第32章

Torecallallthehumorsandinterestinghappeningsofthoseearlybilliard—dayswouldbetofillalargevolume。Icanpreservenomorethanafewcharacteristicphases。

Hewasnotaneven—temperedplayer。Whentheballswereperverseintheirmovementsandhisaimunsteady，hewaslikelytobecomeshortwithhisopponent——criticalandevenfault—finding。Thenpresentlyareactionwouldsetin，andhewouldbeseizedwithremorse。Hewouldbecomeunnecessarilygentleandkindly——evenattentive——placingtheballsasI

knockedthemintothepockets，hurryingfromoneendofthetabletorenderthisservice，endeavoringtoshowineverywayexceptbyactualconfessioninwordsthathewassorryforwhatseemedtohim，nodoubt，anunworthydisplayoftemper，unjustifiedirritation。

Naturally，thiswasamoodthatIenjoyedlessthanthatwhichhadinducedit。Ididnotwishhimtohumblehimself；Iwaswillingthatheshouldbesevere，evenharsh，ifhefeltsoinclined；hisage，hisposition，hisgeniusentitledhimtospecialprivileges；yetIamglad，asIrememberitnow，thattheothersiderevealeditself，foritcompletesthesumofhisgreathumanity。

Indeed，hewasalwaysnotonlyhuman，butsuperhuman；notonlyaman，butsuperman。Nordoesthistermapplyonlytohispsychology。InnootherhumanbeinghaveIeverseensuchphysicalendurance。Iwascomparativelyayoungman，andbynomeansaninvalid；butmanyatime，farinthenight，whenIwasreadytodropwithexhaustion，hewasstillasfreshandbuoyantandeagerforthegameasatthemomentofbeginning。Hesmokedandsmokedcontinually，andfollowedtheendlesstrackaroundthebilliard—tablewiththelightstepofyouth。Atthreeorfouro’clockinthemorninghewouldurgejustonemoregame，andwouldtauntmeformyweariness。Icantruthfullytestifythatneveruntilthelastyearofhislifedidhewillinglylaydownthebilliard—

cue，orshowtheleastsuggestionoffatigue。

Heplayedalwaysathighpressure。Nowandthen，inperiodsofadversity，hewouldflyintoaperfectpassionwiththingsingeneral。

But，intheend，itwasashambattle，andhesawtheuselessnessandhumorofit，eveninthemomentofhisclimax。Once，whenhefounditimpossibletomakeanyofhisfavoriteshots，hebecamemoreandmorerestive，thelightningbecamevividlypicturesqueasthecloudsblackened。Finally，witharegularthunder—blast，heseizedthecuewithbothhandsandliterallymowedtheballsacrossthetable，landingoneortwoofthemonthefloor。Idonotrecallhisexactremarksduringtheperformance；Iwaschieflyconcernedingettingoutoftheway，andthosesublimeutteranceswerelost。Igathereduptheballsandwewentonplayingasifnothinghadhappened，onlyhewasverygentleandsweet，likethesunonthemeadowsafterthestormhaspassedby。Afteralittlehesaid：

"Thisisamostamusinggame。Whenyouplaybadlyitamusesme，andwhenIplaybadlyandlosemytemperitcertainlymustamuseyou。"

Hisenjoymentofhisopponent’sperplexitieswasverykeen。Whenhehadlefttheballsinsomeunfortunatepositionwhichmadeitalmostimpossibleformetoscorehewouldlaughboisterously。Iusedtoaffecttobeinjuredanddisturbedbythisridicule。Once，whenhehadmadetheconditionsunusuallyhardforme，andwasenjoyingthesituationaccordingly，Iwastemptedtoremark：

"WheneverIseeyoulaughatathinglikethatIalwaysdoubtyoursenseofhumor。"Whichseemedtoaddtohisamusement。

Sometimes，whentheballswerebadlyplacedforme，hewouldofferostensibleadvice，suggestingthatIshouldshoothereandthere——shotsthatwerepossible，perhaps，butnotpromising。OftenIwouldfollowhisadvice，andthenwhenIfailedtoscorehisamusementbrokeoutafresh。

Otherbilliardistscamefromtimetotime：ColonelHarvey，Mr。Duneka，andMajorLeigh，oftheHarperCompany，andPeterFinleyDunne(Mr。

Dooley)；buttheywerehandicappedbytheirbusinessaffairs，andwerenotdependablefordailyandprotractedsessions。Anynumberofhisfriendswerewilling，eveneager，tocomeforhisentertainment；butthepercentageofthemwhocouldandwoulddevoteanumberofhourseachdaytobeingbeatenatbilliardsandenjoytheoperationdwindleddowntoasingleindividual。EvenIcouldnothavedoneit——couldnothaveaffordedit，howevermuchImighthaveenjoyedthediversion——haditnotbeencontributorytomywork。Tometheassociationwasinvaluable；itdrewfromhimathousandlong—forgottenincidents；itinvitedastreamofpicturesquecommentsandphilosophies；itfurnishedthemostintimateinsightintohischaracter。

Hewasnotalwaysgladtoseepromiscuouscallers，evensomeonethathemighthavemetpleasantlyelsewhere。Oneafternoonayoungmanwhomhehadcasuallyinvitedto"dropinsomedayintown"happenedtocallinthemidstofaverycloseseriesofafternoongames。Itwouldallhavebeenwellenoughifthevisitorhadbeencontenttositquietlyonthecouchand"betonthegame，"asClemenssuggested，afterthegreetingswereover；buthewasaveryyoungman，andhefeltthenecessityofbeingentertaining。Heinsistedonwalkingabouttheroomandgettingintheway，andontalkingabouttheMarkTwainbookshehadread，andthepeoplehehadmetfromtimetotimewhohadknownMarkTwainontheriver，oronthePacificcoast，orelsewhere。IknewhowfatalitwasforhimtotalktoClemensduringhisplay，especiallyconcerningmattersmostofwhichhadbeenlaidaway。Itrembledforourvisitor。IfI

couldhavegothisearprivatelyIshouldhavesaid："Forheaven’ssakesitdownandkeepstillorgoaway！There’sgoingtobeacombinationofearthquakeandcycloneandavalancheifyoukeepthisthingup。"

IdidwhatIcould。Ilookedatmywatcheveryotherminute。Atlast，indesperation，IsuggestedthatIretirefromthegameandletthevisitorhavemycue。IsupposeIthoughtthiswouldeliminateanelementofdanger。Hedeclinedonthegroundthatheseldomplayed，andcontinuedhisdeadlyvisit。Ihaveneverbeeninanatmospheresofraughtwithdanger。Ididnotknowhowthegamestood，andIplayedmechanicallyandforgottocountthescore。Clemens’sfacewasgrimandsetandsavage。Henolongerventuredevenaword。ByandbyInoticedthathewasgettingwhite，andIsaid，privately，"Now，thisyoungman’shourhascome。"

ItwascertainlybythemercyofGodjustthenthatthevisitorsaid：

"I’msorry，butI’vegottogo。I’dliketostaylonger，butI’vegotanengagementfordinner。"

Idon’trememberhowhegotout，butIknowthattonsliftedasthedoorclosedbehindhim。Clemensmadehisshot，thenverysoftlysaid：

"IfhehadstayedanotherfiveminutesIshouldhaveofferedhimtwenty—

fivecentstogo。"

Butamomentlaterheglaredatme。

"Whyinnationdidyouofferhimyourcue？"

"Wasn’tthatthecourteousthingtodo？"Iasked。

"No！"herippedout。"Thecourteousandproperthingwouldhavebeentostrikehimdead。Didyouwanttosaddlethatdisasteruponusforlife？"

Hewasblowingoffsteam，andIknewitandencouragedit。Myimpulsewastoliedownonthecouchandshoutwithhystericallaughter，butI

suspectedthatwouldbeindiscreet。Hemadesomefurthercommentontheproprietyofofferingavisitoracue，andsuddenlybegantosingatravestyofanoldhymn：

"HowtediousaretheyWhotheirsovereignobey，"

andsoloudlythatIsaid：

"Aren’tyouafraidhe’llhearyouandcomeback？"Whereuponhepretendedalarmandsangunderhisbreath，andfortherestoftheeveningwasinboundlessgood—humor。

Ihaverecalledthisincidentmerelyasasampleofthingsthatwerelikelytohappenatanytimeinhiscompany，andtoshowthedifficultyonemightfindinfittinghimselftohisvaryingmoods。Hewasnottobelearnedinaday，oraweek，oramonth；someofthosewhoknewhimlongestdidnotlearnhimatall。

Wecelebratedhisseventy—firstbirthdaybyplayingbilliardsallday。

Heinventedanewgamefortheoccasion；inventingrulesforitwithalmosteveryshot。

Ithappenedthatnomemberofthefamilywasathomeonthisbirthday。

Illhealthhadbanishedeveryone，eventhesecretary。Flowers，telegrams，andcongratulationscame，andtherewasastringofcallers；

buthesawnoonebeyondsomeintimatefriends——theGilders——lateintheafternoon。Whentheyhadgonewewentdowntodinner。Wewereentirelyalone，andIfeltthegreathonorofbeinghisonlyguestonsuchanoccasion。Oncebetweenthecourses，whenherose，asusual，towalkabout，hewanderedintothedrawing—room，andseatinghimselfattheorchestrellebegantoplaythebeautifulflower—songfrom"Faust。"ItwasathingIhadnotseenhimdobefore，andIneversawhimdoitagain。Whenhecamebacktothetablehesaid：

"Speakingofcompanionsofthelongago，afterfiftyyearstheybecomeonlyshadowsandmightaswellbeinthegrave。Onlythosewhomonehasreallylovedmeananythingatall。OfmyplaymatesIrecallJohnBriggs，JohnGarth，andLauraHawkins——justthosethree；therestIburiedlongago，andmemorycannotevenfindtheirgraves。"

Hewasinhisloveliesthumorallthatdayandevening；andthatnight，whenhestoppedplaying，hesaid：

"Ihaveneverhadapleasanterdayatthisgame。"

Ianswered，"Ihopetenyearsfromto—nightweshallstillbeplayingit。"

"Yes，"hesaid，"stillplayingthebestgameonearth。"

CCL

PHILOSOPHYANDPESSIMISM

InalettertoMacAlister，writtenatthistime，hesaid：

ThedoctorsbanishedJeantothecountry5weeksago；theybanishedmysecretarytothecountryforafortnightlastSaturday；theybanishedClaratothecountryforafortnightlastMonday……

TheybanishedmetoBermudatosailnextWednesday，butIstruckandsha’n’tgo。Mycomplaintispermanentbronchitis&isoneoftheverybestassetsI’vegot，foritexcusesmefromeverypublicfunctionthiswinter——&allotherwintersthatmaycome。

Ifhehadbronchitiswhenthisletterwaswritten，itmusthavebeenofaverymildform，foritdidnotinterferewithbilliardgames，whichweremoreprotractedandstrenuousthanatalmostanyotherperiod。I

conclude，therefore，thatitwasaconvenientbronchitis，usefulonoccasion。

Forafulltendayswewerealoneinthebighousewiththeservants。Itwasaholidaymostofthetime。Wehurriedthroughthemailinthemorningandthetelephonecalls；then，whileIansweredsuchlettersasrequiredattention，hedictatedforanhourorsotoMissHobby，afterwhich，billiardsfortherestofthedayandevening。Whencallerswerereportedbythebutler，Iwentdownandgotridofthem。ClaraClemens，beforeherdeparture，hadpinnedupasign，"NOBILLIARDSAFTER10P。M。，"

whichstillhungonthewall，butitwasoutlawed。ClemensoccasionallyplannedexcursionstoBermudaandotherplaces；but，rememberingthebilliard—table，whichhecouldnothandilytakealong，heabandonedtheseprojects。Hewasaboywhoseparentshadbeencalledaway，lefttohisowndevices，andbentonagoodtime。

Therewerelikelytobeirritationsinhismorning’smail，andmoreoftenhedidnotwishtoseeituntilithadbeenprettycarefullysifted。Somanypeoplewrotewhowantedthings，somanyotherswhomadetheclaimofmoreorlessdistantacquaintanceshiptheexcuseforlongandtrivialletters。

"Ihavestirredupthreegenerations，"hesaid；"firstthegrandparents，thenthechildren，andnowthegrandchildren；thegreat—grandchildrenwillbegintoarrivesoon。"

Hismailwasalwayslarge；butoftenitdidnotlookinteresting。Onecouldtellfromtheenvelopeandthesuperscriptionsomethingofthecontents。Goingoveroneassortmentheburstout：

"Lookatthem！Lookhowtrivialtheyare！Everyenvelopelooksasifitcontainedatrivialhumansoul。"

Manyletterswerefilledwithfulsomepraiseandcompliment，usuallyofonepattern。Hewassatedwithsuchthings，andseldomfounditpossibletobearmorethanalineortwoofthem。Yetafresh，well—expressednoteofappreciationalwayspleasedhim。

"Icanlivefortwomonthsonagoodcompliment，"heoncesaid。

Certainpersistentcorrespondents，tooself—centeredtorealizetheirlackofconsideration，orthefutilityoftheirpurpose，followedhimrelentlessly。Ofonesuchheremarked：

"Thatwomanintendstopursuemetothegrave。Iwishsomethingcouldbedonetoappeaseher。"

Andagain：

"Everybodyintheworldwhowantssomething——0somethingofnointeresttome——writestometogetit。"

Thesemorningsessionswerelikelytobeofgreatinterest。Oncealetterspokeofthedesirabilityofbeinganoptimist。"Thatwordperfectlydisgustsme，"hesaid，andhisfeaturesmaterializedthedisgust，"justasthatotherword，pessimist，does；andtheideathatonecan，byanyeffortofwill，beoneortheother，anymorethanhecanchangethecolorofhishair。Thereasonwhyamanisapessimistoranoptimistisnotbecausehewantstobe，butbecausehewasbornso；andthisman[aministeroftheGospelwhowasgoingtoexplainlifetohim]

isgoingtotellmewhyheisn’tapessimist。Oh，he’lldoit，buthewon’ttellthetruth；hewon’tmakeitshortenough。"

Yethewasalwayspatientwithanyonewhocamewithspiritualmessages，theologicalarguments，andconsolations。Hemighthavesaidtothem：

"Oh，dearfriends，thosethingsofwhichyouspeakarethetoysthatlongagoIplayedwithandsetaside。"Hecouldhavesaiditandspokenthetruth；butIbelievehedidnoteventhinkit。Helistenedtoanyoneforwhomhehadrespect，andwasgratefulforanyeffortinhisbehalf。

OnemorninghereadaloudalecturegiveninLondonbyGeorgeBernardShawonreligion，commentingasheread。Hesaid：

"Thisletterisafrankbreathofexpression[andhiscommentswereequallyfrank]。Thereisnosuchthingasmorality；itisnotimmoralforthetigertoeatthewolf，orthewolfthecat，orthecatthebird，andsoondown；thatistheirbusiness。Thereisalwaysenoughforeachonetoliveon。Itisnotimmoralforonenationtoseizeanothernationbyforceofarms，orforonemantoseizeanotherman’spropertyorlifeifheisstrongenoughandwantstotakeit。Itisnotimmoraltocreatethehumanspecies——withorwithoutceremony；natureintendedexactlythesethings。"

AtoneplaceinthelectureShawhadsaid："Nooneofgoodsensecanacceptanycreedto—daywithoutreservation。"

"Certainlynot，"commentedClemens；"thereservationisthatheisad——dfooltoacceptitatall。"

Hewasinoneofhissombermoodsthatmorning。IhadreceivedaprintofalargepictureofThomasNast——thelastonetaken。Thefacehadapatheticexpressionwhichtoldthetragedyofhislastyears。Clemenslookedatthepictureseveralmomentswithoutspeaking。Thenhebrokeout：

"Whycan’tamandiewhenhe’shadhistragedy？Ioughttohavediedlongago。"Andsomewhatlater："OnceTwichellheardmecussingthehumanrace，andhesaid，’Why，Mark，youarethelastpersonintheworldtodothat——oneselectedandsetapartasyouare。’Isaid’Joe，youdon’tknowwhatyouaretalkingabout。Iamnotcussingaltogetheraboutmyownlittletroubles。Anyonecanstandhisownmisfortunes；butwhenI

readinthepapersallabouttherascalitiesandoutragesgoingonI

realizewhatacreaturethehumananimalis。Don’tyoucaremoreaboutthewretchednessofothersthananythingthathappenstoyou？’Joesaidhedid，andshutup。"

Itoccurredtometosuggestthatheshouldnotreadthedailypapers。

"Nodifference，"hesaid。"Ireadbooksprintedtwohundredyearsago，andtheyhurtjustthesame。"

"Thosepeoplearealldeadandgone，"Iobjected。

"Theyhurtjustthesame，"hemaintained。

Isometimesthoughtofhisinnerconsciousnessasapooldarkenedbyhistragedies，itsglassysurface，whencalm，reflectingallthejoyandsunlightandmerrimentoftheworld，buteasily——soeasily——troubledandstirredeventoviolence。Oncefollowingthedictation，whenIcametothebilliard—roomhewasshootingtheballsaboutthetable，apparentlymuchdepressed。Hesaid：

"Ihavebeenthinkingitout——ifIlivetwoyearsmoreIwillputanendtoitall。Iwillkillmyself。"

"Youhavemuchtolivefor————"

"ButIamsotiredoftheeternalround，"heinterrupted；"sotired。"

AndIknewhemeantthathewasillofthegreatlonelinessthathadcometohimthatdayinFlorence，andwouldneverpassaway。

Ireferredtothepressureofsocialdemandsinthecity，andthereliefhewouldfindinhiscountryhome。Heshookhishead。

"ThecountryhomeIneed，"hesaid，fiercely，"isacemetery。"

Yetthemoodchangedquicklyenoughwhentheplaybegan。Hewasgayandhilariouspresently，fullofthehumorsandcomplexitiesofthegame。

H。H。Rogerscameinwithagooddealoffrequency，seldommakingverylongcalls，butneverseemingtohavethatairofbeinghurriedwhichonemightexpecttofindinamanwhosedaywasonlytwenty—fourhourslong，andwhoseinterestsweresovastandinnumerable。Hewouldcomeinwherewewereplaying，andsitdownandwatchthegame，orperhapswouldpickupabookandread，exchangingaremarknowandthen。Moreoften，however，hesatinthebedroom，forhisvisitswerelikelytobeinthemorning。Theywereseldombusinesscalls，oriftheywere，thebusinesswasquicklysettled，andthenfollowedgossip，humorousincident，orperhapsClemenswouldreadaloudsomethinghehadwritten。Butonce，aftergreetings，hebegan：

"Well，Rogers，Idon’tknowwhatyouthinkofit，butIthinkIhavehadaboutenoughofthisworld，andIwishIwereoutofit。"

Mr。Rogersreplied，"Idon’tsaymuchaboutit，butthatexpressesmyview。"

Thisfromtheforemostmanoflettersandoneoftheforemostfinanciersofthetimewasimpressive。Eachatthemountain—topofhiscareer，theyagreedthatthejourneywasnotworthwhile——thatwhattheworldhadstilltogivewasnotattractiveenoughtotemptthemtopreventadesiretoexperimentwiththenextstage。Onecouldrememberathousandpoorandobscuremenwhowereperfectlywillingtogoonstrugglingandstarving，postponingthedayofsettlementaslongaspossible；butperhaps，whenonehashadalltheworldhastogive，whentherearenonewworldsinsighttoconquer，onehasadifferentfeeling。

Well，therealizationlaynotsofaraheadforeitherofthem，thoughatthatmomenttheybothseemedfulloflifeandvigor——fullofyouth。Onecouldnotimaginethedaywhenforthemitwouldallbeover。

CCLI

ALOBBYINGEXPEDITION

ClaraClemenscamehomenowandthentoseehowmatterswereprogressing，andveryproperly，forClemenswaslikelytobecomeinvolvedinsocialintricacieswhichrequiredadirectinghand。Thedaughterinheritednolittleofthefather’scharacteristicsofthoughtandphrase，anditwasalwaysadelighttoseethemtogetherwhenonecouldbejustoutofrangeofthecrossfire。Iremembersoonafterherreturn，whenshewasmakingsomesearchinginquiriesconcerningthebilliard—roomsign，andothersuggestedorinstitutedreforms，hesaid：

"Ohwell，nevermind，itdoesn’tmatter。I’mbossinthishouse。"

Shereplied，quickly："Ohno，you’renot。You’remerelyowner。I’mthecaptain——thecommander—in—chief。"

Onenightatdinnershementionedthepossibilityofgoingabroadthatyear。DuringseveralprevioussummersshehadplannedtovisitViennatoseeheroldmusic—master，Leschetizky，oncemorebeforehisdeath。Shesaid：

"Leschetizkyisgettingsoold。IfIdon’tgosoonI’mafraidIsha’n’tbeintimeforhisfuneral。"

"Yes，"saidherfather，thoughtfully，"youkeeprushingovertoLeschetizky’sfuneral，andyou’llmissmine。"

Hehadmadeoneortwosocialengagementswithoutcarefulreflection，andthesituationwouldrequiresomedelicacyofadjustment。Duringamomentbetweenthecourses，whenheleftthetableandwastakinghisexerciseinthefartherroom，shemadesomeremarkwhichsuggestedadoubtofherfather’sgiftforsocialmanagement。Isaid：

"Oh，well，heisaking，youknow，andakingcandonowrong。"

"Yes，Iknow，"sheanswered。"Thekingcandonowrong；buthefrightensmealmosttodeath，sometimes，hecomessonearit。"

HecamebackandbegantocommentrathercriticallyonsomerecentperformanceofRoosevelt’s，whichhadstirredupagooddealofnewspaperamusement——itwastheStorermatterandthoseindiscreetletterswhichRoosevelthadwrittenrelativetotheambassadorshipwhichStorersomuchdesired。MissClemenswasinclinedtodefendthePresident，andspokewithconsiderableenthusiasmconcerninghiselementsofpopularity，whichhadwonhimsuchextraordinaryadmiration。

"Certainlyheispopular，"Clemensadmitted，"andwiththebestofreasons。IfthetwelveapostlesshouldcallattheWhiteHouse，hewouldsay，’Comein，comein！Iamdelightedtoseeyou。I’vebeenwatchingyourprogress，andIadmireditverymuch。’ThenifSatanshouldcome，hewouldslaphimontheshoulderandsay，’Why，Satan，howdoyoudo？I

amsogladtomeetyou。I’vereadallyourworksandenjoyedeveryoneofthem。’Anybodycouldbepopularwithagiftlikethat。"

Itwasthateveningorthenext，perhaps，thathesaidtoher：

"Ben[oneofhispetnamesforher]，nowthatyouareheretoruntheranch，PaineandIaregoingtoWashingtononavacation。Youdon’tseemtoadmireoursocietymuch，anyhow。"

TherewerestillotherreasonsfortheWashingtonexpedition。Therewasanimportantbillupfortheextensionofthebookroyaltyperiod，andtheforcesofcopyrightweregoingdowninabodytouseeverypossiblemeanstogetthemeasurethrough。

Clemens，duringCleveland’sfirstadministration，somenineteenyearsbefore，hadaccompaniedsuchanexpedition，andthroughS。S。("Sunset")

Coxhadobtainedthe"privilegesofthefloor"oftheHouse，whichhadenabledhimtocanvassthemembersindividually。CoxassuredthedoorkeeperthatClemenshadreceivedthethanksofCongressfornationalliteraryservice，andwasthereforeentitledtothatprivilege。Thiswasnotstrictlytrue；butregulationswerenotverysevereinthosedays，andtherusehadbeenregardedasagoodjoke，whichhadyieldedexcellentresults。Clemenshadasimilarschemeinmindnow，andbelievedthathisfriendshipwithSpeakerCannon——"UncleJoe"——wouldobtainforhimasimilarprivilege。TheCopyrightAssociationworkinginitsregularwaywasverywell，hesaid，buthefelthecoulddomoreasanindividualthanbyactingmerelyasaunitofthatbody。

"IcanvassedtheentireHousepersonallythatothertime，"hesaid。"CoxintroducedmetotheDemocrats，andJohnD。Long，afterwardSecretaryoftheNavy，introducedmetotheRepublicans。Ihadadarlingtimeconvertingthosemembers，andI’dliketotrytheexperimentagain。"

Ishouldhavementionedearlier，perhaps，thatatthistimehehadbeguntowearwhiteclothingregularly，regardlessoftheweatherandseason。

OnthereturnfromDublinhehadsaid：

"Ican’tbeartoputonblackclothesagain。IwishIcouldwearwhiteallwinter。Ishouldprefer，ofcourse，towearcolors，beautifulrainbowhues，suchasthewomenhavemonopolized。Theirclothingmakesagreatoperaaudienceanenchantingspectacle，adelighttotheeyeandtothespirit——agardenofEdenforcharmandcolor。

Themen，clothedinodiousblack，arescatteredhereandthereoverthegardenlikesomanycharredstumps。Ifwearegoingtobegayinspirit，whybecladinfuneralgarments？Ishouldliketodressinalooseandflowingcostumemadeallofsilksandvelvetsresplendentwithstunningdyes，andsowouldeverymanIhaveeverknown；butnoneofusdarestoventureit。IfIshouldappearonFifthAvenueonaSundaymorningclothedasIwouldliketobeclothedthechurcheswouldallbevacantandthecongregationwouldcometaggingafterme。Theywouldscoff，ofcourse，buttheywouldenvyme，too。WhenIputonblackitremindsmeofmyfunerals。Icouldbesatisfiedwithwhitealltheyearround。"

Itwasnotlongafterthisthathesaid：

"Ihavemadeupmymindnottowearblackanymore，butwhite，andletthecriticssaywhattheywill。"

Sohistailorwassentfor，andsixcreamyflannelandsergesuitswereordered，madewiththeshortcoats，whichhepreferred，withagraysuitortwofortravel，andhedidnotwearblackagain，exceptforeveningdressandonspecialoccasions。Itwasagratifyingchange，andthoughthenewspapersmademuchofit，therewasnoonewhowasnotgladdenedbythebeautyofhisgarmentsandtheirgeneralharmonywithhisperson。Hehadneverwornanythingsoappropriateorsoimpressive。

ThisdepartureofcostumecamealongaweekortwobeforetheWashingtontrip，andwhenhisbagswerebeingpackedfortheexcursionhewassomewhatindoubtastotheproprietyofburstinguponWashingtoninDecemberinthatsnowyplumage。Iventured：

"Thisisalobbyingexpeditionofapeculiarkind，anddoesnotseemtoinviteanyhalf—waymeasures。Ishouldvoteinfavorofthewhitesuit。"

IthinkMissClemenswasforit，too。Shemusthavebeenorthevotewouldn’thavecarried，thoughitwasclearhestronglyfavoredtheidea。

Atallevents，thewhitesuitscamealong。

Wewereoffthefollowingafternoon