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mean——they\'llSAYsomething——"
"Whatiftheydo？"
Shemovedhershouldersinalittleapprehensiveshiver。"It\'llchangeyou，"shesaid。"I\'mjustsuresomethingspiteful\'sgoingtohappentome。You\'llfeeldifferentlyabout——things。"
"Now，isn\'tthatanidea!"heexclaimed。
"Itwill，"sheinsisted。"Iknowsomethingspiteful\'sgoingtohappen!"
"Youseempossessedbyanotionnotabitflatteringtome，"heremarked。
"Oh，butisn\'tit？That\'sjustwhatitis!Whyisn\'tit？"
"BecauseitimpliesthatI\'mmadeofsuchsoftmaterialtheslightestbreezewillmessmeallup。I\'mnotsolikethatasI
evidentlyappear；andifit\'struethatwe\'reafraidotherpeoplewilldothethingswe\'dbemostlikelytodoourselves，itseemstomethatIoughttobetheonetobeafraid。IoughttobeafraidthatsomebodymaysaysomethingaboutmetoyouthatwillmakeyoubelieveI\'maprofessionalforger。"
"No。Webothknowtheywon\'t，"shesaid。"Webothknowyou\'rethesortofpersoneverybodyintheworldsaysnicethingsabout。"Sheliftedherhandtosilencehimashelaughedatthis。"Oh，ofcourseyouare!Ithinkperhapsyou\'realittleflirtatious——mostquietmenhavethatoneslywaywith\'em——oh，yes，theydo!Butyouhappentobethekindofmaneverybodylovestopraise。Andifyouweren\'t，_I_shouldn\'thearanythingterribleaboutyou。ItoldyouIwasunpopular:Idon\'tseeanybodyatallanymore。Theonlymanexceptyouwho\'sbeentoseemeinamonthisthatfearfullittlefatFrankDowling，andI
sentwordtoHIMIwasn\'thome。Nobody\'dtellmeofyourwickedness，yousee。"
"Thenletmebreaksomenewstoyou，"Russellsaid。"Nobodywouldtellmeofyours，either。Nobody\'sevenmentionedyoutome。"
Sheburlesquedacryofanguish。"ThatISobscurity!IsupposeI\'mtooapttoforgetthattheysaythepopulation\'sabouthalfamillionnowadays。ThereAREotherpeopletotalkabout，youfeel，then？"
"NonethatIwantto，"hesaid。"ButIshouldthinkthesizeoftheplacemightrelieveyourmindofwhatseemstoinsistonburdeningit。Besides，I\'dratheryouthoughtmeabettermanthanyoudo。"
"WhatkindofamandoIthinkyouare？"
"Thekindaffectedbywhat\'ssaidaboutpeopleinsteadofbywhattheydothemselves。"
"Aren\'tyou？"
"No，I\'mnot，"hesaid。"Ifyouwantoursummereveningstobeoveryou\'llhavetodrivemeawayyourself。"
"Nobodyelsecould？"
"No。"
Shewassilent，leaningforward，withherelbowsonherkneesandherclaspedhandsagainstherlips。Then，notmoving，shesaidsoftly:
"Well——Iwon\'t!"
Shewassilentagain，andhesaidnothing，butlookedather，seemingtobecontentwithlooking。Herattitudewasoneonlyagracefulpersonshouldassume，butshewasgraceful；and，inthewanlight，whichmadeaprettilyshapedmistofher，shehadbeauty。Perhapsitwasbeautyofthehour，andofthelovescenealmostmadeintoformbywhattheyhadbothjustsaid，butshehadit；andthoughbeautyofthehourpasses，hewhoseesitwilllongrememberitandthehourwhenitcame。
"Whatareyouthinkingof？"heasked。
Sheleanedbackinherchairanddidnotansweratonce。Thenshesaid:
"Idon\'tknow；IdoubtifIwasthinkingofanything。ItseemstomeIwasn\'t。IthinkIwasjustbeingsortofsadlyhappyjustthen。"
"Wereyou？Wasit\'sadly，\'too？"
"Don\'tyouknow？"shesaid。"Itseemstomethatonlylittlechildrencanbejusthappilyhappy。IthinkwhenwegetolderourhappiestmomentsareliketheoneIhadjustthen:it\'sasifweheardstrainsofminormusicrunningthroughthem——oh，sosweet，butoh，sosad!"
"ButwhatmakesitsadforYOU？"
"Idon\'tknow，"shesaid，inalightertone。"Perhapsit\'sakindofuselessforebodingIseemtohaveprettyoften。Itmaybethat——oritmaybepoorpapa。"
"YouAREafunny，delightfulgirl，though!"Russelllaughed。
"Whenyourfather\'ssowellagainthathegoesoutwalkingintheevenings!"
"Hedoestoomuchwalking，"Alicesaid。"Toomuchaltogether，overathisnewplant。Butthereisn\'tanystoppinghim。"Shelaughedandshookherhead。"Whenamangetsanambitiontobeamulti-millionairehisfamilydon\'tappeartohavemuchweightwithhim。He\'llwalkallhewantsto，inspiteofthem。"
"Isupposeso，"Russellsaid，absently；thenheleanedforward。
"IwishIcouldunderstandbetterwhyyouwere\'sadly\'happy。"
Meanwhile，asAliceshedwhatfurtherlightshecouldonthispoint，themanambitioustobea"multi-millionaire"wasindeedwalkingtoomuchforhisowngood。Hehadgonetobed，hopingtosleepwellandriseearlyforalongday\'swork，buthecouldnotrest，andnow，inhisnightgownandslippers，hewaspacingthefloorofhisroom。
"IwishIDIDknow，"hethought，overandover。"IDOwishI
knewhowhefeelsaboutit。"
CHAPTERXVIII
Thatwasathoughtalmostcontinuouslyinhismind，evenwhenhewashardestatwork；and，asthedayswentonandhecouldnotfreehimself，hebecamequerulousaboutit。"IguessI\'mthebiggestdangfoolalive，"hetoldhiswifeastheysattogetheroneevening。"Igotplentyelsetobotherme，withoutworryingmyheadoffaboutwhatHEthinks。Ican\'thelpwhathethinks；
it\'stoolateforthat。SowhyshouldIkeeppesteringmyselfaboutit？"
"It\'llwearoff，Virgil，"Mrs。Adamssaid，reassuringly。Shewasgentleandsympatheticwithhim，andforthefirsttimeinmanyyearshewouldcometositwithherandtalk，whenhehadfinishedhisday\'swork。Hehadtoldher，evadinghereye，"Oh，Idon\'tblameyou。Youdidn\'tgetaftermetodothisonyourownaccount；youcouldn\'thelpit。"
"Yes；butitdon\'twearoff，"hecomplained。"ThisafternoonI
wasshowingthemenhowIwantedmyvatstogo，andIcaughtmyfoolselfstandingtheresayingtomyfoolself，\'It\'sfunnyI
don\'thearhowhefeelsaboutitfromSOMEbody。\'Iwassayingitaloud，almost——anditISfunnyIdon\'thearanything!"
"Well，youseewhatitmeans，don\'tyou，Virgil？Itonlymeanshehasn\'tsaidanythingtoanybodyaboutit。Don\'tyouthinkyou\'regettingkindofmorbidoverit？"
"Maybe，maybe，"hemuttered。
"Why，yes，"shesaid，briskly。"Youdon\'trealizewhatalittlebitofathingallthisistohim。It\'sbeenalong，longwhilesincethelasttimeyouevenmentionedgluetohim，andhe\'sprobablyforgotteneverythingaboutit。"
"You\'reoffyourbase；itisn\'tlikehimtoforgetthings，"Adamsreturned，peevishly。"Hemayseemtoforget\'em，buthedon\'t。"
"Buthe\'snotthinkingaboutthis，oryou\'dhaveheardfromhimbeforenow。"
Herhusbandshookhishead。"Ah，that\'sjustit!"hesaid。"WhyHAVEN\'TIheardfromhim？"
"It\'sallyourmorbidness，Virgil。LookatWalter:ifMr。Lambheldthisupagainstyou，wouldhestillletWalterstaythere？
Wouldn\'thehavedischargedWalterifhefeltangrywithyou？"
"Thatdangboy!"Adamssaid。"IfheWANTEDtocomewithmenow，Iwouldn\'thardlylethim，Whatdoyousupposemakeshimsobull-headed？"
"Buthasn\'thearighttochooseforhimself？"sheasked。"I
supposehefeelsheoughttosticktowhathethinksissurepay。
Assoonasheseesthatyou\'regoingtosucceedwiththeglue-workshe\'llwanttobewithyouquickenough。"
"Well，hebettergetalittlesenseinhishead，"Adamsreturned，crossly。"Hewantedmetopayhimathree-hundred-dollarbonusinadvance，whenanybodywithagrainofcommonsenseknowsI
needeverypennyIcanlaymyhandson!"
"Nevermind，"shesaid。"He\'llcomearoundlaterandbegladofthechance。"
"He\'llhavetobegforitthen!_I_won\'taskhimagain。"
"Oh，Walterwillcomeoutallright；youneedn\'tworry。Anddon\'tyouseethatMr。Lamb\'snotdischarginghimmeansthere\'snohardfeelingagainstyou，Virgil？"
"Ican\'tmakeitoutatall，"hesaid，frowning。"TheonlythingIcanTHINKitmeansisthatJ。A。Lambissofair-minded——andofcourseheISoneofthefair-mindedestmenaliveIsupposethat\'sthereasonhehasn\'tfiredWalter。Hemayknow，"Adamsconcluded，morosely——"hemayknowthat\'sjustanotherthingtomakemefeelallthemeaner:keepingmyboythereonasalaryafterI\'vedonehimaninjury。"
"Now，now!"shesaid，tryingtocomforthim。"Youcouldn\'tdoanybodyaninjurytosaveyourlife，andeverybodyknowsit。"
"Well，anybodyoughttoknowIwouldn\'tWANTtodoaninjury，butthisworldisn\'tbuiltso\'twecandojustwhatwewant。"Hepaused，reflecting。"OfcoursetheremaybeoneexplanationofwhyWalter\'sstillthere:J。A。maybehasn\'tnoticedthatheIS
there。There\'ssomanyIexpecthehardlyknowshimbysight。"
"Well，justdoquitthinkingaboutit，"sheurgedhim。"Itonlybothersyouwithoutdoinganygood。Don\'tyouknowthat？"
"Don\'tI，though!"helaughed，feebly。"Iknowitbetter\'nanybody!Howfunnythatis:whenyouknowthinkingaboutathingonlypestersyouwithouthelpinganythingatall，andyetyoukeeprightonpesteringyourselfwithit!"
"ButWHY？"shesaid。"What\'stheusewhenyouknowyouhaven\'tdoneanythingwrong，Virgil？Yousaidyourselfyouweregoingtoimprovetheprocesssomuchitwouldbedifferentfromtheoldone，andyou\'dREALLYhavearighttoit。"
Adamshadpersuadedhimselfofthiswhenheyielded；hehadfounditnecessarytopersuadehimselfofit——thoughtherewasapartofhim，ofcourse，thatremainedunpersuaded；andthisdiscomfitingpartofhimwaswhatmadehispresenttrouble。
"Yes，Iknow，"hesaid。"That\'strue，butIcan\'tquiteseemtogetawayfromthefactthattheprincipleoftheprocessisagooddealthesame——well，it\'smore\'nthat；it\'sjustaboutthesameastheonehehiredCampbellandmetoworkoutforhim。
Truthis，nobodycouldtellthedifference，andIdon\'tknowasthereISanydifferenceexceptintheseimprovementsI\'mmaking。
Ofcourse，theimprovementsdogivemeprettynearaperfectrighttoit，asapersonmightsay；andthat\'soneofthethingsIthoughtofputtinginmylettertohim；butIwasafraidhe\'djustthinkIwastryingtomakeupexcuses，soIleftitout。I
kindofworriedallthetimeIwaswritingthatletter，becauseifhethoughtIWASjustmakingupexcuses，why，itmightsethimjustsomuchmoreagainstme。"
EversinceMrs。Adamshadfoundthatshewastohaveherway，thedepthsofhereyeshadbeentroubledbyacontinuousuneasiness；and，althoughsheknewitwasthere，andsometimesveileditbykeepingtherevealingeyesavertedfromherhusbandandchildren，shecouldnotalwayscoveritunderthatassumptionofabsent-mindedness。Theuneasylookbecamevivid，andhervoicewasslightlytremulousnow，asshesaid，"ButwhatifheSHOULDbeagainstyou——althoughIdon\'tbelieveheis，ofcourse——youtoldmehecouldn\'tDOanythingtoyou，Virgil。"
"No，"hesaid，slowly。"Ican\'tseehowhecoulddoanything。
Itwasjustasecret，notapatent；thethingain\'tpatentable。
I\'vetriedtothinkwhathecoulddo——supposinghewastowantto——butIcan\'tfigureoutanythingatallthatwouldbeanyharmtome。Thereisn\'tanywayintheworlditcouldbemadeaquestionoflaw。Onlythinghecoulddo\'dbetoTELLpeoplehissideofit，andset\'emagainstme。Ibeenkindofwaitingforthattohappen，allalong。"
Shelookedsomewhatrelieved。"SodidIexpectit，"shesaid。
"IwasdreadingitmostonAlice\'saccount:itmighthave——well，youngmenaresoeasilyinfluencedandall。Butsofarasthebusinessisconcerned，whatifMr。Lambdidtalk？Thatwouldn\'tamounttomuch。Itwouldn\'taffectthebusiness；nottohurt。
And，besides，heisn\'tevendoingthat。"
"No；anyhownotyet，itseems。"AndAdamssighedagain，wistfully。"ButIWOULDgiveagooddealtoknowwhathethinks!"
Beforehissurrenderhehadalwayssupposedthatifhedidsuchanunthinkablethingastoseizeupontheglueprocessforhimself，whathewouldfeelmustbeanoverpoweringshame。Butshameistherarestthingintheworld:whathefeltwasthisunremittentcuriosityabouthisoldemployer\'sthoughts。Itwasanobsession，yethedidnotwanttohearwhatLamb"thought"
fromLambhimself，forAdamshadasecondobsession，andthiswashisdreadofmeetingtheoldmanfacetoface。Suchanencountercouldhappenonlybychanceandunexpectedly；sinceAdamswouldhaveavoidedanydeliberatemeeting，solongashislegshadstrengthtocarryhim，evenifLambcametothehousetoseehim。
Butpeopledomeetunexpectedly；andwhenAdamshadtobedown-townhekeptawayfromthe"wholesaledistrict。"OnedayhedidseeLamb，asthelatterwentbyinhiscar，impassive，goinghometolunch；andAdams，inthecrowdatacorner，knewthattheoldmanhadnotseenhim。Nevertheless，inastreetcar，onthewaybacktohissheds，anhourlater，hewasstillsubjecttolittleshiveringseizuresofhorror。
Heworkedunceasingly，seemingtokeepatiteveninhissleep，forhealwayswokeinthemidstofaplanningandestimatingthatmusthavebeengoingoninhismindbeforeconsciousnessofhimselfreturned。Moreover，thework，thusurged，wentrapidly，inspiteofthehighwageshehadtopayhislabourersfortheirshorthours。"Iteatsmoney，"hecomplained，and，infact，bythetimehisvatsandboilerswereinplaceithadeatenalmostallhecouldsupply；butinadditiontohisequipmenthenowownedastockof"rawmaterial，"rawindeed；andwhenoperationsshouldbealittlefurtheralonghewasconfidenthisbankerwouldbewillingto"carry"him。
Sixweeksfromthedayhehadobtainedhisleasehebeganhisglue-making。Theterriblesmellscameoutoftheshedsandwentwrithinglikesnakesallthroughthatquarterofthetown。A
smilingman，strollingandbreathingtheairwithsatisfaction，wouldturnacornerandsmilenomore，buthurry。However，colouredpeoplehadalmostallthedwellingsofthisoldsectiontothemselves；andalthougheventheyweretroubled，therewasrecompenseforthem。Beingphilosophicaboutwhatappearedtothemasintheorderofnature，theysoughtneitherescapenorredress，andsoonlearnedtobearwhatthewindbroughtthem。
Theyevenmadeuseofittoenrichthosefiguresofspeechwithwhichthenativeimpulsesofcolouredpeopledecoratetheircommunications:theyflavouredmetaphor，simile，andinvectivewithit；andthusmaybesaidtohaveenjoyedit。Butthemanwhoproducedittookahotbathassoonashereachedhishometheeveningofthatfirstdaywhenhismanufacturingbegan。Thenheputonfreshclothes；butafterdinnerheseemedtobehaunted，andaskedhiswifeifshe"noticedanything。"
Shelaughedandinquiredwhathemeant。
"Seemstomeasifthatglue-workssmellhadn\'tquithangingtome，"heexplained。"Don\'tyounoticeit？"
"No!Whatanidea!"
Helaughed，too，butuneasily；andtoldherhewassure"thedanggluesmell"wassomehowstickingtohim。Later，hewentoutdoorsandwalkedupanddownthesmallyardinthedusk；butnowandthenhestoodstill，withhisheadlifted，andsniffedtheairsuspiciously。"CanYOUsmellit？"hecalledtoAlice，whosatupontheveranda，prettilydressedandwaitinginareverie。
"Smellwhat，papa？"
"Thatdangglue-works。"
Shedidthesamethinghermotherhaddone:laughed，andsaid，"No!Howfoolish!Why，papa，it\'sovertwomilesfromhere!"
"Youdon\'tgetitatall？"heinsisted。
"Theidea!Theairislovelyto-night，papa。"
Theairdidnotseemlovelytohim，forhewaspositivethathedetectedthetaint。Hewonderedhowfaritcarried，andifJ。
A。Lambwouldsmellit，too，outonhisownlawnamiletothenorth；andifhedid，wouldheguesswhatitwas？ThenAdamslaughedathimselfforsuchnonsense；butcouldnotridhisnostrilsoftheirdisgust。Tohimthewholetownseemedtosmellofhisglue-works。
Nevertheless，thegluewasmaking，andhisshedswerebusy。
"Guesswe\'restirrin\'upthisoleneighbourhoodwithmorethanthesmell，"hisforemanremarkedonemorning。
"How\'sthat？"Adamsinquired。
"Thatgreatbig，enormousoledeadbutterinefactoryacrossthestreetfromourlot，"themansaid。"Nothin\'likesettin\'anexampletobringrealestatetolife。Thatplaceisfullo\'
carpentersstartin\'intomakearegularbuildin\'ofitagain。
Guessyououghttohavethecreditofit，becauseyouwasthefirstmanintenyearstoseeanypossibilitiesinthisneighbourhood。"
Adamswaspleased，and，goingouttoseeforhimself，heardagreathammeringandsawingfromwithinthebuilding；whilecarpenterswerejustemerginggingerlyuponthedangerousroof。
Hewalkedoutoverthedriedmudofhisdeeplot，crossedthestreet，andspokegeniallytoaworkmanwhowasremovingthebrokenglassofawindowonthegroundfloor。
"Here!What\'sallthishowdy-dooverhere？"
"Goin\'tofixherallup，Iguess，"theworkmansaid。"Bigjobitis，too。"
"Sh\'thinkitwouldbe。"
"Yes，sir；aprettybigjob——aprettybigjob。Gotmenatitonallfourfloorsandontheroof。They\'redoin\'itRIGHT。"
"Who\'sdoingit？"
"Lord!Id\'know。Someo\'theseherebigmanufacturingcorporations，Iguess。"
"What\'sitgoingtobe？"
"TheytellME，"theworkmananswered——"theytellMEshe\'sgoin\'
tobeabutterinefactoryagain。Anyways，Ihopeshewon\'tbeanythingtosmelllikethatglue-worksyougotovertherenotwhileI\'mworkin\'aroundher，anyways!"
"Thatsmell\'sallright，"Adamssaid。"Yousoongetusedtoit。"
"Youdo？"Themanappearedincredulous。"Listen!IwasoverinFrance:it\'sagoodthingthemDutchmenneverthoughtofit；we\'dofhadtoquit!"
Adamslaughed，andwentbacktohissheds。"Iguessmyforemanwasright，"hetoldhiswife，thatevening，withalittlesatisfaction。"Assoonasonemanshowsenterpriseenoughtofoundanindustryinabroken-downneighbourhood，somebodyelseissuretofollow。Ikindoflikethelookofit:it\'llhelpmakeourplaceseemsortofmorebusyandprosperouswhenitcomestogettingaloanfromthebank——andIgottogetonemightysoon，too。Ididthinksomethatifthingsgoaswellasthere\'severyreasontothinktheyOUGHTto，Imightwanttospreadoutandmaybegetholdofthatoldfactorymyself；butI
hardlyexpectedtobeabletohandleapropositionofthatsizebeforetwoorthreeyearsfromnow，andanyhowthere\'sroomenoughonthelotIgot，ifweneedmorebuildingssomeday。
ThingsaregoingaboutasfineasIcouldask:Ihiredsomegirlsto-daytodothebottling——colouredgirlsalongaboutsixteentotwentyyearsold。Afterwhile，Iexpecttogetamachinetoputthestuffinthelittlebottles，whenwebegintogetgoodreturns；buthalfadozenofthesecolouredgirlscandoitallrightnow，byhand。We\'regettingtohavereallyquitealittleplantoverthere:yes，sir，quitearegularlittleplant!"
Hechuckled，andatthischeerfulsound，ofakindhiswifehadalmostforgottenhewascapableofproducing，sheventuredtoputherhanduponhisarm。Theyhadgoneoutdoors，afterdinner，takingtwochairswiththem，andweresittingthroughthelatetwilighttogether，keepingwellawayfromthe"frontporch，"
whichwasnotyetoccupied，howeverAlicewasinherroomchangingherdress。
"Well，honey，"Mrs。Adamssaid，takingconfidencenotonlytoputherhanduponhisarm，buttorevivethisdisusedendearment；——"it\'sgrandtohaveyousooptimistic。Maybesometimeyou\'lladmitIwasright，afterall。Everything\'sgoingsowell，itseemsapityyoudidn\'ttakethis——thisstep——longago。
Don\'tyouthinkmaybeso，Virgil？"
"Well——ifIwasevergoingto，Idon\'tknowbutImightaswellof。Igottoadmitthepropositionbeginstolookprettygood:I
knowthestuff\'llsell，andIcan\'tseeathingintheworldtostopit。Itdoeslookgood，andif——if——"Hepaused。
"Ifwhat？"shesaid，suddenlyanxious。
Helaughedplaintively，asifconfessingasuperstition。"It\'sfunny——well，it\'smightyfunnyaboutthatsmell。I\'vegotsousedtoitattheplantIneverseemtonoticeitatalloverthere。It\'sonlywhenIgetaway。Honestly，can\'tyounotice——？"
"Virgil!"Sheliftedherhandtostrikehisarmchidingly。"Doquitharpingonthatnonsense!"
"Oh，ofcourseitdon\'tamounttoanything，"hesaid。"Apersoncanstandagooddealofjustsmell。Itdon\'tWORRYmeany。"
"Ishouldthinknotespeciallyasthereisn\'tany。"
"Well，"hesaid，"Ifeelprettyfairoverthewholething——alotbetter\'nIeverexpectedto，anyhow。Idon\'tknowasthere\'sanyreasonIshouldn\'ttellyouso。"
Shewasdeeplypleasedwiththisacknowledgment，andhervoicehadtendernessinitassheresponded:"There，honey!Didn\'tI
alwayssayyou\'dbegladifyoudidit？"
Embarrassed，hecoughedloudly，thenfilledhispipeandlitit。
"Well，"hesaid，slowly，"it\'sapuzzle。Yes，sir，it\'sapuzzle。"
"Whatis？"
"Prettymucheverything，Iguess。"
Ashespoke，asongcametothemfromalightedwindowovertheirheads。Thenthewindowdarkenedabruptly，butthesongcontinuedasAlicewentdownthroughthehousetowaitonthelittleveranda。"MichiamoMimi，"shesang，andinhervoicethrobbedsomethingalmoststartlinginitssweetness。Herfatherandmotherlistened，notspeakinguntilthesongstoppedwiththeclickofthewirescreenatthefrontdoorasAlicecameout。
"My!"saidherfather。"Howsweetshedoessing!Idon\'tknowasIeverheardhervoicesoundnicerthanitdidjustthen。"
"There\'ssomethingthatmakesitsoundthatway，"hiswifetoldhim。
"Isupposeso，"hesaid，sighing。"Isupposeso。Youthink——"
"She\'sjustterriblyinlovewithhim!"
"Iexpectthat\'sthewayitoughttobe，"hesaid，thendrewuponhispipeforreflection，andbecamemurmurouswiththesymptomsofmelancholylaughter。"Itdon\'tmakethingslessofapuzzle，though，doesit？"
"Inwhatway，Virgil？"
"Why，here，"hesaid——"herewegothroughallthismuckandmoiltohelpfixthingsnicerforherathome，andwhat\'sitallamountto？Seemslikeshe\'sjustgoneaheadthewayshe\'d\'a\'
goneanyhow；andnow，Isuppose，gettingreadytoupandleaveus!Ain\'tthatapuzzletoyou？Itistome。"
"Oh，butthingshaven\'tgonethatfaryet。"
"Why，youjustsaid——"
Shegavealittlecryofprotest。"Oh，theyaren\'tENGAGEDyet。
OfcoursetheyWILLbe；he\'sjustasmuchinterestedinherassheisinhim，but——"
"Well，what\'sthetroublethen？"
"YouAREasimpleoldfellow!"hiswifeexclaimed，andthenrosefromherchair。"Thatremindsme，"shesaid。
"Whatof？"heasked。"What\'smybeingsimpleremindyouof？"
"Nothing!"shelaughed。"Itwasn\'tyouthatremindedme。Itwasjustsomethingthat\'sbeenonmymind。Idon\'tbelievehe\'sactuallyeverbeeninsideourhouse!"
"Hasn\'the？"
"Iactuallydon\'tbelieveheeverhas，"shesaid。"Ofcoursewemust——"Shepaused，debating。
"Wemustwhat？"
"IguessIbettertalktoAliceaboutitrightnow，"shesaid。
"Hedon\'tusuallycomeforabouthalfanhouryet；IguessI\'vegottime。"Andwiththatshewalkedaway，leavinghimtohispuzzles。
CHAPTERXIX
Alicewassoftlycrooningtoherselfashermotherturnedthecornerofthehouseandapproachedthroughthedusk。
"Isn\'titthemostBEAUTIFULevening!"thedaughtersaid。"WHY
can\'tsummerlastallyear？Didyoueverknowaloveliertwilightthanthis，mama？"
Mrs。Adamslaughed，andanswered，"NotsinceIwasyourage，I
expect。"
Alicewaswistfulatonce。"Don\'ttheystaybeautifulaftermyage？"
"Well，it\'snotthesamething。"
"Isn\'tit？Notever？"
"Youmayhaveadifferentkindfrommine，"themothersaid，alittlesadly。"Ithinkyouwill，Alice。Youdeserve——"
"No，Idon\'t。Idon\'tdeserveanything，andIknowit。ButI\'mgettingagreatdealthesedays——morethanIeverdreamedCOULD
cometome。I\'m——I\'mprettyhappy，mama!"
"Dearie!"Hermotherwouldhavekissedher，butAlicedrewaway。
"Oh，Idon\'tmean——"Shelaughednervously。"Iwasn\'tmeaningtotellyouI\'mENGAGED，mama。We\'renot。Imean——oh!thingsseemprettybeautifulinspiteofallI\'vedonetospoil\'em。"
"You？"Mrs。Adamscried，incredulously。"Whathaveyoudonetospoilanything？"
"Littlethings，"Alicesaid。"Athousandlittlesilly——oh，what\'stheuse？He\'ssohonestlywhatheis——justsimpleandgoodandintelligent——Ifeelatrickymessbesidehim!Idon\'tseewhyhelikesme；andsometimesI\'mafraidhewouldn\'tifheknewme。"
"He\'djustworshipyou，"saidthefondmother。"Andthemoreheknewyou，themorehe\'dworshipyou。"
Aliceshookherhead。"He\'snottheworshipingkind。Notlikethatatall。He\'smore——"
ButMrs。Adamswasnotinterestedinthisanalysis，andsheinterruptedbriskly，"Ofcourseit\'stimeyourfatherandI
showedsomeinterestinhim。IwasjustsayingIactuallydon\'tbelievehe\'severbeeninsidethehouse。"
"No，"Alicesaid，musingly；"that\'strue:Idon\'tbelievehehas。
Exceptwhenwe\'vewalkedintheeveningwe\'vealwayssatouthere，eventhosetwotimeswhenitwasdrizzly。It\'ssomuchnicer。"
"We\'llhavetodoSOMETHINGorother，ofcourse，"hermothersaid。
"Whatlike？"
"Iwasthinking——"Mrs。Adamspaused。"Well，ofcoursewecouldhardlyputoffaskinghimtodinner，orsomething，muchlonger。"
Alicewasnotenthusiastic；sofarfromit，indeed，thattherewasamelancholyalarminhervoice。"Oh，mama，mustwe？Doyouthinkso？"
"Yes，Ido。Ireallydo。"
"Couldn\'twe——well，couldn\'twewait？"
"Itlooksqueer，"Mrs。Adamssaid。"Itisn\'tthethingatallforayoungmantocomeasmuchashedoes，andnevermorethanjustbarelymeetyourfatherandmother。No。Weoughttodosomething。"
"Butadinner!"Aliceobjected。"Inthefirstplace，thereisn\'tanybodyIwanttoask。Thereisn\'tanybodyIWOULDask。"
"Ididn\'tmeantryingtogiveabigdinner，"hermotherexplained。"Ijustmeanhavinghimtodinner。Thatmulattowoman，MalenaBurns，goesoutbytheday，andshecouldbringawaitress。Wecangetsomeflowersforthetableandsometoputintheliving-room。Wemightjustaswellgoaheadanddoitto-morrowasanyothertime；becauseyourfather\'sinafinemood，andIsawMalenathisafternoonandtoldherImightwanthersoon。Shesaidshedidn\'thaveanyengagementsthisweek，andIcanletherknowto-night。Supposewhenhecomesyouaskhimforto-morrow，Alice。Everything\'llbeverynice，I\'msure。
Don\'tworryaboutit。"
"Well——but——"Alicewasuncertain。
"Butdon\'tyousee，itlookssoqueer，nottodoSOMETHING？"hermotherurged。"Itlookssokindofpoverty-stricken。Wereallyoughtn\'ttowaitanylonger。"
Aliceassented，thoughnotwithagoodheart。"Verywell，I\'llaskhim，ifyouthinkwe\'vegotto。"
"Thatmatter\'ssettledthen，"Mrs。Adamssaid。"I\'llgotelephoneMalena，andthenI\'lltellyourfatheraboutit。"
Butwhenshewentbacktoherhusband，shefoundhiminanexcitedstateofmind，andWalterstandingbeforehiminthedarkness。Adamswasalmostshouting，sogreatwashisvehemence。
"Hush，hush!"hiswifeimplored，asshecamenearthem。"They\'llhearyououtonthefrontporch!"
"Idon\'tcarewhohearsme，"Adamssaid，harshly，thoughhetemperedhisloudness。"Doyouwanttoknowwhatthisboy\'saskingmefor？Ithoughthe\'dmaybecometotellmehe\'dgotalittlesenseinhisheadatlast，andalittledecencyaboutwhat\'sduehisfamily!Ithoughthewasgoingtoaskmetotakehimintomyplant。No，ma\'am；THAT\'Snotwhathewants!"
"No，itisn\'t，"Waltersaid。Inthedarknesshisfacecouldnotbeseen；hestoodmotionless，inwhatseemedanapatheticattitude；andhespokequietly，"No，"herepeated。"Thatisn\'twhatIwant。"
"Youstaydownatthatplace，"Adamswenton，hotly，"insteadoftryingtobealittleusetoyourfamily；andtheonlyreasonyou\'reALLOWEDtostaythereisbecauseMr。Lamb\'sneverhappenedtonoticeyouAREstillthere!Youjustwait——"
"You\'reoff，"Waltersaid，inthesamequietway。"HeknowsI\'mthere。Hespoketomeyesterday:heaskedmehowIwasgettingalongwithmywork。"
"Hedid？"Adamssaid，seemingnottobelievehim。
"Yes。Hedid。"
"Whatelsedidhesay，Walter？"Mrs。Adamsaskedquickly。
"Nothin\'。Justwalkedon。"
"Idon\'tbelieveheknewwhoyouwere，"Adamsdeclared。
"Thinknot？Hecalledme\'WalterAdams。\'"
AtthisAdamswassilent；andWalter，afterwaitingamoment，said:
"Well，areyougoingtodoanythingaboutme？AboutwhatItoldyouIgottohave？"
"Whatisit，Walter？"hismotherasked，sinceAdamsdidnotspeak。
Walterclearedhisthroat，andrepliedinatoneasquietasthathehadusedbefore，thoughwithaslighthuskiness，"Igottohavethreehundredandfiftydollars。Youbettergethimtogiveittomeifyoucan。"
Adamsfoundhisvoice。"Yes，"hesaid，bitterly。"That\'sallheasks!Hewon\'tdoanythingIaskHIMto，andinreturnheasksmeforthreehundredandfiftydollars!That\'sall!"
"Whatintheworld!"Mrs。Adamsexclaimed。"WhatFOR，Walter？"
"Igottohaveit，"Waltersaid。
"ButwhatFOR？"
Hisquiethuskinessdidnotalter。"Igottohaveit。"
"Butcan\'tyoutellus——"
"Igottohaveit。"
"That\'sallyoucangetoutofhim，"Adamssaid。"Heseemstothinkit\'llbringhiminthreehundredandfiftydollars!"
Afainttremulousnessbecameevidentinthehuskyvoice。
"Haven\'tyougotit？"
"NO，Ihaven\'tgotit!"hisfatheranswered。"AndI\'vegottogotoabankformorethanmypay-rollnextweek。DoyouthinkI\'mamint？"
"Idon\'tunderstandwhatyoumean，Walter，"Mrs。Adamsinterposed，perplexedanddistressed。"Ifyourfatherhadthemoney，ofcoursehe\'dneedeverycentofit，especiallyjustnow，and，anyhow，youcouldscarcelyexpecthimtogiveittoyou，unlessyoutolduswhatyouwantwithit。Buthehasn\'tgotit。"
"Allright，"Waltersaid；andafterstandingamomentmore，insilence，headded，impersonally，"Idon\'tseeasyoueverdidanythingmuchforme，anyhoweitherofyou。"
Then，asifthiswerehisvaledictory，heturnedhisbackuponthem，walkedawayquickly，andwasatoncelosttotheirsightinthedarkness。
"There\'safineboyto\'vehadthetroubleofraising!"Adamsgrumbled。"Justcrazy，that\'sall。"
"Whatintheworlddoyousupposehewantsallthatmoneyfor？"
hiswifesaid，wonderingly。"Ican\'timaginewhathecouldDO
withit。Iwonder——"Shepaused。"Iwonderifhe——"
"Ifhewhat？"Adamspromptedherirritably。
"IfheCOULDhavebad——associates。"
"Godknows!"saidAdams。"_I_don\'t!ItjustlookstomelikehehadsomethinginhimIdon\'tunderstand。Youcan\'tkeepyoureyeonaboyallthetimeinacitythissize，notaboyWalter\'sage。Yougotagirlprettymuchinthehouse，butaboy\'llfollowhisnature。_I_don\'tknowwhattodowithhim!"
Mrs。Adamsbrightenedalittle。"He\'llcomeoutallright，"shesaid。"I\'msurehewill。I\'msurehe\'dneverbeanythingreallybad:andhe\'llcomearoundallrightabouttheglue-works，too；
you\'llsee。Ofcourseeveryyoungmanwantsmoney——itdoesn\'tprovehe\'sdoinganythingwrongjustbecauseheasksyouforit。"
"No。Allitprovestomeisthathehasn\'tgotgoodsenseaskingmeforthreehundredandfiftydollars，whenheknowsaswellasyoudothepositionI\'min!IfIwantedto，Icouldn\'thardlylethimhavethreehundredandfiftycents，letalonedollars!"
"I\'mafraidyou\'llhavetoletMEhavethatmuch——andmaybealittlemore，"sheventured，timidly；andshetoldhimofherplansforthemorrow。Heobjectedvehemently。
"Oh，butAlicehasprobablyaskedhimbythistime，"Mrs。Adamssaid。"Itreallymustbedone，Virgil:youdon\'twanthimtothinkshe\'sashamedofus，doyou？"
"Well，goahead，butjustletmestayaway，"hebegged。"OfcourseIexpecttoundergoakindoftalkwithhim，whenhegetsreadytosaysomethingtousaboutAlice，butIdohatetohavetositthroughafashionabledinner。"
"Why，itisn\'tgoingtobotheryou，"shesaid；"justoneyoungmanasaguest。"
"Yes，Iknow；butyouwanttohaveallthisfancycookin\'；andI
seewellenoughyou\'regoingtogetthatolddresssuitoutofthecedarchestintheattic，andtrytomakemeputitonme。"
"Idothinkyoubetter，Virgil。"
"Ihopethemothshavegotinit，"hesaid。"LasttimeIworeitwastothebanquet，anditwasprettyoldthen。OfcourseI
didn\'tmindwearingittothebanquetsomuch，becausethatwaswhatyoumightcallquiteanoccasion。"Hespokewithsomereminiscentcomplacency；"thebanquet，"anaffairnowfiveyearspast，havingprovidedtheonetimeinhislifewhenhehadbeensodistinguishedamonghisfellow-citizensastoreceiveaninvitationtobepresent，withsomesevenhundredothers，attheannualeatingandspeech-makingofthecity\'sChamberofCommerce。"Anyhow，asyousay，Ithinkitwouldlookfoolishofmetowearadresssuitforjustoneyoungman，"hewentonprotesting，feebly。"What\'stheuseofallsomuchhowdy-do，anyway？Youdon\'texpecthimtobelieveweputonallthatstyleeverynight，doyou？Isthatwhatyou\'reafter？"
"Well，wewanthimtothinkwelivenicely，"sheadmitted。
"Sothat\'sit!"hesaid，querulously。"Youwanthimtothinkthat\'sourregulargait，doyou？Well，he\'llknowbetteraboutme，nomatterhowyoufixmeup，becausehesawmeinmyregularsuittheeveningsheintroducedmetohim，andhecouldtellanywayI\'mnotoneofthesemoving-picturesporting-menthat\'salwaysgotadresssuiton。Besides，youandAlicecertainlyhavesomeideahe\'llcomeAGAIN，haven\'tyou？Iftheygetthingssettledbetween\'emhe\'llbearoundthehouseandtomealsmostanytime，won\'the？Youdon\'thardlyexpecttoputonstyleallthetime，Iguess。Well，he\'llseethenthatthiskindofthingwasallshow-off，andbluff，won\'the？Whataboutit？"
"Oh，well，byTHATtime——"Sheleftthesentenceunfinished，asifabsently。"Youcouldletushavealittlemoneyforto-morrow，couldn\'tyou，honey？"
"Oh，Ireckon，Ireckon，"hemumbled。"AgirllikeAliceissomecomfort:shedon\'tcomearoundactingasifshe\'dcommitsuicideifshedidn\'tgetthreehundredandfiftydollarsinthenextfiveminutes。IexpectIcansparefiveorsixdollarsforyourshow-offifIgotto。"
However，shefinallyobtainedfifteenbeforehisbedtime；andthenextmorning"wenttomarket"afterbreakfast，leavingAlicetomakethebeds。Walterhadnotyetcomedownstairs。"Youhadbettercallhim，"Mrs。Adamssaid，asshedepartedwithabigbasketonherarm。"Iexpecthe\'sprettysleepy；hewasoutsolatelastnightIdidn\'thearhimcomein，thoughIkeptawaketillaftermidnight，listeningforhim。Tellhimhe\'llbelatetoworkifhedoesn\'thurry；andseethathedrinkshiscoffee，evenifhehasn\'ttimeforanythingelse。AndwhenMalenacomes，getherstartedinthekitchen:showherwhereeverythingis。"
Shewavedherhand，asshesetoutforacornerwherethecarsstopped。"Everything\'llbelovely。Don\'tforgetaboutWalter。"
