+do, and made all the necessary allowances for him.
+
+"But, say what he might, I knew he was not satisfied. I could see that
+he missed his 'people,' by whom he was accustomed to be surrounded and
+served; and I soon found out that his meals did not suit him. Anita
+visited the kitchen much more frequently than she had done just before
+Rounders arrived, and she talked a great deal about the dishes which
+were served to us; but, so far as I could judge, she had no more to do
+with their preparation than she had previously had. I was thoroughly
+well satisfied with everything; and, although Rounders was not, it was
+impossible for him to say so when he sat opposite the lady who told him
+two or three times at every meal that she presided in the kitchen. Of
+course I would have done everything in my power to give Rounders things
+to eat that he liked, but I did not know what to do. Our table was just
+as good, though not as varied, as it was when we were in town; and that
+Rounders was accustomed to living better than we did I could not for one
+moment believe. I came to the conclusion that, in spite of his efforts
+to subdue his dominating habit, he could not resist the temptation to
+let us know that he was not used to humble life, or even the appearance
+of it.
+
+"So I enjoyed our three good meals a day,--Anita would not allow us any
+more,--which were prepared by one of the best cooks on the continent
+from the choicest materials furnished regularly under Baxter's orders;
+and if Rounders chose to think that what was good enough for me was not
+good enough for him, he must go his own way and suffer accordingly. In
+fortune and in station I was so immeasurably superior to him that it
+nettled me a little to see him put on airs at the table to which I had
+invited him. But Rounders was Rounders, and I did not allow my
+irritation to continue.
+
+"In two or three days our visitor's overwork began to show on him: his
+naturally plump cheeks hung down, his eyes drooped, and, although he
+drank a great deal of wine, he was seldom in good spirits. On the fourth
+day of his visit, after the morning mail had been brought to us by
+Isaac, Rounders came to me and told me he had just received a letter
+which would make it necessary for him to go home that afternoon. I
+expressed my regret, but did not urge him to stay, for it was obvious
+that he wanted to go. 'I have had a most delightful time,' he said, as
+he took leave of Anita; 'but business is business, and I cannot put it
+aside.'
+
+"I believed both these statements to be incorrect: I knew that at that
+season he was not likely to be called away on business, and he had given
+me no reason to suppose he was enjoying himself; and as I walked with
+him to the gate I am afraid I was only stiffly polite. Our spirits rose
+after his departure. Anita said she had found him an incongruity, and I
+was tired of the spectacle of a purse-proud man trying to appear like
+other people. But if I were harsh in my judgment of him I was speedily
+punished. On the third day after he left I received a message from
+Baxter, who wanted to see me at Baldwin's tent. He was not allowed to
+come into the grounds, for Anita said that would look too much like
+business.
+
+"I found that Baxter's errand was indeed urgent, and that he was fully
+warranted in disturbing our privacy. The members of an English syndicate
+were coming down from Canada to make final arrangements with me for the
+purchase of a great tract of mining land, and as my presence and
+signature were absolutely necessary in the concluding stages of the
+transaction, I would be obliged to be in New York on the next day but
+one.
+
+"I was greatly annoyed by this intelligence. The weather was
+particularly fine, Anita was reading me a most interesting novel, and I
+was settling myself down to a thorough enjoyment of our cottage life,
+which I did not wish interfered with by anybody or anything, and I
+growlingly asked why the syndicate had chosen such an unsuitable time of
+the year to come down from Canada. But Baxter did not know. I continued
+to growl, but there was no way out of it. I must go to New York. For the
+sake of perhaps half a million dollars, which would not alter our
+ordinary manner of living, which would not give us any pleasures,
+privileges, or advantages of any kind which we did not now possess, we
+must break up our delightful life at the cot and rill, and go back to
+the humdrum of ordinary society.
+
+"Baxter tried to console me. He said we could easily return when this
+business had been settled. But I knew that going away would break the
+charm; I thoroughly understood Anita's nature, and I was sure if she
+left the cot for a time she would not want to go back to it. But when I
+told her Baxter's business, and that she would have to have some one
+come and pack up for her, she flatly declared that no one should do
+anything of the kind. She would stay where she was.
+
+"'You can't stay here by yourself!' I cried.
+
+"'Of course not,' she said. 'Who could imagine such an absurdity? But I
+shall not be alone. I was thinking this very morning of Fanny Ransmore
+and her mother. I want some women guests this time, and they would be
+delightful after Mr. Rounders. Fanny is as lively as a cricket, and
+Mrs. Ransmore could take care of anybody. You can tell Baxter to have
+some one to patrol the grounds at night, and we shall get along
+beautifully. I am sure you will not be away long.'
+
+"'But can you get the Ransmores?' I asked.
+
+"'Certainly,' said she. 'They are at Newport now; but I will telegraph
+immediately, and they can start to-night and get here to-morrow
+afternoon. You need not be afraid they cannot come. They would give up
+any engagement on earth to be our only guests.'
+
+"The matter was settled according to Anita's plan, and I was more
+willing to go to New York when I reflected that after the Ransmores came
+Anita would not be able to read aloud to me."
+
+"At this point," said the Master of the House, "your hero makes me
+angry. Why should he think he could not go away and leave his wife for
+three days, when I leave my wife, and daughter too, for three years? His
+Anita is not worth one twentieth as much as either my wife or daughter.
+Then again, if I were in his place, I would not allow a disadvantageous
+half-million to take me away from you two. It is only the absolutely
+necessary thousands that make me leave you as I do."
+
+"Your sentiments are just as nice as they can be, papa," said the
+Daughter of the House; "but don't you see if the gentleman did what you
+would do it would spoil the story?"
+
+John Gayther smiled with pleasure. Here was a young lady who never
+forgot the principle of the thing, whatever the thing might be.
+
+"That is true!" exclaimed the captain, stretching himself at full length
+in his chair. "I did not think of that. Madam, please proceed; let the
+King of Siam recommence his performances."
+
+"I will merely remark," said the Mistress of the House, "that if the
+King of Siam undertook to emulate my hero in all his performances, it
+would be a pretty hard thing for his already overtaxed subjects.
+
+"The Ransmores arrived on time, and were as delighted with the
+invitation as Anita had said they would be. According to her orders,
+neither of them brought a maid, which must have been pretty hard on the
+old lady; but they declared that the fun of waiting on themselves would
+be greater than anything Newport could possibly offer them.
+
+"I went to New York, attended to my business, which occupied me for
+three days, and then I thought this would be a good opportunity to take
+a trip to Philadelphia to look at a large steam-yacht which was in
+course of construction at the shipyards there. I did not feel in such a
+hurry to go back to the cot now that the Ransmores were there, and I was
+sure also that Anita would like to hear about the new yacht, in which we
+hoped to make a Mediterranean voyage during the winter. But early in the
+forenoon of my second day in Philadelphia, while I was engaged in a
+consultation concerning some of the interior fittings of the yacht, I
+received a telegram from Baxter informing me that my wife had returned
+from the cot on the previous evening, and was now at our town house. At
+this surprising intelligence I dropped the business in hand and went to
+New York by the first train.
+
+"'Of course,' said Anita, when we were alone, 'I will tell you why I
+left that precious cot. We had a very good time after you left, and I
+showed the Ransmores everything. The next day Fanny and I determined to
+go fishing, leaving Mrs. Ransmore to read novels in a hammock, an
+occupation she adores. Isaac was just as good as he could be all the
+time; he got rods for us, and made us some beautiful bait out of raw
+beef, for of course we did not want to handle worms; and we started for
+the river. We had just reached a place where we could see the water,
+when Fanny called out that somebody had a chicken-yard there, and that
+we would have to go around it. We walked ever and ever so far, over all
+sorts of stones and bushes, until we made up our minds we were inside a
+chicken-yard and not outside, and so we could not get around it. I was
+very much put out, and did not like it a bit because we could not reach
+the river; but Fanny saw through it all, and said she was sure the fence
+had been put there to keep all sorts of things from disturbing us; and
+then she proposed fishing in the rill.
+
+"'We tried this a long time, but not a bite could we get; and then Fanny
+went wandering up the stream to see if she could find a spring, because
+she said she had heard that trout were often found in cold streams.
+After a while she came running back, and said she had found the spring,
+and what on earth did I think it was? She had soon come to what seemed
+to be the upper end of the rill, and went down on her hands and knees
+and looked under the edge of a great flat rock, and there she saw the
+end of an iron pipe through which the water was running. When I heard
+this I threw down my fishing-rod and would have nothing to do with an
+artificial rill. I remembered then that I had thought, two or three
+times, it had improved very much since I had first seen it; and when I
+asked Mr. Baxter about it last night, he said the original rill had not
+water enough in it for the little cataracts and ponds, and all that, and
+so he had brought down water from some other stream about half a mile
+away.
+
+"'When we went back to the cot Fanny seemed to have her suspicions
+excited, and she pried into everything, and soon told me that the
+furniture and all the things in the cot were only imitation of the
+things plain country people use, and were, in reality, of the best
+materials and wonderfully well made, and that it must have cost a lot of
+money to buy all these imitations of old-fashioned, poor-folksy things.
+Then she went into the garden and peered about, and told Isaac, who was
+working there, that she had never seen so many different kinds of
+vegetables all ripe at the same time. He touched his cap, and said that
+was a compliment to his gardening. But pretty soon she saw the edge of a
+flower-pot sticking above the ground, and showed it to me. I made him
+dig up whole beds of things, and there was nothing but pots and pots, in
+which everything was growing.
+
+"'I went back to the house and looked about a good deal more, with Fanny
+at my elbow to tell me how poor people would never have this or that or
+the other thing. Then I was very angry with myself for not being able to
+see things without having them pointed out to me by that Fanny Ransmore,
+who was not invited to pry about and make herself disagreeable in that
+way.'
+
+"'And were you angry with me?' I asked.
+
+"'Yes,' she answered; 'for a little while. But when I remembered the
+plans I had made I thought we were about square, and that I had
+concealed as much from you as you had from me. I was not angry, but I
+was determined I would not stay in that mock-cot any longer. I could not
+bear the sight of anything I looked at. I thought the quickest way of
+settling the matter was to get rid of the whole business at once, and I
+told Isaac to put a crowbar under the kitchen stove, which was full of
+burning wood, and turn it over. But he was horrified, and said he might
+be arrested and put in prison for doing that; and, besides, it would be
+such a shame to waste so many beautiful things. Fanny and her mother
+thought so, too. And I asked Isaac where the family lived who used to
+own the cot, and he said they were still at the hotel, not being able to
+find any suitable quarters. So I sent for the widow and her daughter and
+son, and I told them to take the cot just as it was, and to keep it
+forever, and I would have Mr. Maxwell make out the law papers. They went
+about shouting with delight at everything they saw, very different from
+that Fanny! So it was really a very nice thing to do, and I feel a great
+deal better. And here I am, and you will find Fanny and her mother
+somewhere in the house whenever you want to see them. After this I think
+it will be better for us both not to try any affectionate frauds on each
+other.'
+
+"I was very glad the investigating Fanny had not discovered all my
+affectionate frauds, and that I was able myself to reveal to Anita the
+identity of the useful Isaac. This did amaze her, and for a moment I
+thought she was going to cry; but she was not in the habit of doing much
+of that sort of thing, and presently she laughed. 'Monsieur Isadore,'
+she exclaimed, 'working in the garden and washing pots and pans! Why,
+don't you know some people think he is almost as good as our head chef
+Leonard?'
+
+"'As good!' I cried. 'He is infinitely better. Leonard could never have
+done for us what our good Isaac did. And now I must tell you a story
+about Isadore that Baxter related to me this morning as we drove up from
+the station.' I then told her the story of Isadore alias Isaac--of his
+dislike for Mr. Rounders, and of the noble manner in which he had
+determined to stand by us when he heard that gentleman was about to
+visit us. 'After Rounders's arrival,' I remarked, 'things went on
+apparently as well as before--'
+
+[Illustration: "I made him dig up whole beds of things."]
+
+"'Apparently!' Anita interrupted. 'They went on better than before. I
+let Isaac, as we called him, do a great deal more of the cooking than he
+did before Mr. Rounders came. I thought our meals were remarkably good,
+and if Mr. Rounders did not like them, as I sometimes thought he did
+not, I believed it was because he could not help putting on airs even to
+us.'
+
+"I laughed. 'Well,' said I, 'the state of the case was this: during the
+whole time Rounders stayed with us, Isadore did not cook one particle of
+food for him.'
+
+"'That was impossible,' cried Anita. 'I noticed nothing of the kind,
+and, besides, Mr. Rounders would have found it out immediately.'
+
+"'Of course neither of us noticed it,' said I, 'for Isadore did not
+serve us with any of the things he gave to Rounders. And as for the
+latter discovering that he was eating his food raw, he had no idea that
+such was the case. He supposed he was eating what we ate, and therefore
+did not like to say anything about it.'
+
+"'But I do not understand!' cried Anita. 'How could any one eat things
+and not know they were uncooked?'
+
+"'You do not understand,' said I, 'because you do not comprehend the
+deep and wonderful art of Isadore. Baxter tried to explain some of it to
+me as he heard it from the lips of the chef himself, but I do not know
+enough of kitchen magic to understand it. As Isadore waited on us, he
+was able to bring us well-prepared food, and to give Mr. Rounders
+something very different, but which looked just like that we had. Even
+his coffee was served in a cup heated hot in the oven, while the coffee
+itself had merely been warmed. I cannot explain all these uncooked
+meals, and if you want to know more you must ask Isadore himself. But
+Baxter told me that spices and condiments must have been used with
+wonderful effect, and that the poor man must have lived mostly on
+biscuits. Isadore said that all his life he would laugh when he thought
+of Mr. Rounders trying to eat a chicken croquette the inside of which
+was perfectly raw, while the outside smoked, and looking at the same
+time with astonishment at you and me as we quietly ate what seemed to be
+exactly like the thing he had on his plate.'
+
+"'But, Harold,' said Anita, 'that was a shameful way to treat our
+guest!'
+
+"'That is what Baxter said to Isadore; but the cook excused himself by
+stating that all this happened in a cot, in a dear little cot, where
+everything was different from everything else in the world, and where he
+had tried to make you and me happy, and where he himself had been so
+happy, especially when he saw Mr. Rounders trying to eat chicken
+croquettes. He was also so pleased with the life at the cot that he is
+going to have one of his own when he goes back to Alsace, which will be
+shortly, as he has made enough to satisfy his wants, and he intends to
+retire there and be happy in a cot.'
+
+"Anita reflected for a few moments, and then she said: 'I think life in
+a cot might be very happy indeed--for Isaac.'"
+
+With this the Mistress of the House rose from her chair.
+
+"Is that at all?" exclaimed her daughter. "There are several things I
+want to know."
+
+"That is all," replied the story-teller. "Like the good King of Siam, I
+consider my already overtaxed subjects." And with this she went into the
+house.
+
+"Do either of you suppose," remarked the Master of the House, "that that
+Anita woman gave the whole of that great estate to the widow and her two
+children? How much land do you think, John Gayther, was enclosed inside
+that chicken wire?"
+
+"I have been calculating it in my head," replied the gardener, "and it
+must have been over a thousand acres. And for my part, sir, I don't
+believe it was all given to the widow. When Mr. Baxter came to attend to
+the papers I think he made over the cot and about seven acres of land,
+which was quite enough to be attended to by a half-grown boy."
+
+"That is my opinion, too," said the Daughter of the House, "and I think
+that the opulent owner of that great estate made a deer-park of the rest
+of it, with reindeer, fallow deer, red deer, stags, and all sorts of
+deer, and not one of them able to jump over the wire."
+
+"Ah, me!" said the captain, rising and folding his arms as he leaned his
+broad back against a pillar of the summer-house, "these great volcanoes
+of wealth, always in eruption, always squirting out town houses, country
+houses, butlers, chefs, under-chefs, diamonds, lady's-maids, horses,
+carriages, seaside gardens, thousand-acre poultry-yards, private
+sidewalks, and clouds of money which obscure the sun, daze my eyes and
+amaze my soul! John Gayther, I wish you would send me one of your
+turnip-hoers; I want him to take my second-best shoes to be mended."
+
+
+
+
+                       THIS STORY IS TOLD BY
+
+                      THE MASTER OF THE HOUSE
+
+                           AND IS CALLED
+
+                     THE GILDED IDOL AND THE
+                         KING CONCH-SHELL
+
+
+
+
+V
+
+THE GILDED IDOL AND THE KING CONCH-SHELL
+
+
+The rose-vines were running riot over the old garden wall, and as it
+was now midsummer and the season of their full bloom had passed, John
+Gayther set to work one morning to prune and train them. The idea of
+doing this was forcibly impressed upon his mind that day by the fact
+that the Mistress of the House had returned the evening before, and he
+knew that she would notice the untidy appearance of the rose-vines as
+soon as it should please her to come into the garden. The family had
+been at the sea-shore for nearly two weeks, and the gardener had missed
+them sorely, especially the Daughter of the House. They had now all
+returned, and the butler had told him that they had brought with them a
+visitor, a Frenchman. John Gayther, whose mind was always full of the
+Daughter of the House, immediately inquired if he was young; but the
+butler's answer was unsatisfactory, as he said the gentleman was neither
+young nor old, and talked queer English. As the butler himself--who was
+English--talked what seemed to the gardener queer English, John did not
+lay much stress upon that statement.
+
+He was soon to make his own observations, however, for a sweet voice he
+knew well called out to him: "We are all back, John, in the dear old
+garden!"
+
+John turned, and found four persons had come up quietly and were
+watching his work. He returned the cordial greetings of the family, and
+then the Master of the House informally introduced their companion. "We
+have a foreign gentleman with us, John; he belongs to the same nation as
+your great hero Lafayette, and therefore I know you will be pleased to
+have him join our story-telling party. For it has been decided by the
+ruling power in this house that a story is to be told this morning; so
+leave your vines, and come with us."
+
+John was obliged to follow as the party took the path to the
+summer-house, but he went unwillingly. Lafayette was a great and good
+man, but it did not follow that all his countrymen were of that sort;
+and, in fact, John knew but little about Frenchmen. He immediately
+conceived a dislike to this one as he saw him walking by the side of the
+Daughter of the House and evidently pleased with her company. He greatly
+disliked the idea of telling a story to this stranger, and determined it
+should not be made interesting.
+
+There was nothing in the Frenchman's appearance to excite this dislike.
+There was nothing striking about him. He was a good-looking man verging
+on middle age perhaps, with a rather short little figure and an airy
+walk.
+
+"Now," said the Master of the House, when the party were all disposed
+to the best advantage, and the Frenchman had gone into an ecstasy over
+the view from the summer-house, "John Gayther, you are to listen
+carefully to this story, for I am going to tell it myself, being moved
+thereto by the story my wife told here."
+
+John, greatly relieved by this announcement, signified his cordial
+approbation, and the captain began his relation:
+
+"Captain Abner Budlong was a retired sailorman. He was rather small of
+stature, with mild blue eyes, and a little gold ring in each of his
+ears. He was in the prime of life, and had been so often wet with salted
+water and dried by salted winds that he looked as though he might last
+forever.
+
+"He had ceased to sail in ships, because his last vessel, of which he
+had been part-owner, had positively declined to sail any longer under
+him. When this misguided craft decided to go to the bottom of the sea,
+Captain Abner, in a little boat, accompanied by his crew, betook himself
+to the surface of the land, and there he determined to stay for the rest
+of his life. His home was on the sea-shore. In the summer-time he fished
+and took people out to sail in his boat; and in the cold weather he
+generally devoted himself to putting things into his house, or arranging
+or rearranging the things already there. He himself was his family, and
+therefore there was no difference of opinion as to the ordering of that
+household.
+
+"The house was divided through the middle by a narrow hallway; that part
+to the right as one entered the front door was called by Captain Abner
+the 'bachelor side,' while the portion to the left he designated as the
+'married side.' The right half might have suggested a forecastle, and
+was neat and clean, with sanded floors and everything coiled up and
+stowed away in true shipshape fashion. But the other half was viewed by
+Captain Abner as something in the quarter-deck style. Exactly half the
+hall was carpeted, and the little parlor opening from it was also
+carpeted, painted, and papered, and filled with a great variety of
+furniture and ornaments which the captain had picked up by sea and land.
+Everything was very pretty and tasteful, according to the captain's
+ideas of taste and art, and everything was sacred; no collector could
+have bought anything out of that little parlor, no matter how much money
+he might offer.
+
+"This parlor and the room above had been furnished, decorated, and
+ornamented for the future mistress of Captain Abner's household, and he
+was ready to dedicate them to her services whenever he should be so
+lucky as to find her. So far, as he sometimes expressed himself, he had
+not had a chance to sing out, 'There she blows!'
+
+"One afternoon, when Captain Abner was engaged in dusting the ornaments
+in the parlor, his good friend Samuel Twitty stood in the doorway and
+accosted him. Sam Twitty had been mate to Captain Abner, and as he had
+always been accustomed to stand by his captain, he stood by him when he
+left the sea for the land; although they did not live in the same house,
+they were great cronies, and were always ready to stand by each other,
+no matter what happened. Sam's face and figure were distinguished by a
+pleasant plumpness; he was two or three years the junior of Captain
+Abner, and his slippered feet were very flat upon the ground. He held
+his pipe behind his back in such a position that it hung over the
+uncarpeted part of the hallway. A pipe in the married part of the house
+was never allowed.
+
+"'Sam,' said Captain Abner, 'you've hove in sight jes at the right
+minute, for I'm kind o' puzzled. Here's this conch-shell, which is the
+biggest I ever seed, and a king conch-shell at that, and I can't make up
+my mind whether she'd like it here in the middle of the mantelpiece, or
+whether she'd like to have the gilded idol here, where it would be the
+fust thing she'd see when she came into the room. Sometimes I'm inclined
+in the way of the heathen idol, and sometimes in the way of the king
+conch-shell. And how am I to know which she likes? What do you think
+about it?'
+
+"'Well, now, Cap'n Abner,' said Sam, his head cocked a little to one
+side, 'that's a pretty hard question to answer, considerin' I don't know
+who she is and what kind o' taste she's got. But I'll tell you what I'd
+do if I was you. I'd put that king conch-shell on the mantelpiece, or I
+would put the gilded idol there, it wouldn't matter much which, and then
+I'd put the other one handy, so that when she fust come in, and you
+could see she didn't like whatever it was that was in the middle of the
+mantelpiece, you could whip it off and put the other thing there almost
+afore she knowed it.'
+
+"'Sam,' said Captain Abner, 'that's a real good rule to go by, and it
+looks to me as if it might fit other things besides gilded idols and
+conch-shells. And now that you're here I'd like you to stay and take
+supper with me. I've got something to tell you.'
+
+"After the evening meal, which was prepared by Captain Abner and his
+guest, who were both expert maritime cooks and housekeepers, these two
+old friends sat down to smoke their pipes, the parlor door having been
+carefully shut.
+
+"'Sam,' said the captain, 'I've got everything ready for her that I can
+think of. There isn't anything more she'd be likely to want. So now I'm
+goin' after her, and I'm goin' to start on Monday mornin'.'
+
+"Sam Twitty was astonished. He had had an idea that Captain Abner would
+go on preparing for her to the end of his days, and it was a shock to
+him to hear that the work of preparation, in which he had been
+interested for so many years, and in which he had so frequently
+assisted, should now be brought suddenly to a close.
+
+"'Ready!' he ejaculated. 'I wouldn't have believed it if ye hadn't told
+me yourself. And yet, come to think of it, I can't see for the life of
+me what else you can do for her.'
+
+"'There ain't nothin' else,' said Abner, 'and on Monday mornin' I'm
+settin' out to look for her.'
+
+"'Do you go by land or by water?' asked Sam.
+
+"'Land,' was the answer. 'There ain't no chance of runnin' across her by
+sea.'
+
+"'And how are you goin'? Walkin'?'
+
+"'No, sir,' said Abner. 'I'm goin' to hire a horse and a buggy. That's
+how I'm goin'.'
+
+"'And where are you goin' to steer fust?' asked Sam.
+
+"'I'm goin' fust to Thompsontown, and after I've took my observations
+there I'll fetch a compass and sail every which way, if need be. There's
+lots of people of all sorts in Thompsontown, and I don't see why she
+shouldn't be one of them.'
+
+"'No more do I,' said Sam Twitty. 'I think it's more'n likely she'll be
+one of them.'
+
+"Very early the next morning, almost before the first streaks of dawn,
+Captain Abner was awakened by a voice under his window.
+
+"'Shipmate ahoy!' said the voice, which was Sam Twitty's. In a moment
+Abner's head was out of the window.
+
+"'Cap'n Abner,' said Sam, 'I'm goin' with you.'
+
+"Abner did not immediately answer, but presently he replied: 'Look here,
+Sam Twitty; you come around after breakfast and tell me that ag'in.'
+
+"Promptly after breakfast Sam appeared.
+
+"'Look a' here,' said Captain Abner, when they had lighted their morning
+pipes, 'that ain't a bad notion of yours. Somethin' might turn up when
+I'd want advice, and you might give me some like you gave me about the
+king conch-shell and the gilded idol. It ain't a bad idea, and, as you
+say so, I'd like you to come along.'
+
+"Sam did not reply with the alacrity that might have been expected of
+him. He puffed silently at his pipe and gazed upon the ground. 'You said
+you was a-goin' in a buggy,' he remarked.
+
+"'Yes; that's what I'm expectin' to do.'
+
+"'Then how am I to get back?' inquired Sam.
+
+"'That's so,' said Abner. 'I never thought of that.'
+
+"'Look a' here, cap'n,' said Abner; 'what do you say to a spring-wagon
+with seats for four, two in front, and two behind?'
+
+"This suited Captain Abner, and Sam went on to say: 'There'll be
+another good thing about that; if you get her and bring her back--'
+
+"'Which is what I'm goin' for and intend to do.'
+
+"'Then,' continued Sam, 'you two could sit on the back seat, and I could
+sit in front and drive.'
+
+"'Did you ever drive, Sam?' asked Captain Abner.
+
+"'Not yet; but I wouldn't mind l'arnin'.'
+
+"'But you won't l'arn with me and her,' said Captain Abner.
+
+"'How are you goin' to manage it, then?' asked Sam. 'You won't want me
+and her to sit on the back seat, and it wouldn't look jes right for you
+an' her to be in front, and me behind all by myself, as if I was
+company.'
+
+"'Don't know,' said Captain Abner. 'We'll get her fust, and then let her
+sit where she wants to.'
+
+"'There's one thing I wouldn't like to see,' said Sam Twitty, 'and
+that's you and me sittin' behind, and her a-drivin'.'
+
+"'There won't be none of that,' said Captain Abner; 'that ain't my
+way.'"
+
+"Is that a good beginning?" asked the Master of the House, suddenly
+addressing his wife.
+
+"Yes," she replied, "very good; and I see this is to be a real man's
+story."
+
+"And so it should be, mamma," said the Daughter of the House. "Men know
+more about men than they do about women."
+
+"Don't be too sure of that," said her father. "But no matter. The two
+friends started out on Monday morning after breakfast for Thompsontown.
+Considerable delay was occasioned at the livery-stable by certain pieces
+of advice which Sam Twitty offered to Captain Abner. In the first
+place, he objected to a good black horse which had been attached to
+the wagon, giving it as his opinion that that looked too much like a
+funeral, and that a cheerful-colored horse would be much better adapted
+to a matrimonial expedition. A gray horse, slower than the black one,
+was substituted, and Sam was quite satisfied. Then a great many things
+in the way of provisions and conveniences came into his mind which he
+thought would be well to take on the voyage, and he even insisted upon
+rigging up an extension at the back of the wagon on which her trunk
+could be carried on the home journey.
+
+"At last they got away, and as they drove slowly out of the little
+village not one of the inhabitants thereof knew anything about their
+intended journey, except that they were going to Thompsontown; for
+Captain Abner and Sam Twitty would have as soon thought of boring a hole
+in the bottom of a boat in which they were to sail as of telling their
+neighbors they were going to look for her and to bring her back in that
+spring-wagon.
+
+"The old gray horse jogged very comfortably over the smooth road until a
+toll-gate was perceived near by.
+
+"'Now, then, cap'n,' said Sam, as they drew up in front of the little
+house by the roadside, 'whatever you pay here you ought to charge to the
+expense of gettin' her.'
+
+"'That's so,' said his companion; 'but if she's all right I ain't goin'
+to mind no tolls.'
+
+"A pleasant-faced woman now came to the door of the little house and
+stood expectant, while Captain Abner thrust his hand into his pocket.
+
+"'How much is it?' said he.
+
+"'It's ten cents,' said she.
+
+"Then Sam Twitty, who did not wish to sit silent, remarked that it was a
+fine day, and the toll-gate woman said that indeed it was. Captain Abner
+was now looking at some small change in the palm of his hand.
+
+"'I ain't got ten cents,' said he. 'Here's only six, and I can't scrape
+up another copper. Sam, can you lend me four cents?'
+
+"Sam searched his pockets. 'Haven't got it,' said he. 'Them little
+things we bought jes afore we started cleaned me out of change.'
+
+"'The same thing's happened to me, too,' said Abner; 'and, madam, I'll
+have to ask you to change a five-dollar note, which is the smallest I've
+got.'
+
+"The toll-gate woman said she was very sorry, but indeed she had not
+five dollars in change, either at the toll-gate or in the house where
+she lived just behind in a little garden. The day before she had had a
+good deal of change, but she had paid it all into the company.
+
+"'Then what are we goin' to do?' asked Sam. 'I suppose you won't let us
+go through without payin'?'
+
+"The woman smiled and shook her head. 'I couldn't do that; it's against
+the rules. Sometimes when people come along and find they have nothin'
+to pay toll with they go back and get the money somewhere. It's our
+rules, and if I broke them I might lose my place.'
+
+"'Which we wouldn't think of makin' you do,' remarked Sam.
+
+"'But that's one thing I can't do,' said Captain Abner. 'I can't turn
+round and go back. If the folks knew I was turned back because I
+couldn't pay toll I'd never hear the end of it.'
+
+"'That's so,' agreed Sam. 'It would never do to go back.'
+
+"The toll woman stood and looked at them and smiled. She was a pleasant
+personage, not inclined to worry over the misfortunes of her
+fellow-beings.
+
+"'Isn't there a place somewhere near here where I could get a note
+changed?' asked Abner.
+
+"'I can't say,' answered the toll woman. 'I don't believe any of the
+houses along the road has got five dollars in change inside of them, and
+even if you went across the country to any of the farm-houses, you
+wouldn't be likely to find that much. But if you are not in a hurry and
+wouldn't mind waitin', it's as like as not that somebody will be along
+that's got five dollars in change. You don't seem to know this part of
+the country,' she added.
+
+"'No,' said Abner; 'when me and my mate travels we generally take the
+public conveyances. This is the fust time we've druv on this road.'
+
+"Then up spoke Sam Twitty: 'Does you and your husband live here and keep
+the toll-gate, ma'am?'
+
+"The woman looked as though she thought the plump person a little
+inquisitive, but she smiled and answered, 'My husband used to keep the
+toll-gate, but since he died I've kept it.'
+
+"Captain Abner looked troubled. 'I don't mind so much waitin' myself,'
+said he, 'but it's the horse I'm thinkin' about. I promised I'd have him
+fed at twelve o'clock sharp every day I have him. He's used to it, and
+I don't want him givin' out afore I'm through with him.'
+
+"'When horses is used to bein' fed at regular times,' said the toll-gate
+woman, 'they do show it if they don't get fed. But, if you don't mind,
+I've got a little stable back there, and some corn, and if you choose to
+drive your horse into the yard and give him a feed I'll charge you jes
+what anybody else would. And while he's a-feedin' most likely
+somebody'll come along that's got five dollars in change.'
+
+"For some minutes Sam Twitty had not said a word, but now he most
+earnestly advised his friend to accept this offer, and, jumping to the
+ground, he hurried to open the gate so that Captain Abner might drive
+in. Abner had not yet made up his mind upon the subject, but, as Sam
+stood there by the open gate, he drove in.
+
+"'Look a' here!' said Sam, as they stood by the stable door. 'This is a
+jolly good go! Did you take notice of that toll-gate woman? She's tiptop
+to look at. Did you see how clean she is, and what a nice way of
+smilin', an' a good deal of red in her cheeks, too, and jes about old
+enough, I should say, if I was called upon. And, more than that, I
+should say, judgin' from what I've seen of her, she's as likely to be as
+accommodatin' as any person I ever did see that I had seed for so short
+a time. I jes put her into my mind a-goin' into your parlor and sayin'
+that conch-shells was jes what she liked on mantelpieces. And I could
+put her in jes as well with the gilded idol.'
+
+"'You seem to do a lot of thinkin' in a mighty short time,' said Abner.
+'But what's all that got to do with anything?'
+
+"'Do!' exclaimed Sam. 'It's got lots to do. Why wouldn't she be a good
+one for _her_? I don't believe you'd find a better one in Thompsontown.'
+
+"'Sam Twitty!' exclaimed Abner, rather testily, 'what are you talkin'
+about? Do you suppose I'd paint and paper and clean up and furnish one
+side of my house for her, and then start out on a week's cruise to look
+for her, and then take and put in her place and give everything I've
+been gettin' for her for so many years to the fust woman I meet, and she
+a toll-gate woman at that?'"
+
+The Frenchman, who had been listening with great apparent interest, now
+looked so inquiringly at the Master of the House that he paused in his
+story.
+
+"Excuse my interrupt," he said apologetically; "but what is toll-gate
+woman?"
+
+"My conscience!" exclaimed the captain, "you haven't understood a word
+of my story!" He then proceeded to explain a toll-gate and its office
+and emoluments; but it was at once evident that the Frenchman knew all
+about the thing--he did not know the English words which expressed it;
+and he had a clear comprehension of the narrative.
+
+"Those two men pull two ways," he said gleefully; "ought to make a good
+story."
+
+"It is a good story if my papa tells it," spoke up the Daughter of the
+House. And John Gayther was pleased to note a sharpness in her voice.
+
+"Yes, miss; that is just what I say--a very much good story. I long for
+the end to come."
+
+"Not exactly the compliment intended," remarked the Mistress of the
+House, with a smile.
+
+"How do you think it will end?" asked the Daughter of the House,
+impulsively, addressing the Frenchman.
+
+"It is not polite to imagine," he replied.
+
+"But I want to know," she persisted. "It is not impolite to guess."
+
+"Well, then, miss, he marry nobody. Too many women in that Villa
+Thompson. But we sadly interrupt! Beg pardon, captain."
+
+"The captain I am telling about in my story," said the Master of the
+House, resuming his narrative, "could not silence Sam Twitty.
+
+"'Now I tell you, cap'n,' he said, as he assisted in taking the horse
+out of the wagon, 'don't you go and miss a chance. Here's a fust-rate
+woman, with red cheeks and mighty pretty hair, and a widow, too. Even if
+you don't take her now, it's my advice that you look at her sharp with
+the idea that if things don't turn out in Thompsontown as you'd like
+them to, it would be mighty comfortin' to you to pick her up on your way
+back.'
+
+"When Captain Abner and Sam returned from the stable they looked up and
+down the far-stretching road, and then, at the invitation of the
+toll-gate woman, they seated themselves on a bench at the back of the
+toll-house.
+
+"''Tisn't a very good time for people to be passin',' said she. 'Not
+many folks is on the road between twelve and one. They're generally
+feedin' themselves and their horses. But if you can make yourselves
+comfortable here in the shade, I don't think you'll have to wait very
+long. I'll jes step in and see if my dinner ain't cooked. There ain't
+nobody in sight.'
+
+"Sam Twitty rubbed his hands together. 'In my opinion,' said he, 'that
+woman is a fust-class housekeeper.'
+
+"In a very few minutes she returned. 'If you gentlemen don't mind,' said
+she, 'I can give you your dinner here at the same price you'd have to
+pay anywhere else. I always cook a lot on Mondays, so's I can have
+something cold for the rest of the week. It's on the table now, and you
+can go in and wait on yourselves.'
+
+"Sam gave a quick glance at Abner. 'You go in with her,' said he, 'and
+eat your dinner. I'm not hungry, and I'll wait out here and keep the
+toll-gate. Afterwards I'll get a bite.'
+
+"The toll-gate woman smiled. 'Perhaps it would be better for me to go in
+and wait on one of you at a time; but I don't think it's likely there'll
+be anybody passin'.'
+
+"Abner did not object--he was hungry; and he followed the toll-gate
+woman into her house. Sam Twitty made a motion as if he would dance a
+little in his slippered feet.
+
+"'That's jes like runnin' across a dead whale what's jes expired of too
+much fat. All you've got to do is to cut it up and try it down. The fust
+thing Cap'n Abner does is to run into a widow woman that'll suit him, I
+believe, better than anybody he'll meet, if he cruises around
+Thompsontown for a week.'
+
+"Sam sat down on the bench and pictured things in his mind: he took the
+toll-gate woman all over Captain Abner's house, even into the unmarried
+part, and everywhere he saw her the same bright-cheeked, pleasantly
+smiling woman she was here in her own house. The picture pleased him so
+much that he withdrew his senses from the consideration of everything
+else, and therefore it was he did not hear wheels on the road, and was
+awakened from his pleasant dreams by a voice outside the door. He
+bounced to his slippered feet, and entered the toll-house.
+
+"On the roadway was a buggy and a horse, and in the buggy sat a smiling
+young woman. Why she smiled Sam could not imagine; but then, he could
+not see the comical expression on his own face on being thus suddenly
+aroused to a sense of his duty.
+
+"'How much is the toll?' said the young woman, still smiling.
+
+"Sam looked at her; she was a good-looking young person, and he liked
+her smile, for it betokened a sense of humor, and that pleased him. 'How
+much?' he repeated. 'A vehicle, a man, and a horse--'
+
+"'But this is a girl and a mare,' she interrupted. 'How much is that?'
+
+"Sam looked up and smiled. This young person certainly had a sense of
+humor. 'I wonder how much that would be,' he said. 'I guess I'll have to
+get a pencil and paper and work it out.'
+
+"The girl laughed. 'You are not the toll-gate keeper?' she asked.
+
+"'No,' replied Sam. 'I'm keepin' it for her. She's eatin' her dinner.
+Don't you know the toll yourself? You've paid it before, haven't you?'
+
+"'No, I haven't,' she replied. 'I am visiting in the neighborhood. But I
+won't haggle about being a girl. I'll pay the price for a man, if you
+will let me know what it is.'
+
+"An idea came suddenly into Sam Twitty's head: this was a very bright
+girl, a very attractive girl, who was visiting in the neighborhood, and
+he determined to keep her at the toll-gate a few minutes if he could.
+
+"'I don't want to make any mistake,' he said quickly. 'I'll jes pop into
+the house and see what the toll really'll be for you.'
+
+"'Oh, you needn't do that,' said the young woman. 'Of course it is the
+same--'
+
+"But Sam was gone; and she laughed and said to herself that the deputy
+toll-gate keeper was a very funny person. Sam ran to the house, panting.
+He beckoned to Captain Abner to step outside.
+
+"'Look a' here,' he said; 'you hurry out to the gate and take a good
+long look at the girl that's there. She's a-visitin' in the
+neighborhood. Now mind you take a good look at her, and I'll be there in
+a minute.'
+
+"Without exactly understanding the reason for this earnest injunction,
+Abner went to the gate. He was accustomed to taking Sam's advice if he
+saw no good reason against it.
+
+"The toll-gate woman was on her feet, but Sam detained her, and said
+something about the relation between sex and toll.
+
+"'Well, well,' said the woman, 'she must be a queer one. I'll go out to
+her.'
+
+"'Oh, no,' cried Sam. 'Sit here and finish your dinner. He's comin'
+right back, and I'll collect the toll.' Half-way to the toll-house Sam
+met Abner. 'What do you think of her?' he asked hurriedly. 'Did you take
+a good look at her?'
+
+"'Yes, I did,' replied his friend, 'and I don't think nothin' of her.
+What is there to think about her?'
+
+"'Go back to your dinner,' cried Sam. 'I've got to collect her toll.'
+
+"'I want you to tell me,' said the girl, not smiling now, 'do you keep a
+detective here? Do you think I want to cheat the road out of its toll? I
+am ready to pay the charge, whatever it is.'
+
+"'Detective!' exclaimed Sam.
+
+"'Yes,' said she; 'that little brown man who came out here and looked at
+me as if he were determined to know me the next time he saw me.'
+
+"'Oh, him!' said Sam. 'That's a friend of mine, Cap'n Abner Budlong.
+He's no detective, nor nothin' like one. He jes came out to see who was
+passin' while I was findin' out about the toll. He's always fond of
+seein' people.'
+
+"'I should think he was,' said the young woman. 'In fact, I think you
+are a funny lot, toll-gate woman and all. Now here is a quarter; please
+take the toll and give me the change, that is, if you know how to
+calculate.'
+
+"Sam took the money, but he did not immediately make the change. 'I
+don't want you to think hard of any of us,' said he, 'on account of your
+bein' kept here a little longer than common. But specially I don't want
+you to think hard of my friend Cap'n Abner Budlong, the gentleman who
+stepped out here to see who was passin'. Bless your soul, he's no
+detective! He's one of the finest fellows I know, and you jes ought to
+see his house at Shamrick. It's filled with more things that's nice to
+look at and things that's comfortable to use than any other house in
+that region. Everything's jes as clean and shipshape--'
+
+"'He must have a good wife,' the young woman interrupted.
+
+"'He hasn't got no wife at all,' said Sam, delighted to get in this
+piece of information. 'Never had one.'
+
+"The girl looked at him, and then she laughed merrily. 'I really must go
+on,' she said. 'You truly are a funny lot, all of you.' And as she drove
+on she looked back, still laughing.
+
+"Sam Twitty rubbed his hands together quite cheerfully, and went into
+the house to get his dinner.
+
+"'Did that woman change your five-dollar note?' asked the keeper of the
+toll-gate.
+
+"'Bless my soul!' exclaimed Sam. 'I never thought to ask her.'
+
+"'What did you ask her?' cried the woman. 'She was out there for the
+longest time, and I thought of course you was gettin' your note
+changed.'
+
+"Sam smiled. 'She was very interesting,' said he."
+
+"What a treasure Sam Twitty would be in a matrimonial bureau!" exclaimed
+the Mistress of the House.
+
+"Provided he exercised a little more caution in the selection of his
+specimens," suggested John Gayther, respectfully. "Some might be too
+green and some the other way, you know; he didn't seem over-particular."
+
+"Three travellers passed through," continued the Master of the House,
+"but not one of them could change a five-dollar note; and Abner chafed
+at the delay.
+
+"'I don't like wastin' time like this,' said he to Sam, as the two
+smoked their after-dinner pipes.
+
+"'Wastin'!' exclaimed Sam. 'I don't call this wastin' time. We didn't
+start till late this mornin', and here we've got sight of two of her
+a'ready. Here's this one, as red-cheeked and sociable as anybody could
+expect, and then there's that gal in the buggy.'
+
+"'Gal in the buggy!' exclaimed Abner. 'What on earth are you talkin'
+about her for?'
+
+"'Why shouldn't I?' asked Sam. 'I tell you, Cap'n Abner, she's the
+prettiest and the liveliest young woman you'd be likely to meet if you
+cruised for a year, and she's visitin' right in the neighborhood, and
+can't be far from Shamrick.'
+
+"'Codwollops!' said Abner, contemptuously.
+
+"In the course of an hour old Joshua Asbury drove up in his farm-wagon,
+and changed the five-dollar note, and was glad to do it, for he did not
+like to carry so much inconvenient silver and copper in his pocket. The
+two friends now made ready to depart.
+
+"'Let's hurry up,' said Sam. 'We've done fust-rate so far, and maybe
+we'll sight one or two more afore bedtime.'
+
+"'When you come back,' said the woman, 'I'd be glad to have you stop and
+rest, and give your horse a feed if you want to.'
+
+"Sam Twitty assured her most earnestly that they certainly would stop,
+whether they wanted rest and a feed or not; and he thanked her warmly as
+he paid for the kind entertainment she had given them.
+
+"'Sam,' said Abner, when they were on the road, 'the trouble with you
+is, you're too quick. If you was at the tiller you'd run into the fust
+port you come to, and there wouldn't be no v'yage at all.'
+
+"'There's no knowin' when a fellow may want to run into port,' replied
+Sam, 'and it's a good thing to find out all about them as you're
+coastin' along.'
+
+"A few miles from the toll-gate they came to the bottom of a long hill,
+and half-way up it they saw, going in the same direction as themselves,
+a man walking vigorously.
+
+"'By the general cut of his clothes,' said Sam, 'I'd say he is a
+minister.'
+
+"'I expect you're right,' said Abner. 'Most likely fillin' some fishin'
+minister's pulpit Sunday, and walkin' home Monday.'
+
+"The pedestrian clergyman walked more slowly as he neared the top of the
+hill, and the gray horse gradually overhauled him.
+
+"'Look a' here,' said Sam, nudging his companion, 'let's give him a
+lift. He must be dreadfully hot. And then, by George, Cap'n Abner, jes
+think what a jolly thing it'll be--goin' after her, and takin' a
+minister along, sittin' comfortable on the back seat! That's like
+holdin' a landin'-net ready to scoop her up the minute you get her to
+the top of the water.'
+
+"They stopped and asked the clergyman if he were going to Thompsontown,
+and when he said he was, they invited him to get in and take the
+unoccupied seat. He proved to be an agreeable companion; he was young
+and very grateful. Sam soon fell into a very friendly conversation with
+him, and two or three times, when Abner thought that his friend was on
+the point of saying something that bore too directly on the object of
+their journey, he pressed his port boot gently upon Sam's starboard
+slipper.
+
+"Toward the middle of the afternoon they reached Thompsontown, where the
+young clergyman said he was going to stop for the night, and go on by
+train the next day. Sam Twitty was glad to hear this, and advised him to
+stop at the Spinnaker Boom, where he and Captain Abner intended to stay
+until they finished the business which brought them to Thompsontown.
+
+"Thompsontown was a seaside resort, and rather a lively place in the
+season. There was a large hotel for summer visitors who could afford to
+pay good prices, and several smaller houses of entertainment, such as
+the Spinnaker Boom, where people of moderate means were made very
+comfortable.
+
+"It was much too early for supper, and Captain Abner and Sam took a long
+walk on the beach, and at their invitation the young clergyman joined
+them. This gentleman, who did not seem to know any one in Thompsontown,
+proved to be a thorough landsman; but as he was chatty and glad to
+acquire knowledge, it gave Captain Abner and Sam a great deal of
+pleasure to talk to him on nautical points and thereby improve his mind.
+On their return, Sam stopped with a start, and almost dropped his pipe.
+
+"'What's the matter?' cried Captain Abner. 'Did you see her spout?'
+
+"Sam made no answer, but stood with his mouth open. He had remarkably
+good vision. The clergyman stopped and looked at him inquiringly.
+
+"'They are coming, both of them!' said Sam.
+
+"'Both of who?' asked Abner.
+
+"'The gal in the buggy, and the toll-gate woman.'"
+
+"If I were telling this story," here interrupted the Daughter of the
+House, excitedly, "I really do not know which one I would marry to
+Captain Abner!"
+
+"Thank you for the compliment, my dear," said her father.
+
+"Well, there they both were: side by side they were walking along the
+smooth beach and approaching our three men. Sam's eyes sparkled. The
+toll-gate woman appeared much more comely and attractive than when
+engaged in her professional duties earlier in the day. She was now
+attired in fresh-looking summer clothes, and wore a pretty straw hat. As
+for the girl of the buggy, she was quite another person. It would have
+been impossible for any one who had merely seen her within the limited
+confines of a small vehicle to form any idea of the buoyant air and the
+lively step of this handsome young woman.
+
+"'Upon my word!' exclaimed Sam Twitty, advancing toward them. 'Who would
+have expected to meet you two here!'
+
+"At this meeting all our characters were variously affected. The
+toll-gate woman beamed with pleasure; the young woman of the buggy
+looked as if she were about to laugh; the young minister looked very
+much interested, although he could have given no good reason why he
+should be; the countenance of Captain Abner Budlong betrayed no interest
+whatever; and Sam Twitty was in a glow of delight.
+
+"'I suppose you are surprised to meet me here,' said the toll-gate
+woman, 'but this is the way of it: a neighbor and his wife came along
+soon after you left, and offered to bring me to Thompsontown; and of
+course I jumped at the chance, and left the toll-gate in charge of my
+brother, who lives hard by. And in the town, at the house of a friend, I
+met this young lady, and--' glancing at her companion, she added: 'I
+really did not catch the name.'
+
+"'Miss Denby,' stated the young person referred to.
+
+"The three men here bowed to Miss Denby; then, stepping nearer to Sam,
+the toll-gate woman asked in a low voice, 'Who is the minister?'
+
+"'I don't know his name,' said Sam, 'but I'll find out in a minute.' And
+then he approached the girl of the buggy. 'I am so glad to see you,' he
+said.
+
+"She laughed outright. 'It is awfully funny,' answered she, 'that you
+care whether you see me or not.'
+
+"'I don't think it's funny at all,' said Sam. 'But jes let me ask you
+one thing: what's the name of the toll-gate woman?'
+
+"'Well, I declare!' she exclaimed. 'From the way she talked about you I
+thought you were old friends. Her name is Mrs. Sickles.'
+
+"Sam skipped over to the young clergyman and put his question:
+'Mr-r-r.?'
+
+"'Rippledean,' said the young man.
+
+"In an instant the quick-slippered Sam had joined the party in the bonds
+of conventional acquaintanceship, having added to the rest of his
+information the fact that he was Samuel Twitty of Shamrick.
+
+"'You are the funniest people I ever met,' exclaimed the lively Denby
+girl. 'None of you seems to know the rest.'
+
+"'It is very pleasant to know each other, I am sure,' remarked the
+toll-gate woman; 'and if I had anything to say about what would be
+agreeable on such a breezy afternoon as this, now that there's a party
+of us, I would say it would be to get a boat and take a sail on this
+sparkling water.'
+
+"'A sail!' cried Sam. 'Why, that will be the best thing in the world,
+and if you'll wait ten minutes I'll get a boat. Cap'n Silas Peck is a
+friend of mine, and has got two boats that ain't likely to be out. I'll
+run down and get one, and have it here in no time.'
+
+"In less than a quarter of an hour the party was seated in Captain
+Peck's sail-boat, Captain Abner at the tiller, and Sam Twitty in charge
+of the sheet. They decided to sail out to an island about three miles
+from shore. A stiff breeze was blowing, and Captain Abner was in his
+glory. The wind was much too high for ordinary pleasure-boats, and there
+were no other sails upon the bay; but summer visitors and seafaring men
+stood along the beach and watched the admirable manner in which that
+little craft was handled. Word was passed from one to another that it
+was Captain Abner Budlong of Shamrick who was at the tiller; many of the
+watchers had heard of Captain Abner and what he had done in days gone
+by, and they were proud to see what their neighbor of Shamrick was doing
+now.
+
+"Mrs. Sickles sat beaming, both hands grasping the rail and her feet
+firmly braced, but with an expression of perfect trust, as she gazed
+from Captain Abner to Sam Twitty, which would have been edifying to any
+one of weak habits of faith. The younger woman's hat was off, and her
+hair was flying like a streamer from a masthead. She drank in the salt
+breeze with delight, and her eyes sparkled as the boat dipped at the
+turn of Captain Abner's tiller until the rail cut under the surface of
+the water as if it were skimming a pan of milk. She looked upon the
+bright-eyed sailor at the helm as though he were some sort of a
+salt-water deity whom it was suitable to worship. It was better than
+sparkling wine to her to dash over the sparkling water.
+
+"The island shore drew near; the little boat bore bravely down upon it,
+and then with a beautiful sweep fell into the wind; her great wing
+dropped and hung listless, and her keel gently grazed the sand."
+
+"Very beautiful! Oh, so fine a turn to words!" exclaimed the Frenchman,
+who was very intent upon the story.
+
+"My papa is a sailor," said the Daughter of the House, proudly. "You
+should see him bring around a great vessel with a grand sweep, so
+quietly and so gracefully!"
+
+"You never saw me do anything of the kind," said her father, in
+surprise.
+
+"I have never seen you," she admitted reluctantly, "but I know just how
+you would do it."
+
+Her father smiled and laid a hand on her head.
+
+"Well, my dear," he said, "what Sam Twitty told the inmates of the boat
+was this: 'If there was an egg-shell 'twixt her bow and the beach, Cap'n
+Abner wouldn't have smashed it.'
+
+"The captain stemmed the praises which now poured upon him, with a jerk
+of the head. 'That's all very well,' said he, 'but I'm goin' to give Sam
+Twitty a chance; he'll sail you back.'
+
+"When the party was on shore and the boat safely moored, Sam Twitty
+began to jump about like a collie dog in charge of a flock of sheep. He
+had said little in the boat, but his mind had been busily at work with
+the contemplation of great possibilities. There was much to be done, and
+but little time to do it in, but Sam's soul warmed up to its work.
+Casting a rapid glance around, he singled out Captain Abner, and,
+dashing into the little party, cut him off from his companions, and
+drove him out of ear-shot.
+
+"'Now, Cap'n Abner,' said he, 'your time's come, and the quicker you get
+to work the better.'
+
+"'Work!' cried Abner. 'What work have I got to do!'
+
+"'Do!' exclaimed Sam. 'You've got lots to do. Look at that sun. It's
+settin' jes as steady as if it was bein' towed into port, and you'll
+never get another chance like this. Here's two women to pop your
+question to; here is a minister on hand; here's me and the young woman
+what don't get chosen, for witnesses; here's all them white caps
+skippin' over the water; and here's this clean stretch of sand. There
+couldn't be a better place for a sailor to be married in than jes here.'
+
+"'But I tell you, Sam,' said Abner, a little querulously, 'I didn't come
+here to marry one of them women. I didn't start on this trip to make
+fast to the fust female person I might fall in with. I set out on a
+week's cruise, and I want to see a lot of them afore I make a ch'ice.'
+
+"'I tell you, cap'n,' said Sam, very earnestly, 'it won't do. You might
+hang round Thompsontown for a year, and you wouldn't find any two such
+women as them two. Here they are, two kinds to pick from: one of them as
+ripe as a peach, and the other like a cross between a cricket and a
+blossom. And you've got no time to fool away. When the sun goes down
+you've got to sail back to Thompsontown, and then one will go one way
+and the other another, and where the minister will go to, nobody knows.
+They'll all be scattered and out of sight, and this glorious chance
+you've got might as well be at the bottom of the sea. Now, cap'n, I tell
+you, this thing that's right afore you is what you come for. Jes you
+listen to what I say to you: you go to that Mrs. Sickles and let her see
+how you're standin' and what your course is. She's no fool, and she can
+see the sense of gettin' over a sandbar at high tide jes as well as you
+can.'
+
+"Captain Abner hesitated a moment. 'She's a mighty fine woman, Sam,'
+said he, 'but if I go and set the case afore her, and she agrees to ship
+with me, then I can't ask the other one, and there might as well be no
+other one; and she's as pert a little clipper as ever I seed, Sam, and
+she likes sailin', that she does.'
+
+"'Now don't you worry about that,' said Sam. 'You jes say all you've got
+to say to her, and hear all she's got to say, but don't sign no papers
+and take her aboard until you talk to that other girl. Now hurry up, and
+walk along the beach a little further off.'
+
+"Without waiting for an answer, Sam Twitty galloped away, or that was
+what he would have done had he been a sheep-dog. He darted in between
+Mrs. Sickles and her companions; he turned her down the beach; he talked
+to her in rapid snaps about the sea, the sky, the sand, and before she
+knew it he had driven her alongside of Captain Abner. Then, with what
+might have been compared to a bark of satisfaction, he bounced away to
+join the others, who were looking for shells.
+
+"In about ten minutes Sam Twitty's port eye told him that Captain Abner
+and the toll-gate woman were approaching, but in Abner there were signs
+of a disposition to fall back. In an instant he had bounded between them
+and was showing shells to the widow. Then, letting her go on by herself,
+he turned sharply upon Abner.
+
+"'Well,' said he, their heads close together, 'what did she say? Is she
+all right?'
+
+"Captain Abner threw a glance over the water as if his soul were
+yearning for the fancied possibilities of Thompsontown. 'Oh, it's all
+right enough, so far as she counts,' said he. 'I went straight at it,
+and put the whole thing afore her. I told her about the house and the
+two parts to it and what they was for, and she said that was charmin'.
+And I told her about the king conch-shell and the gilded idol, and she
+said she thought either one of them would be jes lovely, and nothin',
+she thought, could be better on mantelpieces than gilded idols and king
+conch-shells. And everything else was jes as slick and smooth as if she
+was slidin' off the stocks. She's good-lookin' enough, Sam, but she
+ain't got no mind, and I didn't fix up that house, and bother myself
+year in and year out a-gettin' it all right, to take it and give it to a
+woman what's got no mind. She'd be jes as well satisfied to see me
+a-settin' up on the mantelpiece as if the gilded idol or the king
+conch-shell was there.'
+
+"'And she don't suit you?' asked Sam, eagerly.
+
+"'No, sir,' replied the other; 'she don't suit.'
+
+"'All right!' exclaimed the ever-ready Sam; 'jes you wait where you are
+one minute.' In less than that time the agile Sam had rounded up Miss
+Denby and had her walking along the beach by the side of Captain Abner,
+and whether she thought that skilful skipper was going to show her some
+rare seaweed or the state of his mind, Sam considered not for one
+minute. He had brought the two together, and that was all he cared
+about.
+
+"The good Mrs. Sickles was standing alone, reflectively gazing upon the
+little waves, so Sam had no trouble in carrying off the minister to a
+little distance for confidential remarks.
+
+"'I want you to tell me, sir,' said he, 'if there is any law ag'in' your
+marryin' a party on the sea-shore, especially when one of them is a
+sailor?'
+
+"Mr. Rippledean laughed. 'As I am a regularly ordained minister, I can
+perform a marriage anywhere,' said he, 'provided the parties are of
+legal age, and there are no objections. But what are you talking about?
+Who wants to be married?'
+
+"'I can't say jes now,' answered Sam; 'matters isn't settled yet: but
+everything is goin' ahead lively with a stiff breeze, and I guess we'll
+get into soundin's pretty soon. I only spoke to you to know if you'd be
+all right when the couple's ready.'
+
+"'There is nothing the matter with me,' said the young man; 'but I would
+like to know--'
+
+"'Jes you lay to for a while,' said Sam, 'and I'll tell you all about
+it.' And then, noticing that Mrs. Sickles was glancing toward the
+captain and his companion as if she thought to join them, he dashed out
+upon her to cut her off.
+
+"Meanwhile Miss Denby, with glowing eyes, was saying: 'Yes, I do love to
+sail, and to sail in a small boat, close to the water, almost as if I
+were in it, skimming like a bird with my wings dipping. Oh, it is grand!
+And you have a sail-boat?'
+
+"And the captain answered: 'Indeed I have, and there's none better,
+either for sailing on the wind, or before the wind, or with next to no
+wind at all.'
+
+"'How wonderfully you must sail it! I could not keep my eyes off you as
+you brought us over here. It was grand! You made her do anything you
+pleased.'
+
+"The captain smiled and nodded. 'But I think of my house as much as I do
+of my boat, miss,' said he. 'I've got a mighty nice parlor that's as
+good as any ship's cabin. And now let me put this p'int to you: if you
+had a big king conch-shell, the prettiest you ever seed, and it was on
+the middle of the mantelpiece, and you had a gilded idol in another
+place, would you put the idol where the conch-shell was, and the
+conch-shell where the idol was, or would you leave 'em both jes where
+they was afore?'
+
+"The young woman laughed merrily. 'What kind of an idol would it be?'
+she asked. 'A beautiful piece of carving?'
+
+"''Tain't that,' said Captain Abner; 'it's jes a piece of wood whittled
+out by a heathen; but it used to be in a temple, and it's gilded all
+over.'
+
+"'Oh, dear!' said she, 'I don't think much of that sort of an idol. I
+might like to be a gilded idol myself, if I had the right person to
+worship me. But as for a wooden idol, I wouldn't put that on the
+mantelpiece, and I am of the same opinion as to the conch-shell.'
+
+"'But it's a king conch-shell,' said the captain.
+
+"'I don't care,' said she; 'king or queen, it would be all the same to
+me. But if I were you I think I'd be most of the time in the boat. What
+is a house, no matter what it has in it, compared to a boat dancing
+over the waves and speeding before the wind?'
+
+"Captain Abner looked at her. 'I expect you'd like to learn to steer,
+wouldn't you?'
+
+"'Indeed I would,' she answered. 'There is nothing I would like better.'
+
+"Captain Abner put his hands into his pockets and gently whistled, and,
+leaving him, Miss Denby ran to join the toll-gate woman. Down swooped
+Sam Twitty.
+
+"'Is it all right?' he whispered to Abner.
+
+"'All up,' the other answered, 'and I'm glad of it. She don't want no
+gilded idol, and she don't want no king conch-shell. She wants her hand
+on the tiller, that's what she wants. She's got too much mind for me.
+After I've been workin' year in and year out a-gettin' my affairs the
+way I wants them, I don't fancy anybody comin' down on me and takin' the
+tiller out of my hands.'
+
+"Sam made two or three steps forward, and then he stood gazing in the
+direction of the setting sun. Resting on one slippered foot and
+extending the other before him, he folded his arms and remained a few
+moments wrapped in thought. Suddenly he turned.
+
+"'Cap'n Abner,' he cried, 'it won't do to sink this chance! It'll never
+pop up ag'in. You must have spoke pretty plain to that toll-gate woman,
+considerin' the way she's been turnin' it over in her mind.'
+
+"'Yes, I did,' said Captain Abner, 'and that's the way I found out what
+she was. But I didn't ask her to ship with me.'
+
+"'And you don't want her to?' said Sam.
+
+"'No, I don't.'
+
+"'And you don't want the other one, nuther?'
+
+"'No, I don't,' replied Captain Abner, doggedly. 'I don't want nuther of
+'em. And I say, Sam, the sun's gettin' down and it's about time for us
+to be settin' sail.'
+
+"'There's a good stretch of sky under that sun yet,' said Sam, 'and jes
+you wait a bit, cap'n.'
+
+"Sam Twitty walked slowly along the sandy beach; he looked as a
+sheep-dog might look who was wondering within himself whether or not he
+had brought back from the fields as many sheep as he had taken out. He
+stopped, and looked about at the party. Captain Abner was walking toward
+the boat; the minister and the Denby girl were standing together,
+comparing shells; the toll-gate woman was strolling by herself a little
+higher up the beach, still in a reflective mood. Sam gazed from his
+companions to the sky, the water, the beautiful glistening sands.
+
+"'It's a shame to lose all this,' he said to himself; 'it's a burnin'
+shame to sink it all.' Then suddenly, as if his master had whistled, he
+sped to the side of Mrs. Sickles. Backward and forward these two walked,
+Sam talking earnestly and the toll-gate woman listening with great
+interest. Captain Abner now and then gave them an impatient glance, but
+the other couple did not regard them at all.
+
+"'But, Mr. Twitty,' said Mrs. Sickles, 'this is so unexpected. I had
+an idea of the kind about Cap'n Abner, for I could not help it, but
+you--really! I've heard of you often, Mr. Twitty, but I never saw you
+until to-day.'
+
+"'Now, Mrs. Sickles,' said Sam, 'you couldn't have had a better day to
+see me in, if you'd waited a year; and a-speakin' quick and sharp as
+I've got to do, for the sun's keepin' on goin' down, there couldn't be a
+better day to marry me in.'
+
+"'Oh, Mr. Twitty!' cried Mrs. Sickles, with flushed face.
+
+"'There couldn't be a better time or a better place,' said Sam, 'and a
+minister right here, and two witnesses.'
+
+"'But, Mr. Twitty,' said she, 'I really thought that Cap'n Budlong--and
+from what he told me about his house and his things--'
+
+"'Cap'n Abner is one of the finest men in this world,' interrupted Sam,
+'and he's got a fust-class house, and I ain't got none, and he's got all
+sorts of things from all parts of the world that he's put in it. But I
+can get a house and things to put in it, and I can do without gilded
+idols and king conch-shells, and, what's still more to the p'int,
+Mrs. Sickles, I wants you, and he don't.'
+
+"'There's something in that,' said the toll-gate woman, and then she
+added: 'but as to marryin' you here and now, Mr. Twitty, it's not to be
+thought of.'
+
+"Sam walked slowly away; one might have thought his head drooped under a
+rebuke. He approached the young minister and the girl of the buggy.
+
+"'Look a' here,' said he to the former; 'you don't mean to say, sir,
+that you'd back out of marryin' a couple right here and now, that was
+growed up and of full age, and nothin' to hinder.'
+
+"'Marry!' cried Miss Denby. 'A wedding right here on this beautiful
+island! Oh, that would be glorious! Who wants to be married?'
+
+"'I do,' said Sam.
+
+"They both laughed. 'But the other person?' asked Mr. Rippledean. 'There
+must be a bride if you want a wedding.'
+
+"'Oh, the bride'll be Mrs. Sickles,' said Sam. 'But the trouble is she
+ain't altogether willin'.'
+
+"'I told you,' said the merry Miss Denby--'you know I told you that you
+are the funniest people I ever met, and you truly are. People generally
+come to an agreement between themselves before they speak to the
+clergyman.'
+
+"'Mr. Twitty,' said the clergyman, 'I strongly advise you to give up
+your present notions of immediate matrimony, and wait at least until all
+parties agree upon time and place and upon the other circumstances of
+this union for which you seem so impatient.'
+
+"'Hello, Sam!' shouted Captain Abner from the water's edge, 'ain't you
+comin' along?'
+
+"Sam made no answer to any one. He walked silently down toward the boat.
+Everything seemed to be breaking loose from him, and slipping away. His
+old friend, who had so long wanted her, and who had prepared his house
+for her, and had set out to look for her, had declined to take her when
+he saw her; and he, Sam, who had so thoroughly understood the
+opportunities which had been spread before the little party that
+afternoon, and who knew what would happen if these opportunities were
+allowed to slip out of sight, had been set aside by one woman, laughed
+at by another, had been advised by a clergyman, and had been scolded by
+Captain Abner. His soul resented all this, and he saw that the edge of
+the sun was nearly touching the rim of the distant sea. With a great
+slap upon his thigh, he sprang to the side of the boat, and turned and
+faced the others, all of whom were now approaching him.
+
+"'I am to sail this boat back to Thompsontown,' he cried. 'It's been
+agreed I'm to do it, and I'm goin' to do it; but one thing I'll tell
+you--the sun can go down, the night can come on, and you can all stay
+here till mornin' if you like, but this boat don't leave this island
+with me at the helm till I'm a married man!' With this he skipped on
+board, sat down in the stern, and clapped his broad hands on the tiller.
+
+"There was a burst of astonishment from the rest of the party as Sam
+thus seated himself at bay. Even the girl of the buggy did not laugh.
+
+"'But I must go home,' she cried, 'before it is any later. My friends
+will be waiting supper for me.'
+
+"'Don't matter,' said Sam. 'Supper can wait.'
+
+"'Look a' here,' said Captain Abner.
+
+"'I don't want to look a' here,' said Sam. 'I'm a-lookin' a different
+way, and it's Mrs. Sickles I'm lookin' at. And you needn't none of you
+look cross at me. I'm to steer this boat home, that's settled, and I
+don't steer her an inch till I'm a married man.'
+
+"The others gathered together on the beach and gazed with varied
+emotions upon the determined figure of Sam as he sat in the stern, his
+arm resting upon the tiller and one leg crossed leisurely over the
+other, his protruding slipper lighted up by the rays of the setting sun.
+
+"'What is the matter with him?' asked Mr. Rippledean. 'Is he crazy? Does
+he really think of forcing us to remain here until he shall be married?
+I never heard anything--'
+
+"'So delightfully absurd,' interrupted Miss Denby.
+
+"'There's nothin' crazy about Sam Twitty,' said Captain Abner. 'He's as
+sound as a nut, body and soul. But when Sam makes up his mind he sticks
+to it. Now sometimes when I make up my mind I don't stick to it. He's a
+good man all around, and he's got enough to live on, though he never was
+a cap'n; but you couldn't find a better fust mate than him, or a better
+sailor, except perhaps somebody what's had a leetle more experience.
+Sam made up his mind that we was all comin' out here for a weddin',
+everything fallin' together exactly to suit, wind and tide and
+everything else. But Sam ain't goin' to force nobody to do nothin'; he
+ain't that kind. All he's goin' to do is to stay here till he's
+married.'
+
+"The girl of the buggy clapped her hands. 'Oh, that is fine!' she cried.
+'It is like lifting you up on a horse and dashing away with you. Oh,
+dear Mrs. Sickles, take pity on him and on all of us. If you do not, I
+shall have to talk to him myself and see if I--'
+
+"Mrs. Sickles was not inclined to give attention to any such idle words
+as these, and she stepped up to Captain Abner.
+
+"'You seem to think very well of Mr. Twitty, sir,' she said.
+
+"'Indeed I do,' he answered. 'There ain't nobody I think more of, on
+watch or below, in storm or fine weather, take him as you find him, than
+I do of him.'
+
+"Sam Twitty had not heard any of the remarks which had been made on
+shore; he had been communing with himself: but now his active mind would
+no longer permit him to sit still. Springing to his feet, he stepped
+forward and stood up in the bow of the boat, and cast his eye over the
+little party in front of him. Then he spoke:
+
+"'Mrs. Sickles, I want to put a p'int to you that's been put to you
+afore, but I want to put it a little different. If there was a gilded
+idol and a king conch-shell that you knowed of, and you was asked which
+of them you would like to have for your own, and you only could have
+one--'
+
+"'Oh, dear!' exclaimed Miss Denby, 'here is that delightful gilded idol
+and conch-shell again! I wonder what they will do now!'
+
+"The toll-gate woman was paling and flushing, and these changes of
+countenance, combined with her becoming summer dress and her straw hat,
+made her very attractive to the eye. Without waiting for Sam to finish
+his remarks, she spoke:
+
+"'I am very sure, Mr. Twitty, that both the things you mention, from
+what I have heard of them, would be very nice and pleasant; but you see,
+Mr. Twitty, I don't--'
+
+"Sam suddenly stepped upon the rail, steadying himself by the mast.
+'Mrs. Sickles,' he cried, 'I'll put it plainer to you: supposing you
+couldn't get the gilded idol?'
+
+"Mrs. Sickles now saw very clearly that there was no more time for
+hesitation. She stepped a little forward.
+
+"'In that case,' she said, 'I'd take the conch-shell.'
+
+"With a bound, Sam Twitty sprang from the shore, and the next moment he
+had seized the blushing Mrs. Sickles by the hand. For a moment he gazed
+proudly around, the sunset light casting a ruddy glow upon his
+countenance which made it almost as rosy as that of his companion. Then
+he tucked her under his arm and turned toward the minister.
+
+"'Please step this way, Mr. Rippledean,' he said. 'That little bluff
+there, with grass on it, is the place I've picked out for the ceremony.
+And, Cap'n Abner, I'll ask you and that young woman to follow along
+after us and stand up for witnesses.'
+
+"Just as the upper edge of the sun disappeared beneath the glowing sea,
+the name of Sickles departed from observation and recognition on that
+line of longitude. But in the glow upon the faces of Mr. and Mrs. Twitty
+there was nothing to remind one of a sunset sky. It might have been
+supposed, rather, that they were gazing eastward, and that the morn was
+glorious.
+
+"Having gravely saluted his bride, Sam lifted up his voice. He was used
+to that sort of thing, for he had been a boatswain. 'Cap'n Abner
+Budlong,' he exclaimed, 'step aft and kiss the bride!'
+
+"When this command had been obeyed with urbane alacrity, Sam called out
+again, very much as if he were piping all hands to osculation:
+'Rev. Mr. Rippledean, step aft and kiss the bride!'
+
+"When the minister had retired from the performance of his duty, Sam
+cast a speaking glance in the direction of Miss Denby. He looked as if
+he would say that on this occasion it was a great pity that any one
+should be left out. The girl of the buggy understood his glance, and
+lifted up her voice in laughter.
+
+"'Oh, no, Mr. Twitty,' said she, 'it is not the custom to kiss
+witnesses.'
+
+"'Oh, no,' answered Mrs. Twitty, in tones of approbation; and these
+were the first words she spoke after she had ceased to be Sickles.
+
+"As that boat of blissfulness sped across the bay, speeding along under
+a strong breeze from the west, under a sky full of orange-colored
+clouds, Sam Twitty's strong hand grasped the tiller with an energy which
+would have been sufficient for the guidance of a ship of the line. As
+the thin sheets of water curled over the lee scuppers of the boat, the
+right hand which held Sam's left never trembled nor tightened its hold;
+and when the clergyman, sitting by Miss Denby, asked her if she felt at
+all afraid, she cheerily replied:
+
+"'Not with the gilded idol and the king conch-shell both on board--no,
+not I!'
+
+                *       *       *       *       *
+
+"The honeymoon of Mr. and Mrs. Twitty was spent in Thompsontown, and
+lasted three days; for at the end of that time the bride's brother
+demanded to be released from the care of the toll-gate, having other
+duties which were incumbent upon him. But when Sam and his wife spoke of
+leaving the Spinnaker Boom, Captain Abner was perfectly willing to go
+with them. His face bore an expression of contented resignation.
+
+"'I will drive you two back, Sam,' said he. ''Tain't no more use for me
+to stay here. I don't believe I'll find her, and I give it up.'
+
+"On the way home the happy Mr. Twitty burst out laughing. 'It do seem
+awful comical, Cap'n Abner,' said he, 'that, after all we said about
+comin' home, that me and her should be a-settin' on the back seat and
+you a-drivin' in front alone.' And when this remark was explained to
+Mrs. Twitty she laughed very heartily indeed.
+
+"Sam did not go directly back to Shamrick. His wife had a good house,
+and could not, without due notice, give up her public office, and so he
+determined to remain, for the present, in the very pleasant quarters
+thus afforded him. But he vowed with considerable vehemence that
+Mrs. Twitty should keep the toll-gate no more; this duty, so long as it
+had to be performed, he would take upon himself, and he found it a most
+congenial and interesting occupation.
+
+"'Like it!' he exclaimed to his wife, after his first day's experience.
+'It's as interestin' as readin' the weekly paper. Everybody that comes
+along seems ready for some different kind of chat. And when that young
+woman with the buggy happens to be drivin' this way, she don't pay no
+toll. I'll pay for her myself, every time, on account of her services as
+witness.'
+
+"'No, you don't, Sam Twitty,' remarked his consort; 'that young woman
+pays her own toll, every time. While I'm here I don't want no changes in
+the customs of this toll-gate.'
+
+                *       *       *       *       *
+
+"It was about a fortnight after Sam Twitty's wedding that that
+well-satisfied individual, being called to the gate by the sound of
+wheels, beheld a buggy, and Miss Denby sitting therein. In answer to
+Sam's cheerful greeting, she did not laugh, nor even smile.
+
+"'I saw your friend Captain Abner about a week ago,' she said, 'as I
+drove through Shamrick, and he looked dreadfully solemn. I think his
+disappointment is wearing on him. It is a great pity that a man who can
+sail a boat as he can should have a moment's sorrow on this earth. It
+almost made me feel sorry he found out I wanted to learn to steer. I
+think that was the only barrier between us. And he would have taken me
+out sailing every fine day!'
+
+"'Oh, no, no,' said Sam; 'that would never have done. You could never
+have kept your hands off the tiller. If he had known what was good for
+him he would have married her.' These words he spoke in a confidential
+tone, and pointed with his thumb behind him. 'But he had the chance, and
+he didn't take it, and now I don't wonder he's doleful.'
+
+"'You ought to go and try to cheer him up,' said Miss Denby, gathering
+up the reins. 'Do you expect to go on keeping this toll-gate,
+Mr. Twitty?'
+
+"'I'd like to,' said Sam, 'if you're goin' to keep on travellin' this
+way.'
+
+"'Oh!' said Miss Denby, with a reproving smile.
+
+"'Yes, indeed,' said Sam; 'for it reminds me of such a happy day.'
+
+"'Oh!' said Miss Denby, as she drove away with her nose in the air.
+
+"A few days after this Sam did go to Shamrick, and walking on the street
+he met Captain Abner; but, to his surprise, that individual did not look
+at all doleful. There was a half-smile on his lips, and his step was
+buoyant. The two old friends clasped hands with much heartiness.
+
+"'You are as gay as a pot of red paint,' said Sam. 'You must be feelin'
+well.'
+
+"'I should say so,' said Abner; and then, after a portentous pause, he
+added: 'I've got her.'
+
+"'Got her!' exclaimed Sam, in amazement. 'Where did you get her?'
+
+"'Got her here.'
+
+"'And who is it you've got?'
+
+"'Susan Shellbark.'
+
+"'Susan Shellbark!' cried Sam. 'You don't mean to say that!'
+
+"'It's Susan Shellbark, and I do mean to say that.'
+
+"'Why, you've known her all your life,' said Sam.
+
+"'All my life,' was the answer.
+
+"'Then why didn't you take her afore?' asked his friend.
+
+"'Because I hadn't been to Thompsontown to see what I could get there.
+Of course I didn't want to take anybody here until I found out what
+there was in Thompsontown. Now I know there ain't nothin' for me there.'
+
+"'And so you take Susan Shellbark!' interrupted Sam.
+
+"'And so I take Susan Shellbark.'
+
+"Sam looked at his friend for a moment, and then burst out laughing.
+'Give me your hand,' he cried. 'I'm mighty glad you've got Susan
+Shellbark, and I'm mighty glad you went to Thompsontown.'
+
+"'So am I,' said Captain Abner. 'If I hadn't gone to Thompsontown I'd
+never have got Susan Shellbark.'
+
+"'That's so,' cried Sam. 'And if you hadn't made up your mind to go to
+Thompsontown, you and me'd never got stuck at the toll-gate with nothin'
+but a five-dollar note. I'm mighty glad we was stuck, Cap'n Abner; I'm
+mighty glad we was stuck!'
+
+"Thereupon the two friends shook hands again.
+
+"'But there is one thing I want to ask,' said Sam. 'What about the
+gilded idol and the king conch-shell?'
+
+"'Oh, that's all right,' said Captain Abner; 'they're both to go on to
+the mantelpiece, one on one end, and t'other on the other. That's to be
+the way with everything we've got. You've knowed Susan Shellbark as long
+as I have, Sam, and you know she'll stick to that bargain.'
+
+"'That's so,' said Sam; 'she'll stick to that bargain. Both of you'll be
+on the mantelpiece, one on one end, and the other on t'other.'"
+
+"And what became of the girl in the buggy?" asked the Mistress of the
+House.
+
+"Her later history is unknown to me," said the Master of the House.
+
+"I have not made up my mind about that story, papa," said the Daughter
+of the House. "It is not altogether satisfactory."
+
+"But very much what usually happens," said John Gayther, in an
+undertone.
+
+
+
+
+                       THIS STORY IS TOLD BY
+
+                           THE FRENCHMAN
+
+                           AND IS CALLED
+
+                          MY BALLOON HUNT
+
+
+
+
+VI
+
+MY BALLOON HUNT
+
+
+The next morning, after breakfast, the Mistress of the House and John
+Gayther were walking through the garden together, for her quick eye had
+detected much that needed attention. Some things she had already decided
+upon, but there were others in which she thought it best to ask John's
+advice. They did not always agree; in fact, they were seldom in exact
+accord: but both were sensible, and he reasoned that, as mistress, she
+ought to do as she pleased; and she reasoned that, as he had learned the
+business and she had not, it was just to him and to herself that he
+should, on many points, be allowed his own way.
+
+The orchard was really a continuation of the lower terrace of the
+garden, but the Mistress had not been there for some time. "A great many
+pears, John," she commented as they strolled under the trees; "a fair
+show of apples: but there are no plums at all."
+
+"Plums have their seasons," said John, sententiously. "They are not
+always falling in one's way; and these are choice plums and don't come
+promiscuous--sorter scattered like."
+
+"I wonder if John means that for philosophy," thought the Mistress.
+Then aloud: "My daughter brought me a luscious one yesterday, and,
+really, it looks as if she had gathered the only one."
+
+"Bless her heart!" said John, fervently, "I hope she's goin' to pick
+them up all along the way she goes."
+
+"That is too much to hope for any one, John," said the Mistress, as they
+turned to go up into the garden; but in her heart she had the very same
+hope.
+
+They walked through two terraces filled with luxuriant vegetables and
+bordered by small fruits, now out of season; then on to the third
+terrace, bordered by currant-bushes, beautiful now to look upon, hung as
+they were with a profusion of red tassels. And here there came to them
+an almost overpowering fragrance; for on the terrace above were great
+beds of lilies, now in their glory--lilies from many climes, lilies of
+many hues: great white spikes, small pink clusters, spotted, striped,
+variegated, white with borders of all colors, even black (or purple so
+dark it looked black), all standing proudly in the sunshine, and sending
+to heaven their incense of gratitude.
+
+It was a gorgeous sight, and the two looked at it with delight and a
+good deal of pride, for it was the design and the handiwork of both.
+
+Then they saw, behind all this glory, a group of people disposed in
+various comfortable positions about the little summer-house on the upper
+terrace, where the view was finest.
+
+There was the Master of the House in the big garden-chair; there was the
+Frenchman, seated on a low grassy knoll; there was the Daughter of the
+House on the bench she liked; and beside her was the Next Neighbor, who
+was an intimate friend of the Daughter of the House, and, therefore, a
+frequent visitor. The nearest house was not in sight, but it could be
+reached in a moderate walk. Its mistress was a young married woman, very
+pretty to look at and of a lively turn of mind. She waved her hand to
+the Mistress, while the Master called out: "Come up here, you two! We
+are waiting for you." When the two complied with the command, the Master
+continued: "Now make yourselves comfortable and listen to a story our
+guest has promised us."
+
+The Mistress of the House willingly took the rustic chair the Frenchman
+brought forward, but John Gayther had no wish to hear the Frenchman's
+story. He had no fancy for the man, and he did not believe he would
+fancy his story. "Excuse me," he said to the Master of the House, "but I
+see that boy Jacob coming through the gate, and I must go with him to
+weed the melon-bed."
+
+"You will do nothing of the kind," said the Master of the House; "let
+the boy weed it alone."
+
+"Never!" cried John, in horror. "He will trample on all the vines!"
+
+"Then tell him to do something else." And, without waiting for John to
+give the order, he called out: "Ahoy, there, boy! Clear out of this
+garden!"
+
+The boy vanished with celerity, and John Gayther sank upon his stool
+with an air of resignation. But no sooner had the Frenchman uttered a
+few sentences than he brightened up, and not only listened attentively
+but put aside the disagreeable feeling he had had for him. The beginning
+of the narrative lifted a load from his mind.
+
+The Frenchman, having again betaken himself to the grassy mound, began
+in an easy, airy way:
+
+"I am a sportsman as well as a Frenchman. It seems hardly necessary to
+mention both of these things at once, for in my mind they naturally go
+together. I am expert in many kinds of sports, and it pleases me much,
+when engaged in such recreations, to employ my mind as well as my body,
+and in so doing I frequently devise methods of pursuing my favorite
+sports which are never made use of by ordinary and unimaginative
+persons.
+
+"My Irene--she is my wife--is also addicted to sport. It was partly for
+this reason that I married her. It is not always by sharing my dangers
+and my glories that my dear Irene shows her passion for the outdoor
+sports which are so fascinating to me; it is often that she does this
+merely by sympathy. She can remain at home and think of me in the field
+or on the stream, and be happy. When I return she welcomes, she
+appreciates. If I overstay my time I do not give myself worry--I know
+that she will understand that there are contingencies. When she greets
+me there are no reproaches. She is the wife for a sportsman!
+
+"But it is not always that I rely simply upon the sympathy of my Irene.
+It was not so when I went in a balloon to hunt tigers. She was then at
+my side, for there was no other place where she would have been
+satisfied, or where I would have had her. There are vicissitudes which
+should be faced together by those who love.
+
+"I had long wished to hunt tigers, and it had come into my head that
+it would be a grand and novel idea, and also extremely practicable,
+to shoot at these savage creatures from a balloon. This would be an
+exhilarating sensation, and it would be safe. In no other way would I
+take my Irene with me when tiger-hunting; and in no other way, I freely
+admit, would I be very desirous of going myself.
+
+"I have heard that one of my countrymen had himself shut up in a stout
+cage and conveyed to a region infested by tigers. There, with his rifle,
+he sat comfortably in a chair, with a lantern on a table near by. When,
+at night, the tigers crowded round his cage, he shot them. But this
+would not have suited me. Suppose a bar of the cage should have been
+broken!
+
+"But in a balloon it would be different. Poised in the air a moderate
+distance above the ground, I could shoot at tigers beneath me and laugh
+at their efforts to reach my height. Therefore it was that I determined
+to hunt my tigers in a balloon. Irene screamed when I mentioned this
+plan, but she did not refuse to go with me. She had been in balloons,
+but she had never seen an unrestricted tiger. Now she could enjoy these
+two pleasures at once, and be with me.
+
+"This happened in French Tonkin. We were in a little outlying town where
+there was a garrison, and some engineers who made military observations
+in a balloon. This was a captive balloon not employed for independent
+ascensions, and from some of the officers, who were my friends, I
+procured it for my projected tiger hunt. They were all much interested
+in my expedition, for if it succeeded there would be a new variety of
+sport in this monotonous region.
+
+"The balloon was supplied with gas sufficient to carry myself and my
+Irene, with rifles, provisions, and various necessities, and its lifting
+power was so proportioned to the weight it carried as to keep it at the
+height of an ordinary church steeple above the earth.
+
+"About ten miles from the town there was a long stretch of desert and
+barren land, extending for about a quarter of a mile from a jungle and
+forest to a river; and here, I was told, tigers were often to be found,
+sometimes crossing the open country to slake their thirst at the stream,
+but more frequently to prevent antelopes and other tender animals from
+slaking their thirst. There could be no better spot than this for my
+experiment.
+
+"Our journey to the hunting-ground was most delightful. Seating
+ourselves in the commodious car which hung beneath the balloon, we rose
+to the height of the rope which restrained its ascent. The lower end of
+this rope was then seized by natives, active and strong, who ran along,
+pulling the balloon above them. It was the most comfortable method of
+progression that I had ever known. There were no jars, scarcely any
+sense of motion. The great overhanging balloon sheltered us from the
+sun; we leaned over the side of the car, surveyed the landscape, and
+breathed the fresh morning air. Then we breakfasted and smoked our
+cigarettes. I was happy; my Irene was happy. We could have journeyed
+thus for days.
+
+"But when we came to the appointed place we prepared for business. We
+had with us a machine for anchoring the balloon, and the natives
+immediately went to work to drive this deeply into the soil, about
+half-way between the water and the jungle, so that we might be moored
+at a proper distance above the ground. There was no wind; the balloon
+hung almost motionless. It had been arranged that when it should be
+properly attached the natives should leave us, and return in the evening
+to pull us back to the town, and to carry away the skins of the tigers
+we had killed.
+
+"It was truly luxurious hunting! The rifle of my Irene was light and
+suitable for a lady; mine was of the most improved pattern. We had
+another one in case of emergencies. We sat and looked down upon the men,
+urging them to hasten their work and be gone; we were longing for our
+sport.
+
+"Suddenly there was a cry from one of the natives. Gazing toward the
+jungle, he yelled: 'A tiger! a tiger!' Instantly our hearts stopped
+beating and our eyes were turned toward the jungle. There, against the
+matted leaves and stalks, was a mass of yellow and black--half a tiger.
+In the bright sunlight we could see it plainly. It had been roused by
+the noise of the pounding, and was gazing out to see what was the
+matter. With one united scream, the natives shot away. They scattered;
+they disappeared utterly and at once. Where they went I know not. We
+never saw them again. We did not even think of them. Our eyes were set
+fast upon the black and yellow stripes and the great head. Without
+volition I grasped my rifle. Irene put her hand upon her weapon, but I
+whispered to her not to move.
+
+"The tiger came slowly out of the jungle so that we could see him
+clearly; then he walked toward us. I clutched my rifle still more
+tightly.
+
+"Suddenly Irene whispered to me: 'We are not fastened; those men did
+not attach the rope; and we may drift away from him, perhaps across the
+river, and so lose him. Is it too far for a shot?'
+
+"'Entirely, entirely,' I answered; 'we must wait: and if we do drift
+across the river we may find some other game there. Be quiet!'
+
+"So we both were quiet; but the balloon did not drift: there was no
+wind.
+
+"The tiger moved gently toward us; it was dreadful to remain thus
+motionless and see him come on. He had paid no attention to the escaping
+natives: he was giving his mind entirely to our balloon. He looked up at
+us, and he looked down at the end of the rope, a yard or two of which
+was moving about like a snake as the balloon veered a little this way
+and that.
+
+"This seemed to interest the tiger. He stopped for a few moments and
+looked at it. He was now near enough for us to observe him closely. We
+did so with breathless interest. He was a long tiger, and very thin; his
+flabby flanks seemed to indicate that he was hungry. Suddenly he gave a
+quick bound; he ceased to regard the balloon; his eyes were fixed upon
+the end of the rope. With great leaps he reached it. He arched his back
+and looked at it as it moved, then he put one paw upon it. We leaned
+over the edge of the car and watched him.
+
+"The rope was so attached that by putting out her arm Irene could reach
+it. She seized it and made the lower end of it move more quickly on the
+ground. The tiger gave a jump, with his eyes on the rope. Then he leaped
+forward, and over and over again he put his foot upon it and quickly
+jerked it away.
+
+"'What are you doing?' I whispered. 'Are you mad? You may enrage him.
+Do not touch the rope! Do not touch it again!' Oh, the recklessness, the
+unthinking playfulness of woman! How can we guard against it? How can we
+be safe from it?
+
+"The rope was now still for a moment. It ceased to interest the tiger,
+and he looked upward. Suddenly an idea came into his head. He seized the
+rope in his great jaws, and gave a powerful jump backward. Oh, what a
+jerk, what a shock! It was worse than an earthquake. It was like a great
+throb from the heart of the tiger to the heart of the man. I must have
+turned pale. Did he intend to haul us down? This fearsome thought vented
+itself in smothered ejaculations, and Irene turned to me and spoke in
+her usual voice:
+
+"'He cannot do that, for it is impossible for him to haul us down hand
+over hand or paw over paw. He is only playing. The rope amuses him. And
+we need not speak in whispers; even if he hears us he cannot understand
+us. Is it not time to shoot?'
+
+"She is so precipitate, my Irene. I love her, but she lacks that prudent
+hesitancy which so often gives a man his power over circumstances.
+
+"Still I considered the case: if I were going to shoot at all, this was
+surely a good time. Everything had come so suddenly that I had not had
+time to collect myself, to prepare for action.
+
+"I looked steadfastly down at the beast, and so did my Irene. I was
+becoming calmer. He looked up at us with an air of concentration; he
+paid no more attention to the rope.
+
+"I lifted my rifle; I scrutinized its every portion; it was in order.
+Then I leaned over the edge of the car and pointed it downward. I aimed
+it between his great, earnest eyes, into the very middle of his
+thoughtful and observant countenance. I pulled the trigger; the
+explosion shook the car.
+
+"Up from the ground there came a sudden, startling roar. At first I
+could not see the tiger, but when the smoke moved away I found myself
+gazing down into his savage, blazing eyes. Roar after roar came up; he
+sprang from side to side; his tail stiffened and curled, and when he
+opened his vast mouth, showing the cavern of his throat, his red tongue,
+and his long white teeth, a shiver ran through me. Instinctively I
+grasped my Irene by the arm.
+
+"'I do not believe you hit him,' said she. 'See how he bounds! He cannot
+be hurt. It must be difficult to aim directly downward, but let me try.'
+
+"I did not forbid her. Even by chance she might strike that awful beast
+in some vital part. She took a long, deliberate aim, and as she fired
+the tiger gave a veritable scream.
+
+"'Ah, ha!' I cried, 'you hit him. Truly, my Irene, you hit him.'
+
+"'But it was only in the toe,' she said. 'See how he has stopped to lick
+it with his tongue. I think it is his littlest toe. It is not much.'
+
+"Large toe or small one, that tiger was now an angry beast. Hopping
+backward a little way, he now crouched to the ground, and then gave a
+wild spring upward. It was heart-sickening as his great form, with its
+yellow skin and black stripes, his blazing eyes, his flashing teeth, and
+his outspread claws, rose toward us through the air. Of course he could
+not hurt us; we were too high up. Irene's face flushed. 'That was a
+great leap,' she said.
+
+"I took up my rifle again. It comforted me to see what a small jump the
+beast had made compared to our distance from the ground. Again I fired,
+and this time also I did not hit him. I had never practised shooting at
+things almost beneath me; the slightest motion of Irene disturbed my
+aim. The report seemed to infuriate the tiger until he was on the verge
+of madness. He jumped from side to side, he roared, he gnashed his
+teeth, and it seemed to me that I could smell his horrid breath coming
+up toward us.
+
+"Suddenly he ceased all motion; he crouched upon the ground; he made no
+sound; he shut his mouth; he partly shut his eyes, but they were fixed
+upon me immovably, and they were green as emerald.
+
+"'Now,' said Irene, 'is a good time to take another shot. Shall I try?'
+
+"I raised my hand that she might not move. There was a change coming
+over the sun. At first I thought my sight was affected and I did not see
+well, but it was not that. Instinctively I gazed upward. A wandering
+cloud was slowly moving under the sun. Then I looked down. The tiger's
+yellow was not so bright, his black stripes were not so clear and
+sharp-cut, and, more than that, he was coming nearer. The balloon was
+slowly descending. The truth flashed upon me. Deprived of the direct
+rays of the sun, the gas was condensing. We were going down, down,
+slowly but surely down!
+
+"A chill ran through me, an awful premonitory chill. I knew what to do,
+but there was little I could do. We carried no ballast, for this was a
+captive balloon. What could I throw out? The extra rifle! Out it went,
+and fell not far from the tiger; but he did not move; with his green
+eyes fixed upon the car, he watched it slowly descend. The rifle had
+relieved it of a little of its weight, but the middle of the cloud was
+thicker than its edge. The gas was still condensing, the balloon was
+slowly descending. I became almost frantic. If my Irene had been any one
+else I believe I would have thrown her out. But I could not throw out my
+Irene. Besides, she was so vigorous.
+
+"It was awful, this steady, this merciless descent. It was like entering
+a tomb with a red tongue and flashing teeth waiting within. The green
+eyes gleamed with the malice of a waiting devil biding his time and
+knowing that it was drawing near.
+
+"Down, down we went, and the smell of his horrid breath came up like the
+forerunner of a cruel death. Now a tremor ran through the whole body of
+the crouching beast; even his tail trembled like a feather in the wind.
+He seemed to press himself nearer and nearer to the earth. His eyes were
+fixed steadily upon the car.
+
+"I knew what this meant. He was about to spring. The moment that we
+should descend sufficiently low, he would hurl himself into the car; he
+would not wait for it to touch the ground.
+
+"My thoughts raced through my brain. If anything could be done, it must
+be done in the next half-minute. I spoke quickly to Irene.
+
+"'Do not lose a second,' I said. 'Get out on the outside of the car;
+rest lightly upon its edge; hold by the ropes. I will do the same. At
+the moment I give the word you must jump. Both together; do not
+hesitate. It will not be much of a fall. We cannot stay here and have
+him--'
+
+"At this instant the tiger gave a tremendous bound upward, his fore
+paws, bristling with claws, stretched over the edge of the car. In that
+instant I jumped!
+
+"It was a great leap, and as my feet struck the ground and my eyes
+glanced rapidly about me a feeling of great joy filled my breast. I was
+on the earth again, master of myself, and the tiger was not there. I
+looked upward. The great beast was drawing up his hind legs and was
+climbing into the car, and there was Irene, my Irene, outside of the
+car, sitting on the edge and holding on to the ropes. I had forgotten to
+give her the word! How my heart sank! It was terrible!
+
+"I now perceived something that almost paralyzed my every faculty. That
+balloon was rising. I was a large man and I was heavier than the tiger;
+with its reduced weight the balloon was slowly going upward. I clasped
+my hands, I gasped for breath. If I should call to Irene to jump now she
+would be dashed to pieces, the car was already so high. And then the
+great truth flashed upon me: 'What matters it? If she leaps she will be
+killed; if she does not leap--' I could not think of it!
+
+"To be sure, I might seize the rope and pull her down low enough so that
+she might safely drop; but if I did that the tiger might also jump. Oh,
+what a position to be in, for one who loves!
+
+"It was now absolutely impossible for either of them safely to leap from
+the car unless I pulled it down, and my mind was not capable of even
+considering such an alternative. To meet him here upon the ground, in
+this awful solitude! To die together, but not in each other's arms; to
+perish from this bright earth; to reach out to my Irene; to call to her
+as she reached out and called to me, when the terrible monster-- It was
+too much!
+
+"But even in my despair I remembered to be humane. I seized the end of
+the rope. I would not let my Irene float away altogether. I could not.
+The soul of the husband asserted itself. The cloud had now passed from
+the face of the sun. The balloon was rising with considerable force, but
+I could hold it; I was very heavy. I would not desert my Irene.
+
+"As I stood thus, looking upward and holding fast to all that was dear
+to me in life, I saw Irene, still sitting on the edge of the car, raise
+one hand and put it to her head. I could see that she was feeling faint;
+the strain of her position was beginning to tell upon her; at any moment
+she might fall. Then my quick glance sought the tiger. He was in the
+car, his great head and two front paws hanging over the edge; his green
+eyes were steadily fixed on me. Just then Irene, evidently unable to
+hold any longer to the ropes, gave herself a dexterous twist, and in an
+instant she was inside the car, her head sinking down out of sight. Oh,
+noble, most beloved Irene! Sooner than let herself drop and fall at my
+feet a mangled corpse, she would do anything. She well understood my too
+sensitive soul, this dear Irene!
+
+"In spite of my emotion I still held firmly to the rope, and the tiger
+still glared down upon me. It was too far for him to jump; he knew that
+if he did he would be dashed to pieces. This gave me strength and
+courage.
+
+"Irene now raised herself and looked over the edge of the car; the tiger
+by her side did not regard her. I have often read of wild animals, of
+different kinds and degrees of fierceness, who, having fallen into a pit
+together, did not attack each other, but remained as gentle as sheep,
+being cowed by their fear. Plainly this tiger was cowed. He had never
+been so far above the earth; he knew that he would die if he leaped; but
+he kept his sinister green eyes steadily fixed on me.
+
+[Illustration: The great beast was drawing up his hind legs and was
+climbing into the car.]
+
+"Now Irene called down to me. I could not hear what she said, I was in
+such terrible agitation. And besides, I think she was afraid to speak
+too loudly, for fear she might startle the black-and-yellow beast. How I
+longed to hear her dear words, perhaps her last! Mayhap she was bidding
+me a fond farewell; perhaps she was trying to encourage me and uphold my
+heart in this terrible trial. It would be like her; she knows my love
+for her, my dear Irene!
+
+"And then, ah yes! it might be that she was asking my permission to
+throw herself from the car: that she was beseeching me to turn away my
+head that she might leap to the ground, and thus end her anxieties and
+her miseries--I might say our miseries; for if the tiger should follow
+her he, too, would be killed. I should be left to weep over my dearest,
+the joy of my life and my heart. The tiger would be dead. In her last
+breath Irene would know that I was safe. That would be like Irene, my
+dear Irene! But I would not suffer it. I could not speak, but I shook my
+head.
+
+"She did not try to say anything more, but she looked down upon me, and
+so did the tiger. The two heads were not far from each other; they were
+both regarding me. I grew almost crazy. Never was man placed in more
+terrible straits than this.
+
+"Suddenly a thought struck me. I seized more tightly the end of the
+rope, and I ran. I ran to the river. I plunged, I bounded, I made such
+great haste that sometimes I stumbled over obstacles, and sometimes the
+balloon seemed to lift me from the ground; but on, on I went, on to the
+river!
+
+"When I reached the edge of the water I took courage to stop and look
+up. They were both still gazing over the edge of the car, both with
+their eyes strained upon me.
+
+"Then boldly and fearlessly I walked into the river. I walked until the
+water was up to my knees; until it reached my waist. I walked until the
+surface of the water lapped my shoulders. I was not afraid; I am a good
+swimmer. Irene now called down to me. It was plain she was becoming
+reckless; she would know what I was going to do, no matter what effect
+her words would have upon the tiger. If she thought I was about to
+commit suicide, not daring to bear up under her coming fate, she would
+dissuade me. It would be like her, that dear Irene!
+
+"'What are you going to do?' she cried. And as I looked upward her eyes
+and those of the tiger were steadily fixed on me.
+
+"'You must get on the outside of the car again,' I cried. 'Do it
+quickly, without disturbing him. Then I will pull you down, down, a
+little at a time. When you are far enough down--and I will be the judge
+of that--I will give you the word; then you must jump. It will not hurt
+you; the water will break your fall, and I will save you. Think of
+nothing else but your trust in me, and jump. The moment you leave the
+car I let go the rope; then it will instantly be too far for him to
+jump. Quick! Be ready when I give the word.' And as I spoke I hauled
+steadily upon the rope.
+
+"Irene looked at me for an instant, and then she stood up in the car. I
+saw her put one foot upon the seat which surrounds it; then quickly
+appeared the other foot upon the edge of the car. She raised both arms
+and joined her hands above her head; she pushed herself between the
+ropes and leaped. It was all the work of a second.
+
+"She came down beautifully, head foremost. It was a splendid dive.
+Relieved of her weight, the balloon gave a great jerk, and I let go the
+rope.
+
+"Irene went down into the water as cleanly and smoothly as if she had
+been a diving duck. She scarcely made a splash. She was a magnificent
+swimmer.
+
+"As my dear Irene disappeared beneath the surface of the water I made
+use of the rapid moments in which I could not expect to see her in
+glancing upward. The tiger was rising rapidly. His head was stretched
+out over the edge of the car; I could see his wild and frightened eyes.
+He was afraid to jump.
+
+"Then I turned to the water. The head of Irene had risen above it; she
+was striking out bravely for the shore. She did not need my help. She is
+a grand woman! In a few moments we stood beside each other on the shore.
+I would have thrown myself into her arms; I would have embraced this
+dear one, now my own again: but she was so wet; I was so wet. We seized
+each other by the hands. It is impossible to say whether she wept or
+not, her face was so wet.
+
+"Then by a sudden instinct we looked upward. The balloon was high above
+us, rising steadily. We could see the head of the tiger projecting from
+the car--now such a little head, but I knew that he was gazing at me.
+Then we heard a sound which came down from above. It was the tiger's
+roar, but it was such a little roar! I clasped more tightly the hand of
+my Irene; we did not speak, but gazed steadily upward at the balloon,
+which had reached a current of air which was carrying it across the
+country. The sun was now very hot; the gas was expanding; the balloon
+was rising higher and higher and higher.
+
+"We stood holding each other's hands and gazing. At last there was but a
+little black spot in the sky; then it faded and shivered, and was gone.
+Side by side we moved away. We were very wet, but the sun was hot.
+
+"Suddenly I spoke. I could not restrain my burning desire to look deep
+into the soul of Irene. I owed it to my love of her to know the extent
+of her love for me. Those words which she called down from the car,
+which might have been her last words on earth, what were they? I asked
+her.
+
+"'I said,' she answered, 'that if you would pick up that rifle you threw
+out, and stand ready, I would jerk open the safety-valve. I would then
+take up my rifle, and when the car came down we would both shoot him.
+But you shook your head, and I said no more.'
+
+"I did not answer, but in my heart I said: 'O woman! What art thou,
+and of what strange feelings art thou made! Thou hast the beauty
+of the flower and the intellect of the leaf. To let that awful
+black-and-yellow fiend descend to the earth! To call up to a cruel
+death and ask it to come down-stairs and meet you on the lowest step!
+Skies! How can the mind of man conceive of it?'
+
+"And leaving the shores of the river, we toiled homeward over the dreary
+wastes."
+
+The company were all much interested in this narrative--almost painfully
+interested. They said as much to the Frenchman, and he was pleased at
+the impression he had felt sure he would make, and which he always did
+make, when he told that story. They talked of hunts and wild beasts, but
+there were no comments upon the story itself. Each one had his or her
+own thought, however. The Master of the House thought: "What a clever
+woman!" The Mistress of the House thought: "Just like a Frenchman!" The
+Next Neighbor wished she had been in the balloon to pitch the tiger on
+him. The Daughter of the House was fascinated at the idea of the
+vicinity of the beautiful, ferocious tiger. And John Gayther thought, as
+he looked wistfully at the Daughter of the House: "I am glad he has a
+wife!"
+
+
+
+
+                       THIS STORY IS TOLD BY
+
+                         POMONA AND JONAS
+
+                           AND IS CALLED
+
+                    THE FOREIGN PRINCE AND THE
+                         HERMIT'S DAUGHTER
+
+
+
+
+VII
+
+THE FOREIGN PRINCE AND THE HERMIT'S DAUGHTER
+
+
+The Frenchman went away; and after him there was a succession of
+visitors to the house who were not interested in gardens and were
+therefore not introduced within the sacred precincts of the summer-house
+on the upper terrace. The young people took a fancy to a pretty rustic
+arbor in a secluded spot; but whether it was because they especially
+admired that part of the garden did not transpire.
+
+But the guests left, one after another; and finally there came to visit
+the family Euphemia and her Husband. They were old and intimate friends
+of the family, and the very morning after their arrival they all
+repaired to the summer-house which overlooked the garden. There was some
+conversation about the garden,--its beautiful things, and its useful
+products, and its antiquity,--for Euphemia loved the old garden and its
+traditions.
+
+The two gentlemen, provided with comfortable chairs, smoked their cigars
+in peacefulness and content, and the Daughter of the House seemed
+absorbed in some fancy work. But after some time the Master of the
+House, turning suddenly to Euphemia's Husband, asked: "What has become
+of Jonas and Pomona?"
+
+"Here they are to answer for themselves!" cried the Daughter of the
+House, springing up, as John Gayther ushered into the garden the Next
+Neighbor, followed by Pomona and Jonas. The Next Neighbor was also
+on intimate terms with Euphemia and her Husband, and a devoted and
+rapturous admirer of Pomona. The couple had descended upon her the night
+before in a most unexpected fashion, but she gave them a hearty welcome,
+and rejoiced in them, even after she discovered that she owed the visit
+to a desire on the part of her guests to see Euphemia's Husband. They
+knew where he was visiting, but had thought it wiser to go to the Next
+Neighbor to pay their little visit. And so the explanation of this
+apparently strange meeting of so many old friends was simple enough.
+
+Chairs and benches were found, and John Gayther brought his stool
+unasked and joined the party. He had no idea of missing that
+conversation.
+
+It was soon evident that, while Jonas was as tranquil as usual, Pomona
+had something on her mind--that she had come with a purpose; and as soon
+as the inquiries and explanations were over, she addressed the Husband
+of Euphemia with great earnestness:
+
+"Jone and me came to see you, sir, about something particular; and as we
+are all friends here, I may as well say it right out."
+
+"The more you say the better we shall be pleased!" the Master of the
+House exclaimed.
+
+Pomona nodded to him, but turned again to the Husband of Euphemia.
+
+"We've been told, sir, that some editors have been asking you to get us
+to enter fiction again; and what we want to say is that we don't want to
+enter it no more. What we did when we was in it was all very well, but
+that's past and gone, although I've said to Jone a good many more times
+than once that if I had to do this or that thing now, that's set down in
+the book, I'd do it different. But then he always answers that if I'd
+done that I'd have spoiled the story, and so there was no more to say on
+that subject. What we've done we gladly did, and we're more than glad we
+did it for you, sir. But as for doing it again, we can't do it, for it
+ain't in us. Even if we tried to do the best we could for you, all you'd
+get would be something like skim-milk--good enough for cottage cheese
+and bonnyclabber, but nothing like good fresh milk with the cream on
+it."
+
+"I think you are perfectly right," said Euphemia. "If you don't want to
+go into fiction again you ought not to be made to do it."
+
+"I would not do such a wicked thing as to put anybody in fiction who did
+not want to go there," gravely replied the Husband of Euphemia.
+
+At these words the load that was on Pomona's mind dropped from it
+entirely.
+
+"Now, sir," said she, "we've got another thing to say; and it will seem
+queer to you after what we've said already. We do want to go into
+fiction, but not the way we was in it before. The fact is that between
+us we've written a story, and we've brought it with us, hoping you
+wouldn't mind letting Jone read it to you. Of course we was expecting to
+read it to only two; but as we've got to go back to-day, if the rest of
+the folks don't mind, Jone can read it anyway."
+
+"I should like it above all things!" exclaimed the Next Neighbor.
+
+"We will not let you go away until it is read," said the Mistress of the
+House.
+
+"Oh, I do want to hear it!" cried the Daughter of the House.
+
+"Of course Jonas must read it," was Euphemia's quiet comment.
+
+"Heave ahead!" called out the Master of the House.
+
+Pomona smiled gratefully. "It isn't a very long story, but we've been a
+long time working at it, and we wouldn't think of such a thing as
+calling it finished until our friends has heard it."
+
+The quiet and good-natured Jonas now drew a manuscript from his pocket
+and began.
+
+"The name of my story," said he, "is 'The Foreign Prince and the
+Hermit's Daughter.'"
+
+"We thought of a good many other names for it," said Pomona, "and I
+wanted to call it 'The Groundless Prince'; but Jone he said that
+groundless applies to things there is no reason for, and as so many
+princes are of that kind, somebody's feelings might be hurt. And so I
+gave in."
+
+"Now this is the way the story begins," said Jonas. "In that period of
+time which is not modern, and yet is not too far back, and in which a
+great many out-of-the-way things have happened, a certain young Prince
+went travelling in foreign parts of the world with the general purpose
+of broadening his mind. He wanted to study the manners and customs of
+other nations in order that he might better know how to govern his own
+people.
+
+"But when, after several years' absence, he came back to the place of
+his nativity, he found that neighboring nations had made war upon his
+country--that they had conquered his army and subjugated his people, and
+had partitioned his principality among themselves. Consequently he found
+himself in a strange position: he had gone forth to visit foreign lands,
+and now he returned to find himself a foreigner on the very spot where
+he was born. In fact, his nationality had been swept away; his country
+had disappeared.
+
+"But he was still a prince. Nothing could deprive him of his noble
+birth. But to all the world, save to one person, he was an alien prince,
+and must always so continue. The exception was a Single Adherent, who
+had followed him when he began his travels, and whose loyal spirit would
+not suffer him to leave his master now.
+
+"Slowly, with crossed arms and head bent low, the Prince strode away
+from the place that had once been his home, his Single Adherent
+following his footsteps.
+
+"After a long day's journey they came to a little valley chiefly
+remarkable for streams and rocks. Here, at the entrance of a commodious
+cave, he beheld an elderly hermit seated upon a stone, calmly surveying
+the sunset sky. The hermit looked up with a pleasant smile, for it had
+been long since a traveller had passed that way; and, perceiving that
+the stranger was not only well-bred but tired, invited him to take a
+seat upon a stone near by his own, at the same time motioning the
+Adherent to a smaller stone at a little distance.
+
+"In reply to the numerous questions of the hermit, the Prince soon told
+his story.
+
+"'Well, well!' exclaimed the hermit. 'Then you are the Prince Ferrando.
+I might have known it, for you so closely resemble your father.'
+
+"'You knew him, then?' inquired the Prince.
+
+"'I have often seen him,' the hermit replied. 'The likeness is
+wonderful. And so you have come back to find that your principality does
+not exist. It is a strange condition of things; but believe me--I
+mingled a great deal with the world before I came to this cave, and I
+know what I am talking about--when I tell you that there are many
+potentates who would be glad to come back from a journey and to find
+that their dominions had ceased to exist, and that with them had
+disappeared all the trials, responsibilities, and dangers of
+sovereignty.'
+
+"'But I am not that sort of person,' said Ferrando. 'I do not allow care
+to oppress me; I do not shrink from responsibility; I am not afraid of
+danger. I travelled far to broaden my mind; I came back prepared to
+reign wisely over my subjects. But I have no subjects, and therefore I
+cannot exercise that enlightened rule for which I have, with so much
+toil and study, prepared myself. Wherever I go I must always be an
+absolute alien, and as such I must try to learn to consider myself.'
+
+"'Cheer up, my friend,' said the hermit. 'You are too young to give up
+things in that way. And now allow me, sir, to introduce you to my
+daughter.'
+
+"Ferrando sprang up quickly, and beheld standing near him a very
+handsome young woman carrying a large basket filled with water-cress.
+The Prince bowed low. 'It is very unusual, I think,' said he, 'for a
+hermit to have a daughter.'
+
+"The hermit smiled. 'Yes,' said he; 'it is rather out of the common; but
+when I came here to seek rest and peace within these rocky walls, my
+daughter could not be dissuaded from accompanying me.'
+
+"'It is plain that she possesses a noble soul,' said the Prince, again
+bowing low.
+
+"'I wonder if he ever thinks that of me?' the Single Adherent asked
+himself, as he stood respectfully by his low stone.
+
+"When the hermit's daughter had been made aware of Ferrando's former
+station and his misfortunes, she went away to prepare supper. The meal
+was soon ready, and consisted of cress fresh from the spring, fried
+cress, and toasted cress, with cress tea, and also freshly drawn water
+from a spring."
+
+"Poor young man!" exclaimed the Next Neighbor. "So tired and hungry! Was
+that all they had to give him?"
+
+"Of course," explained Pomona; "hermits never eat anything but
+water-cress."
+
+"After supper," continued Jonas, "the hermit filled a pipe with dried
+water-cress, and offered another to his guest, and the three sat at the
+entrance of the cave and discussed the Prince's affairs, in which the
+hermit and his daughter seemed to take a lively interest. At a little
+distance on the small stone sat the Single Adherent, also smoking a pipe
+of water-cress, and his inability to enjoy this novel sensation was
+plainly evident in the radiant beams of the full moon. In the course of
+an hour the Prince and his Adherent retired to a guest-cave near by; but
+the hermit and his daughter sat up far into the night discussing the
+Prince and the peculiar circumstances in which he found himself.
+
+"The next morning after breakfast, the principal dish of which was a
+salmi of water-cress, the hermit, his daughter, and their guest held
+council together; while the Adherent stood at a respectful distance, and
+listened with earnest attention to all that was said.
+
+"'My daughter and I,' said the hermit, 'agree that it is a lamentable
+thing that a prince such as yourself, so eminently qualified to rule,
+should have no opportunity to exercise his abilities for sovereignty;
+therefore we think the best thing you can do is to rent a principality
+for a term of years. In some ways this would be better than inheriting
+one, for if you do not like it you can give it up at the end of the
+term.'
+
+"'But where could I find a principality to let?' exclaimed the Prince.
+'I never heard of anything like that!'
+
+"'Very likely,' said the hermit; 'but if you were to look around I think
+you might find something to suit you which the reigning potentate might
+be willing to lease.'
+
+"'I am of my father's opinion,' said the hermit's daughter; 'and if you
+will take my advice you will investigate the country north of this
+valley. There are several principalities in that direction, and it would
+not at all surprise me if, before the end of a day's journey, you were
+to find something that could be rented.'
+
+"The Prince was very much pleased with the interest taken in his affairs
+by the hermit and his daughter, and he decided to follow their advice.
+As he and his Single Adherent were about to depart, the hermit said to
+him: 'I shall be very glad to hear from you, and, if you should succeed
+in renting a principality, I will willingly give you any advice and
+assistance in my power. When I mingled with the general world I saw a
+great deal of governing and all that sort of thing, and it may be I can
+give you some points which will be of advantage to you.'
+
+"The Prince accepted with thankfulness the kind offer of his host, and
+when he approached the daughter to take leave of her, she graciously
+stuck a sprig of water-cress in his buttonhole.
+
+"After walking a few miles the Prince and his Adherent stopped at a
+roadside inn, where they ate an abnormal breakfast, and then, with
+invigorated bodies, they continued their journey.
+
+"Late in the afternoon the Prince became a little tired, and suggested
+that they stop at a farm-house which stood near the road, and sojourn
+there for the night. The Adherent, however, was of the opinion that they
+should go on until they reached the crest of a hill before them; they
+would then be able to survey the country. He placed a high opinion on
+the statement of the hermit's daughter that they would be likely to find
+what they wanted before nightfall.
+
+"When they reached the crest of the hill they were delighted to see
+before them, at no great distance, a small city. When they had
+approached it nearer they perceived by the side of the great gate a
+sign-board which bore the inscription:
+
+                  PRINCIPALITY TO LET--FURNISHED
+                  APPLY TO DOWAGER AT THE PALACE
+
+"The Single Adherent nodded his head as he said to himself: 'This is
+just about what I expected.'
+
+"'That hermit's daughter,' said the Prince, 'is a remarkable young
+woman, and her suppositions should not be disregarded.'
+
+"After passing the night at an inn near the gate, the Prince and his
+Single Adherent repaired to the palace to make inquiries regarding the
+principality.
+
+"The Dowager was a middle-aged woman dressed in rusty black, with a
+quick eye and an eager expression. Having demanded references of
+Ferrando, she declared herself perfectly satisfied with his statements,
+for she had met his father, and the likeness was unmistakable. She told
+him she would be very much pleased to have him for a tenant, and that
+she was quite sure the principality would suit him exactly. She then
+showed him all over the palace, the Adherent following and taking notice
+of everything.
+
+"The furniture and appointments of the princely mansion were somewhat
+time-worn and shabby, and the Dowager, noticing the scrutinizing glances
+of the Adherent, thought it wise to state that during the life of her
+late husband everything in the palace had been kept in the most
+admirable order; but of course it could not be supposed that she, by
+herself, could go to the expense of new carpets and furniture-coverings.
+She assured the Prince, however, that a very little expenditure of money
+would make the palace look as bright and clean as if it had been
+recently furnished.
+
+"'Of course you have an army,' remarked the Prince.
+
+"'Oh, yes,' said the Dowager; 'an excellent army--that is, considering
+the size of my principality. The infantry is very good indeed. In fact,
+I heard my late husband say, on an occasion when the infantry corps had
+just been furnished with new uniforms, that he never saw a finer-looking
+set of men. The cavalry is also in excellent condition. Of course in
+time of peace it is not necessary to keep these men supplied with
+horses, but in an agricultural country it is not difficult to obtain
+horses whenever they are really needed.'
+
+"'And the artillery?' inquired the Prince.
+
+"'I am sorry to say,' replied the Dowager, 'that the artillery is not
+yet supplied with cannon. It was the intention of my late husband to
+furnish them with the necessary cannon, ammunition, horses, and all
+that, but he never did so. And of course, being a woman, I could not be
+expected to attend to such things. But I have no doubt whatever that you
+can easily and inexpensively put this branch of the army on a proper
+footing; that is, if you care for artillery.'
+
+"The Prince asked no further questions about the army, but inquired if
+the principality was furnished with a navy.
+
+"'Oh, no,' said the Dowager; 'we have no waterfront, and my late husband
+used often to say that this impossibility of having a navy saved him a
+great deal of expense, to say nothing of the trouble warships might get
+him into when they are out of sight in distant parts of the world.'
+
+"At this point the Dowager was called out by a servant, who in a whisper
+asked her if the visitors were going to stay to dinner. The Adherent
+seized this opportunity to say in a low voice:
+
+"'If your Royal Highness will excuse me, I will suggest that you ask if
+there is a legislative body, and a judiciary.'
+
+"The Dowager, having shaken her head at the servant, returned to the
+Prince.
+
+"'Have you a legislature?' asked the Prince.
+
+"'Certainly,' she said. 'I cannot say that I think it is a very good
+one, for I have more trouble with it than with anything else in the
+principality; but it has now less than a year to run, and my advice
+would be that you should not convene it again. My experience has taught
+me that one can get along a great deal better without a legislative body
+than with one. For my part, I do not approve of them at all.'
+
+"'And a judiciary?' remarked the Prince. 'I suppose you have that.'
+
+"The Dowager hesitated a moment as if she did not exactly understand;
+but she recovered herself, and answered quickly: 'Oh, yes, we have one;
+but I have so little to do with it that for the moment I forgot it. It
+has been a very good one indeed, but it has been little used of late,
+and it may be out of order. I have found that plain, straightforward
+decrees from the throne are a great deal cheaper and a great deal
+quicker in their operation than a judicial decision. But if you desire a
+regularly organized judiciary, it will not cost you much to establish
+one, if you do not employ your judges by the month or year. I find
+piece-work a great deal more satisfactory, and you can get so much law
+for nothing in this country that it is not worth while giving much for
+it when you have to pay.'
+
+"The countenance of the Single Adherent had been growing darker and
+darker, and he now stepped up to the Prince.
+
+"'Your Royal Highness,' said he, 'it might be well to speak of the
+rent.'
+
+"When the Prince asked the Dowager how much she wanted per year for her
+principality, she did not immediately answer, but reflected, with her
+chin in her hand; and then, turning to the Prince, she stated the
+amount.
+
+"'You must understand,' she added, 'that I would not rent this
+principality to every one for such a sum as that; but as I know you
+to be a regular prince who will appreciate the advantages and
+responsibilities of a place like this, and, as you are unmarried,
+without encumbrances of any sort, I presume, I would much prefer to
+let it to you, even at a lower price, than to rent it to a perfect
+stranger.'
+
+"When the Adherent heard the sum mentioned by the Dowager his
+countenance grew almost black, and Prince Ferrando stood in silent
+amazement.
+
+"'It would be impossible for me to pay such a sum as that,' he said at
+last. 'I have studied political economy, and am familiar with the
+principles of internal revenue, and the income to be derived from
+ordinary taxes and imposts in a principality of this size would not
+enable me to pay that sum.'
+
+"'Oh, you are very much mistaken!' cried the Dowager. 'Of course, as a
+woman, I have not been able to make the principality pay me what it
+ought to; but my late husband received a very good revenue from it, and
+I am sure you could do the same, if not a great deal better: for my late
+husband was not a good business man; he thought too much of other
+people and not enough of his family.'
+
+"The Prince looked at his Adherent, and the latter shook his head
+violently.
+
+"'It is impossible,' said Prince Ferrando; 'I cannot pay such a sum as
+that'; and he rose to go.
+
+"'Of course,' said the Dowager, hastily, 'if you think that is too much,
+and that you would not be able to pay it, I might take off something in
+your case. I would not do this for everybody, but as it is you, I will
+take off one per cent. of the amount I have named.'
+
+"For a moment Ferrando stood undecided. He greatly wanted the
+principality; he would be homeless and forlorn without one; and yet this
+Dowager was asking him a most outrageous price.
+
+"'I will consider this matter,' said he, 'and if you will give me the
+refusal of the principality for twenty-four hours I will see you again
+to-morrow.'
+
+"The Dowager considered this request as favorable to her interests, and,
+fearing that she had asked him too little, she added: 'Of course, in
+case of a reduction like this, it must be stipulated in the lease that I
+reserve some rooms in the palace where I shall board at your expense.
+You cannot expect me to accept a reduced rent, and to be turned out of
+my house besides.'
+
+"The Prince bowed; and, without reply, he and his Adherent left the
+palace, followed by the eager, wistful glances of the Dowager. When they
+reached the inn the Prince said to his Single Adherent:
+
+"'I am greatly troubled, and I wish I had the advice of that good
+hermit. I will write a letter to him, and you shall take it. But you
+must not walk that long distance; to-morrow you will hire a vehicle and
+go to the hermit.'
+
+"The Prince wrote his letter, and the Adherent took it to the hermit.
+The good man and his daughter read it with the greatest interest, and
+retired to the back of the cave to consider it. Presently the hermit
+approached the Single Adherent. 'Is there room in your vehicle for three
+persons?' said he. Receiving an affirmative answer, he continued: 'Then
+my daughter and I will go back with you. We think the Prince is in
+danger of making a very bad bargain; and as we know a great deal about
+these things, we believe that our presence and advice will be of great
+advantage to him.'
+
+"So, after the horse had all the water-cress it could eat, the little
+party started back to the city."
+
+"They must have been the first real-estate agents," remarked the Master
+of the House.
+
+Pomona was about to reply, but Jonas gave no time:
+
+"When the Prince heard the sound of the wheels, and came down to the
+door of the inn, he was amazed and delighted to see the hermit and his
+daughter, and welcomed them with unusual ardor.
+
+"'Of all the people in the world,' he exclaimed, 'I am most happy to see
+you! I am in great trouble and difficulty, and I want your advice and
+counsel.'
+
+"'Which is what we came to give you,' said the good hermit, as he warmly
+pressed the hand of the Prince.
+
+"After supper the Prince and his guests retired to an inner room for
+consultation, while the Adherent stood in the background. After some
+discussion it was decided that early in the morning the Prince should
+go to the palace, and should agree to lease the principality for five
+years, provided the Dowager would accept one half the sum she had
+originally asked; and that he should also absolutely refuse to board the
+Dowager, or to allow her to reserve any part of the palace for her own
+use. He would promise to pay one quarter's rent in advance if these
+terms were agreed upon on the spot.
+
+"It was nearly high noon on the following day that the Dowager left the
+palace, taking with her all her belongings. As she departed she turned
+and cast a black look at the Adherent.
+
+"'It is to his advice,' she said to herself, 'that I owe this very bad
+bargain that I have made. If that young fellow had been left to himself
+he would have agreed to everything I demanded.'
+
+"For an hour or two before she left the Prince had been wandering around
+the premises, impatiently waiting for her departure. As soon as she was
+gone, he called to his Adherent, and sent him to the inn to summon the
+hermit and his daughter to his presence. He wished to be grateful to
+these good friends, but, as he had a respect to appearances, he did not
+desire the Dowager to know that these humble persons were to be his
+first guests in the palace.
+
+"When the hermit and his daughter arrived at the palace they received a
+princely welcome, and Ferrando informed them that he wished them to make
+him a visit of at least a week.
+
+"'You have been so good to me that I wish to do the best for you; and so
+I have arranged that you shall occupy the state suite in the right
+wing.'
+
+"'We are thankful for this great honor,' said the hermit; 'but, if it
+would please your Royal Highness, we should prefer the corresponding
+rooms in the left wing. We think they will suit us better.'
+
+"The Prince raised his eyebrows in surprise, but he gave orders that his
+guests' wishes should be gratified. The Adherent, who was standing in
+the background, raised his eyebrows also; but he was not surprised.
+
+"In about half an hour the hermit and his daughter rejoined the Prince
+in the grand hall. To his utter amazement, Ferrando beheld his guests
+dressed in rich and handsome garments.
+
+"'Did they bring any trunks with them?' he whispered to his Adherent, as
+they approached.
+
+"'No, your Royal Highness,' was the answer. 'They brought nothing but a
+basket of water-cress, which the lady said had been freshly picked and
+ought not to be wasted.'
+
+"With great dignity the hermit advanced to the Prince, and by his side
+walked his daughter, who was so beautiful in her silks and laces that
+the Prince found it impossible to remove his eyes from her.
+
+"'In order to explain this change in our appearance,' said the hermit,
+'I will state that the Dowager from whom you rented this principality is
+my brother's widow. Before he died he arranged that the Dowager should
+reign over the principality as long as she lived, and that my daughter
+should then succeed her. At the same time, knowing that his wife did not
+understand the governing of principalities, he appointed me Assistant
+Prince, with a salary. This seemed like a very good plan, but it did
+not work. The Dowager soon showed such a disposition to meddle with
+everything that was going on that my position gradually became so
+intolerable that I determined to retire to a hermit's cell, to which my
+daughter accompanied me.'
+
+"With his mind scarcely able to grasp the situation, the Prince gazed
+from the one to the other of his guests. 'Can it be possible,' he said
+presently, 'that in renting this principality I have interfered with
+your prospects?'
+
+"'Oh, not at all, not at all,' replied the hermit. 'In the first place,
+you have given us the great honor of visiting you and of occupying our
+old suite of apartments. I cannot describe to your Royal Highness the
+pleasure I felt when I saw my dressing-gown hanging on its accustomed
+hook, with my favorite slippers beneath it.'
+
+"'I take back my invitation for a week!' cried the Prince. 'Now that I
+know who you are, you must stay with me for a long time. I wish you
+could stay always,' he added, his eyes still fixed upon the beautiful
+young woman. Then, as if to explain this outburst of interest, he said:
+'You know, I rely so much on your advice and counsel, and there is no
+knowing what that Dowager may do next.'
+
+"'You are right,' said the ex-hermit; 'there is no possible way of
+knowing. But a plan has suggested itself to me which I think may relieve
+you of any possible annoyance or molestation. My idea is that you shall
+marry my daughter. Then, in virtue of your lease, you will reign over
+the principality, and she will be your consort. After a time, when the
+Dowager departs this life, my daughter, by virtue of inheritance, will
+reign over the principality, and you will be her consort. Thus you see
+the Dowager will have no show at all.'
+
+"The countenance of the Prince shone like the sun. 'A heaven-born plan!'
+he cried. 'From the moment I saw your daughter with the basket of
+water-cress, I loved her. By your permission, I will embrace her.'
+
+"The permission was given, and he embraced her. She might have said
+that, from the moment she had understood the peculiar circumstances in
+which the Prince had found himself, her heart had gone out to him like a
+dove seeking the nest of its partner; but she did not think it needful
+to occupy the time with unnecessary statements.
+
+"'Your Royal Highness,' said the Adherent, approaching with a bow, 'I
+think it is only right to inform you that the Dowager, when she left,
+said to me that she would return early in the afternoon to superintend
+the removal of her parrots.'
+
+"'What!' cried the Prince. 'Haven't those beastly birds gone yet? Send
+them after her without the loss of a minute. I don't want to see her
+back here again.'
+
+"The ex-hermit, who had drawn his daughter aside for a few words of
+consultation, now advanced with uplifted hands. 'Nay,' said he; 'if you
+will excuse me, I think I can suggest a better plan than that. The old
+lady is bound to come back, and the sooner she comes and goes, the
+better; but we should be prepared for her. I suggest that a priest be
+summoned, and that you and my daughter be married immediately. Our
+position in the palace will then be assured, and the Dowager will have
+nothing to say, either about our presence here or about anything else.
+How does my plan suit your Royal Highness?'
+
+"Ferrando did not answer, but, turning to the Adherent, he ordered him
+to summon a priest without delay, and to order the assemblage in the
+great hall of all the courtiers and servants who could be found. The
+Adherent sped away on his errand, and as he did so he smiled and said to
+himself: 'She is a better manager than the old woman! And her views are
+broader!'
+
+"When the marriage ceremony had been concluded, the Prince ordered a
+sumptuous wedding-feast to be spread. But he was soon informed that
+there was nothing to eat in the house, for the Dowager had not thought
+it at all incumbent upon her to provide eatables for her tenant.
+
+"'It matters not!' cried the ex-hermit, his face glowing with pleasure.
+'There will be time enough to provide a good supper. And, in the
+meantime, what could be more appropriate for a wedding-repast than the
+basket of cress which my daughter brought with her?'
+
+"A table was spread, with a great dish of water-cress in the centre. And
+it may be remarked that the Prince was so wild with delight that if this
+had been suddenly changed to one containing fried chicken with cream
+gravy he would not have perceived the difference.
+
+"Early in the afternoon the Dowager returned to the palace to
+superintend the removal of her parrots. As she entered the great hall
+she perceived the wedding-party waiting to receive her; and her
+amazement was such that her toes turned upward and she sat down with
+great suddenness in a chair which the Adherent thoughtfully placed
+behind her.
+
+"'How do you do, my dear sister-in-law?' said the ex-hermit. 'I do not
+wonder you are surprised to see us here, and in order to relieve your
+mind I will instantly explain the state of affairs.' Whereupon he
+explained them.
+
+"The Dowager then found her voice and her strength. Springing to her
+feet, she cried: 'This is a plot! I have been deceived, and the lease is
+void. Not one of you has any right in this palace, and I hereby order
+you out.'
+
+"The ex-hermit smiled, and drew a paper from his pocket. 'Before we obey
+your orders, my dear sister-in-law,' he remarked, 'I wish to call your
+attention to a little business matter. You will remember that when I was
+here with you, acting as your assistant, you found great difficulty in
+paying me my salary. The first year you told me to take it out of the
+customs duties. The sum I received was not equal to the amount due me,
+but I made no complaint. The second year I was obliged to rely on the
+taxes on internal production; but as you required most of the income
+from this source, I found myself very short of money at the end of the
+year. The third year I was obliged to rely upon the taxes on pew-rents;
+and that, as you are aware, yielded me almost nothing. After that you
+paid me no salary at all. Here is my bill for the money due me. But if
+you cannot conveniently pay me, I will agree, in the presence of these
+good friends, to postpone the settlement until the next time I lay my
+eyes upon you. If you do not then pay me, I shall then levy upon your
+personal possessions.'
+
+"The Dowager glared at the Princess Ferrando, and, having shaken her
+long forefinger at that beautiful young lady, she departed, and was
+never seen in the palace again."
+
+Here Jonas folded the paper.
+
+"Is that the end?" asked the Daughter of the House.
+
+"That is all there is of it," said Jonas, sententiously.
+
+"I thought," said the Daughter of the House, "that the story would tell
+how he governed his rented principality, and if he ever got his own. I
+worked it out in my mind like a flash that he would govern so well that
+his own people would go to him and beg him to govern them."
+
+"I think," said the Next Neighbor, "that if that principality was
+governed at all, it was by that scheming wife."
+
+"There's two ways of ending a story," said Pomona. "One is to wind it
+up, and the other is to let it run down. Now when a story is running
+down as if it was a clock, it's often a good deal longer than you think
+before it stops; so we thought we would wind this one up right there."
+
+Euphemia laughed. "But if you wind it up," she said, "you help it to
+keep on going."
+
+For a moment Pomona looked embarrassed; but she quickly recovered
+herself. "I don't mean to wind it up like a clock," she said, "but to
+wind it up like an old-fashioned clothes-line which isn't wanted again
+until you have some more things to hang on it."
+
+The Husband of Euphemia stated it as his opinion that that was an
+excellent way to stop a story; but Euphemia did not agree with him. "I
+think," she said, "that a story of that kind ought to end with a moral.
+They nearly always do."
+
+Pomona now looked at Jonas, and Jonas looked at Pomona.
+
+"Several times, when we was writing the story," said Pomona, "I had a
+notion that Jone was trying to squeeze a moral into it here and there;
+but he didn't say nothing about it, and I didn't ask him, and if there's
+anything more to say about it, it's for him to do it."
+
+Jonas smiled. "My opinion about morals to stories is that the people who
+read them ought to work them out for themselves," said he. "Some people
+work out one kind of moral, and others work out another kind. It was a
+pretty big job to write that story, which I had to do the most of, and I
+don't think I ought to be called on to put in any moral, which is a good
+deal like being asked to make bread for the man who buys my wheat."
+
+Pomona looked down at the ground, then up to the sky, and then she
+remarked:
+
+"If you wouldn't mind hearing a little bit of a story, I'd like to tell
+you one." No one had any wish to object, and she began: "Once there was
+a young married man who went to his business in a canoe; every morning
+he paddled himself down to his business, and every afternoon he paddled
+himself back. About half-way down the beautiful stream on which he lived
+there was a little point of rocks projecting out into the water, and the
+young man was obliged to paddle his canoe very near the opposite shore
+in order to get out of the way. This was troublesome, and after a while
+he got tired of it. It would be very much pleasanter, he thought, if he
+could paddle along the middle of the stream, without thinking about the
+rocks. So when, one morning, he was in a great hurry, he said to himself
+that he would steer his canoe right straight against that point of rocks
+and break it off. After that he would have a clear passage up and down
+the stream. So as soon as he got near enough he carried out his plan.
+That young man did not go to his office that morning, and the fragments
+of his canoe was picked up by a poor family and used for kindling-wood.
+Now," she added, looking deliberately at Jonas, "if you can find a good
+moral to that story we'd be glad to hear it."
+
+It was very evident to the listeners that Pomona had given a shrewd
+guess as to the moral of the story Jonas had read, if, indeed, he had
+had in his mind any moral at all--and that her own was an offset to it,
+or so intended. So the Next Neighbor came to the rescue.
+
+"I have a great dislike," she announced, "to morals of all sorts. I
+prefer never to think of morals. They are very perplexing, and often
+worse than useless. But if there are any morals to those two stories, I
+should say that the first story has something to do with women who
+manage too much; and the second, in some occult manner, deals with men
+who try to reform their wives."
+
+Here every one laughed. And then there followed a lively criticism of
+the story Jonas had read; but they all agreed that it was worthy of
+Pomona and Jonas, and should be published. When they had reached this
+conclusion they were summoned to luncheon.
+
+
+
+
+                       THIS STORY IS TOLD BY
+
+                     THE DAUGHTER OF THE HOUSE
+
+                           AND IS CALLED
+
+                       THE CONSCIOUS AMANDA
+
+
+
+
+VIII
+
+THE CONSCIOUS AMANDA
+
+
+One morning, as John Gayther was working in the melon-bed, the Daughter
+of the House came to him, and greeted him with such a glow on her face
+that John knew she had something pleasant to tell him.
+
+"Yes, miss," John replied to her greeting; "it is a beautiful morning,
+and I know of something more beautiful than the morning."
+
+"I do not see any very great beauty in muskmelons," said the Daughter of
+the House, demurely.
+
+"Muskmelons are not in my mind at this minute," John replied, letting
+the hoe fall upon the ground as he looked at her pretty face, all aglow.
+
+"I have something in my mind, John--a very original story. Papa said
+yesterday I must tell a story, and I have one all ready. I do not
+believe you ever heard one like it. Come to the summer-house; mamma and
+papa are already there."
+
+She tripped away, and John followed her, stopping on the way to pick up
+a basket of seed-pods. He had just established himself on his stool,
+facing the family group, and had taken some pods to shell as he
+listened, when his hand was arrested and all the party silenced by a
+burst of song from the tall lilac-bushes near the hedge. They could not
+see the bird, but it was evident that he was enjoying his own melody.
+Such pure, sweet notes--now rippling softly, now with a gay little
+quiver of joy, now a tender prolonged note, now a succession of trills,
+high and low, that set the air throbbing, and every now and then a great
+burst of seraphic music, as if his little heart was so full of happiness
+he was compelled to pour it forth to all who chose to listen. Our party
+would gladly have listened for a long time, and have omitted the story
+altogether; but after some minutes of delicious song the strains
+suddenly ceased, and a little whirring noise in the lilacs indicated
+that the bird had flown away.
+
+The Daughter of the House gave a deep sigh. "I was afraid to breathe,"
+she said, "lest he might fly away."
+
+"I have heard nothing like that this summer," said the Mistress of the
+House.
+
+"It is the red thrush," said John Gayther, who had listened rapturously.
+"A pair of them were here in the early spring. I wonder why this one has
+come back."
+
+"Perhaps," said the Daughter of the House, "it is one of the young ones
+come back to visit his birthplace. I am afraid, after that ravishing
+performance, that my story will sound tame enough."
+
+"It will be a different sort of melody," said the Mistress of the House,
+looking fondly at her daughter.
+
+"My heroine," began the young lady, "cannot appear in the first person,
+as if she were telling the story; nor in the second person, as if she
+were listening to one; nor in the third person, as if she were
+somewhere else; for, in fact, she was not anywhere. And as there is no
+such thing as a fourth person in grammar, she cannot be put into any
+class at all."
+
+The captain turned and looked at his daughter. "There seems to be
+something very foggy about this statement," said he. "I hope the weather
+will soon clear up, so we can get our bearings."
+
+"We shall see about that," said the young lady. "This heroine of mine,
+Miss Amanda, never went to sleep. To be sure, she sank into slumber
+about as often as most people; but when she spoke of having done so
+she always said she had 'lost consciousness.' She was very methodical
+about going to sleep and waking up; and at night, just as she was
+about to lose consciousness, she always said to herself, 'Seven
+o'clock, seven o'clock, seven o'clock,' over and over again until she
+was really asleep; and in the morning she woke up at seven precisely.
+She was not married, and so she was able to live her own life much
+more independently than if the case had been different. She liked to
+be independent; and she liked to know as much as she could about
+everything. In these two things she was generally very successful. But
+you must not think she was prying or too inquisitive; she was really a
+very good woman, and very fond of her family, which was composed
+entirely of brothers and sisters and nephews and nieces.
+
+"She was a very active person, but she was not very strong; and when she
+was nearly forty years old something happened to her lungs, and her
+health gave way more and more, until at last there was no hope for her,
+and she knew she must die."
+
+"Oh, this is an awful way to begin a story!" said the captain. "I don't
+like it. You ought not to kill your heroine just as you begin."
+
+"If you want to make any remarks about this story, papa," said the
+Daughter of the House, "which shall be worth anything, you ought to wait
+until you hear more of it and begin to understand it. When Miss Amanda
+found she had a very little while to live, she composed herself
+comfortably, and began to repeat to herself the words, 'Fifty years,
+fifty years, fifty years,' over and over again. This she did until at
+last she died; and then there was her funeral; and she was buried; and
+there was a stone put up over her head with her name on it."
+
+John Gayther smiled with approbation. He felt sure he was going to hear
+a story to his liking. The captain smoked steadily. As he had been
+advised, he would wait until he felt firm ground beneath him before he
+made any further remarks. As for the Mistress of the House, she looked
+at her daughter, and wondered. The story continued:
+
+"All this happened a few years before the middle of a century, and a few
+years before the end of a century Miss Amanda regained consciousness.
+That is to say, she woke up at the end of fifty years, exactly as she
+had been in the habit of waking up at seven o'clock in the morning. But
+although she was conscious she did not understand how it was possible
+she should be so. She did not see; she did not hear; she did not feel.
+She had no body; no hands or feet; no eyes or ears: she had nothing; and
+she knew she had nothing. She simply was conscious, and that was all
+there was about it. She was not surprised; she seemed to take her state
+and condition as a matter of course, and, to a certain degree, she
+comprehended it. She remembered perfectly well that she had lost
+consciousness as she was saying 'Fifty years, fifty years, fifty years'
+over and over again; and now she knew that, as she had regained
+consciousness, the fifty years must have passed; so, instead of
+wondering how things had come to be as they were, she, or rather her
+consciousness, set itself to work to observe everything around it and
+about it. This had always been Miss Amanda's habit of mind.
+
+"Now I want to explain," said the young lady, "that in one way it will
+be troublesome for me to express myself exactly as I tell this story. Of
+course Miss Amanda did not exist; it was only her consciousness which
+observed things: but I think it will be a great deal less awkward for me
+if I speak of that consciousness as Miss Amanda. None of us really
+understands consciousnesses with their outsides all hulled off as John
+is doing with those seeds which he drops into the basin. Each one of
+those little seeds has within it a power which we do not understand. And
+that is the way with Miss Amanda's consciousness."
+
+"There," said the captain; "I agree with you. Nobody can object to
+that."
+
+"The first thing of which Miss Amanda became conscious was the smell of
+sweet peas. She had always been very fond of these flowers. The air was
+soft and warm, and that, too, was pleasant to her. She observed a good
+many other things, such as trees and grass; but she did not know where
+she was, and she did not see anything she could recognize. You must not
+forget that when I say she saw anything, I mean she became conscious of
+it. Presently, however, she did perceive something that was familiar,
+and if such a thing had been possible her face would have flushed with
+pleasure. This familiar object was a sun-dial in the middle of a wide
+grass-mound. The sun-dial was of brass. It was very old, and some of the
+figures on the round plate were nearly obliterated by time and weather;
+but Miss Amanda recognized it. It was the same sun-dial she had always
+known in the home where she had been born. But it was not mounted on a
+round brick pillar, as when she had known it: now it rested on a
+handsome stone pedestal; but it was the same sun-dial. She could see the
+place where the upright part had been mended after her nephew John, then
+only fourteen, had thrown a stone at it, being jealous of it because it
+would never do any work in bad weather, whereas he had to go to school,
+rain or shine.
+
+"'Now,' thought Miss Amanda, 'if this is the old sun-dial, and if this
+is the mound in front of our house, although it is so much smaller than
+I remember it, the dear old house must be just behind it.' But when she
+became conscious in that direction, the dear old house was not there.
+There was a house, but it looked new and handsome. It had marble steps,
+with railings and a portico, but it was another house altogether, and
+everything seemed to be something else except the sun-dial, and even
+that did not rest on the old brick pillar with projections at the
+bottom, on which she used to stand, when she was a little girl, in order
+to see what time it was.
+
+"Now Miss Amanda felt lonely, and a little frightened. She had never
+been accustomed to finding herself in places entirely strange to her.
+She felt, too, that she was there in that place, and could not be
+anywhere else even if she wanted to, and this produced in her a
+condition which, half a century before, would have been nervousness. But
+suddenly she perceived something which, although strange, was very
+pleasant. It was a young girl upon a bicycle coming swiftly toward her
+over a wide, smooth driveway. Miss Amanda had never been conscious of a
+bicycle; and as the girl swept rapidly on, it seemed as if she were
+skimming over the earth without support. At the foot of the marble steps
+the girl stopped and seemed to fall to the ground; but she had not
+fallen: she had only stepped lightly from the machine, which she leaned
+against a post, and then walked rapidly toward the place where the sweet
+peas grew.
+
+"Miss Amanda greatly admired this girl. She was dressed in an extremely
+pretty fashion, with a straw hat and short skirts, something like the
+peasants in southern Europe. She began to pick the sweet-pea blossoms,
+and soon had a large bunch of them. Now steps were heard coming round
+the house, and the girl, turning her head, called out: 'Oh, grandpa,
+wait a minute. I am picking these flowers for you.' From around one end
+of the house, which was a large one, Miss Amanda saw approaching an
+elderly gentleman who was small, with short gray hair and a round, ruddy
+face. He walked briskly, and with a light switch, which he carried in
+his hand, he made strokes at the heads of a few fluffy dandelions which
+appeared here and there; but he never hit any of them.
+
+"Instantly Miss Amanda knew him: it was her nephew John--the same boy
+who had broken the sun-dial! No matter what his age might happen to be,
+he had the same bright eyes, and the same habit of striking at things
+without hitting them. Yes, it was John. There could be no possible
+mistake about it. It was that harum-scarum young scapegrace John. If
+Miss Amanda had had a heart, it would have gone out to that dear old
+boy; if she had had eyes they would have been filled with tears of
+affection as she gazed on him. Of all her family he had been most dear
+to her, although, as he had often told her, there was no one in the
+world who found so much fault with him.
+
+"The old gentleman sat down on a rustic seat beneath a walnut-tree, and
+his granddaughter came running to him, filling the air with the odor of
+sweet peas. She seated herself at the other end of the bench, and let
+the flowers drop into her lap. 'Grandpa,' said she, 'these are for you,
+but I am only going to give you one of them now for your buttonhole. The
+rest I will put in a vase in your study. But I wanted you to stop here
+anyway, for I have something to tell you.'
+
+"'Tell on,' said he, when the girl had put a spray bearing three
+blossoms into his buttonhole. 'Is it anything you want me to do this
+afternoon?'
+
+"'It isn't anything I want you to do ever,' she said. 'It is about
+something I must do, and it is just this: grandpa, there are two
+gentlemen who are about to propose to me, and I think they will do it
+very soon.'
+
+"'How in the world do you know that?' he exclaimed. 'Have they sent you
+printed notices?'
+
+"'How is it that anybody knows such a thing?' she answered. 'We feel
+it, and we can't be expected to explain it. You must have felt such
+things when you were young, for I have been told you were often in
+love.'
+
+"'Never in my life,' said her grandfather, 'have I felt that a young
+woman was about to propose to me.'
+
+"'Oh, nonsense!' said the girl, laughing. 'But you could feel that she
+would like you to propose to her. That's the way it would be in your
+case.'
+
+"Miss Amanda listened with the most eager and overpowering attention.
+Often in love! That young scapegrace John! But she had no doubt of it.
+When she had last known him he was not yet eighteen, and he had had
+several love-scrapes. Of course he must have married, for here was his
+granddaughter; and who in the world could he have taken to wife? Could
+it have been that Rebecca Hendricks--that bold, black-eyed girl, who, as
+everybody knew, had tried so hard to get him? With all the strength of
+her consciousness Miss Amanda hoped it had not been Rebecca. There was
+another girl, Mildred Winchester, a sweet young thing, and in every way
+desirable, whom Miss Amanda had picked out for him when he should be old
+enough to think about such things, which at that time he wasn't. Rebecca
+Hendricks ought to have been ashamed of herself. Now she did hope most
+earnestly that she would hear something which would let her know he had
+married Mildred Winchester.
+
+"'Well,' said the old gentleman, 'if they do propose, as you seem to
+have some occult reason for suspecting, have you made up your mind which
+of them you are going to take?'
+
+"'That is the trouble,' said the girl, a very serious look coming over
+her face. 'I have not made up my mind what I ought to do. I know I ought
+to be prepared to give the proper answer to the one who speaks first,
+whichever one he may be; but I cannot come to a decision which satisfies
+me, and that is the reason, grandpa, I wanted to talk to you about it.
+Of course you know who they are--George and Mr. Berkeley.'
+
+"'My dear Mildred,' said the old gentleman, turning quickly around so
+that he could face her, 'just listen to me.'
+
+"'Mildred, Mildred!' thought Miss Amanda, and her consciousness was
+pervaded by a joyful thankfulness which knew no limits. 'She must have
+been named after her grandmother. He surely married Mildred.' And Miss
+Amanda gazed on the scapegrace John with more affection than she had
+ever known before. But in the midst of her joy she could not help
+wondering who it was that that Rebecca Hendricks had finally succeeded
+in getting. That she got somebody Miss Amanda had not the slightest
+doubt.
+
+"'Mildred,' said the old gentleman, 'just listen to me. This is a most
+important thing you have told me, and I have only this to say about it:
+if you can't make up your mind which one of those young men you will
+take when they propose, make up your mind now, this minute, not to have
+either of them. If you love either one of them as you ought to love the
+man who shall be your husband, you will have no difficulty in deciding.
+Therefore, if you have a difficulty, you do not really love either of
+them.'
+
+"For a few minutes the girl sat quietly looking down at the flowers
+in her lap, and then she said: 'But, grandpa, suppose I do not
+understand myself properly? Perhaps after a while I might come to a--'
+
+[Illustration: Miss Amanda listened with the most eager and overpowering
+attention.]
+
+"'After a while,' interrupted her grandfather. 'That will not do. You
+want to understand yourself before a lover proposes to you, not
+afterwards.'"
+
+The captain sat up straight in his chair. "Now look here," he said;
+but he addressed the Mistress of the House, not the story-teller. "How
+does this daughter of ours come to know all these things about lovers,
+and the weather-signs which indicate proposals of marriage, and all
+that? Has she been going about in society, making investigations into
+the rudiments of matrimony, during my last cruise? And would you
+mind telling me if any young men have been giving her lessons in
+love-affairs? John Gayther, have you seen any stray lovers prowling
+about your garden of late?"
+
+The gardener smiled, and said he had seen no such persons. But he said
+nothing about a very true friend of the Daughter of the House, who lived
+in a small house in the garden, and who would have been very well
+pleased to break the head of any stray lover who should wander into his
+precincts.
+
+"You don't know girls, my dear," said the Mistress of the House, "and
+you don't know what comes to them naturally, and how much they have to
+learn. So please let the story go on."
+
+"'Of course,' said the old gentleman, 'I know who they are. Considering
+how often they have been here of late, I could not well make a mistake
+about that; and although I am not in favor of anything of the sort,
+and feel very much inclined to put up a sign, "No lovering on these
+premises," still, I am a reasonable person' ('You must have changed
+very much if you are, you dear boy!' thought Miss Amanda), 'and know
+what is due to young people, and I am obliged to admit that these young
+men are good enough as young men go. But the making a choice! That is
+what I object to. I would advise you, my dear, not to think anything
+more about it until the time shall come when you feel there is no need
+of making a choice because the thing has settled itself.'
+
+"'But, grandpa,' she said, 'what am I to say if they ask me? I am bound
+to say something.'
+
+"The old gentleman did not reply, but began switching at some invisible
+dandelions. 'What you tell me,' he said presently, 'reminds me of my
+Aunt Amanda. She was a fine woman, and she had two lovers.' ('You little
+round-faced scamp!' thought Miss Amanda. 'Are you going to tell that
+child all my love-affairs? And what do you know about them, anyway? I
+never confided in you. You were nothing but a boy, although you were a
+very inquisitive one, always wanting to know things, and what you have
+found out is beyond me to imagine.')
+
+"'Your Aunt Amanda,' said Mildred. 'That's the one in the oval frame in
+the parlor. She must have been very pretty.'
+
+"'Indeed she was,' said the old gentleman. 'That portrait was painted
+when she was quite a young girl; but she was pretty until the day of her
+death. I used to be very fond of her, and thought her the most beautiful
+being on earth. She always dressed well, and wore curls. Even when she
+was scolding me I used to sit and look at her, and think that if such a
+lady, a little bit younger perhaps, but not much, were shut up in a
+castle with a window to it, I would be delighted to be a knight in
+armor, and to fight with retainers at the door of that castle until I
+got her out and rode away with her sitting on the crupper of my saddle,
+the horse being always, as I well remember, a gray one dappled with dark
+spots, with powerful haunches and a black tail.' ('You dear boy,'
+murmured Miss Amanda, 'if I had known that I could not have scolded!')
+'Well, as I said before, she had two lovers. One was a handsome young
+fellow named Garrett Bridges.'
+
+"'It seems to me I have heard that name,' said Mildred.
+
+"'Very likely, very likely,' said her grandfather. 'It has been
+mentioned a great many times in our family. Garrett had been intended for
+the army, but he did not get through West Point, and at the time he was
+making love to my Aunt Amanda his only business was that of expecting an
+inheritance. But he was so brave and gay and self-confident, and was so
+handsome and dashing, that everybody said he would be sure to get along,
+no matter what line of life he undertook.' ('I wonder,' thought Miss
+Amanda, 'what he did do, after all. I hope I shall hear that.') 'Her
+other lover,' said the old gentleman, 'was Randolph Castine, a very
+different sort of young man.' ('You unmitigated little story-teller!'
+ejaculated Miss Amanda. 'He never made love to me for one minute in his
+whole life. I wish I could speak to John--oh, I wish I could speak to
+John!') 'So, then,' continued the old gentleman, 'here were the two young
+men, both loving my Aunt Amanda; and here was I, intensely jealous of
+them both.'
+
+"'Oh, grandfather,' laughed Mildred, 'how could you be that?'
+
+"'Easily enough,' said he. 'I was very impressionable and of a very
+affectionate turn of mind.' ('You had very queer ways of showing it, you
+young scamp!' said Miss Amanda.) 'And I remember, when I was about ten
+years old, I once asked my mother if it were wicked to marry aunts; and
+when she told me it would not do, I said I was very sorry, for I would
+like to marry Aunt Amanda. I liked her better than anybody else except
+my mother, and I was sure there was no other person who would take more
+from me, and slap back less, than Aunt Amanda.' ('I remember that very
+well,' thought the happy consciousness; 'and when your mother told me
+about it, how we both laughed!')
+
+"'Well, the better I liked my Aunt Amanda, the less I liked anybody who
+made love to her; and one night, as I was sitting on the edge of my
+bed,--it must have been nearly eleven o'clock,--I vowed a vow, which I
+vowed I would never break, that no presumptuous interloper, especially
+Garrett Bridges, should ever marry my Aunt Amanda. As to Randolph
+Castine or any other suitor, I did not think them really worthy of
+consideration. Garrett Bridges was the dangerous man. He was at our
+house nearly every day, and, apart from his special obnoxiousness as a
+suitor to my Aunt Amanda, I hated him on my own account, for he treated
+me as if I were nothing but a boy.' ('And why shouldn't he?' murmured
+Miss Amanda. 'You were nearly grown up at that time, but you really
+behaved more like a boy than a man, and that was one reason I was so
+fond of you.')
+
+"'I had a good many plans for freeing my Aunt Amanda from the clutches
+of Mr. Bridges; but the best of them, and the one I finally determined
+upon, pleased me very much because it was romantic and adventurous. It
+seemed to me the best way to prevent Mr. Bridges from marrying my Aunt
+Amanda was to make him marry some one else, and I thought I could do
+this. There was a girl named Rebecca Hendricks, who lived about a mile
+from our house, with whom I was very well acquainted. She was a
+first-class girl in many ways.' ('I would like to know what they were!'
+exclaimed Miss Amanda. 'I think she was about sixth-class, no matter how
+you looked at her.') 'For one thing, she was very plucky, and ready for
+any kind of fun. I knew she liked Mr. Bridges, because I had heard her
+say so, and her praise of him had frequently annoyed me very much; for
+I did not want a friend of mine, as she professed to be, to think
+favorably in any way of such a man as Garrett Bridges. But things were
+now getting serious, and I did not hesitate to sacrifice my feelings for
+the sake of my Aunt Amanda. I was always ready to do that.' ('Not
+always, my boy,' thought Miss Amanda; 'not always, I am afraid.') 'So I
+resolved to get up a match between Rebecca and Garrett Bridges. As I
+thought over the matter, it seemed to me that they were exactly suited
+to each other.' ('That's queer!' thought Miss Amanda. 'I always supposed
+you thought she was exactly suited to you.') 'Of course I could not say
+anything to Bridges about the matter, but I went over to Rebecca, and
+told her the whole plan. She laughed at me, and said it was all pure
+nonsense, and that if she were going to marry at all she would a great
+deal rather marry me than Mr. Bridges. But I told her seriously it was
+of no use to think of me. In the first place, I was four years younger
+than she was; and then, I had made up my mind never to marry, no, never,
+as long as my Aunt Amanda lived. I was going to take care of her when
+she grew elderly, and I wanted nobody to interfere with that purpose.'
+('You dear boy!' said Miss Amanda, with a sort of choke in her
+affectionate consciousness. 'That is so like you--so like you! And yet I
+thought you were in love with that Rebecca.') 'Of course I did not give
+up my plan because she talked in that way,' continued the old gentleman.
+'I knew her; I had studied her carefully. Like most boys of my age, I
+was a deep-minded student of human nature, and could see through and
+through people.'
+
+"'Of course,' laughed Mildred. 'I have known boys just like that.'
+
+"'But I was about right in regard to Rebecca,' said her grandfather. 'I
+kept on talking to her, and it was not long before she agreed to let me
+bring Mr. Bridges to see her--they were not acquainted. I had no trouble
+with him, for he was always glad to know pretty girls, and he had seen
+Rebecca. There never was a piece of match-making which succeeded better
+than that, and it delighted me to act as prompter of the play, while
+those two were the actors, and I was also the author of the piece.'
+
+"'Grandpa,' said Mildred, 'don't you think all that was rather wrong?'
+
+"'I did not think so then,' he answered, 'and I am not sure I think so
+now; for really they were very well suited to each other, and there did
+seem to be danger that the man might marry my Aunt Amanda, and that, as
+it seemed to me then, and seems to me now, would have been a deplorable
+thing.' ('If you had known a little more, you scheming youngster,' said
+Miss Amanda, 'you would have understood that there was not the least
+danger of anything of the kind--that is to say, I am not _sure_ there
+was any danger.') 'It was not long after these two people became
+acquainted before I had additional cause for congratulating myself that
+I had done a wise and prudent thing. Bridges came to see my Aunt Amanda
+every afternoon, just the same as he had been in the habit of doing, and
+yet he spent nearly every evening with Rebecca; and that proved to me he
+was not a fit lover for my Aunt Amanda, no matter how you looked at it.'
+
+"'But the young girl,' said Mildred. 'Didn't you think he was also too
+fickle for her?'
+
+"'Oh, no,' said the old gentleman; 'I was quite positive that Rebecca
+could manage him when she got him. She would make him walk straight. I
+knew her; she was a great girl. Every morning I went to see her to
+inquire how things were coming on, and she told me one day that
+Mr. Bridges had proposed to her, and that she had accepted him, and
+that it was of no use to say anything about it to her father, because
+he would be sure to be dead set against it. Her mother was not living,
+and she kept house for her father, who was a doctor, and he had often
+said he would not let her marry anybody who would not come there and
+live with him; and, judging from what she had heard him say of Garrett
+Bridges on one or two occasions, she did not feel encouraged to
+propose this arrangement for him.
+
+"'So the plan they agreed upon--which, in fact, I suggested, although
+Rebecca would never have admitted it--was to go off quietly and get
+married. Then she could write to her father and tell him all about it,
+and when his anger had cooled down they could make him a visit, and it
+would depend on him what they should do next. I worked out the whole
+plan of operation, which Rebecca afterwards laid before Mr. Bridges as
+the result of her own ingenuity, for which he commended her very much.
+They both agreed--and you may be sure I did not disagree with them--that
+the sooner they were married the better. The equinoctial storms were
+expected before very long, and then a wedding-trip would be unpleasant
+and sloppy. So they fixed on a certain Wednesday, which suited me very
+well because my father and mother would then be away from home on a
+visit, and that would make it easier for me to do my part.' ('You little
+schemer!' said Miss Amanda. 'Of course you suggested that Wednesday.')
+
+"'This place was quite in the country then, and eight miles from a
+station, and there was only one train to town, at seven o'clock in the
+morning. If they could get to the village where the station was at
+quarter-past six, they would have time to get married before the train
+came. Old Mr. Lawrence, the Methodist minister, was always up at six
+o'clock, and he could easily marry them in twenty minutes, and that
+would give them lots of time to catch the train. I would furnish the
+conveyance to take them to the village, and would also attend to
+Rebecca's baggage. Mr. Bridges could have his trunk taken to the station
+without exciting suspicion. At five o'clock in the morning, I told
+Rebecca, I would have a horse and buggy tied to a tree by the roadside
+at a little distance from the doctor's house where the lovers were to
+meet.
+
+"'The night before, Rebecca was to put all the clothes she wanted to
+take with her in a pillow-case, which she was to carry to a woodshed
+near the house. Soon after they started in the buggy I would arrive with
+a spring-wagon and an empty trunk. I would then get the pillow-case, put
+it into the trunk, and drive to the station by another road.
+
+"'Mr. Bridges approved of this plan, and thought she was very clever to
+devise it. So everything was settled, and I went to the stable the day
+before, and told Peter I wanted him to get up very early the next
+morning, and put old Ripstaver in the buggy, and drive him over to
+Dr. Hendricks's. I told him he must be there before five o'clock, and
+that he was to tie the horse to a maple-tree this side of the front
+yard. I said one of the doctor's family had to get to the village very
+early because there were some things to be done before the train came,
+and it had been agreed we should lend our buggy. Peter was not quite
+pleased with the arrangement, and asked why we did not send the old
+mare--we only kept two horses; but I said she was too slow, and it had
+been specially arranged that the buggy, with Ripstaver, should be sent.
+Peter was a great friend of mine, so he agreed to do what I asked, and
+said he did not mind walking back.' ('I never would have believed,' said
+Miss Amanda, 'that the boy had such a mind. If I had only known what he
+was planning to do! If I had only known! But even if I had, it is so
+hard to tell what is right.')
+
+"'My Aunt Amanda was not in the habit of meddling with anything about
+the barn or stable; but that afternoon--and I never knew why--she went
+to the barn, and found Peter dusting off the buggy. He told me she asked
+if anybody was going to use the buggy that evening, and he replied he
+was getting it ready to take over to the Hendrickses' in the morning, as
+some one there wanted to go to the village before the train started for
+the city. Then she asked what horse he was going to put to it, and he
+told her old Ripstaver. Then she said she did not think that was a good
+plan, because Ripstaver was hard to drive, and it would be a great deal
+better to send the old mare. Peter agreed to this, and so it happened
+that when I went to the barn the next morning, as soon as I had seen
+Peter drive away in the buggy, I found the only horse in the stable was
+old Ripstaver. I was mad enough, I can tell you; for if Rebecca made any
+noise and woke her father he could overtake that old mare long before
+she could get to the village. I never did understand how my Aunt Amanda
+happened to meddle that afternoon.'
+
+"('Of course you couldn't,' said Miss Amanda. 'You were a fine little
+manager; but when I looked out of my window that afternoon and saw a boy
+carrying a trunk to the barn I was very likely to suspect something; and
+when I went down to the barn myself and found Peter getting the buggy
+ready to go away early the next morning, I suspected a great deal more.
+I did not know what to do, for I did not want to make a scandal by
+letting Peter know anything was out of the way, and all I could think of
+was to have a slow horse put in the buggy instead of a fast one. I
+thought that might help, anyway.')
+
+"'Well,' continued the old gentleman, 'there was nothing for me to do
+but to take Ripstaver and the spring-wagon and go after Rebecca's
+baggage. When I reached the doctor's house, and found the buggy had
+gone, I got the pillow-case, put it into the trunk, and started off on a
+back road which joined the turnpike a couple of miles farther on. Near
+the junction of the two roads was a high hill from which I hoped I might
+be able to see the buggy, and, if so, I would follow it at a safe
+distance. As soon as I got to the top of this hill I did see the buggy;
+but I saw more than that--I saw another buggy not far behind it. There
+was a roan horse in this one which I knew to belong to the doctor.
+Bridges was whipping our old mare like everything, and she was doing her
+best, and galloping; but the doctor's roan was a good one, and he was
+gaining on them very fast. It was a beautiful race, and I felt like
+clapping and cheering the doctor, for, although he was spoiling my game,
+it was a splendid thing to see him driving his roan so fast and so
+steadily, never letting him break out of a regular trot, and I hated
+Bridges so much I was glad to see anybody getting the better of him.
+
+"'It was not long before the doctor's buggy caught up with the other
+one, and then they both stopped; everybody got out, and there must have
+been a grand talk, but of course I could not hear any of it. The doctor
+shook his fist, and I could see they were having a lively time. After a
+bit they stopped talking, the doctor took Rebecca into his buggy and
+drove back, and Garrett Bridges got into our buggy and went slowly
+toward the station--to see about his trunk, I suppose. I did not lose
+any time after that, but drove to the doctor's as fast as old Ripstaver
+could travel, and I had Rebecca's pillow-case in the woodshed before the
+doctor arrived. Now I never was able to imagine how the doctor found out
+that Rebecca had gone. She did not know herself. She said she got out of
+the house without making any more noise than a cat; and as for her
+father waking up at the sound of wheels in the public road, that was
+ridiculous; if he had heard them he would not have paid any attention to
+them. That was one of the queer things neither of us ever found out.'
+
+"Miss Amanda was amused. ('Of course you didn't; it was not intended
+that you should. How could you know that, being greatly troubled, I woke
+up very early that morning, and when I found you were not in your room I
+put on my overshoes and walked across the fields to Dr. Hendricks's. I
+did not get there as soon as I hoped I would; but when I rang the
+door-bell, and the doctor himself came to the door, and I told him I did
+not want to see him but Rebecca, and he went to look for her and found
+her gone, and I confided to him as a great secret what I was sure had
+happened, it did not take him long to get his horse and buggy and go
+after her. And how glad I was she had our old mare, and not Ripstaver!
+But I thought all the time it was you she had run away with, and I never
+knew until now that it wasn't. The doctor told me afterwards that he and
+his daughter had agreed not to say anything about it, and he advised me
+to do the same; but the sly old fellow never told me it was Mr. Bridges
+and not you. But if I had only known who really was running away with
+her, I would not have walked across those wet pasture-fields that
+chilly morning--that is, I do not think I would have done it.')
+
+"'But one thing I did know,' said the old gentleman, 'which I often
+regretted; and that was that if my Aunt Amanda had not meddled with the
+horses and so spoiled my plan, Rebecca Hendricks would have married
+Mr. Bridges, and several evil consequences would have been avoided.' ('I
+wonder what they were?' thought Miss Amanda.) 'Well, things went on
+pretty much as they had been going on, and that Garrett Bridges came
+every day, just as bold as brass, to see my Aunt Amanda, who, of course,
+knew nothing of his trying to run away with Rebecca. Sometimes I thought
+of telling her, but that would have made a dreadful mess, and I was
+bound in honor not to say a word about Rebecca.
+
+"'Mr. Randolph Castine sometimes came to our house, but not often, and I
+began to wish he would court my Aunt Amanda and marry her. If she had to
+marry, he would be a thousand times better than Garrett Bridges, and I
+thought I could go to his house--which was a beautiful one, with hunting
+and fishing--to see her, and perhaps make long stays in the summer-time,
+which would have been utterly impossible in the case of Garrett
+Bridges.' ('You would have been welcome enough in any home of mine,'
+said Miss Amanda. 'But you are utterly mistaken about Mr. Castine. Alas!
+he was no lover at all.') 'But although Mr. Castine was a splendid man
+in every way, he was not a bold lover like Garrett Bridges, and after a
+while he seemed to get tired and went off to travel. Not very long after
+that Bridges went off, too. I think perhaps he had received part of the
+inheritance he was expecting; but I am not sure about that. Anyway, he
+went. And then my Aunt Amanda had no lover but me.
+
+"'Very soon her health began to fail, and this went on for some time,
+and nothing did her any good. At last she took to her bed. It seemed to
+me the weaker and thinner she got the more beautiful she became, and I
+did everything I could for her, which, of course, was not any good. I
+remember very well that at this time she never lectured me about
+anything; but she sometimes mentioned Rebecca Hendricks, always to the
+effect that she was a very strange girl, and that she could not help
+thinking her husband, if she ever got one, would be a man who ought to
+be pitied. I think she was afraid I might marry her; but she need not
+have worried herself about that--I never had the slightest idea of any
+such nonsense.' ('But I had every reason to suppose you had such an
+idea,' said Miss Amanda, 'considering I thought you had tried to run
+away with her.')
+
+"'Well,' said the old gentleman, 'there is not much more of the story.
+My Aunt Amanda died, and our family was in great grief for a long time;
+but none of them grieved as much as I did.' (If Miss Amanda could have
+embraced her dear nephew John, she would have done so that minute.)
+'Then, greatly to our surprise, Randolph Castine suddenly came home. He
+had heard of my Aunt Amanda's dangerous condition, and he had hurried
+back to see her and to tell her something before she died. He told my
+mother, to whom he confided everything, that he had been passionately in
+love with my Aunt Amanda for a long time, but that he had been so sure
+she was going to marry Mr. Bridges that he had never given her any
+reason to suppose he cared for her, which I said then, and I say now,
+was a very poor way of managing love business. If he had spoken,
+everything would have been all right, and my Aunt Amanda might have been
+living now; there are plenty of people who live to be ninety. I am
+positively sure, now, that she was just as much in love with him as he
+was with her.'
+
+"Miss Amanda now suffered a great and sudden pain: she seemed to exist
+only in her memory of her great love for Randolph Castine, and in this
+present knowledge that he had loved her. Oh, why had she been told that
+in life she had been dreaming, and that only now she had come to know
+what had been real! Nothing that was said, nothing that was visible,
+impressed her consciousness just then; but presently some words of her
+nephew John forced themselves upon her attention.
+
+"'So she never knew, and he never knew, and two lives were ruined; and
+she died,' the old gentleman continued, 'my mother thought, as much from
+disappointed love as from anything else.'
+
+"'And what became of Mr. Castine?' asked Mildred, who had been listening
+with tears in her eyes.
+
+"'He went away again,' said her grandfather, 'and stayed away a long
+time; and at last he married a very pleasant lady because he thought it
+was his duty, having such a fine estate, which ought to be lived on and
+enjoyed.'
+
+"'Did he have any children?' asked Mildred.
+
+"'Yes; one daughter, who married a Mr. Berkeley of Queen Mary County. It
+was considered a good match.'
+
+"'Berkeley!' exclaimed the young girl, moving so suddenly toward her
+grandfather that all the sweet peas in her lap fell suddenly to the
+ground. 'Berkeley! Why, Arthur Berkeley comes from Queen Mary County! Do
+you mean he is the grandson of Mr. Castine?'
+
+"'Exactly; that is who he is,' said the old gentleman.
+
+"Mildred sat for a few minutes without saying a word, looking at the
+ground. 'Grandpa,' she said presently, 'do you know I believe all the
+time my mind was made up, and I did not know it. And after what you have
+told me of Arthur Berkeley, grandpa, and your Aunt Amanda, I really
+think I know myself a great deal better than I did before; and if Arthur
+should ask me--that is, if he ever does--'
+
+"'And he surely will,' said her grandfather, 'for he came to me this
+morning, like the honorable fellow he is, and obtained permission to do
+so.'
+
+"'Grandpa!' exclaimed Mildred; and as she looked up at him there was no
+beauty in any sweet-pea blossom, or in any other flower on earth, which
+could equal the brightness and the beauty of her face.
+
+"The pain faded out of the consciousness of Miss Amanda. 'And this is
+the way it ends!' she murmured. 'This is the way it ends. John's
+granddaughter and his grandson.' And now it was not pain, but a quiet
+happiness, which pervaded her consciousness.
+
+"The grandfather and granddaughter rose from the rustic bench and walked
+slowly toward the house. Miss Amanda looked after them, and blessed
+them; then she gazed upon the sweet peas on the ground; then she looked
+once more upon the old dial, still bravely marking each sunny hour; and
+then, slowly and gradually, Miss Amanda lost consciousness, without
+saying to herself, 'Seven o'clock' or 'Fifty years' or any other period
+of time.
+
+"That is the end," said the young lady.
+
+"And quite time!" exclaimed the Master of the House. "Madam," he said,
+turning to his wife, "did you know of all this knowledge of which your
+daughter seems possessed--of boy's nature, and woman's love, and the
+human heart, and all the rest of it? I can't fathom her with my longest
+line!"
+
+"You may as well give up all idea of that sort of sounding," said the
+Mistress of the House. "There is no line long enough to fathom the human
+heart."
+
+"I am thinking," said John Gayther, as he rattled the seeds in the pan,
+"whether it was worth while for Amanda to become conscious for so short
+a time, and just to hear a tale like that."
+
+"Was it worth while to learn that the man she had wanted to love her had
+really loved her?" asked the Daughter of the House, eagerly.
+
+"It doesn't seem the sort of love to wait fifty years to hear about,"
+said John. "I don't like the way they have in novels of making folks
+keep back things that men and women couldn't help telling."
+
+"Then you don't like my story, John," said the Daughter of the House, in
+a disappointed tone.
+
+"Indeed, but I do, miss," he replied quickly. "As a story it is just
+perfect; but as real doings it doesn't pan out square. But then, it is
+meant for a story, and it couldn't be better or more unlike other
+stories told here. Nobody could have thought that out that hadn't a deep
+mind."
+
+The young lady looked critically at John, but she saw he really meant
+what he said, and she was satisfied.
+
+
+
+
+                      THIS STORY IS TOLD BY
+
+                        THE OLD PROFESSOR
+
+                          AND IS CALLED
+
+                         MY TRANSLATOPHONE
+
+
+
+
+IX
+
+MY TRANSLATOPHONE
+
+
+The Professor was very old, but he was well preserved--always spoken of
+as "hale and hearty." He still held his position in his college, and
+still took a good part in teaching mathematics, but he had an assistant
+who did the heavy work. He had been principal of the school where the
+Mistress of the House received her education, and she was much attached
+to him, and he always spent some part of his summer vacation at her
+house. The Master of the House, of course, was not there every summer,
+and so this season the Old Professor had a special treat, for there were
+many things he liked to talk about in which he knew the two ladies could
+take no interest.
+
+It rained for two days after his arrival at the house, but the third
+morning was bright and clear, and the Master of the House conducted his
+visitor to the favorite resort of the family--a spot the Old Professor
+knew well and loved. They conversed for a while on some deep subjects,
+and then they were joined by the two ladies and the Next Neighbor, and
+the serious discourse changed into light talk; and John Gayther coming
+up to pay his respects to the Old Professor, the Next Neighbor was
+seized with an inspiration.
+
+"John," she said, "you must tell us a story. Sit right down and begin
+'Once upon a time--' know I haven't heard a story for a long time."
+
+"Madam," said John, respectfully, "I always do what the ladies tell me
+to do; and I am more sorry than I can say, but I have to know beforehand
+when I am to tell a story, and indeed I haven't one ready."
+
+"Oh, you are clever and can make up as you go along, as the children
+say."
+
+"John never tells an impromptu story," said the Mistress of the House.
+"But, my dear Professor," and she turned to the old gentleman, "we are
+all friends here, and I should so like you to tell us how you got your
+wife. You once told it to me, and I should like to know what this
+company will think of the way you won her."
+
+The Old Professor smiled. "I know what you think about it, and I know
+what I think about it; and, as you say, we are all old friends, and I am
+rather curious to know what this company will think about it. I will
+tell my little story." When they were all ready, he began in a clear
+voice:
+
+"If my Mary were living this story would never have been told; but she
+has been a blessed spirit now these many years, and has doubtless long
+known it, and has judged my conduct righteously. Such is my belief."
+Here he made a reverent pause, and then began again:
+
+"In my early youth I left, for some two or three years, the beaten
+track--so to speak--of mathematics; or, more properly, mechanics. For I
+interested myself in inventing, with more or less success, certain
+scientific machines.
+
+"One of the most successful of these various contrivances, and the one,
+indeed, in which I was most deeply interested, was a small machine very
+much resembling in appearance the tube, with a mouth-piece at one end
+and an ear-piece at the other, frequently used by deaf persons, but very
+different in its construction and action. In the ordinary instrument the
+words spoken into the mouth-piece are carried through the tube to the
+ear, and are then heard exactly as they are spoken. When I used my
+instrument the person spoke into the mouth-piece exactly as if it were
+an ordinary tube, but the result was very different, for the great
+feature of my invention was that, no matter what language was spoken by
+the person at the mouth-piece, be it Greek, Choctaw, or Chinese, the
+words came to the ear in perfect English.
+
+"This translation was accomplished by means of certain delicate
+machinery contained in the end of the mouth-piece, which was longer and
+larger than that of the ordinary ear-tube, but the outward appearance of
+which did not indicate that it held anything extraordinary. It would
+take too long to explain this mechanism to you, and you would not be
+interested; nor is it necessary to my story.
+
+"When, after countless experiments and disappointments, and days and
+nights of hard study and hard work, I finished my little machine, which
+I called a translatophone, I was naturally anxious to see how it would
+work with some other person than myself at the mouth-piece. In the
+course of its construction I had frequently tried the machine by putting
+the ear-piece into my ear and speaking into the mouth-piece such scraps
+of foreign languages as I was able to command. These experiments were
+generally satisfactory, but I could not be satisfied that the machine
+was a success until some one else should speak into it in some foreign
+tongue of which I knew positively nothing, so that it would be
+impossible for me to translate it unconsciously.
+
+"This was not an easy thing, and I had determined I would not explain my
+invention to the public until I had assured myself that it worked
+perfectly, and until I had had my property in the invention secured to
+me by patent right. To go to a foreigner and ask him to speak into my
+instrument, using a language he could readily assure himself I did not
+speak or understand, would be the same thing as an avowal of what the
+translatophone was intended to do. I thought of several plans, but none
+suited me. I did not want to pretend to be deaf, and, even if I did so,
+I could not explain why I wished to be spoken to in a language I did not
+use myself.
+
+"In the midst of my cogitations and uncertainties, I received a note
+from Mary Armat which, for a time, drove from my mind all thought of
+translatophone and everything concerning it.
+
+"Miss Mary Armat and I had been friends since the days in which we went
+to school together. I had always liked her above the other girls of my
+acquaintance, and about three years previous to the time of this story I
+had almost made up my mind that I was in love with her, and that I would
+tell her so. This, however, I had not done. At that time I had become
+intensely interested in some of my inventions, and, although my feelings
+toward Mary Armat had not in the least changed, I did not visit her as
+often as had been my custom, and when I did see her I am afraid I told
+her more about mechanical combinations than she cared to hear. But so
+engrossed was I that I stupidly failed to notice this, and I did not
+perceive that I had been neglecting the most favorable opportunities of
+declaring the state of my affections until she informed me, not in a
+private interview, but in the midst of her family circle, that she had
+made up her mind to become a missionary and go to India to work among
+the heathen. I was greatly shocked, but I could say nothing then, and
+afterwards had no opportunity to say anything.
+
+"I did not write to Mary, because she was a most independent and
+high-spirited girl, and I knew it must be spoken words and not written
+ones which would satisfy her that I had had good reasons for postponing
+a declaration of love to her until she had left the country.
+
+"So she went to Burma. I frequently heard of her, but we did not
+correspond. She had gone into her new work with great zeal. She had
+learned the Burmese tongue, and had even translated a little English
+book into that language. For some time she had seemed well satisfied;
+but I heard through her family that she was getting tired of her Eastern
+life. The rainy seasons were disagreeable to her, the dry seasons did
+not agree with her; her school duties were becoming very monotonous; and
+she had found out that in her heart she did not care for the heathen,
+especially for heathen children. Therefore she had resigned her position
+and was on her way home. The note I received from her informed me that
+she had arrived in New York the day before, and that she would be very
+glad if I would come to see her."
+
+"_She_ did a sensible thing, anyway," commented the Master of the House.
+
+The Daughter of the House opened her mouth to say: "I do not like her.
+She had no enthusiasm, or real goodness, to give up her work so soon and
+for such reasons." But she suddenly reflected that Mary had been the
+speaker's wife, and she shut her mouth with a little vicious snap.
+
+"I went to the Armat house that evening, and I found there a very lively
+girl awaiting me. Her parents and her two sisters had gone out, and we
+had the parlor to ourselves. Life in Burma may not have suited Mary
+Armat, but it certainly had improved her, for she was much more charming
+than when I had last seen her. Moreover, she was so very friendly, and
+without doubt so glad to see me, she was so bright and full of high
+spirits, that it might have been supposed she had arranged matters so
+that we could have the evening to ourselves, and was eminently pleased
+with her success.
+
+"I admired her more and more every time I looked at her, and I
+determined that, as soon as the proper time should come, I would make
+earnest love to her, and tell her what, perhaps, I should have told her
+long ago. But just now I had other matters on my mind.
+
+"Above all things I wanted Mary to talk into my translatophone, and to
+speak in Burmese. I knew nothing whatever of that language, and if she
+should speak it, and the words should come to my ears in pure English,
+then no further experiment would be necessary, no doubts could possibly
+exist. But until I had made this test I did not want her to know what
+the instrument was intended to do; it was barely possible she might play
+a trick on me and speak in English. But if the thing succeeded I would
+tell her everything. We two should be the sole owners of the secret of
+my great invention--an invention which would not only benefit the
+English-speaking world, but which might be adapted to the language of
+any nation, and which would make us rich beyond all ordinary
+probabilities.
+
+"As soon as I had the opportunity I began to speak of the work I had
+been engaged upon during Mary's absence; and when I approached the
+subject I thought I saw on her face an expression which seemed to say,
+'Oh, dear! are you going to begin on that tiresome business again?' But
+I was not to be turned from my purpose. Such an opportunity as this was
+too valuable, too important, to be slighted or set aside for anything
+else. In a few minutes I might discover whether this invention of mine
+was a success or a failure. I took my translatophone from my pocket, and
+laid it on the table beside us.
+
+"'What's that?' she exclaimed. 'You don't mean to tell me you have
+become hard of hearing?'
+
+"'Oh, no,' said I; 'my hearing is just as good as it ever was.'
+
+"'But that is a thing deaf people use,' she said.
+
+"'Well, yes,' I answered; 'it could be used by deaf people, I suppose,
+although I have never tried it in that way. It is my latest and, I
+think, my most important invention. It would take too long to explain
+its mechanism just now--'
+
+"'Indeed it would,' she interrupted quickly.
+
+"'But what I want to do,' I continued, 'is to make a little trial of it
+with you.'
+
+"'If you mean you want me to speak into that thing,' she said, 'I do not
+want to do it. I should hate to think you are deaf and needed anything
+of the sort. Please put it away; I do not even like the looks of it.'
+
+"But I persisted; I told her that I greatly desired that she should
+speak a few sentences in Burmese into my instrument. I had a certain
+reason for this which I would explain afterwards.
+
+"'But you do not understand Burmese,' she said in surprise.
+
+"'Not a word of it,' I answered. 'I do not know how it sounds when it is
+spoken, nor how it looks when it is written. But there are certain tones
+and chords, and all that sort of thing, in the foreign languages which
+are very interesting, no matter whether you understand the language or
+not.'
+
+"'Oh, it is a sort of musical thing, then,' she said.
+
+"'I will not say it is exactly that,' I replied. 'But if you will simply
+speak to me in Burmese for a minute or two, that is all I ask of you,
+and afterwards we can talk about its construction and object.'
+
+"'Oh, I do not want to talk any more about it,' said she; 'but if it
+will satisfy you, I will say a few words to you in Burmese. Do you speak
+into this hole?' she said as she took up the instrument.
+
+"I arranged the ear-piece very carefully, and covered my other ear with
+my hand. Immediately she began to speak to me, and every word came to me
+in clear and beautiful English! But I knew, as well as I knew that I
+lived, that the words she spoke were Burmese, or belonged to some other
+language which she knew I did not understand. The proof of this was in
+the words themselves.
+
+"'I think you are perfectly horrid,' she said, 'and I am glad to have
+an opportunity to tell you so, even though you do not understand me. I
+cannot imagine how anybody can be so stupid as to want to talk about
+horrible ear-trumpets the first time he meets a girl whom he has not
+seen for years, and who used to like him so much, and who likes him
+still in spite of his cruel stupidity. I wonder why you thought I wanted
+to see you the minute I got home? I am awfully disappointed in you, for
+I did think you would talk to me in a very different way the first time
+you saw me. And now I am going to tell you something--and I would rather
+cut my tongue out than say it in English, but it gives me a wicked
+delight to say it in Burmese: I love you, John Howard. I have loved you
+for a long time; and that is the reason I went to Burma; and now that I
+have come back I am obliged to say that I love you still. If you could
+invent some sort of a tube that would make you see better with your eyes
+and understand better with your mind, it would be a great deal more
+suitable than this horrid, snake-like thing for your ear. I do not
+suppose you will ever hear me speak this way in English, but I tell you
+again, John Howard, that I love you, and it makes me sick to think what
+a goose you are.'
+
+"'Now, then,' she said, putting down the tube, 'was there anything
+peculiar in the tones and chords of that bit of foreign language?'
+
+"Fortunately the only light in the room was behind me, and therefore
+I had reason to hope that she did not observe the expression of my
+countenance. Moreover, as soon as she had finished speaking she had
+turned her face away from me, and was now leaning back in her chair,
+her mouth tightly shut and her wide-open eyes directed on the opposite
+wall. She looked like a woman who had taken a peculiar revenge, and
+who, in the taking of it, had aroused her soul in its utmost recesses.
+
+"For some moments I did not answer her question. In fact, I could not
+speak at all. My thoughts were in a mad whirl. Not only had I discovered
+that my invention, the hope of my life, was an absolute success, but I
+was most powerfully impressed by the conviction that now I could never
+tell Mary what my invention was intended to do, for then she would know
+what it had done.
+
+"'Yes,' I answered, speaking slowly; 'there was a sort of accord, a kind
+of--'
+
+"I was interrupted in what would have been a very labored sentence by
+the ringing of the door-bell. Mary instantly rose. It was plain she was
+laboring under suppressed excitement, for there was no other reason why
+she should have jumped up in that way. She looked as if she were anxious
+to see some one, no matter who it was. I, too, felt relieved by the
+interruption. In my state of wildly conflicting emotions any third
+person would be a relief.
+
+"The door opened, and Miss Sarah Castle walked in. 'Oh, Mary,' she
+exclaimed, 'I am so glad to find you at home! As it isn't late and the
+moon is so bright, I thought I would run over to see you for a few
+minutes. Oh, Mr. Howard!'
+
+"Sarah Castle was a young woman for whom I had no fancy. Active in mind
+and body, and apparently constructed of thoroughly well-seasoned
+material, she was quick to notice, eager to know, and ready at all times
+to display an interest in the affairs of her friends, with which, in
+most cases, said friends would willingly have dispensed. As she took a
+seat she exclaimed:
+
+"'You don't mean to say, Mary, that you went deaf in Burma?'
+
+"Unfortunately I had forgotten to put my translatophone into my pocket,
+and it was lying in full view on the table. Mary gave a scornful glance
+toward the innocent tube.
+
+"'Oh, that?' she said. 'That is not mine. It belongs to Mr. Howard.'
+
+"The words 'Mr. Howard' grated upon my nerves. Up to this moment, except
+through the translatophone, she had not addressed me by my name in any
+form; and every tentative lover knows that when his lady addresses him
+as though he had no name it means that she does not wish to use his
+formal title and that the time has not arrived for her to call him by
+his Christian name.
+
+"'You deaf?' cried Sarah, turning to me. 'I have never heard anything of
+that. When did it come on? It must have been very recent.'
+
+"'Oh, he isn't deaf,' said Mary, impatiently. 'It is only one of his
+inventions. But tell me something of your brothers. I have not heard a
+word about them yet.'
+
+"But the knowledge-loving Sarah was not to be bluffed off in this way.
+
+"'Oh, they are all right,' said she. 'They are both in college now. But
+Mr. Howard deaf! I am truly amazed. Do you have to talk to him through
+this, Mary?'
+
+"Mary Armat was not an ill-natured girl, but, as I said before, she was
+a high-spirited one, and was at the time in a state of justifiable
+irritation.
+
+"'Oh, bother that thing!' she answered. 'I told you it is only one of
+his inventions, and I wish he would put it in his pocket.'
+
+"'Not just yet,' said Sarah. 'I am really anxious to know about it. Why
+do you use it, Mr. Howard, if you are not deaf?'
+
+"My face must have displayed my extreme embarrassment at this
+unanswerable question, for Mary came to my relief.
+
+"'Oh, it is a kind of musical instrument,' she said. 'But don't let us
+talk any more about it. This is the second time I have seen you, but we
+have not really had a good chance to say anything to each other.'
+
+"I took advantage of this very strong hint, and rose.
+
+"'Musical!' exclaimed the irrepressible Sarah. 'Oh, Mr. Howard, please
+play on it just the least little bit!'
+
+"Mary allowed herself an expression of extreme disgust. 'Please not
+while I am present,' she said; 'I could not abide it.'
+
+"I now advanced to take my leave.
+
+"'Do not go just now,' said Sarah; 'I merely ran over for a minute to
+ask Mary about the Wilmer reception; but as you are going, Mr. Howard,
+you might as well see me home. It is later now.'
+
+"I retired to a book-table at the other end of the parlor, and it was a
+good deal later when the two young ladies had finished talking about
+the Wilmer reception.
+
+"'I do not understand it at all,' said Miss Castle, when we were on the
+sidewalk. 'You are not deaf, Mr. Howard, and yet you use an ear-trumpet.
+What does it mean?'
+
+"Of course I did not know what to say, but I had to say something, and,
+moreover, that something must not be wholly inconsistent with my
+explanation to Mary.
+
+"'Oh, it is a thing,' I answered, 'that is intended to be used in
+connection with foreign languages.' Then I made a bold stroke: 'It shows
+the difference in their resonant rhythms.'
+
+"'Well, I am sure I do not understand that,' said Miss Castle. 'But what
+is the good of it? Does it make them any pleasanter to listen to?'
+
+"I admitted that it did.
+
+"'Whether you understand them or not?' she asked.
+
+"If this young woman had at this moment fallen down a coal-hole I cannot
+truthfully say that I should have regretted it.
+
+"'I cannot explain that, Miss Castle,' I said, 'for it would take a long
+time, and here we are at your door.'
+
+"'Come in and let me try it,' said Sarah.
+
+"'Thank you very much,' I replied, 'but I really cannot. I have an
+engagement at my club. In fact, I was just going to take leave of Miss
+Armat when you came in.'
+
+"She looked at me scrutinizingly. 'You used to call her Mary Armat
+when you spoke of her,' said she, 'but I suppose her having been a
+missionary makes a difference in that way. I do not believe much in club
+engagements, but of course we have to recognize them. And if you cannot
+come in now I wish you would call on me soon. If your invention has
+anything to do with foreign languages I truly want to try it. I am
+studying German now, and if it will put any resonant rhythm into that
+language it will be very interesting.'
+
+"I made a hasty and indefinite promise, and gladly saw the front door
+shut behind Miss Sarah Castle.
+
+"That night I did not sleep; in fact, I did not go to bed. The words
+Mary Armat had spoken to me in Burmese should have completely engrossed
+my every thought, but they did not. For one moment my mind was filled
+with rapture by the knowledge that I was loved by this lovely girl; and
+in the next I was overwhelmed by anxiety as to what should be done to
+make it impossible for her to know that I knew she had spoken those
+words. But whether my thoughts made me happy or distressed me, there
+seemed to be but one way out of my troubles; I must be content with
+Mary's love, that is, if I should be so fortunate as to secure it. There
+might be doubts about this; women are fickle creatures, and Mary had
+been very much provoked with me when I parted from her."
+
+"I see what is coming," here interrupted the Next Neighbor, "and I don't
+approve of it at all!"
+
+"It would be hard," continued the Old Professor, after pausing for
+further remarks, "to turn my back upon the golden future which my
+invention would give to Mary and me; but I must win her, golden future
+or not. I sat before my study fire, and planned out my future actions.
+As soon as I could see Mary alone I would tell her my love, and I would
+explain to her why I had not spoken when I first saw her. But in order
+to do this I should have to be very careful. I would say nothing but the
+truth, but I would be very guarded in telling that truth. She must not
+imagine that anything she had said had made me speak. She must not
+imagine that I thought she expected me to speak.
+
+"I would begin by asking her pardon for worrying her with my invention
+when I knew she disliked problematic mechanics. Then I would tell her,
+in as few words as possible, that I had expected this little instrument
+to give me fame and fortune, and therefore I wanted her to know all
+about it; and then, before she could ask me why I wanted her to know
+this, I would tell her it was because I wished to lay that fame and
+fortune at her feet. After that, in the best way my ardent feelings
+should dictate, I would offer myself to her without fortune, without
+fame, just the plain John Howard who loved her with all his heart. If
+she accepted me, I would tell her that the invention had not worked as I
+had intended it should, and therefore I should put it behind me
+forever."
+
+"Oh, dear!" cried the Next Neighbor. "I knew it was coming!"
+
+"Maybe it didn't," said the Master of the House.
+
+"Having come to a decision," the Old Professor went on, with more
+animation, "upon this most important matter, my mind grew easier and I
+became happier. What was anything a black tube could do for me--what,
+indeed, was anything in the world--compared to the love of that dear
+girl? And so I sat and gazed into the fire, and dreamed waking dreams
+of blessedness.
+
+"After a time, however, it came to me that I must make up my mind what I
+was going to do about the translatophone. I might as well take it apart
+and throw it into the fire at once, and then there would be an end to
+that danger to the future of which I had been dreaming. Yes; there would
+be an end to that. But there would also be an end to the great boon I
+was about to bestow upon the world, a boon the value of which I had not
+half understood. It truly was a wonderful thing--a most wonderful thing.
+An American or an Englishman, or any one speaking English, could take
+with him a translatophone and travel around the world, understanding the
+language of every nation, of every people--the polished tongues of
+civilization, the speech of the scholars of the Orient, and even the
+jabber of the wild savages of Africa. To be sure, he could not expect to
+answer those who spoke to him, but what of that? He would not wish to
+speak; he would merely desire to hear. All he would have to do would be
+to pretend that he was deaf and dumb, and my simple translatophone might
+put him into communication with the minds of every grade and variety of
+humanity.
+
+"Then a new thought flashed into my mind. Why only humanity? If I should
+attach a wide mouth-piece to my instrument, why should I not gather in
+the songs and cries of the birds? Why should I not hear in plain English
+what they say to each other? Why should not all creation speak to me so
+that I could understand? Why should I not know what the dog says when he
+barks--what words the hen addresses to her chicks when she clucks to
+them to follow? Why should I not know the secrets of what is now to us a
+tongue-tied world of nature?
+
+[Illustration: And dreamed waking dreams of blessedness.]
+
+"Then I had another idea, that made me jump from my chair and walk the
+floor. I might know what the monkeys say when they chatter to each
+other! What discovery in all natural history could be so great as this?
+The thought that these little creatures, so nearly allied to man, might
+disclose to me their dispositions, their hopes, their ambitions, their
+hates, their reflections upon mankind, had such a sudden and powerful
+influence on me that I felt like seizing my translatophone and rushing
+off to the Zooelogical Gardens. It was now daybreak. I might obtain
+admission!
+
+"But I speedily dismissed this idea. If I should ever hear in English
+what the monkeys might say to me, I must give up Mary. I should be the
+slave of my discovery. It would be impossible then to destroy the
+translatophone. I sat down again before the fire. 'Shall I put an end to
+it now?' I said to myself. Nothing would be easier than to take its
+delicate movements and smash them on the hearth. Now a prudent thought
+came to me: suppose Mary should not accept me? Then, with this great
+invention lost,--for I never should have the heart to make another,--I
+should have nothing left in the world. No; I would be cautious, lest in
+every way my future life should be overcast with disappointment. The sun
+had risen, and I felt I must go out; I must have air. Before I opened
+the front door, however, I said to myself, 'Remember it is all settled.
+It is Mary you must have--that is, if you can get her.'
+
+"Of all things in this world, the mind of man is the most independent,
+the most headstrong. It will work at your bidding as long as it pleases,
+and then it will strike out at its own pace and go where it chooses.
+During a walk of a couple of miles I thought nearly all the time of what
+the monkeys might say to me if I should attach a wide mouth-piece to my
+translatophone and place it against the bars of their cage. Over and
+over again I stopped these thoughts and said to myself: 'But all this is
+nothing to me. I must consider Mary and nothing else.' Then in a very
+few minutes I was wondering if the monkeys would ask me questions--if
+they have as strong a desire to know about us as we have to know about
+them. From such questions how much I might learn in regard to the mental
+distance between us and them! But again I put all this away from me and
+began to plan anew what I should say to Mary. And then again it was not
+very long before I found myself thinking how intensely interesting it
+would be to know what the tree-toads say, and what the frogs talk about
+when they sit calling to each other all night. It might be a little
+difficult to get near enough to tree-toads and frogs, but I believed I
+could manage it.
+
+"However, when I returned home I was thinking of Mary.
+
+"It was early in the afternoon, and I was trying to decide what would
+be the best time to visit the Armat house. The monkeys had not ceased to
+worry me dreadfully, and I had begun to think that when bees buzz around
+their hives they must certainly say something interesting to each other.
+Then a note was brought to me from Mary. I tore it open and read:
+
+  "'I want you to come to see me this afternoon. If you possibly can,
+  come about four o'clock, and bring that speaking-tube with you. Miss
+  Castle has been here nearly all the morning, and some things she has
+  said to me have worried me very much. Please come, and do not forget
+  the ear-trumpet.'
+
+"This she signed merely with her initials.
+
+"Mary's note drove to the winds monkeys, bees, and the rest of the
+world. What had that wretched mischief-maker, that Castle girl, been
+saying to her? I did not believe that the mind of Mary Armat was
+capable of originating an unfounded suspicion of me; but the mind of
+Sarah Castle was capable of originating anything. She had doubtless
+suspected that there must be some extraordinary reason for my desire
+to have people talk to me through a tube in a language I did not
+understand. She had been too impatient to wait until she could try her
+German upon me, and she had gone to Mary and had filled her mind with
+horrible conjectures. One thing was certain: no matter what else
+happened, I must not take that translatophone to Mary. After what
+Sarah had said to her there could be no doubt that she would make me
+speak to her in a foreign language through the tube. It would be easy
+enough: she could give me a French book and tell me to read a few
+pages. No matter how badly I should pronounce the words, they would
+reach her ears in pure English!
+
+"And then!
+
+"I took my translatophone from the cabinet in which I kept it. The
+easiest way to destroy it was to throw it at once into the fire; but
+that would fill the house with the smell of burning rubber. No; it was
+only necessary to destroy the internal movements. I unscrewed the long
+mouth-piece, and gently withdrew from it the little membrane-covered
+cylinder, not six inches in length, which formed the soul of my
+invention. I took it in my hand and gazed upon it. Through its thin,
+flexible, and almost transparent outer envelope I could see, as I held
+it to the light, its framework, fine as the thread-like bones of a fish,
+its elastic chords, its quivering diaphragms, and all the delicate
+organs of its inner life. It seemed as if I could feel the palpitations
+of its heart as I breathed upon it. For how many days and months had I
+been working on this subtle invention--working, and thinking, and
+dreaming! Here it lay, perfect, finished, ready to tell me more than any
+man ever has known--a thing almost of life, and ready to be brought to
+life by the voice of man or beast or bird, or perhaps of any living
+thing. Could I have the heart to destroy it? Could I have the heart to
+turn my back upon the gate of the world of wonders which was just
+opening to me?
+
+"'Yes,' said I to myself; 'I have the heart to do anything that will
+prevent my losing the love of Mary Armat.'
+
+"Then an evil thought came to me, and tempted me: 'If you choose you can
+hear the monkeys talk and have Mary too. Everything you want is in your
+own hands. Don't put that little machine back into the tube. Lock it up
+safely out of sight, and then go to Mary with your instrument, and you
+can talk into it and she can listen, and she may talk and you may
+listen. Yes, you may have your Mary--and she need never know that you
+understand what the monkeys may say to you, or what she has said to
+you.'
+
+"I am proud that I entertained this evil thought for but a very short
+time. I turned upon it and stormed at it. 'No!' I exclaimed. 'I shall
+never win Mary by cheating her! Whether I get her or not, I will be
+worthy of her.'
+
+"Then there came another thought, apparently innocent and certainly
+persuasive. 'Do not destroy the translatophone. Then, if things do not
+turn out well between you and Mary, you will still have the monkeys.'
+
+"'No,' I said to myself; 'I must have Mary. I will have nothing to fall
+back upon. I will allow nothing to exist that might draw me back.'
+
+"There was another thing I might do: I might take my translatophone to
+her, and explain everything. But would there be any possibility, even if
+she did not fly from me in shame and never see me again, that I could
+make her believe in a love which had been so spurred on, even aroused,
+as she might well imagine mine had been? No; that would never do. Apart
+from anything else, it would be impossible for me to be so cruel as to
+let Mary know I had understood the Burmese words she had spoken to me.
+
+"I looked at the clock; it was half-past three. Whatever was to be done
+must be done now. I cast one more look of longing affection upon the
+quivering, throbbing little creature, which to me was as much alive as
+if it had been a tired bird panting in my hand; and then I gently laid
+it on the hearth. I lifted my left foot and let it hang for an instant
+over the hopes, the fears, the anxieties, the happy day-dreams those
+early years of my life had given me, and then, with relentless cruelty,
+not only to that quivering object but to myself, I brought down my foot
+with all my strength!
+
+"There was a slight struggle for an instant, during which there came to
+me quick, muffled sounds, which to my agitated brain sounded like the
+moans of despair from that vast world of animal intelligence which does
+not speak to man. From my own heart there came a groan. All was over!
+From the mysterious inner courts of the animal kingdom no revelations
+would ever come to me! The thick curtain between the intelligence of man
+and the intelligence of beast and bird which I had raised for a brief
+moment had now been dropped forever! I should never make another
+translatophone.
+
+"I cast no glance upon the hearth, but put on my hat and coat and went to
+Mary. As I walked there rose behind me a cloud of misty disappointment,
+while before me there was nothing but dark uncertainty. What would Mary
+have to say to me? And how should I explain what would seem to her to be
+a cowardly evasion of her plainly expressed request?
+
+"When I entered the Armat parlor I found Mary alone. This encouraged me
+a little. I had feared that the yearningly inquisitive Sarah might also
+be there. In that case how might I hope to preserve one atom of my
+secret?
+
+"Mary came forward with a smile, and held out her hand; I was so
+astonished I could not speak.
+
+"'Now don't be cross,' said she. 'As I told you in my note, Sarah Castle
+was here this morning, and she greatly troubled my mind about you. She
+told me I was actually snappish with you when she was here last night.
+She had never heard me speak to any one in such an ill-natured way. She
+knew very well that I do not care for inventions and machines, but she
+did not consider this any reason for my treating you in such a manner.
+She said I ought to have known that your whole soul is wrapped up in the
+queer things you invent, and that I should have made some allowance for
+you, even if I did not care about such things myself. Now when she told
+me this I knew that every word was true, and I was utterly ashamed of
+myself; and as soon as she left I sent you that note because I wanted
+you to let me beg your pardon--which you may consider has been done. And
+now please let me see your speaking-tube. I want you to explain it to
+me; I want to know how it is made, and what is its object. For I know
+very well that even if your inventions are not successful they always
+have very good objects. Please forgive me, and let us sit on the sofa
+and have a nice talk together such as we should have had last night.'
+
+"My soul shouted with joy within me, and I said to myself: 'We shall
+have the nice talk we should have had last night, but it shall be the
+talk you wanted then, and not the one you ask for now.'
+
+"'Now, then,' said she, when we had seated ourselves, 'let us go to work
+to make experiments with your tube. I am so glad you do not feel about
+it as I thought you would.'
+
+"'I did not bring it,' I said.
+
+"'Oh, what a pity!' interrupted Mary.
+
+"'No,' said I; 'it is not a pity. It did not work as I expected it
+would, and there is no use in talking any more about it. I placed great
+hopes in it, and I had a particular reason for wanting to tell you all
+about it.' Then I began and bravely told her all about it, that is, all
+that justice and kindness would permit me to tell. In the conversation
+which ensued, which was a very happy exchange of sentiment, it was
+wonderful how that translatophone was put into the background.
+
+"A great deal of what Mary said in answer to my passionate avowals
+she had already said to me in Burmese. But the fact that those
+straightforward, honest words, fresh from a true woman's heart, and
+spoken only for the satisfaction of her own frank and impetuous nature,
+had come to me before in plain English she did not imagine, nor did I
+ever allow her to imagine. This secret of her soul I always regarded as
+something that came to me in involuntary confidence, and I always
+respected that confidence."
+
+"Were you never sorry?" asked the Daughter of the House, when the Old
+Professor ceased.
+
+"No," he said thoughtfully; "I have never been sorry for what I did. I
+had a very happy life with my Mary--a life far happier than any
+wonder-exciting invention could have given me."
+
+"Was it fair to the world to destroy an instrument that might have been
+of great advantage to science?" ventured John Gayther, hesitatingly.
+
+"It is not easy," said the Old Professor, "to decide between what we owe
+to the world and science, and what we owe to ourselves. You see, I
+decided in favor of myself. Possibly another man would have decided in
+favor of the invention."
+
+"Not if he were desperately in love," said the Master of the House.
+
+"All those fine-spun feelings were unnecessary," said the Next Neighbor.
+"If you had not confused your mind with them you would have seen clearly
+enough that the first idea which came into your head was the proper one
+to act upon. It would have been no terrible deception if you had taken
+the instrument to Mary without the little machine and talked English
+with her. Later you could have told her you had the invention and you
+could use it. By that time she would have forgotten that she ever had
+made that Burmese speech, and would have been glad of the fame and
+fortune the machine would surely have brought."
+
+The Old Professor looked pained. "I do not deny that some such
+after-thoughts troubled my mind occasionally for some years. But who can
+say anything of the 'might have been'? The instrument might have failed,
+after all; or the information gained have proved not worth the hearing;
+or--"
+
+Here there was an unlooked-for interruption. The red thrush suddenly
+burst into song from the midst of the lilac-bushes, and the whole
+company listened spellbound with delight while the little creature
+filled the air with melody and sweetness.
+
+When the song ceased, the Professor remarked: "My translatophone would
+have been worse than useless here. If I could have heard those words I
+should have lost that delicious melody. Doubtless the words were
+commonplace enough, but the melody was divine. And it was easy to
+interpret the spirit of it. It was a song of joy for all that is
+pleasant, and bright, and happy in this world."
+
+
+
+
+                      THIS STORY IS TOLD BY
+
+                        THE NEXT NEIGHBOR
+
+                          AND IS CALLED
+
+                         THE VICE-CONSORT
+
+
+
+
+X
+
+THE VICE-CONSORT
+
+
+The red thrush seemed now to be part of the pleasantness of the garden.
+Whether he was drawn to the lilac-bushes by the sweet memory of his
+former home, or whether he was keeping a tryst with his mate of the
+nesting season and was calling her to come to him, or whether his coming
+was pure caprice, of course John Gayther could not know. But every day
+he came; and when the sky was clear he sang his merry song; and even
+when the clouds were overshadowing he could not help uttering little
+trills of melody. After a time he would fly away; but he left a note of
+gladness in John's heart that stayed there all day.
+
+The bird did not seem in the least disturbed by the talk on the terrace.
+If the sound of the voices reached him at all it must have been as a low
+murmur, and perhaps he liked it. The family now timed their visits to
+the summer-house, when they were able to go there, by the red thrush;
+and he seldom disappointed them. It so happened, however, one morning
+when they were all there, that the lilacs gave forth no sound. They
+waited for the accustomed music, and a hush fell upon them. They were
+silent for some time, and then the Old Professor spoke:
+
+"I see John Gayther below the terrace. Can't we have a story, if we
+cannot have a song?"
+
+John was called up at once, and the Next Neighbor accosted him gayly:
+"If you had known that I am going to tell a story you would have walked
+faster."
+
+John answered her with a pleasant smile. He liked the Next Neighbor. He
+liked the kind of mind she had, for it was thoroughly imbued with an
+anxious desire to do her duty in this world in the manner in which that
+duty showed itself to her. He liked her because she was fond of the
+Daughter of the House. He liked her because she considered her husband
+to be the handsomest, best, and cleverest man in the world. Perhaps John
+would have liked this trait best of all if he had not clearly seen that
+she held in reserve an opinion that this husband would move on a still
+higher plane if he would place more value on her opinions and
+statements.
+
+"This is the first time you have favored us," he said courteously.
+
+"Well," she said, "I knew the time would come when I would be called
+upon, and I could tell many a story about things that have happened to
+me. I am not exactly the heroine of this tale, but I am intimately
+concerned in its happenings, and shall tell it in my own way.
+
+"Before I was married I used to feel that all we have to do in this
+world is to grow up like grass or clover-blossoms, and to perform our
+parts by being just as green or as sweet-smelling as our natures allow.
+But I do not think that way now. Along comes a cow, and our careers are
+ended. Of course we cannot get out of the way of our fate any more than
+grass can get out of the way of a cow; but it often happens that we can
+accommodate ourselves to our misfortunes. We can be content to being
+nibbled close; we can spring up again from the roots; or we can
+patiently wait until we blossom again the next summer.
+
+"It was about a year after I was married that I began to think about
+such things. We were spending a fortnight at the country house of one of
+my old friends, Mrs. Cheston; and although Bernard, my husband, was away
+most of the time, fishing with Mr. Cheston, we were enjoying ourselves
+very much. There was a village not far away where there were some very
+nice people, so that we had a good deal of pleasant social life, and it
+was not long before I became quite well acquainted with some of the
+village families.
+
+"One day Mrs. Cheston gave me a luncheon, to which she invited a good
+many of the village ladies; and, after they were all gone, we two sat on
+the piazza and talked about them. Two or three of our guests I had not
+met before, and in the course of our talk Emily mentioned the name of
+Margaret Temple.
+
+"'Temple?' said I. 'Which one was that? I do not recall her.'
+
+"'You were talking to her some time,' she replied. 'I think she was
+telling you about the mountains.'
+
+"'Oh, yes,' said I; 'she was pointing out those passes through which
+people go into the next county. She sat at the other end of the table,
+didn't she? She was dressed in black.'
+
+"'Oh, no,' said Emily, 'she was not dressed in black. She never wears
+black. I think she wore a brown dress with some sort of light trimming.'
+
+"'Oh, well,' said I, 'I did not notice her dress, and when I do not
+notice people's clothes I nearly always think they dress in black. Is
+she nice?'
+
+"'She is very nice indeed,' said Emily; 'everybody thinks that.'
+
+"'I wish I had seen more of her,' said I.
+
+"Emily did not answer this remark, but a smile came on her face which
+presently grew into a little laugh. I looked at her in surprise.
+
+"'What is there funny about Miss Temple?' I asked.
+
+"'Really there is nothing funny about her,' she replied, 'but I often
+laugh to myself when I think of her.'
+
+"I suddenly became very much interested in Miss Temple. 'Tell me why you
+do that,' I said. 'I always like to know why people laugh at other
+people.'
+
+"Emily now became very sober. 'You must not think,' she said, 'that
+there is anything ridiculous about Margaret Temple. There is not a finer
+woman to be found anywhere, and I do not believe there is anybody who
+laughs at her except myself. You know I am very apt to see the funny
+side of things.'
+
+"'And so am I!' I exclaimed. 'Do tell me about Miss Temple. It is so
+seldom there is anything amusing about a really nice person.'
+
+"Emily was silent for a moment, and then she said: 'Well, I do not know
+that there is any real harm in telling you what makes me laugh. A good
+many people know all about it; but I would not, for the world, have
+Margaret Temple find out that I told you.'
+
+"I assured her with great earnestness that if she would tell me, I would
+never breathe it to any living soul.
+
+"'Very well,' said Emily; 'I will trust you. As I said, it really isn't
+funny, but it is just this. It is a positive fact that five married
+ladies (I am certain of this number, and it may be more) have gone to
+Margaret Temple, during the past few years, and each one has asked her
+to become her husband's second wife in case she should die.'
+
+"I did not laugh; I exclaimed in amazement: 'Why did they all ask her? I
+did not notice anything particularly attractive about her.'
+
+"'I think that is the point,' said Emily. 'I do not think a woman is
+likely to want her husband to take an attractive woman for his second
+wife. If she had the chance to choose her successor, she would like her
+husband to have a really nice person, good in every way, but not one
+with whom he would be likely to fall violently in love. Don't you see
+the point of that?'
+
+"I replied that it was easy enough to see the point, but that there was
+another one. 'You must remember,' said I, 'that husbands are generally
+very particular; if one has had a young and handsome wife he would not
+be likely to be satisfied with anything less.'
+
+"Emily shook her head. 'I am older than you, Rosa, and have had more
+opportunities of noticing widowers. There are a great many things for
+them to think about when they marry a second time: their children, their
+positions, and all that. I believe that if a man and his wife discussed
+it, which they would not be likely to do, they would be very apt to be
+of the same mind in regard to the sort of person who ought to come in as
+number two. For my part, I do not wonder at all that so many women have
+cast their eyes on Margaret Temple as a person they would like to have
+take their places when they are gone. For one thing, you know they would
+not be jealous of her; this is very important. Then, they would be as
+certain as anything can be certain in this world that their children, if
+they had any, as well as their husbands, would be in most excellent
+hands. Often, when I have been thinking about her, I have called
+Margaret Temple the Vice-consort; but I have never told any one this.
+Please remember.'
+
+"So far I had not seen a thing to laugh at, but I was deeply interested.
+'How came all this to be known?' I asked. 'Has Miss Temple gone about
+telling people?'
+
+"'Oh, no, indeed; she is not that sort of person. A good many of the
+village ladies know it, and I think they always have heard it from those
+prudent ladies who were providing for their husbands' futures. People
+talk about it, of course, but they are very careful that nothing they
+say shall reach Margaret Temple's ears.'
+
+"'Tell me about some of the people,' I said, 'who want to secure Miss
+Temple as a successor. Do they all feel as though they are likely to
+die?'
+
+"'Not all of them,' answered Emily. 'There is Mrs. Hendrickson, who was
+obliged to go to Arizona on account of her father's property. He was
+very rich, and died not long ago. Her husband has to stay at home to
+attend to his business, and she could not take her little baby; and
+although she is just as healthy as anybody, she knew all the dangers of
+railroad travelling, and all sorts of things in that far-away place;
+and, before she packed her trunk, she went to Margaret Temple and asked
+her to promise that if she died out there, she, Margaret, would marry
+Mr. Hendrickson. This I know for certain, for Mrs. Hendrickson told me
+herself.'
+
+"'Did Miss Temple promise?'
+
+"'That I did not hear,' replied Emily. 'Mrs. Hendrickson was in a great
+hurry, and perhaps she did not intend to tell me, anyway. But I do not
+believe Margaret absolutely refused; at least, it would not have been
+prudent for her to do so. The Hendricksons are rich, and he is a fine
+man. There would be nothing in the way of such a match.'
+
+"'Except the return of the wife,' I remarked.
+
+"Emily smiled. 'And then there was poor Mrs. Windham,' she continued.
+'Everybody knew she asked Margaret. She left a son about eight years old
+who is very delicate. The poor woman has not been dead long enough for
+anything to come of that, but I do not believe anything ever will. There
+are people who say that Mr. Windham drinks; but I have seen no signs of
+it. Then there is another one--and no matter what you may hear people
+say about these things, you must never mention that I told you this.
+Mrs. Barnes, the rector's wife, has spoken to Margaret on the subject.
+She looks very well, so far as I can judge; but there is consumption in
+her family. She is almost bigoted in regard to the duties of a rector's
+wife. She tries just as hard as she can to fill the position properly
+herself, and she knows Mr. Barnes would never be satisfied with any one
+who did not agree with him as she does about the responsibilities of a
+rector's wife.'
+
+"'Does Margaret Temple agree with him?' I asked.
+
+"'I do not know, for I never talked with her on the subject,' replied
+Emily, 'but she is very apt to think what is right. Besides, it is
+believed that Mrs. Barnes has not only spoken to Margaret, but to
+the rector himself; and if he had not thought the plan a good one,
+Mrs. Barnes would have dropped it; and, from things I have heard her
+say, I know she has not dropped it.'
+
+"Emily looked as though she were about to rise, and I quickly exclaimed:
+'But that is only three. Who are the others?'
+
+"'One of them,' said she, 'is Mrs. Clinton. There is nothing the matter
+with her physically, but she is very rich, and is prudent and careful
+about everything that belongs to her, while her husband is not a
+business man at all and never has anything to do with money matters of
+importance. There are three children, and she has reason to feel anxious
+about them should they and their property be left in the charge of
+Mr. Clinton, or to the tender mercies of some woman who would marry him
+for the sake of his wealth. You can see for yourself that it is no
+wonder she casts her eyes upon Margaret. I believe Mrs. Clinton could
+die happy if she could see her husband and Margaret Temple promise
+themselves to each other at her bedside.'
+
+"'That seems to me to be horrid,' said I; 'but of course it would be
+extremely sensible. And the other one?'
+
+"'Oh, that matter does not amount to much,' said Emily. 'Old
+Mrs. Gloucester lives at the other end of the village, and she does not
+visit much, so you have not seen her. Her husband is old enough, dear
+knows, but not quite so old as she is. She is very much afraid that she
+will die and leave him with nobody to take care of him, for they have no
+children. They are very well off, and I dare say she thinks it would be
+a good thing for Margaret as well as for the old gentleman.'
+
+"'That is shameful,' said I; 'it would be the same thing as engaging a
+trained nurse.'
+
+"Emily laughed. 'I never heard how Margaret received this remarkable
+proposition,' she said, 'but I hope she was angry.'
+
+"'But, at any rate, it could never come to anything,' said I.
+
+"'Of course not,' answered Mrs. Cheston.
+
+"It is not surprising that after this conversation I took a great
+interest in Margaret Temple; and when she called the next morning I had
+a long and undisturbed talk with her, Mrs. Cheston being out. I am very
+fond of analyzing human character, and I often do it while I am riding
+in the street-cars; and it was not long before I had made up my mind as
+to what sort of woman Margaret Temple was. I set her down as what may be
+called a balanced person. In fact, I thought at the time she was a
+little too well balanced; if some of her characteristics had been a
+little more pronounced I think she would have been more interesting. But
+I liked her very much, and I remember I was almost as well pleased when
+she was talking to me as when she was listening, and I am sure there
+are very few persons, men or women, of whom I can say this."
+
+Here a smile came upon the faces of the company, but they were too
+polite to make any comment on what had called forth the smile. The
+Master of the House asked permission to light a cigar, and the Old
+Professor, who never smoked, remarked: "There is deep philosophy in all
+this."
+
+"I don't know about the philosophy," said the Next Neighbor, "but it is
+absolute truth. Well, after a time I began to wish that Miss Temple
+lived near our home, because she would be such an admirable person for a
+friend and neighbor. Then, suddenly, without any warning, there flashed
+through me the strangest feeling I ever had in my life. I must have
+turned pale, for Miss Temple asked me if I did not feel ill. I soon
+recovered from the effects of this strange feeling, and went on talking;
+but I was very glad when Mrs. Cheston came home, and took the
+conversation out of my hands.
+
+"For two or three days after this my mind was very much troubled, and
+Bernard thought that the air of that part of the country did not agree
+with me, and that we ought to go to the sea-shore. But this I positively
+refused to consider. There could be no sea-shore for me until a good
+many things had been settled. It was at this time that I first began to
+think that we cannot grow up fresh and green and blossom undisturbed,
+and that we must consider untimely cows coming along.
+
+"To make the state of my mind clearly understood, I must say that there
+is an hereditary disease in my family. I had never thought anything
+about it, for there had been no reason why I should; but now I did
+think about it, and there did seem to be reason. My grandfather had had
+this disease, and had died of it. To be sure, he was very old; but that
+did not matter: he died of it, all the same. It never troubled my
+father, but this made no difference, so far as I was concerned, for I
+have always heard that hereditary diseases are apt to skip a generation,
+and if this one had skipped, there was nobody for it to skip to but me;
+for I have no brothers or sisters.
+
+"The more I thought on this subject, the more troubled my mind became,
+and at last I believed it to be my duty to speak to Bernard, although I
+did not tell him all my thoughts; for I had had a good many that were
+not necessarily connected with hereditary diseases. I was positively
+amazed at the way my husband received what I told him. I had expected
+that perhaps he might pooh-pooh the whole thing, but he did nothing of
+the kind. He became very serious, and talked to me in the most earnest
+way.
+
+"'Now, Rosa,' said he, 'I am glad you told me about this, and I want to
+impress it upon your mind that you must be very careful. In the first
+place, you must totally give up hot spirits and water. You must not
+drink more than two glasses of wine, or three at the utmost, at any of
+your meals. When you get up in the morning you must totally abstain from
+drinking those mixtures that are taken by some people to give appetite
+for breakfast. At night you must try to do without any sort of punch or
+toddy to make you sleep. If you will take this advice, and restrict
+yourself to water and milk, and not over-rich food, I think you may
+reasonably expect to live longer than your grandfather did, although I
+cannot imagine why any one should want to live that long.'
+
+"Of course I was angry at all this, for I saw then that he was making
+fun of me; and I said no more to him, for he was not in the right frame
+of mind to listen to me. But I did not stop thinking.
+
+"I now became very intimate with Miss Temple. I began to like her very
+much, and I think she liked me. I continued to study her, and I became
+convinced that she was a woman to whom a very fastidious man might be
+attracted--I do not mean that he would fall in love with her, but that
+he would be perfectly satisfied with her. In fact, I summed up her
+character by assuring myself that in every way she was perfectly
+satisfactory. I have known other women who were more charming, but they
+all had faults; and I do not see how any one could have found fault with
+Miss Temple.
+
+"One day we had taken a long walk, and were on our way home when I began
+to talk to her about my own affairs. I thought I knew her so well in a
+general way that the time had come for me to find out some things more
+definitely. I began in an offhand but cautious manner to talk about
+Bernard. I alluded to his love of outdoor sports, and mentioned that I
+thought it my duty frequently to speak to him in regard to the terrible
+consequences which might follow a false step when he was out fishing,
+and that I thought it necessary to repeat this advice very often, for it
+was my opinion he paid very little attention to it. I also made several
+other allusions to his indisposition to take care of himself, and
+remarked how very necessary it was for me to look after his health. I
+mentioned his great carelessness in regard to flannel, and told her that
+it was often quite late in the autumn before he would make any change in
+his clothing.
+
+"Then I spoke of his domestic habits; and, as I saw Miss Temple seemed
+much interested, I talked a good deal about them. He was the most loving
+husband in the world, I said, and was always anxious to know what he
+could do for me more than he was already doing; but when we were in the
+city he did like to go out in the evenings, and I thought he went to his
+club too often. Of course, I said, I did not say anything to him about
+it, for I would not want him to think that I desired him to deny himself
+the company of other gentlemen; but the habit of club attendance was one
+that might grow on a man, especially a young one, and there were a good
+many other things that might result from it, such as excessive smoking.
+So I had thought it well to offer him additional inducements for
+spending his evenings at home, and I had begun a regular system of
+reading aloud. It had proved very beneficial to both of us, for I chose
+good, standard books; and although he sometimes went to sleep, that was
+to be expected, for Bernard was a hard-working man. As for myself, I
+liked this reading aloud very much, although at first it was rather
+tiresome, as I had never been used to it. Then I asked her if she liked
+reading aloud--it is such a good way of giving pleasure to others at the
+same time that you are pleasing yourself. She smiled, and said she was
+very fond of reading aloud.
+
+"Then I changed the subject to churches and preachers, for I did not
+want her to think I was saying too much about my husband, and asked
+her who was the best preacher in the village. When she said it was
+Mr. Barnes, I asked her if she went to his church. She answered that she
+did, and then I told her that I was also an Episcopalian, but that
+Bernard's parents were Methodists. I did not think, however, that this
+would make much difference, for when he began to go regularly to church,
+I was sure he would rather go with me than to travel off somewhere by
+himself.
+
+"I did not suppose that Miss Temple would care so much about what I was
+saying, but she did seem to care, and listened attentively to every
+word.
+
+"'You must not think I am talking too much about my family affairs,' I
+remarked, 'but doesn't it strike you that a really good wife ought to
+try just as hard as she can to be on good terms with her husband's
+family, no matter how queer they may be? I mean the women in it; for
+they are more likely to be queer than the men. For if she does not do
+this,' I continued, 'the worst of the trouble, if there is any, will
+come on him. He will have to take sides either with his wife or his
+sisters,--and mother too, if he happens to have one,--and that would be
+sure to make him unhappy if he is a good-hearted man, such as Bernard
+is.'
+
+"At this Miss Temple burst out laughing, and it was the first time I
+had ever heard her laugh so heartily. As soon as she could speak she
+exclaimed: 'Are you going to ask me to marry your husband if you should
+happen to die?'
+
+"I must have turned as red as the most scarlet poppy, for I felt my face
+burn. I hesitated a little, but I was obliged to tell the truth, and so
+I stammered out that I had been thinking of something of the kind.
+
+"'Oh, please don't look so troubled,' said she. 'Several persons have
+spoken to me on the same subject; but I never should have dreamed that
+such an idea would come into your head. I think it is the funniest thing
+in the world!' And then she laughed again.
+
+"I was greatly embarrassed, and all I could say was that I hoped I had
+not offended her.
+
+"'Oh, not in the least,' she said. 'I am getting used to this sort of
+thing, and I can bear it.'
+
+"This remark helped me very much, for I resented it. 'I do not see what
+there is to bear,' I said. 'Such a man as Bernard--and then I have
+special reasons--'
+
+"'Oh, yes,' she interrupted quickly; 'each one has a special reason. But
+there is one general reason that is common to all. Now tell me, my
+dear,'--and as she spoke she took both my hands and looked steadily into
+my face,--'were you not about to ask me to marry your husband, in case
+of your death, because you could think of it without being jealous of
+me, and because you are afraid he might marry some one of whom you would
+probably be jealous if you knew of it?'
+
+"She looked at me in such a kind, strong way that I was obliged to
+confess that this was my reason for speaking to her about Bernard. 'I
+cannot exactly explain,' I added, and my face burned again, 'why I
+should think about you in this way; but I hope you will not imagine--'
+
+"'Oh, I shall not imagine anything that will be disagreeable to you,'
+she said; and she looked just as good-humored as possible."
+
+"Does that lady live in any place where my wife can get at her?" asked
+the Master of the House, as the Next Neighbor paused to take breath.
+
+"I have not yet developed a disease," said the Mistress of the House.
+
+"Well, when you do, please find that woman. She is a very good sort."
+
+"I shall have an opinion on that subject, papa," said the Daughter of
+the House.
+
+"You little minx!" he replied. "I shall see that you are provided for
+before that."
+
+"It is not well to joke about so serious a matter," said the Next
+Neighbor, "as you will see when I finish my story.
+
+"For a little while Miss Temple walked on in silence, and I tried hard
+to think of what would be proper for me to say next, when suddenly she
+stopped.
+
+"'We are not far from the house now,' she said, 'and before we get there
+I want to set your mind at rest by telling you that if you should die
+before your husband, and if nothing should happen at any time or in any
+way to interfere with such a plan, I will marry your Bernard and take
+good care of him. I have never made such a positive promise to any one,
+but I do not mind making it to you. I am sure I need not ask you to say
+nothing about this compact to your husband.'
+
+"I was stunned, but I managed to stammer: 'Oh, no, indeed!'
+
+"Fortunately for me, Miss Temple did not stay to supper. I do not think
+I could have borne to see her and Bernard together. It was bad enough
+as it was. I felt greatly humiliated; I could not understand how I could
+have done such a thing. It was worse than selling a birthright--it was
+giving away the dearest thing on earth. I trembled from head to foot
+when Bernard came home from fishing. I do not believe I ever before
+greeted him so affectionately. My emotion troubled him, and he asked me
+if I were ill, and if I had been lonely and bored while he was away. He
+was just as good as good could be, and began to talk again about going
+to the sea-shore. I did not object this time, for I could not know what
+would be best to do.
+
+"In the evening, after every one else had gone indoors, I begged him to
+sit longer on the piazza, and to smoke another cigar. He was quite
+surprised, because, as he said, I had never asked him to do such a thing
+before, but had rather discouraged his smoking. But I declared I wanted
+to sit with him in the moonlight all by ourselves. And so we did until
+his cigar was finished.
+
+"For the first hour of that night I did not sleep a wink, my mind was so
+troubled. I felt as though I were not really Bernard's wife, but some
+sort of a guardian angel who was watching over him to see that somebody
+else made him happy. After I had thus been in the depths of grief for a
+long while, I became angry.
+
+"'She shall never have him!' I said to myself. 'I will make it the
+object of my life to live longer than he does. My grandfather lived to
+be much older than ordinary men, and why should not I have as long a
+life? Perhaps it was the things he ate and drank, and his jovial
+disposition, that gave him such longevity. If I were sure of this I
+would be willing to take hot drinks at night, and wine at dinner. No;
+Bernard must not be left behind.' It was while making up my mind very
+firmly about this that I fell asleep.
+
+"The next morning I was possessed with an overwhelming desire to go to
+see Miss Temple. Why I should do so I could not tell myself. I certainly
+did not want to see her; I did not wish to speak to her; I did not want
+her to say anything to me: but I felt that I must go; and I went. She
+received me very pleasantly, and did not say one word about our
+conversation of the day before. There were a good many things I should
+have liked to say, but I did not know how, unless she gave me the
+opportunity. But she did not, and so it happened that we talked only
+about something she was sewing--I do not know whether it was a
+shirt-waist or an army blanket. In fact, I did not hear one word she
+said about her stupid work, whatever it was, I was so busy re-studying
+her face, her character, and everything about her. I now found she was
+much more than satisfactory--she was really good-looking. Her eyes were
+not very large, but they were soft and dark. Her voice was clear and
+sweet. I had noticed this before, but, until now, I had not thought of
+it as an objection. There were a good many other things that might be
+very effective to a man, especially to one with half-healed sorrows. I
+acknowledged to myself that I had been mistaken in her, and I did not
+doubt she had deceived a good many other people in that neighborhood.
+
+"When I rose to leave, she stood for a moment, looking at me as though
+she expected me to say something on the subject which was certainly
+interesting to her as well as to me. But now I did not want to talk, and
+I gave her no chance to say anything. I walked rapidly home, feeling as
+jealous of Margaret Temple as any woman could feel of another.
+
+"I was glad that day that Bernard liked to go fishing, for my mind was
+in such a condition that I did not think of anything that might happen
+to him--at least, anything but just one thing, and that was awful. Emily
+Cheston supposed I had a headache, and I let her think so, for it gave
+me more time to myself. I looked at the thing that threatened to crush
+all my happiness, on every possible side. Early in the morning a ray of
+relief had come to my troubled mind, and this was that I did not believe
+he would have her, anyway. But I had seen her since, and no such ray
+comforted me now.
+
+"I knew, as I had not known before, what a power she might have over a
+man. Widowers, I thought, are generally ready enough to marry again;
+but, no matter what they think about it, they mostly wait a good while,
+for the sake of appearances. But this would be different. When a man
+knows that his wife had selected some one as her successor--and he would
+be sure to know this, the woman would see to that--he would not feel it
+necessary to wait. He would be carrying out his dead wife's wishes, and
+of course in this there should be no delay. Oh, horrible! When I thought
+of myself as Bernard's dead wife, and that woman living, I actually
+kicked the stool my feet were resting on. I vowed in my mind the thing
+should never be. I felt better after I had made this vow, although I had
+not thought of any way by which I could carry it out. Certainly I was
+not going to say anything to Bernard about it, one way or another."
+
+Here the Next Neighbor paused again. And at that moment the red thrush
+gave a little low trill, as much as to say: "Listen to me now." Then he
+twittered and chirped in a tentative way as if he had not made up his
+mind about singing, and the party on the terrace felt like clapping to
+encourage him.
+
+"I wonder if he knows he has an audience," said the Daughter of the
+House, in a very low tone.
+
+"He knows it is impolite to interrupt the story," said her father. "No;
+there he goes!"
+
+And, sure enough, the bird, having decided that on the whole it would
+help matters in whatever direction he wished them to be helped, sang
+out, clear and loud, what seemed to his audience the most delightful
+song he had yet given them.
+
+When he had finished, the Next Neighbor said: "That was so full of soul
+I hate to go on with my very material story."
+
+"It strikes me," said the Old Professor, "that there is a good deal of
+soul in your story."
+
+"Thank you," said the Next Neighbor, as she again took up the thread of
+her narrative.
+
+"That evening, prompted by a sudden impulse, I went up to Bernard, and,
+looking into his face, I declared that I would never leave him.
+
+"'What!' he exclaimed. 'Has any one been asking you to leave me?'
+
+"'Of course not,' said I, a little irritated--he has such queer ways of
+taking what I say. 'I mean I am not going to die before you do. I am not
+going to leave you in this world to take care of yourself.'
+
+"He looked at me as though he did not understand me, and I do not
+suppose he did, although he only said: 'I am delighted to hear that, my
+dear girl. But how are you going to manage it? How about that hereditary
+disease you were talking of the other day?'
+
+"'I have nothing to say about that,' I answered; 'but if I live as long
+as my grandfather did, I do not believe that your being a little older
+than I am would--I mean that you would not be left alone. Don't you
+understand?'
+
+"Bernard did not laugh. 'You are the dearest little woman in the world,'
+he said, 'and I believe you would do anything to make me happy--you
+would even be willing to survive me, so that I should never lose you.
+But don't let us talk any more about such doleful things. We are both
+going to live to be a great deal older than your grandfather. Now I will
+tell you something pleasant: I had a letter this morning, just as I was
+starting out. I put it in my pocket, and did not have time to open it
+until we were eating our lunch. It is from my brother George, who is
+going to England next month, you know; and as he wants to see something
+of us before he starts, he intends to spend a few days in the village,
+so that he can be with us. He is coming to-morrow.'
+
+"A ray of hope shot into my heart so bright that I could almost feel it
+burn.
+
+"'Well,' said Bernard, 'what have you to say to this? Aren't you glad
+that George is coming?'
+
+"'Glad!' I replied. 'I am more than delighted.'
+
+"Bernard looked as though he did not understand this extraordinary
+ecstasy; but as he was used to not understanding me, I do not suppose
+he thought it worth while to bother himself about it.
+
+"George was a fine young fellow, and, next to Bernard, I thought he was
+the best man in the world. It will be remembered that I had no brother,
+and George was always as kind and brotherly as he could be. I was fond
+of him even before I was married; in fact, I knew him quite well before
+I became acquainted with Bernard; and I was always glad to see him. But
+I had never been so delighted to think he was coming as I was then. My
+face must have shown this, for Bernard laughingly said:
+
+"'You must be awfully glad to see George.'
+
+"'I am glad,' I answered; and as I spoke I thought that if he knew
+everything he would understand why my eyes glistened, as I am sure they
+did.
+
+"The reason of my great joy was that a plan had suddenly come into my
+mind. George had spoken to me several times about marrying, and he had
+told me just what kind of a wife he wanted; and now, as I remembered
+what he had said on the subject, it seemed to me he had been describing
+Margaret Temple. He wanted a wife who was good-looking but not a belle,
+and she must be sensible and practical, a good housekeeper, and a
+charming hostess. Besides, she must be intellectual, and fond of books,
+and appreciate art, and all that. Moreover, he had said he would like
+her to be just about a year older than himself, because he thought that
+was a good proportion in a young couple. It was apt to make the man look
+up to his wife a little, which might not be the case if he were the
+elder. I remembered this, because when he told me I wished very much
+that I were a year older than Bernard.
+
+"Now, as I said before, all this seemed as though he had been talking of
+Miss Temple; and I, knowing her so well, could see other points than
+those he mentioned in which she would suit him as no other woman could.
+If George would fall in love with Miss Temple,--and there was no earthly
+reason why he should not, for Bernard told me he was going to make him
+stay a week,--then everything would be all right; all my anxieties, my
+forebodings, and my jealousies would be gone, and I should be as happy
+as I was before I met that dear girl, Miss Temple.
+
+"This was not all idle fancy. My plan was founded on good, practical
+ideas. If George married Margaret everything would be settled in an
+absolutely perfect way. If I should die Bernard would not need to marry
+anybody; in fact, I did not believe that in this case he would want to.
+He would go to live with George and Margaret; their home would be his
+home, and he would always have both of them to take care of him and to
+make him happy in every possible way in which anybody could make him
+happy. In my mind's eye I could see him in the best room in the house,
+with all sorts of comforts and luxuries about him--our present comforts
+and luxuries would make a great show gathered together in one room; and
+then I saw Margaret and George standing at the open door, asking if
+there were anything he would like, and what they could do for him. As
+this mental picture came before me my eyes involuntarily went around
+that room to see if there were a picture of me on the wall; and there it
+was, and no portrait of any other woman anywhere about.
+
+"In a flash the whole thing became so horrible to me that I threw myself
+on the bed and began to cry convulsively. Bernard heard me, and came
+up-stairs, and I was obliged to tell him I had a sudden pain. He does
+not like sudden pains, and sat down and talked to me a good while about
+what I had been eating. Before long, however, I grew calm, and was able
+to think about my plans in a common-sense, practical way. Truly there
+could be nothing better for my present comfort and Bernard's future
+happiness: Margaret and George to take care of him, and my image
+undimmed in his heart. I felt like one who has insured his life for the
+benefit of a loved one, so, no matter what might happen to him, he would
+have, as long as he lived, the joy of knowing what he had done for the
+loved one.
+
+"When George came the next day he was just the same splendid old George,
+and I do not believe any one ever received a warmer welcome from a
+sister-in-law than I gave him. Bernard made a little fun of me, as
+usual, and said he believed I would rather see George than him.
+
+"'Nonsense,' said I; 'I am always glad to see you, but I am especially
+glad to see George.'
+
+"Bernard whistled, and looked at me in the same queer way that he looked
+at me when he once had said laughingly that he believed if I had never
+met him I would have married George, and I had answered that if I had
+been sure he did not exist it might have been a good thing for me to
+marry George.
+
+"Miss Temple did not come to the house that morning, as she so often
+did, but I asked Emily to send over and invite her to tea; for I did not
+wish to lose any time in the carrying out of my plans. It was about the
+middle of the afternoon when Bernard and his brother came in from a
+walk. I had been anxious to see George, because I wanted to talk with
+him about Margaret before he met her. I was going to speak very
+guardedly, of course; but I knew it would be well to prepare his mind,
+and I had made up my mind exactly what I was going to say.
+
+"I artfully managed so that George and I walked over the lawn to a bench
+in the shade of a big tree where there was something or other--I
+entirely forget what it was--which I said I would show him. Mr. and
+Mrs. Cheston and Bernard were on the piazza, but I did not ask them to
+join us.
+
+"We sat down on the bench, and, in a general sort of way, I asked him
+what he had been doing, meaning presently to bring up the subject of
+Margaret, for I did not know what time she might drop in. But George was
+just as anxious to talk as I was, and, being a man, he was a little more
+pushing, and he said:
+
+"'Now, little Rosa, I am so glad you came down here with me, for I have
+something on my mind I want to tell you, and I want to do it myself,
+before anybody else interferes. It is just this: I am engaged to be
+married, and as soon as I get back from England I am going to--' And
+then he opened his eyes very wide and looked hard at me. 'What is the
+matter, Rosa?' he exclaimed. 'Don't you feel well?'
+
+"In one instant all my plans and hopes and happy dreams of the future
+had dropped to the ground, and had been crushed into atoms.
+
+"'Well!' said I, and I think I spoke in a queer voice. 'I am very well.
+There is nothing the matter with me. What is her name?'
+
+"He told me; but I had never heard it before, and it was of no more
+importance to me than the buzzing of a bee.
+
+"'It will be very nice,' I said; 'and now let us go up to the house and
+tell the others.'
+
+"I think that for a woman who had just received such a blow as had been
+dealt to me I behaved very well indeed. But I was cold and, I suspect,
+pale. I listened as the others talked, but I did not say much myself;
+and, as soon as I could make some excuse, I went up to my room. There I
+threw myself into a great chair, and gently cried myself to sleep. I did
+not sob loudly, because I did not want Bernard to come up again. When I
+awoke I had a dreadful headache, and I made up my mind I would not go
+down to tea. I could do no good by going down, and, so far as I was
+concerned, it did not matter in the least whether Margaret was there or
+not. In fact, I did not care about anything. Let George marry whoever he
+pleased. If I should die Margaret Temple had promised to take care of
+Bernard. Everything was settled, and there was no sense in making any
+more plans. So I got ready for another nap, and when Bernard came up I
+told him I had a headache, and did not want any tea.
+
+"That evening Bernard sat and looked at me without speaking, as was
+sometimes his habit, and then he said:
+
+"'Rosa, I do not understand this at all, and I want you to tell me why
+you were so extravagantly glad when you found my brother George was
+coming here, and why you were so overcome by your emotions when you
+heard of his engagement.'
+
+"'Oh, Bernard,' I cried, 'if it were anybody else I might tell
+everything, but I cannot tell you--I cannot tell you!' And I am sure I
+spoke truly, for how could I have told that dear man what I had said to
+Margaret Temple; and how jealous I had been of her afterwards; and how I
+had planned for her to marry George; and that, after my funeral, he
+should go to live with them; and about my picture on the wall; and all
+the rest of it? It was simply impossible. And if he did not know all
+this, how could he understand my feelings when I heard that George was
+engaged?
+
+"I could not answer him; I could only sob, and repeat what I had said
+before--that if it were anybody else I might speak, but that I could
+never tell him. Soon after that he went down-stairs, and I went to
+sleep.
+
+"Bernard was never cross with me,--I do not believe he could be if he
+tried,--but the next morning he was very quiet, and soon after breakfast
+he and Mr. Cheston and George went fishing. If the incidents of the day
+before had not occurred I suppose they would have done something in
+which Emily and I could have joined; but some sort of change had come
+over things, and it was plain enough that even George did not want me.
+So I sat alone under the tree where George had told me of his
+engagement, feeling very much troubled and very lonely. I wanted to tell
+everything to somebody, but there was no one to tell. It would be
+impossible to speak to Emily; she would have no sympathy with me; and if
+I should tell her everything I had planned, I knew she would laugh at me
+unmercifully. I think it would have pleased me better to speak to George
+than to any one else; he had always been so sympathetic and kind; but
+now things were changed, and he would not care to interest himself in
+the affairs of any woman except the one to whom he was engaged. It was
+terrible to sit there and think that there was not a person in the
+world, not even my husband, to whom I could look for sympathy and
+comfort. If I had not been out in the open air, where people could have
+seen me, I should have cried.
+
+"Happening to look up, I saw some one on the piazza. It was that
+horrible Margaret Temple; and when she gazed about from side to side she
+saw me under the tree, and as I, apparently, took no notice of her, she
+stepped down from the piazza and came walking across the lawn toward me.
+If I had been a man I should have cursed my fate; not only was I
+deprived of every comfort, but here came the disturber of my peace to
+make me still more unhappy.
+
+"I do not remember what she said when she reached me, but I know she
+spoke very pleasantly; nor do I remember what I replied, but I am sure I
+did not speak pleasantly. I was out of humor with the whole world, and
+particularly with her. She brought a little chair that was near by, and
+sat down by me. She was a very straightforward person about speaking,
+and so she said, without any preface:
+
+"'Have you told your husband of that arrangement you made with me if he
+should survive you?'
+
+"'Of course I have not!' I exclaimed. 'Do you think I would tell him a
+thing like that, especially when I said I would not? The fact is,' I
+continued,--and it was very hard for me to keep from crying as I
+spoke,--'I am just loaded down with trouble, and I cannot tell anybody.'
+
+"'I knew you were troubled,' she replied, 'and that is the reason I came
+this morning. Why can't you tell me what is the matter?'
+
+"At first this made me angry, and I felt like bouncing off to the house
+and never speaking to her again; but in the next instant I changed my
+mind. It would serve her right if I told her everything; and so I did.
+I made her feel exactly how I had felt when I had thought of her in my
+place, and how I had determined that it should never be. Then I went on
+and told her all my plans about George and herself; and how Bernard was
+to board with them if I died. I made the story a good deal longer than
+I have made it here. Then I finished by telling her of George's
+engagement, and how nothing had come of the whole thing except that
+Bernard had supposed that I thought too much of George, and had gone
+away that morning as cold as a common acquaintance; and that I felt as
+though my whole life had been wrecked, and that she had done it.
+
+"It was easy to see that she was not affected as she should have been by
+what I said. In fact, she looked as though she wanted to laugh; but her
+respect for me prevented that.
+
+"'I do not see,' she said, 'how I have wrecked your life.'
+
+"'That may be so,' I answered, 'but it is because you do not want to see
+it. I should think that even you would admit that it is enough to drive
+me crazy to see any woman waiting and longing for the day which would
+give her that which I prize more than anything else in the world. And to
+think what you are aspiring to! None of the old left-overs that other
+people have offered to you, but my Bernard, the very prince of men! I do
+not wonder you were so quick to promise me you would take him!'
+
+"She jumped up, and I thought she was going away; but she did not go,
+and turned again toward me, and remarked, just as coolly as anybody
+could speak: 'Well, I do not wonder, either. Your Bernard is a most
+estimable man, and if nothing should happen in any way or at any time to
+interfere in the case of his surviving you I shall be happy to marry
+him. I think I would make him a very good wife.'
+
+"At this I sprang to my feet, and I am sure my eyes and cheeks were
+blazing. 'Do you mean,' I cried, 'that you would make him a better wife
+than I do?'
+
+"'That is a question,' she said, 'that is not easy to answer, and needs
+a good deal of consideration.' And she spoke with as much deliberation
+as if she were trying to decide whether it would be better to cover a
+floor with matting or carpet. 'For one thing, I do not believe I would
+nag him.'
+
+"'Nag!' I exclaimed. 'What do you mean by that? Do you suppose I nag
+him?'
+
+"'I do not know anything about it,' she answered, 'except what you told
+me yourself; and what you said was my reason for agreeing so quickly to
+your proposition.'
+
+"'Nag!' I cried. But then I stopped. I thought it would be better to
+wait until I could think over what I had said to her before I pursued
+this subject. 'But I can tell you one thing,' I continued, 'and that is
+that you need not have any hopes in the direction of my husband. I am
+going to tell him everything just as soon as he comes home, even about
+you and George; and I am going to make him promise that, no matter what
+happens, he will never marry you.'
+
+[Illustration: "Do you mean," I cried, "that you would make him a better
+wife than I do?"]
+
+"I think these words made some impression on her, for she answered very
+quickly: 'I am not sure that it will be wise to tell him everything; but
+if you are determined to do so, I must insist that you will tell him
+something more; and that is that I am engaged to be married, and have
+been for nearly a year.'
+
+"'And you have been deceiving all these anxious wives?' I cried.
+
+"'I never made promises to any one but to you,' she answered; 'and I
+would not have done that if I had not liked you so much.'
+
+"'You have a funny way of liking,' I remarked.
+
+"She merely smiled, and went on: 'And I should not have told you of my
+engagement if I had not thought it would be safer to do so, considering
+the story you are going to tell your husband.'
+
+"'And it is because I consider it safer that I am going to tell him that
+story,' I replied.
+
+                *       *       *       *       *
+
+"That afternoon, as soon as I was alone with Bernard,--I did not give
+him any time to show me any of his common-acquaintance coolness,--I told
+him the whole thing from beginning to end. He listened so earnestly that
+one might have thought he was in church; but when I came to the part
+about his boarding with George and Miss Temple he could not help
+laughing. He excused himself, however, and told me to go on. He looked
+very happy when I had told him my story, and no one would have supposed
+that he had ever assumed the air of a mere common acquaintance.
+
+"'You are such a good little wife!' he exclaimed. 'And you are always
+trying to do things to make me happy. But you must not take so much
+labor and anxiety upon yourself. I want to help you in every way that I
+can, and in such a case you ought to let me do it.'
+
+"'But how could you help me in the trouble I have been telling you
+about?' I asked.
+
+"'Easily enough,' he answered. 'Now, if you had taken me into your
+confidence, I would have told you that I consider Miss Temple too tall a
+woman for my fancy.'
+
+"'She is,' I said. 'I did not think so at first, but I can see it
+plainly now.'
+
+"'Then, again, she is too practical-minded.'
+
+"'Entirely too much so,' I agreed.
+
+"'And in other respects she is not up to my standard,' continued
+Bernard. 'So I think, Rosa, that if you should ever take up such a
+scheme again we should act together. I am sure my opinion would be of
+great advantage to you in helping you to select some one who should take
+up the work of making me happy--'
+
+"'You are perfectly horrid!' I exclaimed; and I stopped his mouth.
+
+"That was the end of the matter; but I never learned to like Margaret
+Temple. To be sure, I thought seriously of some things she had said; but
+then, people can consider things people say without liking the people
+who say them. I pity her husband."
+
+Just then came the summons to luncheon, and this story was not commented
+upon.
+
+
+
+
+                      THIS STORY IS TOLD BY
+
+                           JOHN GAYTHER
+
+                          AND IS CALLED
+
+                      BLACKGUM AG'IN' THUNDER
+
+
+
+
+XI
+
+BLACKGUM AG'IN' THUNDER
+
+
+John Gayther and the Daughter of the House walked in the garden. The
+melons were ripe now, and it was a pleasure to push aside the coarse
+leaves and find beneath them the tropical-looking fruit with the pretty
+network tracery covering the gray-green rind. The grape-vines, too, were
+things of beauty, hanging full of great white, yellow, red, and purple
+clusters. The tomatoes gleamed scarlet and purple-red thickly among the
+plants. The cabbages had curled themselves up into compact heads that
+looked like big folded roses set in an open cluster of leaves. There
+were rows of green-leaved turnips, red-leaved beets, and feathery-leaved
+carrots. The ears were standing stiff in the corn rows.
+
+In the orchard the peaches were rosy and downy, the plums ready to drop
+with lusciousness; ruddy-cheeked pears were crowded on the drooping
+branches; the apples, not so plentiful, were taking on the colors that
+proclaimed their near fruition; and even the knotty quinces were growing
+fair and golden. On the upper terrace the stately, delicate cosmos was
+waving in the wind; great beds of low marigolds were flaunting their
+rich colors in the bright sunlight; the dahlias lifted into the air,
+stiffly and proudly, their great blossoms of varying forms; the
+clove-pinks, lowly and delicate in color, gave forth the fragrance of
+the springtime which they had held stored up in their tender blossoms;
+and the early chrysanthemums were unfolding their plumes.
+
+"I love the late August-time," said John Gayther, as the two sat down to
+rest in the summer-house after a long stay in the garden. "I have a
+singular feeling, which I hope is not irreverent, that the great Creator
+is pleased with me for having brought this work to perfection, and the
+thought gives me great peace of mind."
+
+"It does sound a little presumptuous, John," said the young lady.
+
+"Not in the way I mean it," replied John. "We are told that God gives
+abundantly of the fruits and blossoms that gladden our hearts and eyes.
+But this is only partly true. There may be some lands where nothing need
+be done to these God-given fruits and vegetables and flowers. I do not
+know. But in this happy land, although he does abundantly give us the
+material to work upon, he expects us to do the work. Else what would be
+the use of gardens? And if there were no need of gardens there would be
+no gardens; and how desolate would life be without gardens!"
+
+"I see what you mean, John," said the young lady. "We could not go into
+the woods, or on to the plains, and find the fruits and vegetables that
+grow so well in this garden. If they were there at all they would be
+poor and undeveloped."
+
+"Exactly so," said John. "And in my garden I garner up God's gifts; and
+I select the best, and then the best of the best, and so on and on; and
+I watch, oh, so carefully, for everything hurtful; and I water; and I
+prune off the dead branches; and enrich the ground. And so I work and
+work, with God's help of the sunshine and the rain; and at last, when it
+all comes to what we see to-day, I cannot but feel that God is pleased
+with me for bringing about the fruition he knew I could accomplish with
+the material given by what some people call nature and I call God. That
+is what a garden is for, and in that way it glorifies him."
+
+They were both silent for some time. The young girl was thinking that
+while all that John had said was true, she could not, like him, love
+this season best of all. Its very perfection and full fruition were
+saddening, for that must inevitably be followed by decay. The old man
+was thinking that while youth and its promise for the future was
+beautiful, the resignation and peacefulness of an accomplished life was
+far more beautiful.
+
+The red thrush broke into song and startled them both. The old man
+listened to it as if it were a paean of thanksgiving for the garden and
+all that it had given, and wished he were able to join his voice with
+the music of the bird. As the young girl listened it seemed to her that
+the song was as clear and sweet and happy as it had been in the spring.
+And she marvelled.
+
+"What a pity! We have missed the bird!" A voice broke into the stillness
+that had followed the song. It was the Mistress of the House who was
+approaching, followed by the Master of the House, the Next Neighbor, and
+the Old Professor.
+
+"I was wondering why you were not all here some time ago," said the
+Daughter of the House.
+
+"Kept by company," said the Master of the House, as they all came
+forward and took their accustomed places. "Not half as agreeable as the
+bird, nor as interesting as the story John promised to tell. I hope it
+will not be as solemn as your countenance, John."
+
+Nobody was ever solemn long when the Master of the House was present,
+and John Gayther's countenance immediately was lighted up by a smile. "I
+could not think of telling you a solemn story," he said, "and this one
+is about a peculiar character I knew. His name was Abner Batterfield,
+and he was a farmer. One day he was forty-five years old. He was also
+tired. Having finished hoeing his last row of corn, he sat down on a
+bench at his front door, took off his wide and dilapidated straw hat,
+and wiped his brow. Presently his wife came out. She was a little more
+than forty-five years old, and of phenomenal physical and mental
+endurance. She had lived seventeen years with Abner, and her natural
+vigor was not impaired.
+
+"'Supper's ready,' said she.
+
+"Her husband heaved a sigh, and stretched out his weary legs in unison.
+
+"'Supper,' he repeated; 'it's allus eat, and work, and sleep!'
+
+"'Perhaps you'd like to leave out the eatin',' said Mrs. Batterfield;
+'that would save lots.'
+
+"Her husband ignored this remark. His farm was small, but it was too big
+for him. He had no family except himself and wife, but the support of
+that family taxed his energies. There was a certain monotony connected
+with coming out short at the end of the year which was wearisome to his
+soul.
+
+"'Mrs. B.,' said he, 'I've made up my mind to start over again.'
+
+"'Goin' back to the corn-field?' she asked. 'You'd better have your
+supper first.'
+
+"'No,' said he; 'it's different. I've been thinkin' about it all day,
+and I'm goin' to begin life over ag'in.'
+
+"'At your age it would be more fit fer you to consider the proper endin'
+of it,' said she.
+
+"'I knew you'd say that, Mrs. B.; I knew you'd say that! You never do
+agree with me in any of my plans and undertakin's.'
+
+"'Which accounts fer our still havin' a roof over our heads,' said she.
+
+"'But, I can tell you, this time I'm a-goin' ahead. I don't care what
+people say; I don't care what they do, or what they don't do; I'm goin'
+ahead. It'll be blackgum ag'in' thunder this time, and I'm blackgum.
+You've heard about the thunder and lightnin' tacklin' a blackgum-tree?'
+
+"'Ever since I was born,' said she.
+
+"'Well, there's a awful scatterin' of dust and chips when that sort of a
+fight is on; but nobody ever yet heard of thunder gettin' the better of
+a blackgum-tree. And I'm goin' to be a blackgum!'
+
+"Mrs. Batterfield made no reply to this remark, but in her heart she
+said: 'And I'm goin' to be thunder.'
+
+"The next morning, Abner Batterfield put on his best clothes, and walked
+to the little town about two miles distant. He didn't enter the business
+part of the place, but turned into a shady side street where stood a
+small one-story building, almost by itself. This was the village
+library, and the librarian was sitting in the doorway, reading a book.
+He was an elderly man of comfortable contour, and wore no glasses, even
+for the finest print.
+
+"'Mornin', Abner,' said the librarian; 'have you brought back that
+book?'
+
+"Abner seated himself on the door-step. 'No, I haven't, Mr. Brownsill,'
+said he; 'I forgot it. I forgot it, but I remember some things that's in
+it, and I've come to talk about 'em.'
+
+"'Very good,' said the librarian, closing the volume of Salmon's
+Geographical Grammar with his finger at page 35, treating of paradoxes,
+and remarked: 'Well, Abner, what is it?'
+
+"Then Abner Batterfield told his tale. He was going to make a fresh
+start; he was going to spend the rest of his life in some manner worthy
+of him. He hadn't read much of the book he had taken out of the library,
+for in his present way of spending his life there didn't seem to be any
+very good time for reading, but he had read enough of it to make him
+feel that it was time for him to make a fresh start, and he was going to
+do it.
+
+"'And I may have a tough time,' said Abner; 'but it'll be blackgum
+ag'in' thunder, and I'm blackgum!'
+
+"The librarian smiled. 'What are you going to do?' said he.
+
+"'That's a thing,' said Abner, 'I'm not so certain about. I've been
+thinkin' of enterin' the ministry; but the bother about that is, I can't
+make up my mind which particular denomination to enter. There's such a
+difference in 'em.'
+
+"'That's true,' said Mr. Brownsill; 'that's very true! But haven't you a
+leaning for some one of them in particular?'
+
+"'In thinkin' it over,' said Abner, 'I've been drawn to the Quakers. So
+far's I kin find out, there's nothin' a Quaker preacher has to do if he
+don't want to.'
+
+"'But then, on the other hand,' said the librarian, 'there's no pay.'
+
+"'Which won't work at all,' said Abner, 'so that's got to be dropped. As
+to the Methodists, there's too much work. A man might as well stick to
+hoein' corn.'
+
+"'What do you think of the Catholics?' asked the librarian,
+meditatively. 'I should think a monk in a cell might suit you. I don't
+believe you'd be expected to do much work in a cell.'
+
+"Abner cogitated. 'But there ain't no pay to that, no more'n if I was a
+Quaker. And there's Mrs. B. to be considered. I tell you, Mr. Brownsill,
+it's awful hard makin' a ch'ice.'
+
+"The librarian opened his book and took a good look at the number of the
+page on which paradoxes were treated, so that he might remember it; then
+he rose and put the book upon the table, and, turning to Abner, he
+looked at him steadfastly.
+
+"'Abner Batterfield,' said he, 'I understand the state of your mind, and
+it is plain enough that it's pretty hard for you to make a choice of a
+new path in life; but perhaps I can help you. How would you like to be a
+librarian?'
+
+"'Me!' exclaimed Abner, amazed.
+
+"'I don't mean,' said Mr. Brownsill, 'that you should take up this
+business for life without knowing whether you like it or not, but I can
+offer you what might be called a sample situation. I want to go away for
+a couple of weeks to visit my relations, and if you will come and
+attend to the library while I am gone, it might be a good thing for both
+of us. Then, if you don't like the business of a librarian, you might
+sample some other calling or profession.'
+
+"Abner rose from the door-step, and, entering the room, stood before
+Mr. Brownsill. 'That's the most sensible thing,' said he, 'that I ever
+heard said in all my life. Sample first, and go into afterwards; that's
+sound reason. Mr. Brownsill, I will do it.'
+
+"'Good!' said the librarian. 'And the duties are not difficult.'
+
+"'And the pay?' asked Abner.
+
+"'Just what I get,' said Mr. Brownsill.
+
+"The bargain was made, and Abner immediately began taking lessons in the
+duties of a librarian.
+
+"When he went home he told his tale to Mrs. B. 'I have hoed my last row
+of corn,' said he, 'and when it's fit to cut and shock we'll hire a man.
+There's librarians, Mrs. B., so Mr. Brownsill told me, that gets
+thousands a year. Think of that, Mrs. B.--thousands a year!'
+
+"Mrs. Batterfield made no reply to this remark, but in her heart she
+said: 'And I am thunder.'
+
+"Early the next morning, long before the ordinary time for opening the
+library, Abner was at his post. He took the key from the concealed nail
+where Mr. Brownsill was wont to hang it. He opened the door and windows,
+as the librarian told him he must do; he swept the floor; he dusted the
+books; and then he took the water-pail, and proceeded to the pump hard
+by. He filled it, then he sat down and wiped his brow. He had done so
+much sitting down and brow-wiping in his life that it had become a
+habit with him, even when he was neither hot nor tired.
+
+"This little library was certainly a very pleasant place in which to
+earn one's living--ten thousand times more to his taste than the richest
+corn-field. Around the walls were book-shelves, some of them nearly
+filled with books, most of which, judging from their bindings, were of a
+sober if not a sombre turn of mind.
+
+"'Some of these days,' said Abner, 'I am goin' to read those books; I
+never did have time to read books.'
+
+"From the ceiling there hung, too high to be conveniently dusted, a few
+stuffed birds, and one small alligator. 'Some of these days,' said Abner
+to himself, 'I am goin' to get on a step-ladder and look at them birds
+and things; I never did properly know what they was.'
+
+"Now footsteps were heard on the sidewalk, and Abner jumped up quickly
+and redusted a book upon the table. There entered two little girls, the
+elder one with her hair plaited down her back. They looked in surprise
+at Abner, who smiled.
+
+"'I guess you want to see Mr. Brownsill,' he said. 'Well, I am in his
+place now, and all you got to do is to tell me what book you want.'
+
+"'Please, sir,' said the one with plaits, 'mother wants to know if you
+can change a quarter of a dollar.'
+
+"This proposed transaction seemed to Abner to be a little outside of a
+librarian's business, but he put his hand in his pocket and said he
+would see. When he had extracted all the change that pocket contained he
+found that he was the owner of three nickels and five copper cents. He
+tried some other pockets, but there was no money in any of them. He was
+disappointed; he did not want to begin his intercourse with the
+townspeople by failing to do the first favor asked of him. He looked
+around the room; he rubbed his nose. In a moment an idea struck him.
+
+"'How much do you want to get out of this quarter?' said he.
+
+"'Ten cents, sir,' said the girl with the plaits. 'The woman's waitin'
+fer it now.'
+
+"'I'll tell you,' said Abner, 'what I can do. All I have got is twenty
+cents. Two of these nickels will do for the woman, and then for the
+other five cents you can take out a book for a week. A duodecimo volume
+for a week is five cents. Is there any duodecimo volume you would like?'
+
+"The girl with the plaits said she didn't know, and that all she wanted
+was change for a quarter.
+
+"'Which this will be,' said Abner.
+
+"Asking the little girls to follow him, he approached the book-shelves.
+'Now here's something,' said he, presently, taking down a book. 'It's
+Buck's Theological Dictionary, and it's got a lot of different things in
+it. Some of them your mother might like to read to you, and some of them
+she might like to read to herself. I once read one piece in that book
+myself. It is about the Inquisition, and when I began it I couldn't stop
+until I got to the end of it. I guess your mother might like to read
+that, even if she don't read it to you.'
+
+"The little girl said she didn't know whether her mother would like it
+or not, but what she had been sent for was change for a quarter.
+
+"'This will be the same thing,' said Abner; 'twenty cents in money, and
+five cents for a duodecimo for one week. So take the money and the book,
+my dear, and tell your mother that if she keeps it out longer than one
+week there'll be a fine.'
+
+"The child and the duodecimo departed, and Abner sat down again, and
+wiped his brow. 'There's one customer,' said he, 'and that's the way to
+do business. They come to get you to do somethin' for them, and before
+they know it they're doin' business with you, payin' cash in advance.
+But there's one thing I forgot. I oughter asked them young ones what
+their mother's name was. But I'll remember 'em, specially the one with
+the plaited hair, so it's all the same.'
+
+"The little girls went home. 'It's a new man at the library,' said the
+one with the plaits, 'and he hadn't got no more'n twenty cents in money;
+but he sent you a book for the other five cents.'
+
+"The mother, with her baby in her lap, sent the ten cents to the woman
+who was waiting, and then took the book, which opened quite naturally at
+the article on the Inquisition, and began to read. And, although the
+baby grew restless and began to cry, she didn't stop reading until she
+had finished that article. 'It's fully worth five cents,' she said to
+herself, as she put it on the shelf for future perusal.
+
+"It was not long before the thought struck Abner that he was losing
+opportunities which spread themselves around him, so he jumped up and
+took down a book. The volume proved to be one of 'Elegant Extracts'; but
+after reading certain reflections 'Upon Seeing Mr. Pope's House at
+Binfield' he thought he would like something more in the nature of a
+story, and took up a thinner volume entitled 'Dick's Future State.' He
+turned over the leaves, hoping to meet with some of the adventures of
+Dick; but his attention was arrested by a passage which asserted that
+arithmetic would be one of the occupations to be followed in heaven. He
+was about to put away the book in disgust--for to him there was no need
+of a man's being good in this world if he were to be condemned to
+arithmetic in the next--when the light from the open door was darkened
+by a large body who approached in carpet slippers, making no noise. This
+proved to be a round and doleful negro woman, a greater part of her face
+wrapped up in a red-and-green handkerchief. Her attire was somewhat
+nondescript, and entirely unsuggestive of literary inclinations. She
+groaned as she entered the room.
+
+"'Whar Mr. Bro'nsill?' she asked, with one hand to her face.
+
+"Abner was amazed. Was it possible that this woman could read, and that
+she cared for books? He explained the situation, and assured her that he
+could attend to her just as well as the regular librarian.
+
+"'I's mighty glad to hear dat,' said the woman, 'I's mighty glad to hear
+dat, for I hasn't slep' one wink for dis tooth. Mr. Bro'nsill he allus
+pulls my teeth, and dey nebber has been one what ached as bad as dis.'
+
+"With this she began to unwrap her swollen face.
+
+"'You needn't do that,' cried Abner. 'I can't pull teeth. You must go to
+the dentist.'
+
+"'That'll be fifty cents,' said the woman, 'and Mr. Bro'nsill he don'
+charge nothin'. I know whar he keeps his pinchers. Dey's in dat drawer
+in de table. And you kin pull it out jes as well as anudder pusson. I'd
+pull hit out ef I wuz anudder pusson.'
+
+"Abner shook his head. 'I never pulled a tooth,' he said. 'I don't know
+nothin' about it.'
+
+"'Don' dey tell somethin' about pullin' teeth in dese here books?' said
+the woman.
+
+"Abner shook his head. 'There may be,' he said, 'but I don't know where
+to find it.'
+
+"'And you's de librarian,' said she, in a tone of supreme contempt, 'and
+don' know how to fin' what's in de books!' And with this she re-wrapped
+her face and wabbled away.
+
+"'I hope the next one will want a book,' said Abner to himself, 'and
+won't want nothin' else. If I'm to be librarian I want to fork out
+books.'
+
+"The morning passed, and no one else appeared. The forenoon was not the
+time when people generally came for books in that town.
+
+"After he had eaten the dinner he had brought, Abner sat down to
+meditate a little. He was not sure that the life of a librarian would
+suit him. It was almost as lonesome as hoeing corn.
+
+"Some time after these reflections--it might have been a minute, it
+might have been an hour--he was awakened by a man's voice, and suddenly
+started upright in his chair.
+
+"'Hello!' said the voice. 'You keepin' library for old Brownsill?'
+
+"'That's what I'm doin',' said Abner; 'he's away for his holiday.'
+
+"The new-comer, Joe Pearson, was an odd creature. I remember him well.
+He had been assistant to the town clerk, but was now out of a position.
+He was a stout man with little eyes, and wore a shiny black coat, and
+no collar.
+
+"'I am glad to hear it,' he said. 'Mr. Brownsill's a little too sharp
+for my fancy; I'd rather do business with you. Have you got any books on
+eggs?'
+
+"'I don't know,' said Abner, 'but I can look. What kind of eggs?'
+
+"'I don't suppose there's a different book for every kind of egg,' said
+Joe; 'I guess they're lumped.'
+
+"'All right,' said Abner; 'step up to the shelves, and we'll take a
+look. Now here's one that I've just been glancin' over myself. It seems
+to have a lot of different things in it: it's called "Elegant
+Extracts."'
+
+"'"Elegant Extracts" won't do,' said Joe; 'they ain't eggs.'
+
+"'E, E, E,' said Abner, looking along the line, and anxious to make a
+good show in the eyes of his acquaintance, who had the reputation of
+being a man of considerable learning. '"Experimental Christianity"--but
+that won't do.'
+
+"After fifteen or twenty minutes occupied in scrutiny of backs of books,
+Joe Pearson gave up the search. 'I don't believe there's a book on eggs
+in the whole darned place,' said he. 'That's just like Brownsill; he
+hasn't got no fancy for nothin' practical.'
+
+"'What do you want to know about eggs?' said Abner.
+
+"Mr. Pearson did not immediately answer, but after a few moments of
+silent consideration he walked to the door and closed it. Then he sat
+down, and invited Abner to sit by him. 'Look here, Abner Batterfield,'
+said he; 'I've got a idee that's goin' to make my fortune. I want
+somebody to help me, and I don't see why you couldn't do it as well as
+anybody else. For one thing, you've got a farm.'
+
+"As he said this Abner started back. 'Confound the farm!' he said. 'I've
+given up farmin', and I don't want nothin' more to do with it.'
+
+"'Yes, you will,' said Pearson, 'when I've told you what I'm goin' to
+do. But it won't be common farmin': it'll be mighty different. There's
+money in this kind of farmin', and no work, nuther, to mention.'
+
+"Abner now became interested.
+
+"'It concerns eggs,' said Pearson. 'Abner, did you ever hear about the
+eggs of the great auk?'
+
+"'Great hawk!' said Abner.
+
+"'Not _hawk_! Auk--a-u-k.'
+
+"'Never seen the bird,' said Abner.
+
+"'I reckon not,' said the other. 'They say they disappeared some time
+before the war; but I don't believe that. I've been readin' a piece
+about 'em, Abner, and I tell you it just roused me up, and that's the
+reason I've come here s'posin' I might find a book that might give me
+some new p'ints. But I reckon I know enough to work on.'
+
+"'Is there anything uncommon about 'em?' asked Abner.
+
+"'Uncommon!' exclaimed the other. 'Do you know what a great auk's egg is
+wuth? It's one thousand eight hundred dollars!'
+
+"'A car-load?' asked Abner.
+
+"'Stuff!' ejaculated Mr. Pearson. 'It's that much for _one_; and that
+one blowed--nothin' but a shell--not a thing inside. And eighteen
+hundred dollars!'
+
+"'By George!' exclaimed Abner. 'Eighteen hundred dollars!'
+
+"'And that's the lowest figure. Great auk eggs is wuth twenty-one
+thousand and six hundred dollars a dozen!'
+
+"Abner rose from his chair. 'Joe Pearson,' he said, 'what are you
+talkin' about?'
+
+"'I'm talkin' about makin' the biggest kind of money, and if you choose
+to go in with me you can make big money too. I'm all correct, and I can
+show you the figures.'
+
+"Abner now sat down and leaned over toward Pearson. 'Whar's it likely to
+fin' nests?' said he.
+
+"'Nests!' exclaimed Pearson, in disdain. 'If I could find two of
+'em--fresh ones--I'd call my fortune made.'
+
+"'I should say so,' said Abner, 'sellin' for thirty-six hundred dollars!
+But what is there so all-fired good about 'em to make 'em sell like
+that?'
+
+"'Scerceness,' said Joe. 'Apart from scerceness they ain't no better'n
+any other egg. But there's mighty few of 'em in market now, and all of
+them's blowed.'
+
+"'And no good?' said Abner.
+
+"'They say not,' said the other. 'For scerceness they're better blowed
+than stale, which they're bound to be if they're kept.'
+
+"'But what's your idea about 'em?' said Abner.
+
+"'That's what I'm goin' to tell you,' replied Pearson. 'There's a
+general notion that there ain't no more great auks, specially hen great
+auks, and that's why their eggs are so scerce. But I don't see the p'int
+of that. It don't stand to reason; for now and then somebody gets a
+great auk egg. If you find 'em they've got to be laid; and if they're
+laid there's got to be hen great auks somewhere. Now the p'int is to
+find out where them great auks lay. It may be a awful job to do it, but
+if I can do it, and get just two eggs, my fortune's made, and yourn
+too.'
+
+[Illustration: "Abner, did you ever hear about the eggs of the great
+auk?"]
+
+"'Would you divide the thirty-six hundred dollars even?'--now very much
+interested.
+
+"'Divide!' sneered Pearson. 'Do you suppose I'd sell 'em? No, sir; I'd
+set 'em under a turkey, or perhaps a big hen. Then, sir, I'd go into the
+great auk business. I'd sell auk eggs, and make my fortune, and yourn
+too.'
+
+"'And young ones, if we get a lot?'
+
+"'No, sir!' exclaimed Pearson. 'Nobody'd own no auks but me. You can't
+catch 'em alive. And I wouldn't sell no eggs at all till they'd first
+been blowed. I'd keep the business all in my own hands. Abner, I've been
+thinkin' a great deal about this thing. You've heard about the lively
+sixpence and the slow dollar? Well, sir, I'm goin' to sell them auk eggs
+for sixteen hundred dollars, two for three thousand.'"
+
+"John Gayther," said the Master of the House, "you will not make me
+believe that you ever knew two such fools."
+
+"In the course of my life," said the Old Professor, "I have known
+several of them."
+
+"Not looking for auks' eggs?" inquired the Next Neighbor.
+
+"Something just as impracticable," he said.
+
+"The North Pole, for instance," suggested the Mistress of the House.
+
+"I think," said John, "they are more likely to find that than my friends
+were to find what they sought. But we shall see. Abner looked at his
+companion. 'That would be better than 'most any other kind of business,'
+said he. 'Where do you go to get them eggs?'
+
+"''Way up north,' said Pearson; 'and the furder north you go the more
+likely you are to find 'em.'
+
+"'I don't know about goin' north,' said Abner, reflectively; 'there's
+Mrs. B. to consider.'
+
+"'But I don't want you to go,' said Pearson. 'I'm goin' north. And when
+I've found a couple o' auk eggs, I'll pack 'em up nice and warm in
+cotton, and send 'em down to you, and have 'em hatched. That's where
+your farm'll come in. You've got to have a farm and turkeys or big hens
+if you want to raise auks. Then I'll go on lookin', and, most likely,
+I'll get a couple more.'
+
+"'That'll be a good thing,' said Abner; 'the more the merrier. I'll go
+in with you, Joe Pearson. That's the sort of business that'll just suit
+me. But I'll tell you one thing, Joe: I wouldn't put the price of them
+eggs down at first; I'd wait until a couple of dozen had been laid and
+blowed, and then, perhaps, I'd put the price down.'
+
+"'No, sir,' said Joe; 'I'll put the price down at the very beginning.
+Sixteen hundred dollars, or three thousand for two, is enough for any
+eggs, and we oughter be satisfied with it.'
+
+"'And when are you goin' to start north?' asked Abner.
+
+"'That's the p'int,' said Pearson, 'that's the p'int. You see, Abner, I
+ain't got no family, and I can start north whenever I please, as far as
+that's concerned. But there's obstacles. For one thing, I ain't got the
+right kind of clothes; and then there's other things. It's awful hard
+lines startin' out on a business like this, and the more money there is
+in it the harder the lines.'
+
+"'But you can do it, Joe,' said Abner. 'I feel in my bones you can do
+it. It'll be blackgum ag'in' thunder, but you'll be blackgum, and you'll
+come out all right.'
+
+"'I can't be blackgum nor nothin' else,' said Pearson, 'if I don't get
+no help; specially if I don't get no help from the party what's goin' to
+get a lot of the money.'
+
+"Abner reflected. 'If we was to set any auk eggs next month, it'll be
+well on into next summer before we'd have eggs to sell.'
+
+"Pearson also reflected. 'Yes,' he said; 'and it might be a little later
+than that. You've got to leave a margin. I allus leave a margin. Then
+I'm safe.'
+
+"'Yes,' said Abner; 'then you're safe.'
+
+"Joe Pearson was a man of resourceful discretion. He rose now. 'Abner,'
+said he, 'I've got to go; I've got a lot of things on my hands. And I
+want you to remember that what I've said to you I said to you, and I
+wouldn't have no other man know nothin' about it. If anybody else should
+hear of this thing, and go north, and get ahead of me, it would
+be--well, I don't know what to say it would be, I've such feelin's about
+it. I've offered to take you in because you've got a farm, and because I
+think you're a good man, and would know how to take care of auks when
+they was hatched. But there's a lot for me to do. There's maps to look
+over, and time-tables; and I must be off. But I'll stop in to-morrer,
+Abner, and we'll talk this over again.'
+
+"When Pearson had gone, Abner sat and stared steadily at a knot-hole in
+the floor. 'Mrs. B.,' he said to himself, 'has allus been a great one on
+eggs. She's the greatest one on eggs I ever knowed. If she'd go in, now,
+the thing 'u'd be just as good as done. When she knows what's ahead of
+us she oughter go in. That's all I've got to say about it.'
+
+"The significance of these reflections depended upon the fact that
+Mrs. Batterfield had a small income. It was upon this fact that there
+depended the other fact that there were three meals a day in the
+Batterfield household. It was this fact, also, which was the cause of
+Mr. Joe Pearson's visit to the library. He was very well acquainted with
+Abner, although he knew Mrs. Batterfield but slightly; but he was aware
+of her income.
+
+"After reflecting for about twenty minutes or half an hour upon the
+exciting proposition which had been made to him, Abner grew very
+impatient. 'No use of my stayin' here,' he said; 'there's nobody goin'
+to get out books in this hot weather; so I'll just shut up shop and go
+home. I never did want to see Mrs. Batterfield as much as I want to see
+her now.'
+
+"'Libraries seem to shut up early,' said Mrs. Batterfield, as her
+husband walked into the front yard.
+
+"'Yes, they do,' said Abner, 'in summer-time.'
+
+"All the way from town he had been rehearsing to himself the story he
+was going to tell; but he hadn't finished it yet, and he wanted to get
+it all straight before he began, so he walked over to the barn and sat
+down on an inverted horse-bucket to get his story all straight before he
+began. When he got it all straight he concluded not to tell it until
+after supper. But when that meal was finished, and everything had been
+cleared away, and Mrs. Batterfield had gone to sit on the front porch,
+as was her evening custom, he sat down by her and told his story.
+
+"He made the tale as attractive as he possibly could make it. He even
+omitted the fact that Joe Pearson intended to sell his first eggs for
+sixteen hundred dollars instead of eighteen hundred, and he diminished
+by very many hundred miles the length of Joe Pearson's probable journey
+to the north. In fact, had his suppositions been nearly correct, the
+remaining specimens of the great auk would have been birds of very
+temperate dispositions, so far as latitude was concerned.
+
+"Mrs. Batterfield listened with great attention. She was engaged upon
+some sewing on which her eyes were fixed, but her ears drank in every
+word that Abner said. When he had finished, she laid down her sewing,
+for it was beginning to get a little dark for even her sharp eyes, and
+remarked: 'And he wants some warm clothes? Furs, I suppose?'
+
+"'Yes,' said Abner; 'I expect they'd be furs.'
+
+"'And travelling expenses?' she asked.
+
+"'Yes; I suppose he'd want help in that way. Of course, since he's
+makin' me such a big offer, he'll expect me to put in somethin'.'
+
+"Mrs. Batterfield made no reply, but folded up her sewing and went
+indoors. He waited until she had time to retire, then he closed the
+house and went up himself.
+
+"'She'll want to sleep on that,' said he; 'it'll be a good thing for her
+to sleep on it. She mayn't like it at first, but I'll go at her ag'in
+to-morrer, and I'm goin' to stick to it. I reckon it'll be the worst
+rassle we ever had; but it's blackgum ag'in' thunder, and I'm
+blackgum.'
+
+"When Abner reached his chamber he found his wife sitting quietly by the
+table, on which burned a lamp.
+
+"'Hello!' said he. 'I thought you'd be abed and asleep!'
+
+"'I didn't want to do my talkin' out front,' said she, 'for there might
+be people passin' along the road. I think you said this was to be a case
+of blackgum ag'in' thunder!'
+
+"'Yes,' said Abner, in a somewhat uncertain tone.
+
+"'Well, then,' said Mrs. Batterfield, 'I'm thunder.'
+
+"It was very late when that couple went to bed, but it was very early
+the next morning when Abner rose. He split a great deal of fire-wood
+before breakfast, and very soon after that meal he put his hoe on his
+shoulder and went to his corn-field. He remembered that there were three
+rows of corn which he had hoed upon only one side.
+
+"The library was not opened that day, and it remained closed until
+Mr. Brownsill returned. The failure in the supply of books did not
+occasion very much comment in the town, for everybody agreed that
+Mr. Brownsill was a good man and ought to have a holiday. There were
+four persons in the place--a little girl with plaited hair and a sister;
+a colored woman with a bad tooth; and Joe Pearson--who knew that Abner
+Batterfield had held, for a time, the office of librarian.
+
+"When his vacation had expired, Mr. Brownsill came home, and on the
+second morning after his arrival, Abner Batterfield appeared before
+him.
+
+"'I had to come in town,' said Abner, 'and so I thought I'd step in here
+and see about my pay.'
+
+"The librarian looked at him. 'How long were you here?' he asked. 'I've
+been told that the library was shut up for two weeks.'
+
+"'I was here for three quarters of a day,' said Abner. 'That's about as
+near as I can calculate.'
+
+"The librarian took up a pencil and made a calculation.
+
+"'By the way,' said he, 'you must have done some business. I miss our
+copy of Buck's Theological Dictionary; but I find no entry about it.'
+
+"'That was took out as change,' said Abner. 'Five cents for a duodecimo
+for a week, and the rest in change. If the woman hasn't brought it back
+she owes a week's fine.'
+
+"'Who was the woman?' asked the librarian.
+
+"'I don't know,' said Abner; 'but she has a daughter with plaited hair
+and a small sister. While I'm in town I'll try to look 'em up.'
+
+"'In the meantime,' said Mr. Brownsill, 'I'll have to charge you for the
+book; and, deducting your pay for three quarters of a day, you now owe
+me seventy-five cents. I don't suppose there's any use talking about the
+fines I have got down against you?'
+
+"'I don't believe there is,' said Abner.
+
+"The librarian could not help smiling, so dejected was the tone in which
+these last words were spoken.
+
+"'By the way,' said he, 'how about your great fight you were talking
+about--blackgum ag'in' thunder? How did that turn out?'
+
+"Abner in his turn smiled.
+
+"'Blackgum was split as fine as matches,' said he."
+
+"I can't help feeling sorry for the old fellow," said the Next Neighbor,
+when John had concluded his story. "I always have sympathy with great
+ambitions."
+
+"And if Joe Pearson had got far enough north," said the Mistress of the
+House, "he would have found no eggs, but he might have stumbled over the
+North Pole."
+
+"It is a pity the old fellow had to tell his wife," said the Master of
+the House. "Women ruin great ambitions by too much common-sense. A great
+many of the inventions we now consider necessary would have been utterly
+lost to us if some men's brains had not been a little addled. A woman
+would have set them straight, and that would have been the end. That is
+the reason so few women are inventors; they have too much sense."
+
+"That is a very left-handed compliment," said the Daughter of the House.
+"You are always decrying inventions, which is strange. How would you
+like to sail a ship without steam?"
+
+"It would be a great deal pleasanter, my dear, and much cleaner."
+
+"There are patent contrivances for garden-work," said John Gayther, "and
+I don't say that they don't help, especially in planting-time; but, like
+the captain, I prefer the old ways that bring the gardener and the earth
+close together. The old, simple instruments seem like friends. I feel as
+if something went from me through the hoe-handle to the plants; and when
+the seed drops from my hands instead of from a seeder, it seems to me it
+takes a message direct from me to the earth that receives it."
+
+                *       *       *       *       *
+
+The stories are all told. The winter has come. The orchard is stripped
+of its leaves, and, sere and brown, they cover the garden paths and are
+strewn over the box borders. The fruits are all garnered. The bare vines
+that cover the summer-house are like dead memories of what has been. The
+vegetable-beds are empty. The black frost has settled upon bloom and
+foliage on the upper terrace. The sweet, blithe song of the red thrush
+has ceased. The family have gone to a sunnier clime. And John Gayther
+walks alone in his garden.
+
+
+
+
+
+End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of John Gayther's Garden and the Stories
+Told Therein, by Frank R. Stockton
+
+*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK JOHN GAYTHER'S GARDEN ***
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