第13章

"Ithought-Idon\'tknow-"murmuredCokeinconfusion。

Norabecamesuddenlybusiness-like。"Buthowdoyouknow？Areyousure？Whotoldyou？Anyhow，staytoluncheon。Do-likeagoodboy。Oh，youmust。"

Cokedroppedagainintohischair。Hestudiedherinsomewonder。"Ithoughtyou\'dbesurprised，"

hesaid，ingenuously。

"Oh，youdid，didyou？Well，youseeI\'mnot。

Andnowtellmeallaboutit。"

"There\'sreallynothingtotellbuttheplainfact。

Someoftheboysdroppedinattheminister\'sroomsalittlewhileago，and，hetoldthemofit。

That\'sall。"

Well，howdidheknow？

"IamsureIcan\'ttellyou。Gotitfirsthand，I

suppose。HelikesColeman，andColemanisalwayshangingupthere。"

"Oh，perhapsColemanwaslying，"saidNoraeasily。Thensuddenlyherfacebrightenedandshespokewithanimation。"Oh，Ihaven\'ttoldyouhowmylittleGreekofficerhasturnedout。HaveI？

No？Well，itissimplylovely。Doyouknow，hebelongstooneofthebestfamiliesinAthens？Hedoes。

Andthey\'rerich-richascanbe。Mycouriertellsmethatthemarblepalacewheretheyliveisenoughtoblindyou，andthatiftitleshadn\'tgoneoutofstyle-orsomething-hereinGreece，mylittleofficerwouldbeaprince!Thinkofthat!Thecourierdidn\'tknowituntilwegottoAthens，andthelittleofficer-theprince-gavemehiscard，ofcourse。Oneoftheoldest，noblestandrichestfamiliesinGreece。

Thinkofthat!ThereIthoughthewasonlyabothersomelittleofficerwhocameinhandyattimes，andthereheturnsouttobeaprince。IcouldhardlykeepmyselffromrushingrightofftofindhimandapologisetohimforthewayItreatedhim。Itwasawful!And-"addedthefairNora，pensively，"ifhedoesmeetmeinParis，I\'llmakehimwearthattitledowntoashred，youcanbet。What\'sthegoodofhavingatitleunlessyoumakeitwork？"

CHAPTERXXIX。

COKEdidnotstaytoluncheonwithNoraBlack。

Hewentawaysayingtohimselfeitherthatgirldon\'tcareastrawforColemanorshehasgotaheartabsolutelyofflint，orsheisthegreatestactressonearthor-thereissomeotherreason。"

Athisdeparture，Noraturnedandcalledintoanadjoiningroom。"MaudeI"Thevoiceofhercompanionandfriendansweredherpeevishly。"What？"

"Don\'tbotherme。I\'mreading。"

"Well，anyhow，luncheonisready，soyouwillhavetostiryourpreciousself，"respondedNora。"You\'relazy。"

"Idon\'twantanyluncheon。Don\'tbotherme。

I\'vegotaheadache。"

"Well，ifyoudon\'tcomeout，you\'llmissthenews。

That\'sallI\'vegottosay。"

Therewasarustleintheadjoiningroom，andimmediatelythecompanionappeared，seemingmuchannoyedbutcurious。"Well，whatisit？"

"RufusColemanisengagedtobemarriedtothatWainwrightgirl，afterall。"

"WellIdeclare!"ejaculatedthelittleoldlady。

"WellIdeclare。"Shemeditatedforamoment，andthencontinuedinatoneofsatisfaction。"Itoldyouthatyoucouldn\'tstopthatmanColemanifhehadfeallymadeuphismindto-"

"You\'reafool，"saidNora，pleasantly。

"Why？"saidtheoldlady。

Becauseyouare。Don\'ttalktomeaboutit。I

wanttothinkofMarco。"

"\'Marco，\'"quotedtheoldladystartled。

"Theprince。Theprince。Can\'tyouunderstand？

Imeantheprince。"

"\'Marco!\'"againquotedtheoldlady，underherbreath。

"Yes，\'Marco，\'"criedNora，belligerently。"\'Marco，\'

Doyouobjecttothename？What\'sthematterwithyou，anyhow？"

"Well，"rejoinedtheother，noddingherheadwisely，"hemaybeaprince，butI\'vealwaysheardthatthesecontinentaltitlesarenogoodincomparisontotheEnglishtitles。"

"Yes，butwhotoldyouso，eh？"demandedNora，noisily。Sheherselfansweredthequestion。"TheEnglish!"

"Anyhow，thatlittlemarquiswhotaggedafteryouinLondonisamuchbiggermanineveryway，I\'llbet，thanthislittleprinceofyours。"

"But-goodheavens-hedidn\'tmeanit。Why，hewasonlyoneoftheregularrounders。ButMarco，heisseriousIHemeansit。He\'dgothroughfireandwaterformeandbegladofthechance。"

"Well，"proclaimedtheoldlady，"ifyouarenotthestrangestwomanintheworld，I\'dliketoknow!

HereIthought-"

"Whatdidyouthink？"demandedNora，suspisciously。

"IthoughtthatColeman——"

"Bosh!"interrupted，thegracefulNora。"Itellyouwhat，Maude；you\'dbettertrytothinkaslittleaspossible。Itwillsuityourstyleofbeautybetter。

Andaboveall，don\'tthinkofmyaffairs。Imyselfamtakingpainsnottothinkofthem。It\'seasier。"

Mrs。Wainwright，withnospiritofintentionwhat。

ever，hadsitaboutreadjustingheropinions。Itiscertainthatshewasunconsciousofanyevolution。Ifsomeonehadsaidtoherthatshewassurrenderingtotheinevitable，shewouldhavebeenimmediatelyonherguard，andwouldhaveopposedforeverallsuggestionsofamatchbetweenMarjoryandColeman。Ontheotherhand，ifsomeonehadsaidtoherthatherdaughterwasgoingtomarryahumanserpent，andthattherewerepeopleinAthenswhowouldbegladtoexplainhistreacherouscharacter，shewouldhavehaughtilyscornedthetale-bearingandwouldhavegonewithmorehasteintotheprofessor\'swayofthinking。Infact，shewasinprocessofunderminingherself。，andtheworkcouldhavebeen。retardedoradvancedbyanyirresponsible，gossipytongue。

Theprofessor，fromthedepthsofhisexperiencewithher，arrangedacourseofconduct。"IfIjustleavehertoherselfshewillcomearoundallright，butifIgo\'strikingwhiletheironishot，\'oranyofthosethings，I\'llbungleitsurely。"

Astheyweremakingreadytogodowntoluncheon，Mrs。Wainwrightmadeherspeechwhichfirstindicatedachangingmind。"Well，whatwillbe，willbe，"

shemurmuredwithaprolongedsighofresignation。

"Whatwillbe，willbe。Girlsareveryheadstronginthesedays，andthereisnothingmuchtobedonewiththem。Theygotheirownroads。Itwasn\'tsoinmygirlhood-Wewereobligedtopayattentiontoourmotherswishes。"

"Ididnotnoticethatyoupaidmuchattentiontoyourmother\'swisheswhenyoumarriedme，"remarkedtheprofessor。"Infact，Ithought-"

"Thatwasanotherthing，"retortedMrs。Wainwrightwithseverity。"Youwereasteadyyoungmanwhohadtakenthehighesthonoursallthroughyourcollegecourse，andmymother\'ssoleobjectionwasthatweweretoohasty。Shethoughtwe-oughttowaituntilyouhadapennytoblessyourselfwith，andIcanseenowwhereshewasquiteright。"

"Well，youmarriedme，anyhow，"saidtheprofessor，victoriously。

Mrs。Wainwrightallowedherhusband\'sretorttopassoverherthoughtfulmood。"Theysay**theysayRufusColemanmakesasmuchasfifteenthousanddollarsayear。That\'smorethanthreetimesyourincome**Idon\'tknow。**Italldependsonwhethertheytrytosaveornot。Hismanneroflifeis，nodoubt，veryluxurious。Idon\'tsupposeheknowshowtoeconomiseatall。Thatkindofamanusuallydoesn\'t。Andthen，inthenewspaperworldpositionsaresoveryprecarious。Menmayhavevaluablepositionsoneminuteandbepennilessinthestreetthenextminute。Itisn\'tasifhehadanyrealincome，andofcoursehehasnorealability。Ifhewassuddenlythrownoutofhisposition，goodnessknowswhatwouldbecomeofhim。Stillstillfifteenthousanddollarsayearisabigincomewhileitlasts。I

supposeheisveryextravagant。Thatkindofamanusuallyis。AndIwouldn\'tbesurprisedifhewasheavilyindebt；veryheavilyindebt。Still**ifMarjoryhassetherheartthereisnothingtobedone，Isuppose。Itwouldn\'thavehappenedifyouhadbeenaswiseasyouthoughtyouwere。**IsupposehethinksIhavebeenveryrudetohim。Well，sometimesIwasn\'tnearlysorudeasIfeltlikebeing。

FeelingasIdid，Icouldhardlybeveryamiable。**

OfcoursethisdrivethisafternoonwasallyouraffairandMarjory\'s。But，ofcourse，Ishallbenicetohim。"

"AndwhatofallthisNoraBlackbusiness？"askedtheprofessor，with，adisplayofvalour，butreallywithmuchtrepidation。

"Sheisahussy，"respondedMrs。Wainwrightwithenergy。"HerconversationinthecarriageonthewaydowntoAgrinionsickenedme!"

"IreallybelievethatherplanwassimplytobreakeverythingoffbetweenMarjoryandColeman，"saidtheprofessor，"andIdon\'tbelieveshehadany-groundsforallthatappearanceofowningColemanandtherestofit。"

"Ofcourseshedidn\'t"assentedMrs。Wainwright。

Theviciousthing!"

"Ontheotherhand，"saidtheprofessor，"theremightbesometruthinit。"

"Idon\'tthinkso，"saidMrs。Wainwrightseriously。

Idon\'tbelieveawordofit。"

"YoudonotmeantosaythatyouthinkColemanamodelman？"demandedtheprofessor。

"Notatall!Notatall!"shehastilyanswered。

"But**onedoesn\'tlookformodelmenthesedays。"

"\'Whotoldyouhemadefifteenthousandayear？

askedtheprofessor。

"ItwasPeterTounleythismorning。Weweretalkingupstairsafterbreakfast，andheremarkedthatheifcouldmakefifteenthousand，ayear:likeColeman，he\'d-I\'veforgottenwhat-somefancifulthing。"

"Idoubtifitistrue，"mutteredtheoldmanwagginghishead。

"Ofcourseit\'strue，"saidhiswifeemphatically。

"PeterTounleysayseverybodyknowsit。"

Well*anyhow*moneyisnoteverything。"

Butit\'sa。greatdeal，youknowwellenough。Youknowyouarealwaysspeakingofpovertyasanevil，asagrandresultant，acollaborationofmanylesserevils。Well，then？

"But，"begantheprofessormeekly，whenIsaythatImean-"

"Well，moneyismoneyandpovertyispoverty，"

interruptedhiswife。"Youdon\'thavetobeverylearnedtoknowthat。"

"IdonotsaythatColemanhasnotaverynicethingofit，butImustsayitishardtothinkofhisgettinganysuchsum，asyoumention。"

"Isn\'theknownasthemostbrilliantjournalistinNewYork？"shedemandedharshly。

"Y-yes，aslongasitlasts，butthenoneneverknowswhenhewillbeoutinthestreetpenniless。

Ofcoursehehasnoparticularabilitywhichwouldbemarketableifhesuddenlylosthispresentemployment。

Ofcourseitisnotasifhewasareallytalentedyoungman。

Hemightnotbeabletomakehiswayatallinanynewdirection。"

"Idon\'tknowaboutthat，"saidMrs。Wainwrightinreflectiveprotestation。"Idon\'tknowaboutthat。

Ithinkhewould。"

"Ithoughtyousaidamomentago-"Theprofessorspokewithanairofpuzzledhesitancy。"I

thoughtyousaidamomentagothathewouldn\'tsucceedinanythingbutjournalism。"

Mrs。Wainwrightswamoverthesituationwithafinetranquility。"Well-I-I，"sheansweredmusingly，"ifIdidsaythat，Ididn\'tmeanitexactly。"

"No，Isupposenot，"spoketheprofessor，andde-

spitethenecessityforcautionhecouldnotkeepoutofhisvoiceafaintnoteofannoyance。

"Ofcourse，"continuedthewife，"RufusColemanisknowneverywhereasabrilliantman，averybrilliantman，andheevenmightdowellin-inpoliticsorsomethingofthatsort。"

"IhaveaverypooropinionofthatkindofamindwhichdoeswellinAmericanpolitics，"saidthepro-

fessor，speakingasacollegian，"butIsupposetheremaybesomethinginit。"

"Well，atanyrate，"decidedMrs。Wainwright。

"Atanyrate-"

Atthatmoment，Marjoryattiredforluncheonandthedriveenteredfromherroom，andMrs。Wainwrightcheckedtheexpressionofherimportantconclusion。

Neitherfatherormotherhadeverseenhersoglowingwithtriumphantbeauty，abeautywhichwouldcarrythemindofaspectatorfarabovephysicalappreciationintothatrealmofpoetrywherecreaturesoflightmoveandarebeautifulbecausetheycannotknowpainoraburden。Itcarriedtearstotheoldfather\'seyes。Hetookherhands。"Don\'tbetoohappy，mychild，don\'tbetoohappy，"headmonishedhertremulously。"Itmakesmeafraid-itmakesmeafraid。"

CHAPTERXXX

ITseemsstrangethattheonewhowasthemosthilariousovertheengagementofMarjoryandCole-

manshouldbeColeman\'sdragomanwhowasindeedinastateborderingontransport。Itisnotknownhowhelearnedthegladtidings，butitiscertainthathelearnedthembeforeluncheon。Hetoldallthevisibleemployesofthehotelandallowedthemtoknowthatthebetrothalreallyhadbeenhishandi-workHehadarrangedit。Hedidnotmakequiteclearhowhehadperformedthisfeat，butatleasthewasperfectlyfrankinacknowledgingit。

Whensomeofthestudentscamedowntoluncheon，theysawhimbutcouldnotdecidewhatailedhim。

Hewasinthemaincorridorofthehotel，grinningfromeartoear，andwhenheperceivedthestudentshemadesignstointimatethattheypossessedincom-

monajoyoussecret。"What\'sthematterwiththatidiot？"askedCokemorosely。"Looksasifhiswheelsweregoingaroundtoofast。"

PeterTounleywalkedclosetohimandscannedhimimperturbably，butwithcare。"What\'sup，Phidias？"Themanmadenoarticulatereply。Hecontinuedtogrinandgesture。"Paininootummy？

Motherdead？Caughtthecholera？Foundoutthatyou\'veswallowedapairofhammeredbrassandironsinyourbeer？Say，whoareyou，anyhow？"

Buthecouldnotshakethisinvincibleglee，sohewentaway。

Thedragoman\'srapturereacheditszenithwhenColemanlenthimtotheprofessorandhewascommissionedtobringacarriageforfourpeopletothedooratthreeo\'clock。Hehimselfwastositontheboxandtellthedriverwhatwasrequiredofhim。Hedashedoff，hishatinhishand，hishairflying，puffing，importantbeyondeverything，andapparentlybabblinghismissiontohalfthepeoplehemetonthestreet。Inmostcountrieshewouldhavelandedspeedilyinjail，butamongapeoplewhoexistonabasisof\'jibbering，hisviolentgabblearousednosuspicionsastohissanity。However，hestirredseveralliverystablestotheirdepthsandsetmenrunninghereandtherewildlyandforthemostpartfutiltiy。

Atfifteenminutestothreeo\'clock，acarriagewithitshorsesonagalloptorearoundthecorneranduptothe。frontofthehotel，whereithaltedwiththepompandexcitementofafireengine。Thedragomanjumpeddownfromhisseatbesidethedriverandscrambledhurriedlyintothehoiel，inthegloomofwhichhemetaserenestillnesswhichwaspunctuatedonlybytheleisurelytinkleofsilverandglassinthediningroom。Foramomentthedragomanseemedreallyastoundedoutofspecch。Thenheplungedintothemanager\'sroom。WasitconceivablethatMonsieurColemanwasstillatluncheon？Yes；infact，itwastrue。Butthecarriage，wasatthedoor!

Thecarriagewasatthedoor!Themanager，undisturbed，askedforwhathourMonsieurColemanhadbeenpleasedtoorderacarriage。Threeo\'clock!

Threeo\'clock？Themanagerpointedcalmlyattheclock。Verywell。Itwasnowonlythirteenminutesofthreeo\'clock。MonsieurColemandoubtlesswouldappearatthree。UntilthathourthemanagerwouldnotdisturbMonsieurColeman。Thedragomanclutchedbothhishandsinhishairandcastalookofagonytotheceiling。GreatGod!Hadheaccomplishedtheherculeantaskofgettingacarriageforfourpeopletothedoorofthehotelintimeforadriveatthreeo\'clock，onlytomeetwiththisstoniness，thisinhumanity？Ah，itwasunendurable？Hebeggedthemanager；heimploredhim。Butateveryword。

themanagerseemedtogrowmoreindifferent，morecallous。Hepointedwithawoodenfingerattheclock-face。Inreality，itisthus，thatGreekmeetsGreek。

ProfessorWainwrightandColemanstrolledtogetheroutofthediningroom。Thedragomanrushedecstaticallyuponthecorrespondent。"Oh，MeesterColeman!

Thecargeisready!"

"Well，allright，"saidColeman，knockingashesfromhiscigar。"Don\'tbeinahurry。Isupposewe\'llbeready，presently。"Themanwasindespair。

ThedepartureoftheWainwrightsandColemanonthisordinarydrivewasofasomewhatdramaticandpublicnature，Nooneseemedtoknowhowtopreventitsbeingso。Inthefirstplace，theattendantsthrongedoutenmasseforareasonwhichwasplainatthetimeonlytoColeman\'sdragoman。And，ratherinthebackground，lurkedtheinterestedstudents。

Theprofessorwassurprisedandnervous。Colemanwasrigidandangry。Marjorywasflushedandsomewhathurried，andMrs。Wainwrightwasasproudasanoldturkey-hen。

Asthecarriagerolledaway，PeterTounleyturnedtohiscompanionsandsaid:"Now，that\'sofficial!

Thatistheofficialannouncement!DidyouseeOldMotherWainwright？Oh，myeye，wasn\'tshepuffedup!Say，whatinhelldoyousupposeallthesejayhawkingbell-boyspouredouttothekerbfor？Gobacktoyourcages，mygoodpeople-"

Assoonasthecarriagewheeledintoanotherstreet，itsoccupantsexchangedeasiersmiles，andtheymusthaveconfessedinsomesubtlewayofglancesthatnowatlasttheywereupontheirownmission，amissionundefinedbutearnesttothemall。

Colemanhadagladfeelingofbeingletintothefamily，orbecomingoneofthemTheprofessorlookedsidewaysathimandsmiledgently。"Youknow，Ithoughtofdrivingyoutosomeruins，butMarjorywouldnothaveit。Sheflatlyobjectedtoanymoreruins。SoIthoughtwewoulddrivedowntoNewPhalerum。"

Colemannoddedandsmiledasifhewereimmenselypleased，butofcourseNewPhalerumwastohimnomorenor-lessthanVladivostokorKhartoum。

Neitherplacenordistancehadinterestforhim。

Theysweptalongashadedavenuewherethedustlaythickontheleaves；theypassedcafeswherecrowdswereangrilyshoutingoverthenewsinthelittlepapers；

theypassedahospitalbeforewhichwoundedmen，whitewithbandages，weretakingthesun；thencamesoontotheandvalleyflankedbygauntnakedmountains，whichwouldleadthemtothesea。Sometimestoaccentuatethedrynakednessofthisvalley，therewouldbeapatchofgrassuponwhichpoppiesburnedcrimsonspots。Thedustwrithedoutfromunderthewheelsofthecarriage；inthedistancetheseaappeared，abluehalf-discsetbetweenshouldersofbarrenland。ItwouldbecommontosaythatColemanwasoblivioustoallabouthimbutMarjory。Onthecontrary，theparchedland，theisolatedflameofpoppies，thecoolairfromthesea，allwerekeenlyknowntohim，andtheyhaddevelopedanextraordinarypowerofblendingsympatheticallyintohismood。Meanwhiletheprofessortalkedagreatdeal。

Andasasomewhatexhilaratingdetail，ColemanperceivedthatMs。Wainwrightwasbeaminguponhim。

AtNewPhalerum-asmallcollectionofpalesquarevillas-theyleftthecarriageandstrolled，bythesea。

Thewavesweresnarlingtogetherlikewolvesamidthehoneycombrocksandfromwheretheblueplanesprangleveltothehorizon，cameastrongcoldbreeze，thekindofabreezewhichmovesanexultingmanoraparsontotakeoffhishatandlethislocksflutterandtugbackfromhisbrow。

TheprofessorandMrs。Wainwrightwerelefttothemselves。

MarjoryandColemandidnotspeakforatime。Itmighthavebeenthattheydidnotquiteknowwheretomakeabeginning。AtlastMarjoryasked:

"Whathasbecomeofyoursplendidhorse？"

"Oh，I\'vetoldthedragomantohavehimsoldassoonashearrives，"saidColemanabsently。

"Oh。I\'msorry**Ilikedthathorse。"

"Why？"

"Oh，because-"

"Well，hewasafine-"Thenhe，too，interruptedhimself，forhesawplainlythattheyhadnotcometothisplacetotalkaboutahorse。Thereathemadespeechofmatterswhichatleastdidnotaffordasmanyopportunitiesforcoherencyaswouldthehorse。Marjory，itcan\'tbetrue***Isittrue，dearest**Icanhardlybelieveit-I-"

"Oh，IknowI\'mnotnearlygoodenoughforyou。"

"Goodenoughforme，dear？

"Theyalltoldmeso，andtheywereright!Why，eventheAmericanministersaidit。Everybodythinksit。"

"Why，aren\'ttheywretchesTothinkofthemsayingsuchathing!Asif-asifanybodycouldbetoo——"

"Doyouknow-"Shepausedandlookedathimwithacertaintimidchallenge。"Idon\'tknowwhyIfeelit，but-sometimesIfeelthatI\'vebeenI\'vebeenflungatyourhead。"

Heopenedhismouthinastonishment。"Flungatmyhead!

Sheheldupherfinger。"AndifIthoughtyoucouldeverbelieveit!"

"Isagirlflungataman\'sheadwhenherfathercarriesherthousandsofmilesawayandthemanfollowsherallthesemiles，andatlast-"

"Hereyeswereshining。"AndyoureallycametoGreece-onpurposeto-to-"

"Confessyouknewitallthetime!Confess!"

Theanswerwasmuffled。"Well，sometimesI

thoughtyoudid，andatothertimesIthoughtyou-

didn\'t。"

Inasecludedcove，inwhichthesea-maidsoncehadplayed，nodoubt，MarjoryandColemansatinsilence。

Hewasbelowher，andifhelookedatherhehadtoturnhisglanceobliquelyupward。Shewasstaringattheseawithwoman\'smysticgaze，agazewhichmenatoncereverenceandfearsinceitseemstolookintothedeep，simpleheartofnature，andmenbegintofeelthattheirpettywisdomsarefutiletocontrolthesestrangespirits，aswaywardasnatureandaspureasnature，wildastheplayofwaves，sometimesasunalterableasthemountainamidthewinds；andtomeasurethem，manmustperforceuseamathematicalformula。

Hewishedthatshewouldlayherhanduponhishair。Hewouldbehappythen。Ifshewouldonly，ofherownwill，touchhishairlightlywithherfingers-ifshewoulddoitwithanunconsciousairitwouldbeevenbetter。Itwouldshowhimthatshewasthinkingofhim，evenwhenshedidnotknowshewasthinkingofhim。

Perhapshedaredlayhisheadsoftlyagainstherknee。

Didhedare？

Ashisheadtouchedherknee，shedidnotmove。

Sheseemedtobestillgazingatthesea。Presentlyidlycaressingfingersplayedinhishairneartheforehead。Helookedupsuddenlyliftinghisarms。

Hebreathedoutacrywhichwasladenwithakindofdiffidentferocity。"Ihaven\'tkissedyouyet-"