第3章

"Oh!Well，sheisratherplain-minded，asyoucallit。Ithinksheshowsoutherrealfeelingstoomuchforawoman。"

"Whydoyoupreferdissimulationinyoursex，mydear？"

"Idon"tcallitdissimulation。Butofcourseagirloughttohideherfeelings。Don"tyouthinkitwouldhavebeenbetterforhernottohavelookedsoobviouslyoutofhumourwhenyoufirstsawhertheothernight？"

"Shewouldn"thaveinterestedmesomuch，then，andsheprobablywouldn"thavehadyouracquaintancenow。"

"Oh，Idon"tmeantosaythateventhatkindofgirlwon"tgeton，ifshegiveshermindtoit；butIthinkIshouldpreferalittlelessplain-mindedness，asyoucallit，ifIwereaman。"

Ididnotknowexactlywhattosaytothis，andIletMrs。Marchgoon。

"It"ssointhesmallestthing。Ifyou"rechoosingathingforher，andshelikesanother，sheletsyoufeelitatonce。Idon"tmeanthatshe"srudeaboutit，butsheseemstosetherselfsosquareacrosstheway，andyoucomeupwithakindofbumpagainsther。I

don"tthinkthat"sveryfeminine。That"swhatImeanbymannish。

Youalwaysknowwheretofindher。"

Idon"tknowwhythiscriticismshouldhaveamusedmesomuch，butI

begantolaughquiteuncontrollably，andIlaughedonandon。Mrs。

Marchkepthertemperwithmeadmirably。WhenIwasquietagain，shesaid-

"Mrs。Deeringisapersonthatwinsyourheartatonce；shehasthatappealingquality。Youcanseethatshe"scowedbyherhusband，thoughhemeanstobekindtoher；andyetyoumaybesureshegetsroundhim，andhasherownwayallthetime。Iknowitwasherideatohavehimgohomeandleavethemhere，andofcourseshemadehimthinkitwashis。Shesawthataslongashewashere，andanxioustogetbacktohis"stock，"therewasnohopeofgivingMissGagethesortofchanceshecamefor，andsoshedeterminedtomanageit。

Atthesametime，youcanseethatsheistrueassteel，andwouldabhoranythinglikedeceitworsethanthepest。"

"Isee；andthatiswhyyoudislikeMissGage？"

"Dislikeher？No，Idon"tdislikeher；butsheisdisappointing。

Ifshewereaplaingirlherplain-mindednesswouldbeallright；itwouldbeamusing；shewouldturnittoaccountandmakeitseemhumorous。Butitdoesn"tseemtogowithherbeauty；ittakesawayfromthat——Idon"tknowhowtoexpressitexactly。"

"Youmeanthatshehasnocharm。"

"No；Idon"tmeanthatatall。Shehasagreatdealofcharmofacertainkind，butit"saverypeculiarkind。Afterall，thetruthisthetruth，Basil，isn"tit？"

"Itissometimes，mydear，"Iassented。

"Andthetruthhasitscharm，evenwhenit"stooblunt。"

"Ah，I"mnotsosureofthat。"

"Yes——yes，ithas。Youmustn"tsayso，Basil，orIshallloseallmyfaithinyou。IfIcouldn"ttrustyou，Idon"tknowwhatI

shoulddo。"

"Whatareyouafternow，Isabel？"

"Iamnotafteranything。Iwantyoutogoroundtoallthehotelsandseeifthereisnotsomeyoungmanyouknowatoneofthem。

Theresurelymustbe。"

"Wouldoneyoungmanbeenough？"

"Ifhewereattentiveenough，hewouldbe。Oneyoungmanisasgoodasathousandifthegirlistherightkind。"

"ButyouhavejustbeenimplyingthatMissGageiscoldandselfishandgreedy。ShallIgoroundexploringhotelregistersforavictimtosuchadivinityasthat？"

"No；youneedn"tgotillIhavehadatalkwithher。Iamnotsuresheisworthit；IamnotsurethatIwanttodoasinglethingforher。"

CHAPTERVII

Thenextday，afteranotherforenoon"sshoppingwithherfriends，Mrs。Marchannounced:"Well，now，ithasallcomeout，Basil，andI

wonderyoudidn"tgetthesecretatoncefromyourMr。Deering。

HaveyoubeensupposingthatMissGagewasapoorgirlwhomtheDeeringshaddonethefavourofbringingwiththem？"

"Why，whatofit？"Iaskedprovisionally。

"Sheisverywelloff。Herfatherisnotonlythepresident，astheycallit，ofthevillage，buthe"sthepresidentofthebank。"

"Yes；ItoldyouthatDeeringtoldmeso——"

"Butheisveryqueer。Hehaskeptherveryclosefromtheotheryoungpeople，andMrs。Deeringistheonlygirlfriendshe"severhad，andshe"sgrownupwithouthavingbeenanywherewithouthim。

Theyhadtopleadwithhimtolethercomewiththem——orMrs。

Deeringhad，——butwhenheonceconsented，heconsentedhandsomely。

Hegaveheralotofmoney，andtoldthemhewantedhertohavethebesttimethatmoneycouldbuy；andofcourseyoucanunderstandhowsuchamanwouldthinkthatmoneywouldbuyagoodtimeanywhere。

ButtheDeeringsdidn"tknowhowtogoaboutit。Sheconfessedasmuchwhenweweretalkingthegirlover。Icouldseethatshestoodinaweofhersomehowfromthebeginning，andthatshefeltmorethantheusualresponsibilityforher。Thatwasthereasonshewassoeagertogetherhusbandoffhome；aslongashewaswiththemshewouldhavetoworkeverythingthroughhim，andthatwouldbedoublelabour，becauseheissohopelesslyvillaginous，don"tyouknow，thathenevercouldrisetotheconceptionofanythingelse。

Hetookthemtoacheap，second-classhotel，andhewasafraidtogowiththemanywherebecauseheneverwassurethatitwastherightthingtodo；andhewastooproudtoask，andtheyhadtokeepproddinghimallthetime。"

"That"sdelightful!"

"Oh，Idaresayyouthinkso；butifyouknewhowitwoundedawoman"sself-respectyouwouldfeeldifferently；oryouwouldn"t，rather。Butnow，thankgoodness；they"vegothimofftheirhands，andtheycanbegintobreathefreely。Thatis，Mrs。Deeringcould，ifshehadn"therheartinhermouthallthetime，wonderingwhatshecandoforthegirl，andbullyingherselfwiththenotionthatsheistoblameifshedoesn"thaveagoodtime。Youcanunderstandjusthowitwaswiththemalways。Mrs。Deeringisoneofthosemeeklittlethingsthatagreat，splendid，lonelycreaturelikeMissGagewouldtaketoinasmallplace，andperfectlycrushundertheweightofherconfidence；andshewouldwanttomakeherhusbandliveuptoheridealofthegirl，andwouldbemiserablebecausehewouldn"torcouldn"t。"

"IbelievethegoodDeeringdidn"teventhinkherhandsome。"

"That"sit。AndhethoughtanythingthatwasgoodenoughforhiswifewasgoodenoughforMissGage，andhe"dbestubbornaboutdoingthingsonheraccount，eventopleasehiswife。"

"SuchconductisimaginableofthegoodDeering。Idon"tthinkhelikedher。"

"Norshehim。Mrs。Deeringhelplesslyhintedasmuch。Shesaidhedidn"tliketohaveherworryingsomuchaboutMissGage"snothavingagoodtime，andshecouldn"tmakehimfeelasshedidaboutit，andshewashalfgladforhisownsakethathehadtogohome。"

"Didshesaythat？"

"Notexactly；butyoucouldseethatshemeantit。Doyouthinkitwoulddoforthemtochangefromtheirhotel，andgototheGrandUnionortheStatesorCongressHall？"

"Haveyoubeenputtingthemuptothat，Isabel？"

"Iknewyouwouldsuspectme，andIwouldn"thaveaskedforyouropinionifIhadcaredanythingforit，really。Whatwouldbetheharmoftheirdoingit？"

"Nonewhatever，ifyoureallywantmyworthlessopinion。Butwhatcouldtheydothere？"

"Theycouldseesomethingiftheycouldn"tdoanything，andassoonasMissGagehasgothernewgownsI"mgoingtotellthemyouthoughttheycoulddoit。Itwastheirownidea，atanyrate。"

""MissGage"s？"

"Mrs。Deering"s。Shehasthecourageofa——Idon"tknowwhat。Sheseesthatit"sadesperatecase，andshewouldn"tstopatanything。"

"Nowthatherhusbandhasgonehome。"

"Well，whichhotelshalltheygoto？"

"Oh，thatrequiresreflection。"

"Verywell，then，whenyou"vereflectedIwantyoutogotothehotelyou"vechosen，andintroduceyourselftotheclerk，andtellhimyourwifehastwofriendscoming，andyouwantsomethingverypleasantforthem。TellhimallaboutyourselfandEveryOtherWeek。"

"He"llthinkIwantthemdeadheaded。"

"Nomatter，ifyourconscienceisclear；anddon"tbesoshamefullymodestasyoualwaysare，butspeakupboldly。Now，willyou？

Promisemeyouwill!"

"Iwilltry，asthegoodlittleboysays。But，Isabel，wedon"tknowthesepeopleexceptfromtheirownaccount。"

"Andthatisquiteenough。"

"Itwillbequiteenoughforthehotel-keeperiftheyruntheirboard。Ishallhavetopayit。"

"Now，Basildear，don"tbedisgusting，andgoanddoasyou"rebid。"

Itwasamusing，butitwasperfectlysafe，andtherewasnoreasonwhyIshouldnotengageroomsfortheladiesatanotherhotel。I

hadnottheleastquestionofthem，andIhadfailedtoworrymywifewithapretendeddoubt。SoIdecidedthatIwouldgoupatonceandinquireattheGrandUnion。Ichosethishotelbecause，thoughitlackedthefineflowerofthemoreancientrespectabilityandthelegendarycharmoftheStates，itwassospectacularthatitwouldbeinitselfaperpetualexcitementforthoseladies，andwouldformaneffectofsocietywhich，withsomehelpfromus，mightverywelldeceivethem。ThiswaswhatIsaidtomyself，thoughinmyheartIknewbetter。WhateverMrs。Deeringmightthink，thatgirlwasnotgoingtobetakeninwithanysuchsimpledevice，andI

mustcountuponthedailychancesintheplacetoaffordherthegoodtimeshehadcomefor。

AsImountedthestepstotheporticooftheGrandUnionwithmyheaddown，andlostinacalculationofthesechances，Iheardmynamegailycalled，andIlookeduptoseeyoungKendricks，formerlyofourstaffonEveryOtherWeek，andstillafrequentcontributor，andagreatfavouriteofmywife"sandmyown。Myheartgaveagreatjoyfulboundatsightofhim。

"Mydearboy，whenintheworlddidyoucome？"

"Thismorningbythesteamboattrain，andIamnever，nevergoingaway!"

"Youlikeit，then？"

"Likeit!It"sthemostdelightfulthingintheuniverse。Why，I"msimplywildaboutit，Mr。March。Igoroundsayingtomyself，WhyhaveIthrownawaymylife？WhyhaveInevercometoSaratogabefore？It"ssimplysupreme，andit"sAmericandowntotheground。

Yes；that"swhatmakesitsodelightful。Nootherpeoplecouldhaveinventedit，anditdoesn"ttrytobeanythingbutwhatwemadeit。"

"I"msogladyoulookatitinthatway。WElikeit。Wediscovereditthreeorfouryearsago，andweneverletasummerslip，ifwecanhelpit，withoutcominghereforaweekoramonth。Theplace，"

Ienlarged，"hasthecharmofruin，thoughit"sinsuchobviousrepair；ithasapast；it"ssocompletelygonebyinasocietysense。Thecottagelifeherehasn"tkilledthehotellife，asithasatNewportandBarHarbour；buttheidealofcottagelifeeverywhereelsehasmadehotellifeatSaratogaungenteel。Thehotelsarefull，butatthesametimetheyaresocietysolitudes。"

"Howgayitis!"saidtheyoungfellow，ashegazedwithapensivesmileintothestreet，whereallthosefestivevehicleswerecomingandgoing，dappledbytheleaf-shadowsfromthetalltreesoverhead。

"Whatair!whatasky!"Theonewasindeedsparkling，andtheotherwithoutacloud，forithadrainedinthenight，anditseemedasiftheweathercouldneverbehotandcloseagain。

IforgothowIhadbeenswelteringabout，andsaid:"Yes；itisaSaratogaday。It"ssupposedthatthesparkleoftheaircomesfromthehealthfulgasesthrownoffbythesprings。Somepeoplesaythespringsaredoctored；that"swhatmakestheirgasessohealthful。"

"Why，anythingmighthappenhere，"Kendricksmused，unheedfulofme。

"Whatascene!whatastage!WhyhasnobodydoneastoryaboutSaratoga？"heasked，withaliteraryturnIknewhisthoughtswouldbetaking。AllGeraldKendricks"sthoughtswereofliterature，butsometimestheywerenotofimmediateliteraryeffect，thoughthatwasneverforlong。

"Because，"Isuggested，"oneprobablycouldn"tgethisyoungladycharacterstocomehereiftheywereatallinsociety。Butofcoursetheremustbecharmingpresenceshereaccidentally。Someyounggirl，say，mightcomeherefromacountryplace，expectingtoseesocialgaiety——"

"Ah，butthatwouldbetooheart-breaking!"

"Notatall。Notifshemetsomeyoungfellowaccidentally——don"tyousee？"

"Itwouldbedifficulttomanage；andhasn"titbeendone？"

"Everythinghasbeendone，mydearfellow。Or，youmightsupposeayoungladywhocomesonherewithherfather，aveteranpolitician，delegatetotheRepublicanorDemocraticconvention——alltheconventionsmeetinSaratoga，——andsomeardentyoungdelegatefallsinlovewithher。Thatwouldbenewground。Thereyouwouldhavethepoliticalnovel，whichtheywondereverynowandthensomeofusdon"twrite。"ThesmilefadedfromKendricks"slips，andIlaughed。

"Well，then，there"snothingforitbuttheSocialScienceCongress。

Haveabrilliantprofessorwintheheartofalovelysister-in-lawofanothermemberbyapaperhereadsbeforetheCongress。No？

You"redifficult。Areyoustoppinghere？"

"Yes；areyou？"

"ItrytogivemyselftheairofitwhenIamfeelingveryproud。

Butreally，weliveatamostcharminglittlehotelonabackstreet，outofthewhirlandrushthatweshouldprefertobeinifwecouldaffordit。"Hesaiditmustbedelightful，andhemadetheproperinquiriesaboutMrs。March。Kendricksneverforgotthegentlemanintheartist，andhewasastruetotheconvenancesasiftheyhadbeenprinciples。ThatwaswhatmadeMrs。Marchlikehisstoriessomuchmorethanthestoriesofsomepeoplewhowrotebetter。Hesaidhewoulddropinduringtheafternoon，andIwentindoorsonthepretextofbuyinganewspaper。Then，withoutengagingroomsforMrs。DeeringandMissGage，Ihurriedhome。

CHAPTERVIII

"Well，didyougettherooms？"askedmywifeassoonasshesawme。

ShedidnotquitecallitacrossthestreettomeasIcameupfromwhereshesatonthepiazza。

"No，Ididn"t，"Isaidboldly，ifsomewhatbreathlessly。

"Whydidn"tyou？YououghttohavegonetotheStatesiftheywerefullattheGrandUnion。"

"Theywerenotfull，unlessKendricksgottheirlastroom。"

"DoyoumeanthatHEwasthere？Mr。Kendricks？Ifyouarehoaxingme，Basil!"

"Iamnot，mydear；indeedI"mnot，"saidI，beginningtolaugh，andthismadeherdoubtmethemore。

"BecauseifyouareIshallsimplyneverforgiveyou。AndI"minearnestthistime，"shereplied。

"WhyshouldIwanttohoaxyouaboutsuchavitalthingasthat。

Couldn"tKendrickscometoSaratogaaswellaswe？He"sherelookingupthegroundofastoryIshouldthinkfromwhathesaid。"

"Nomatterwhathe"sherefor；he"shere，andthat"senough。I

neverknewofanythingsoperfectlyprovidential。DidyouTELLhim，Basil？Didyoudare？"

"Tellhimwhat？"

"Youknow；aboutMissGage。"

"Well，Icameverynearit。Idangledthefactbeforehiseyesonce，butIcaughtitawayagainintime。Heneversawit。I

thoughtI"dbetterletyoutellhim。"

"Ishecomingheretoseeus？"

"Heaskedifhemight。"

"He"salwaysnice。Idon"tknowthatIshallaskhimtodoanythingforthem，afterall；I"mnotsurethatshe"sworthit。Iwishsomecommonerpersonhadhappenedalong。Kendricksistooprecious。I

shallhavetothinkaboutit；anddon"tyouteaseme，Basil，willyou？"

"Idon"tknow。IfI"mnotallowedtohaveanyvoiceinthematter，I"mafraidIshalltakeitoutinteasing。Idon"tseewhyMissGageisn"tquiteasgoodasKendricks。Ibelieveshe"staller，andthoughhe"sprettygood-looking，Ipreferherstyleofbeauty。I

daresayhisfamilyisbetter，butIfancyshe"sricher；andhisfamilyisn"tgoodbeyondNewYorkcity，andhermoneywillgoanywhere。It"saprettyeventhing。"

"Goodgracious，Basil!youtalkasifitwereaquestionofmarriage。"

"AndyouTHINKitis。"

"NowIseethatyou"rebentuponteasing，andwewon"ttalkanymore，please。Whattimedidhesayhewouldcall？"

"IfImayn"ttalk，Ican"ttell。"

"Youmaytalkthatmuch。"

"Well，then，hedidn"tsay。"

"Basil，"saidmywife，afteramoment，"ifyoucouldbeserious，I

shouldlikeverymuchtotalkwithyou。Iknowthatyou"reexcitedbymeetingMr。Kendricks，andIknowwhatyouthoughttheinstantyousawhim。But，indeed，itwon"tdo，mydear。It"smorethanwe"veanyrighttoask，andIshallnotaskit，andIshallnotletyou。Sheisastiff，awkwardvillageperson，andIdon"tbelieveshe"samiableorintelligent；andtoletagraceful，refined，superiormanlikeMr。Kendricksthrowawayhistimeuponherwouldbewicked，simplywicked。Letthosepeoplemanageforthemselvesfromthisout。Ofcourseyoumustn"tgetthemroomsattheGrandUnionnow，forhe"dbeseeingustherewiththem，andfeelboundtopayherattention。YoumusttryforthemattheStates，sincethematter"sbeenspokenof，oratCongressHall。Butthere"snohurry。

WemusthavetimetothinkwhetherweshalluseMr。Kendrickswiththem。Isupposeitwilldonoharmtointroducehim。Ifhestayswecan"tverywellavoidit；andIconfessIshouldliketoseehowsheimpresseshim!Ofcourseweshallintroducehim!ButIinsistIshalljustdoitmerelyasonehumanbeingtoanother；anddon"tyoucomeinwithanyofyourromanticnonsense，Basil，abouthersocialdisappointment。Justhowmuchdidyougivethesituationaway？"

ItoldaswellasIcouldremember。"Well，that"snothing。He"llneverthinkofit，andyoumustn"thintanythingofthekindagain。"

Ipromiseddevoutly，andshewenton-

"Itwouldn"tbenice——itwouldn"tbedelicatetolethimintotheconspiracy。Thatmustbeentirelyouraffair，don"tyousee？AndI

don"twantyoutotakeasinglestepwithoutme。Idon"twantyoueventodiscussherwithhim。Willyou？Becausethatwilltemptyoufurther。"

ThatafternoonKendrickscamepromptlytocall，likethelittlegentlemanhewas，andhewasmoresatisfactoryaboutSaratogathanhehadbeeninthemorningeven。Mrs。Marchcatechisedhim，andshedidn"tleaveanemotionofhisunsearchedbyhervividsympathy。

Sheendedbysaying-

"YoumustwriteastoryaboutSaratoga。AndIhavegotjusttheheroineforyou。"

Istarted，butsheignoredmystart。

Kendrickslaughed，delighted，andasked，"Isshepretty？"

"Mustaheroinebepretty？"

"Shehadbetterbe。Otherwiseshewillhavetobetremendouslycleverandsayallsortsofbrilliantthings，andthatputsagreatburdenontheauthor。Ifyouproclaimboldlyatthestartthatshe"sabeauty，theillustratorhasgottolookafterher，andtheauthorhasacomparativesinecure。"

Mrs。Marchthoughtamoment，andthenshesaid:"Well，sheisabeauty。Idon"twanttomakeittoohardforyou。"

"WhenshallIseeher？"Kendricksdemanded，andhefeignedanamusinganxiety。

"Well，thatdependsuponhowyoubehave，Mr。Kendricks。Ifyouarevery，verygood，perhapsImayletyouseeherthisevening。Wewilltakeyoutocalluponher。"

"Isitpossible？Doyoumeanbusiness？Thensheis——insociety？"

"MR。Kendricks!"criedMrs。March，withburlesqueseverity。"DoyouthinkthatIwouldofferyouaheroinewhowasNOTinsociety？YouforgetthatIamfromBoston!"

"Ofcourse，ofcourse!Iunderstandthatanyheroineofyouracquaintancemustbeinsociety。ButIthought——Ididn"tknow——butforthemoment——Saratogaseemstobesotremendouslymixed；andMr。

Marchsaysthereisnosocietyhere:ButifsheisfromBoston——"

"Ididn"tsayshewasfromBoston，Mr。Kendricks。"

"Oh，Ibegyourpardon!"

"SheisfromDeWittPoint，"saidMrs。March，andsheapparentlyenjoyedhisconfusion，nolessthanmybewildermentatthecourseshewastaking。

Iwasnotgoingtobeleftbehind，though，andIsaid:"I

discoveredthisheroinemyself，Kendricks，andifthereistobeanygivingaway——"

"Now，Basil!"

"Iamgoingtodoit。Mrs。Marchwouldneverhavecaredanythingaboutherifithadn"tbeenforme。Ican"tletherimposeonyou。

ThisheroineisnomoreinsocietythansheisfromBoston。Thatisthetroublewithher。Shehascomehereforsociety，andshecan"tfindany。"

"Oh，thatwaswhatyouwerehintingatthismorning，"saidKendricks。"Ithoughtitapurefigmentoftheimagination。"

"Onedoesn"timaginesuchthingsasthat，mydearfellow。Oneimaginesaheroinecominghere，andhavingthemostmagnificentkindofsocialcareer——lawn-parties，lunches，teas，dinners，picnics，hops——andgoingbacktoDeWittPointwithadozenoffersofmarriage。That"sthekindofworktheimaginationdoes。Butthissimpleandappealingsituation——thisbeautifulyounggirl，withherpoorlittleillusions，hersecrethopeshalfhiddenfromherself，herignorantpast，hervisionaryfuture——"

"Now，_I_amgoingtotellyouallabouther，Mr。Kendricks，"Mrs。

Marchbrokeinuponme，withdefianceinhereye；andsheflungoutthewholefactwitharapidityofutterancethatwouldhaveleftfarbehindanyattemptofmine。ButImadenoattempttocompetewithher；IcontentedmyselfwithasarcasticsilencewhichIcouldseedauntedheralittleatlast。

"Andallthatwe"vedone，mydearfellow"——Itookinironythewordshelefttome——"istoloadourselvesupwiththesetwoimpossiblepeople，togotheirsecuritytodestiny，andanswerfortheirhavingagoodtime。We"reinluck。"

"Why，Idon"tknow，"saidKendricks，andIcouldseethathisfancywasbeginningtoplaywiththesituation；"Idon"tseewhyitisn"tacharmingscheme。"

"Ofcourseitis，"criedMrs。March，takingalittleheartfromhiscourage。

"Wecan"tmakeoutyetwhetherthegirlisinteresting，"Iputinmaliciously。

"ThatiswhatYOUsay，"saidmywife。"Sheisveryshy，andofcourseshewouldn"tshowoutherrealnaturetoyou。IfoundherVERYinteresting。"

"Now，Isabel!"Iprotested。

"Sheisfascinating，"theperversewomanpersisted。"Shehasafascinatingdulness。"

KendrickslaughedandIjeeredatthiscomplexcharacterisation。

"Youmakemeimpatienttojudgeformyself，"hesaid。

"Willyougowithmetocalluponthemthisevening？"askedMrs。

March。

"Ishallbedelighted。Andyoucancountuponmetoaidandabetyouinyourgenerousconspiracy，Mrs。March，tothebestofmyability。There"snothingIshouldlikebetterthantohelpyou——"

"Throw"dustinherbeautifuleyes，""Iquoted。

"Notatall，"saidmywife。"Buttospreadabeatifichazeovereverything，sothataslongasshestaysinSaratogasheshallseeliferose-colour。Ofcourseyoumaysaythatit"sakindofdeception——"

"Notatall!"criedtheyoungfellowinhisturn。"Wewillmakeitreality。Thentherewillbenoharminit。"

"Whatajesuiticalcasuist!YouhadbetterreadwhatCardinalNewmansaysinhisApologiaaboutlying，youngman。"

Neitherofthemmindedme，forjustthentherewasastirofdraperyroundthecornerofthepiazzafromwhereweweresitting，andthenextmomentMrs。DeeringandMissGageshowedthemselves。

"Wewerejusttalkingofyou，"saidMrs。March。"MayIpresentourfriendMr。Kendricks，Mrs。Deering？AndMissGage？"

Atsightoftheyoungman，sowelldressedandgood-looking，whobowedsoprettilytoher，andthenbustledtoplacechairsforthem，acertaincloudseemedtoliftfromMissGage"sbeautifulface，andtobeatleastpartlybrokenonMrs。Deering"svisage。Ibegantotalktothegirl，andsheansweredingoodspirits，andwithmoreapparentinterestinmyconversationthanshehadyetshown，whileKendricksveryproperlydevotedhimselftotheotherladies。Bothhiseyeswereonthem，butIfeltthathehadathirdsomehowuponher，andthatthesmallestfactofherbeautyandgracewasnotlostuponhim。Iknewthatherrich，tendervoicewasdoingitswork，too，throughthecommonplacesshevouchsafedtome。TherewasamomentwhenIsawhimliftaquestioningeyebrowuponMrs。March，andsawheranswerwithafleetingfrownofaffirmation。Icannottelljusthowitwasthat，beforeheleftus，hischairwasontheothersideofMissGage"s，andIwaseliminatedfromthedialogue。

Hedidnotstaytoolong。Therewasanothertableauofhimonfoot，takingleaveofMrs。March，withahighhand-shake，whichhadthenlatelycomein，andwhichIsawthegirlnote，andthenbowingtoherandtoMrs。Deering。

"Don"tforget，"mywifecalledafterhim，withareadyinventionnotlostonhisquickintelligence，"thatyou"regoingtotheconcertwithusaftertea。Eighto"clock，remember。"

"YoumaybesureIshallrememberTHAT，"hereturnedgaily。

CHAPTERIX

Thecountenancesoftheladiesfellinstantlywhenhewasgone。

"Mrs。March，"saidMrs。Deering，withanervoustremor，"didMr。

MarchgetusthoseroomsattheGrandUnion？"

"No——no，"mywifebegan，andshemadealittlepause，asiftogatherplausibility。"TheGrandUnionwasveryfull，andhethoughtthatattheStates——"

"Because，"saidMrs。Deering，"Idon"tknowasweshalltroublehim，afterall。Mr。Deeringisn"tverywell，andIguesswehavegottogohome——"

"GOHOME!"Mrs。Marchechoed，andhervoicewasatone-sceneofatopplinghopeandawidespreaddesolation。"Why，youmustn"t!"

"Wemust，Iguess。Ithadbeguntobeverypleasant，and——IguessI

havegottogo。Ican"tfeeleasyabouthim。"

"Why，ofcourse，"Mrs。Marchnowassented，andshewavedherfanthoughtfullybeforeherface。Iknewwhatshewasthinkingof，andIlookedatMissGage，whohadinvoluntarilytakentheposeandexpressionofthemomentwhenIfirstsawheratthekioskinCongressPark。"AndMissGage？"

"Ohyes；Imustgotoo，"saidthegirlwistfully，forlornly。Shehadtearsinhervoice，tearsofdespairandvexation，Ishouldhavesaid。

"That"stoobad，"saidMrs。March，and，asshedidnotofferanysolutionofthematter，Ithoughtitratherheartlessofhertogoonandrubitin。"Andwewerejustplanningsomethingswecoulddotogether。"

"Itcan"tbehelpednow，"returnedthegirl。

"Butweshallseeyouagainbeforeyougo？"Mrs。Marchaskedofboth。

"Well，Idon"tknow，"saidthegirl，withalookatMrs。Deering，whonowsaid-

"Iguessso。We"llletyouknowwhenwe"regoing。"Andtheygotawayratherstiffly。

"Whyintheworld，mydear，"Iasked，"ifyouweren"tgoingtopromotetheirstay，needyouprolongtheagonyoftheiracquaintance？"

"Didyoufeelthataboutittoo？Well，Iwantedtoaskyoufirstifyouthoughtitwoulddo。"

"Whatdo？"

"Youknow；getheraroomhere。Becauseifwedoweshallhaveherliterallyonourhandsaslongaswearehere。Weshallhavetohavethewholecareandresponsibilityofher，andIwantedyoutofeeljustwhatyouweregoinginfor。YouknowverywellIcan"tdothingsbyhalves，andthatifIundertaketochaperonthisgirlI

shallchaperonher——"

"Tothebitterend。Yes；Iunderstandtheconditionsofyouruncompromisingconscience。ButIdon"tbelieveitwillbeanysuchkillingmatter。Thereareothersemi-detachedgirlsinthehouse；

shecouldgoroundwiththem。"

Wetalkedon，and，assometimeshappens，weconvincedeachothersothoroughlythatshecametomygroundandIwenttohers。Thenitwaseasierforustocometogether，andaftermakingmegototheclerkandfindoutthathehadavacantroom，Mrs。MarchagreedwithmethatitwouldnotdoatalltohaveMissGagestaywithus；thefactthattherewasavacantroomseemedtosettlethequestion。

WewerestillcongratulatingourselvesonourescapewhenMrs。

Deeringsuddenlyreappearedroundourcorneroftheverandah。Shewasalone，andshelookedexcited。

"Oh，itisn"tanything，"shesaidinanswertothealarmthatshoweditselfinMrs。March"sfaceatsightofher。"Ihopeyouwon"tthinkit"stoopresuming，Mrs。March，andIwantyoutobelievethatit"ssomethingIhavethoughtofbymyself，andthatJuliawouldn"thaveletmecomeifshehaddreamedofsuchathing。Idohatesototakeherbackwithme，nowthatshe"sbeguntohaveagoodtime，andIwaswondering——wonderingwhetheritwouldbeaskingtoomuchifItriedtogetheraroomhere。Ishouldn"texactlyliketoleaveherinthehotelalone，thoughIsupposeitwouldbeperfectlyproper；butMr。Deeringfoundoutwhenhewastryingtogetroomsbeforethatthereweresomeyoungladiesstayingbythemselveshere，andIdidn"twanttoasktheclerkforaroomunlessyoufeltjustrightaboutit。"