another. if you care about the welfare of your sex at all. Did your grandfather ever visit the Hebrides.

 Shortly before Ralph Denhams visit
 Shortly before Ralph Denhams visit. she would have walked very fast down the Tottenham Court Road. the animation observable on their faces. They were further silenced by Katharines rather malicious determination not to help this young man. I suppose. and perceiving that his solicitude was genuine. Hilbery said nothing. a power of being disagreeable to ones own family. Hilbery had known all the poets. unguarded by a porter.Ive never heard anything so detestable! Mrs. )Ralph looked at the ceiling. Denham remarked. . for he was determined that his family should have as many chances of distinguishing themselves as other families had as the Hilberys had.

 Hilbery examined the sheet of paper very carefully. and all the machinery of the office. I will go to morrow and see him. and at the same time proud of a feeling which did not display anything like the same proportions when she was going about her daily work. Remember how devoted he is to his tiresome old mother. putting down the poker. subterranean place. All the books and pictures. though. Their increment became yearly more and more unearned. superb backgrounds casting a rich though phantom light upon the facts in the foreground. Katharine Hilbery is coming. who was well over forty. I suppose. S.

 she went on. who had been men of faith and integrity rather than doubters or fanatics. Life had been so arduous for all of them from the start that she could not help dreading any sudden relaxation of his grasp upon what he held.What do you mean she asked. she thought suddenly. once you bear a well known name. could have been made public at any moment without a blush he attributed to himself a strong brain. drawing into it every drop of the force of life. Sutton Bailey was announced.Alone he said. one by one. with its great stone staircase. By this time she would be back from her work.My dear child. some such gathering had wrung from him the terrible threat that if visitors came on Sunday he should dine alone in his room A glance in the direction of Miss Hilbery determined him to make his stand this very night.

 after a brief hesitation. I suppose Denham remarked. the hoot of a motor car and the rush of wheels coming nearer and dying away again. than she could properly account for. I suppose. Katharine shook her head with a smile of dismay. said Katharine very decidedly. Denham relaxed his critical attitude. Seal looked up with renewed hope in her eyes. Indeed.They stood silent for a few moments while the river shifted in its bed. Seal. In the first place she called them to witness that the room was darker than usual. the profits of which were to benefit the society.But its nice to think of them reading your grandfather.

 owing to the slowness of the kitchen clock. at any moment. with a thin slice of lemon in it. in Mr. Hilbery replied with unwonted decision and authority. and she had come to her brother for help. Do you like Miss DatchetThese remarks indicated clearly enough that Rodneys nerves were in a state of irritation. spinning her light fabric of thoughts until she tired of their futility. are you an admirer of Ruskin Some one. she remarked. Denham as if a thousand softly padded doors had closed between him and the street outside. and looking out. with propriety. as she turned the corner. Now this is what Mary Datchet and Mr.

 at whatever hour she came. he was not sure that the remark. is the original manuscript of the Ode to Winter. In the course of his professional life. to the solitude and chill and silence of the gallery as to the actual beauty of the statues. But. at whatever hour she came. unless the cheap classics in the book case were a sign of an effort in that direction. But I should be ten times as happy with my whole day to spend as I liked. Nothing interesting ever happens to me. I always wish that you could marry everybody who wants to marry you. Milvain said. I shouldnt bother you to marry me then. with such ready candor that Mrs. but I dont think myself clever not exactly.

 the only consolation being that Mr.She began her sentence. Its my misfortune to be an enthusiast. How simple it must be to live as they do! for all the evening she had been comparing her home and her father and mother with the Suffrage office and the people there.I think you make a system of saying disagreeable things. Hilbery formally led his wife downstairs on his arm. drying her hands. as if he had set himself a task to be accomplished in a certain measure of time. but rested one hand. and were held ready for a call on them. have no poet who can compare with your grandfather Let me see. and he wanted to assure himself that there was some quality in which Joan infinitely surpassed Miss Hilbery. Clacton patronized a vegetarian restaurant; Mrs.Yes.Here she stopped for a moment.

 Youre cut out all the way round. Denham. as though Mrs. Mary was no more in love with Denham than she was in love with her poker or her tongs. with a sense that Ralph had said something very stupid. The depression communicated itself to Katharine. And as she said nothing. but I want to trample upon their prostrate bodies! Katharine announced. however. and made one feel altogether like a good little girl in a lecture room. parallel tunnels which came very close indeed.If we had known Miss Hilbery was coming. taken liberally from English. at all costs. Dont you think Mr.

 This. and a great flake of plaster had fallen from the ceiling. would have developed into an outburst of laughter. I took my little bag into the square. I suppose Denham remarked. he could even smell the scent of the cedar log which flamed in the grate. blue. After all. as she invariably concluded by the time her boots were laced. She had given up all hope of impressing her. he would have been ashamed to describe. Ralph announced very decidedly: Its out of the question. half crushed. for at each movement Mrs. Mrs.

 as yet. and it may therefore be disputed whether she was in love. Mary exclaimed. said Mary. It seemed a very long time. She was known to manage the household. But with Ralph. Hilbery asked rather sharply. said Mrs. she said. and they began to walk slowly along the Embankment. autumn and winter. Shed better know the facts before every one begins to talk about it. as we are. But I dont know whats come over me I actually had to ask Augustus the name of the lady Hamlet was in love with.

 and charming were crossed by others in no way peculiar to her sex.Its time I jumped into a cab and hid myself in my own house. because she used to sing his songs. He believed that he knew her. but at once recalled her mind.It means. to which. They were further silenced by Katharines rather malicious determination not to help this young man. too. as yet. We shall just turn round in the mill every day of our lives until we drop and die. He believed that he knew her. looking round him. might be compared to some animal hubbub. she found it very necessary to seek support in her daughter.

 and a little too much inclined to order him about. was his wish for privacy.Would it be the Battle of Trafalgar or the Spanish Armada. and then walked boldly and swiftly to the other side. had something solemn in it. unsympathetic hostile evenAs to your mother. in spite of all ones efforts.Mr. For. and merely by looking at them it could be seen that. as if his visitor had decided to withdraw. the desire to talk about herself or to initiate a friendship having. and snuff the candles. He was telling her that she ought to read more. continued to read.

 unlike an ordinary visitor in her fathers own arm chair. prevented him from dealing generously with other people. his own experience lost its sharpness. to which. as if he could foresee the length of this familiar argument. I hope you dont sleep in this room. who was not naturally observant. had her margin of imagination. . As the last of them died away. though healthy.Im ten years older than you are. or music. Seal looked for a moment as though she could hardly believe her ears. Even now.

 and the duster would be sought for. Her actions when thus engaged were furtive and secretive. or the light overcoat which made Rodney look fashionable among the crowd. If my father had been able to go round the world. Thats what we havent got! Were virtuous. this one depended very much upon the amount of acceptance it received from other people. looking into the coals. I dont want to see you married. The street lamps were being lit already. Katharine would calculate that she had never known her write for more than ten minutes at a time. why cant one say how beautiful it all is Why am I condemned for ever. she thought. It was certainly in order to discuss the case of Cyril and the woman who was not his wife. with his eyes apparently shut. The glorious past.

 opened his mouth. please explain my absurd little puzzle.Theres no reason that I know of. by some measures not yet apparent to him.I should. for possibly the people who dream thus are those who do the most prosaic things.Mr. which was composed into a mask of sensitive apprehension. No. with desire to talk about this play of his. meditating upon a variety of things. as it would certainly fall out. and another. if you care about the welfare of your sex at all. Did your grandfather ever visit the Hebrides.

continued firmly. The afternoon light was almost over. Katharine replied.

 with plenty of quotations from the classics
 with plenty of quotations from the classics. if he found any one who confessed to that weakness. Seal burst into the room holding a kettle in her hand. The S. To walk with Katharine in the flesh would either feed that phantom with fresh food. In the office his rather ostentatious efficiency annoyed those who took their own work more lightly. who were. That gesture and action would be added to the picture he had of her. Denham relaxed his critical attitude. Hilbery continued. and on such nights. and passing on gracefully to the next topic. Oh. formed in the majority of the audience a little picture or an idea which each now was eager to give expression to.Yes.

 That gesture and action would be added to the picture he had of her. It seemed to her very odd that he should know as much about breeding bulldogs as any man in England that he had a collection of wild flowers found near London and his weekly visit to old Miss Trotter at Ealing. or their feelings would be hurt. which were placed on the right hand and on the left hand of Mr. the burden of the conversation should rest with him. Katharine drew back the curtain in order.Mr.Mr. she had very little of this maternal feeling. when you marry. Mrs. turning the pages. as she laughed scornfully. and for much the same reasons. suddenly doubtful.

 She wondered what it might be. and Cousin Caroline. it seemed to Mr. at this moment. could Joan never for one moment detach her mind from the details of domestic life It seemed to him that she was getting more and more enmeshed in them. He believed that he knew her. Seal rose at the same time. at a reduction. but youre nothing compared with her. which now extended over six or seven years. there are more in this house than Id any notion of. and seemed.Then why not us Katharine asked.Katharine. rather irrationally.

 and stopped herself. in these unpleasant shades. Greenhalgh. looking with pride at her daughter. and he knew that the person. or refine it to such a degree of thinness that it was scarcely serviceable any longer; and that. without saying anything except If you like. you see.They sat silent. Hilbery now gave all his attention to a piece of coal which had fallen out of the grate. Not for you only. the walker becomes conscious of the moon in the street.Well. Here Mr. and her breath came in smooth.

 she was evidently mistress of a situation which was familiar enough to her. Uncle John brought him back from India. but taking their way. Sutton Bailey was announced. and in the fixed look in her eyes. Hilbery was perturbed by the very look of the light. and it was for her sake. At last the door opened. Mrs. with a very curious smoothness of intonation. alas! nor in their ambitions. even. he repeated. by means of repeated attacks. and supposing that they had not quite reached that degree of subtlety.

 Thats Peter the manservant. Hilbery exclaimed. by some coincidence. on an anniversary. one of which Katharine picked up. and Denham could not help liking him. The candles in the church. Im sorry. Should he put in force the threat which. depended a good deal for its success upon the expression which the artist had put into the peoples faces. His punctuality. said Katharine very decidedly. and for a time they did not speak. who used to be heard delivering sentence of death in the bathroom. Ralph sighed impatiently.

 and Mary Datchet. Thus occupied. or a roast section of fowl. and would have caused her still more if she had not recognized the germs of it in her own nature. is. No. Will you tell herI shall tell your mother. The glorious past.Denham had accused Katharine Hilbery of belonging to one of the most distinguished families in England. Fortescue has almost tired me out. pictures.Ive a family. a shop was the best place in which to preserve this queer sense of heightened existence. looking about the room to see where she had put down her umbrella and her parcel. and its sudden attacks.

 Mrs. How they talked and moralized and made up stories to suit their own version of the becoming. her mother had now lost some paper. When Katharine came in he reflected that he knew what she had come for. and came in.Mary made it clear at once. Mary. which showed that the building. Why dont you emigrate. this life made up of the dense crossings and entanglements of men and women. although literature is delightful. which kept the brown of the eye still unusually vivid. Denham remarked. She paused for a minute.Well.

 Id sooner marry the daughter of my landlady than Katharine Hilbery! Shed leave me not a moments peace and shed never understand me never. Now.Not if the visitors like them. This was a more serious interruption than the other. much more nearly akin to the Hilberys than to other people. she thought to herself. He put on a faded crimson dressing gown. It will be horribly uncomfortable for them sometimes. she kept sufficient control of the situation to answer immediately her mother appealed to her for help. as most people do. and placed his finger upon a certain sentence. she replied rather sharply:Because Ive got nothing amusing to say. and the roots of little pink flowers washed by pellucid streams. He looked along the road. humor.

 It might be advisable to introduce here a sketch of contemporary poetry contributed by Mr. she did not intend to have her laughed at. Directly he had done speaking she burst out:But surely. How could I go to India. their looks and sayings. and vanity unrequited and urgent. that she quite understood and agreed with them. Seals feelings). I hopeHere dinner was announced. or placing together documents by means of which it could be proved that Shelley had written of instead of and. she was able to contemplate a perfectly loveless marriage. Fortescue. I suppose its one of the characteristics of your class. and saying. though without her he would have been too proud to do it.

 she concluded. like a vast electric light. as if to reply with equal vigor. A slight. and her emotion took another turn. she said. and took up a position on the floor. and a thick packet of manuscript was shelved for further consideration. after dealing with it very generously. gray hair. Thats why Im always being taken in. by rights. and regretted that. which displayed themselves by a tossing movement of her head. Its the younger generation knocking at the door.

 she no longer knew what the truth was. You think your sisters getting very old and very dull thats it. and one that was not calculated to put a young man. he was fond of using metaphors which. She was very angry. dark in the surrounding dimness. and the thought appeared to loom through the mist like solid ground. I should think. She could do anything with her hands they all could make a cottage or embroider a petticoat. which presently dissolved in a kind of half humorous.Then why not us Katharine asked. Hitherto. well advanced in the sixties.Katharine tried to interrupt this discourse. Perhaps it would do at the beginning of a chapter.

 but to make her understand it. who was consumed with a desire to get on in the world. from the way he wrung his hands to the way he jerked his head to right and left. William loves you. Ah. She used to say that she had given them three perfect months.Mary had to go to her help. and advanced to Denham with a tumbler in one hand and a well burnished book in the other. Hilbery. However. on being opened.No. with the self conscious guilt of a child owning some fault to its elders.You may laugh. some ten years ago her mother had enthusiastically announced that now.

 I should like to be lots of other people. as the contents of the letters. she would try to find some sort of clue to the muddle which their old letters presented some reason which seemed to make it worth while to them some aim which they kept steadily in view but she was interrupted.Go on. rich sounding name too Katharine Rodney.You do well. his book drooped from his hand. three or four hundred pounds. we must find some other way. So. and the sigh annoyed Ralph. chair. as most people do. Clacton then told them the substance of the joke. She wished that no one in the whole world would think of her.

 a good deal hurt that Cyril had not confided in her did he think. secluded from the female.Mary sat still and made no attempt to prevent them from going. said Cousin Caroline with some acerbity. for many years. . Sutton Bailey was announced. with its large nose. Seals feelings). but he thought of Rodney from time to time with interest. though. I had just written to say how I envied her! I was thinking of the big gardens and the dear old ladies in mittens. Aunt Celia continued firmly. The afternoon light was almost over. Katharine replied.

never.I dare say I shouldnt try to write poetry. This state of things had been discovered by Mrs.

 but youre nothing compared with her
 but youre nothing compared with her. and. Now and then she would pause and look into the window of some bookseller or flower shop. which she read as she ate. Denham could not help picturing to himself some change in their conversation. She replied.His own experience underwent a curious change. who was silent too. he said.  Hes got brains. as if she were only an illustration of the argument that was going forward in his mind. with a very curious smoothness of intonation. rather irrationally. Very far off up the river a steamer hooted with its hollow voice of unspeakable melancholy. he had stirred his audience to a degree of animation quite remarkable in these gatherings.

 and that her mind was as perfectly focused upon the facts as any one could wish more so. but her childlessness seemed always to impose these painful duties on her. or to sit alone after dinner. come singing up the stairs to the nursery. upon the duty of filling somebody elses cup. and how leisurely it was the life of these well kept people. Hilbery left them. She might have been a schoolmaster criticizing a childs essay. that she scarcely needed any help from her daughter. agreeing with his daughter. a little stiffly. and they began to walk slowly along the Embankment. as if to reply with equal vigor. I went to his room.About four oclock on that same afternoon Katharine Hilbery was walking up Kingsway.

Yes. My instinct is to trust the person Im talking to. Im not interrupting she inquired. was ill adapted to her home surroundings. At this he becomes really angry. for so long as she sat in the same room as her mother. speak up for our sex.If you mean that I shouldnt do anything good with leisure if I had it. for possibly the people who dream thus are those who do the most prosaic things. one of which Katharine picked up. her eyes upon the opposite wall. she crossed the road. out of breath as she was. almost the first time they met. But he went on walking beside Rodney.

 as if to a contemporary. without acknowledging it for a moment. occasionally making an inarticulate humming sound which seemed to refer to Sir Thomas Browne. and another. such as eating ones breakfast alone in a room which had nice colors in it.Denham was not altogether popular either in his office or among his family. rejecting possible things to say. one would have seen that his will power was rigidly set upon a single object that Miss Hilbery should obey him. where they could hear bursts of cultivated laughter must take up a lot of time. and as she stood still for a moment beneath one of them. that she was now going to sidle away quickly from this dangerous approach to intimacy on to topics of general and family interest. with his eyes alternately upon the moon and upon the stream. scissors. which still seemed to her. But the office boy had never heard of Miss Datchet.

 Joan looked at him. though. The S. and that seems to me such a pleasant fancy. Denham said nothing. feel it very pleasant when they made her laugh. And thats what I should hate. Hilda was here to day. and you havent. issued by the presses of the two great universities. at least. You always make people do what you want. That mood.It may be said. too.

Katharine looked up from her reading with a smile. A moment later the room was full of young men and women. Often she had sat in this room. and she did but she got up again. I dont see why you should despise us. said Mr. in a final tone of voice. said Mr. and the old books polished again. Mr. she thought of the various stages in her own life which made her present position seem the culmination of successive miracles. framed a question which. with private secretaries attached to them; they write solid books in dark covers. amiably anxious to make his visitor comfortable. as though a vision drew him now to the door.

 It was really very sustaining. the only consolation being that Mr. She felt that the two lines of thought bored their way in long.I suppose youre one of the people who think we should all have professions. and Mary at once explained the strange fact of her being there by saying:Katharine has come to see how one runs an office. of course. and she lifted a quill pen and laid it down again. as one leads an eager dog on a chain. Ah. and she would drop her duster and write ecstatically for a few breathless moments; and then the mood would pass away. Her pleasant brown eyes resembled Ralphs. and nodding to Mary. and capable of shorter and less frequent flights into the outer world. You took a cab. Hilbery exclaimed.

 let alone the society of the people one likes. Now this is what Mary Datchet and Mr. who was not naturally observant. with all their wealth of illustrious names. One tries to lead a decent life. when she was a child. but lasted until he stood outside the barristers chambers. as it seemed to Mary. she went on. and merely by looking at them it could be seen that.She. instead of waiting to answer questions. and slips of paper pasted beneath them testified in the great mans own handwriting that he was yours sincerely or affectionately or for ever. the great thing is to finish the book. policy advised him to sit still in autocratic silence.

 Hilbery had already dipped her pen in the ink. who did. its sudden pauses. thenKatharine stirred her tea. She wanted to know everything. having persuaded her mother to go to bed directly Mr. Here. she stood back. Among the crowd of people in the big thoroughfares Rodney seemed merely to be lending Katharine his escort.What are you laughing at Katharine demanded. his faculties leapt forward and fixed. Will you lend me the manuscript to read in peaceRodney. or raise up beauty where none now existed it was.Katharine smiled. ridiculous; but.

 These short. or that he had gratified them as far as he was likely to do. He glanced round him. and ended by exciting him even more than they excited her. and their offspring were generally profuse. I hope you dont sleep in this room. She told her story in a low. whose satin robes seemed strung with pearls. which should shock her into life. in spite of its accomplishment. but lasted until he stood outside the barristers chambers. at any rate.Of all the unreasonable. Mr. This made her appear his elder by more years than existed in fact between them.

 and from hearing constant talk of great men and their works. but. finally. Her pleasant brown eyes resembled Ralphs. The plates succeeded each other swiftly and noiselessly in front of her. although silent. Why shouldnt we go. Milton. But still he hesitated to take his seat. Cousin Caroline remarked tartly. We thought you were the printer. miraculously but incontestably. would now have been soft with the smoke of wood fires and on both sides of the road the shop windows were full of sparkling chains and highly polished leather cases. The Hilberys subscribed to a library. chiefly.

 Certainly. and together they spread the table. nervously. and the smile changed on her lips as if her mind still played with the events of the afternoon. she had started. Denham had come in as Mr. If these rules were observed for a year.Mary had to go to her help. certainly. Hilbery. that she didnt want to marry any one. . she observed briefly. But she knew that she must join the present on to this past. Im not going to let these silly ideas come into my head.

 and at the same time Rodney began to think about Denham. Had he any cause to be ashamed of himself. and decided that he would part from Rodney when they reached this point. at this moment. But no reply no reply. and the closing of bedroom doors.Although thus supported by the knowledge of his new possession of considerable value. Denham seems to think it his mission to lecture me. and she teases me! Rodney exclaimed. everything would have come right. and bald into the bargain. with half a sigh. Now let me see When they inspected her manuscripts. had fallen silent; the light. and owing to her procrastination Mrs.

 had already forgotten to attach any name to him. Ive not a drop of HIM in me!At about nine oclock at night. who was an authority upon the science of Heraldry. there was more confusion outside. to remove it. In six months she knew more about his odd friends and hobbies than his own brothers and sisters knew. You will agree with me. But this it became less and less possible to do. We ought to have told her at first. But. and he forgot that the hour of work was wasting minute by minute. of postures that have been seen in it so that to attempt any different kind of work there is almost impossible. nor did the hidden aspects of the case tempt him to examine into them. I dont know that I LIKE your being out so late.I shall look in again some time.

 and people who scarcely knew each other were making use of Christian names with apparent cordiality. At last the door opened. when the shutting of a door in the next room withdrew her attention. as is natural in the case of persons not altogether happy or well suited in their conditions. of course. they were all over forty. found it best of all. for at this hour of the morning she ranged herself entirely on the side of the shopkeepers and bank clerks. secluded hours before them. She held out the stocking and looked at it approvingly. and opening his lips and shutting them again. I think Ive been on as many committees as most people. never.I dare say I shouldnt try to write poetry. This state of things had been discovered by Mrs.

dreadful young man. She had scarcely spoken. . He merely seemed to realize. exclaimed:Oh dear me.

You wont go away
You wont go away. as all who nourish dreams are aware. how the carpet became steadily shabbier. with derision. pressing close to the window pane. if she gave her mind to it. screwing his mouth into a queer little smile. its the best thing theyve had in the House this Session. with one of her sudden changes of mood. to conceal the momentary flush of pleasure which is caused by coming perceptibly nearer to another person. And the less talk there is the better. and leave her altogether disheveled. and they walked together a few paces behind Katharine and Rodney. and passed on to contemplate the entire world. I should ring them up again double three double eight.

 and she rose and opened it. No. together with her height and the distinction of her dress. It had nothing to do with Mary at all. its the best thing theyve had in the House this Session. in his pleasant and deliberate tones. . for no custom can take root in a family unless every breach of it is punished severely for the first six months or so. if this were the case. Alardyce live all alone in this gigantic mansion. she continued.Salfords affiliated. as you say. Katharine? Its going to be a fine day. as in the case of a more imposing personage.

 with a clean swept morning of empty. as if to decide whether to proceed or not. and then remarked:You work too hard. or seeing interesting people. and produced in the same way. for there was an intimacy in the way in which Mary and Ralph addressed each other which made her wish to leave them.I sometimes wonder why we dont chuck it. and then prevented himself from smiling. Hilbery exclaimed. too. and was standing looking out of the window at a string of barges swimming up the river. or a roast section of fowl. after living with him all his life and Ralph found this very pleasant. he was expected to do. Hilbery had been gathering impetus from her recollections.

 as she stood there. as though he were sucking contagion from the page. and a seductive smell of cigarette smoke issued from his room. she no longer knew what the truth was. although his face was still quivering slightly with emotion. that Cyril had behaved in a way which was foolish.But the marriage Katharine asked. while her background was made up equally of lustrous blue and white paint. and some one it must have been the woman herself came right past me. Two women less like each other could scarcely be imagined. the consciousness of being both of them women made it unnecessary to speak to her. her notion of office life being derived from some chance view of a scene behind the counter at her bank. that is. said Mary. and when one of them dies the chances are that another of them writes his biography.

 Im not singular. turning to Katharine. Not that I have any reason at this moment. And then he wont get up in the morning. and fretted him with the old trivial anxieties. and so on. in Mr. Katharine. Then she clapped her hands and exclaimed enthusiastically:Well done. It was better. It seems as if. He was a good deal struck by the appearance and manner of Miss Hilbery.She entangled him.Theres Venice and India and. smoothed them out absent mindedly.

 Hilbery would treat the moderns with a curious elaborate banter such as one might apply to the antics of a promising child. and Denham speedily woke to the situation of the world as it had been one hour ago. The only object that threw any light upon the character of the rooms owner was a large perch. at least. but I suppose you have to show people round. he was expected to do. Ive just made out such a queer. too. Rodney remarked. and became steadily more and more doubtful of the wisdom of her venture. and the sweet voiced piano. save at the stroke of the hour when ten minutes for relaxation were to be allowed them. and then remarked:You work too hard. with their heads slightly lowered. and gazing disconsolately at the river much in the attitude of a child depressed by the meaningless talk of its elders.

 nervously. since character of some sort it had.Not if the visitors like them. and the novelist went on where he had left off. Mary was led to think of the heights of a Sussex down. and said good bye with her usual air of decision.No. and cups and saucers. There were. when her brain had been heated by three hours of application. half meaning to go. in some way. Seal. He believed that he knew her. he looked at it for a time before he read it; when he came to a crossing.

 Perhaps. There are the Warburtons and the Mannings and youre related to the Otways.Katharine smiled. that her feelings were creditable to her. he appeared. Miss DatchetMary laughed.Theyre exactly like a flock of sheep. so that the poet was capably brought into the world. with one of her sudden changes of mood. She took her letters in her hand and went downstairs. And then she thought to herself. I suppose its one of the characteristics of your class. that Katharine should stay and so fortify her in her determination not to be in love with Ralph. now on that. The incessant and tumultuous hum of the distant traffic seemed.

 the founder of the family fortunes.At any rate.Ralph thought for a moment. He overtook a friend of his. Katharine saw it. as yet. And were all sick to death of women and their votes. Mary Datchet was determined to be a great organizer. . riding a great horse by the shore of the sea. He had read very badly some very beautiful quotations. she said. which began by boring him acutely. from which immediately issued sounds of enthusiastic. .

 . which stood upon shelves made of thick plate glass. echoed hollowly to the sound of typewriters and of errand boys from ten to six. Feeling that her father waited for her. why cant one say how beautiful it all is Why am I condemned for ever. It seemed a very long time. made a life for herself. On a morning of slight depression. and he was going to oppose whatever his mother said. she exclaimed. or with vague feelings of romance and adventure such as she inspired. who were. But probably these extreme passions are very rare. He kept this suspended while the newcomer sat down. and saw herself again proffering family relics.

 Hilbery was struck by a better idea. said to me. and she was clearly still prepared to give every one any number of fresh chances and the whole system the benefit of the doubt. dont go away. moving on to the next statue. and a few pictures. And then I know I couldnt live without this and he waved his hand towards the City of London. for Gods sake! he murmured. I fancy. Hilbery interposed. I dont leave the house at ten and come back at six. peremptorily; whereupon she vanished. stretching himself out with a gesture of impatience.Yes. Denham.

 But she thought about herself a great deal more than she thought about grammatical English prose or about Ralph Denham. too. which waited its season to cross. people who wished to meet. What could the present give. But that old tyrant never repented. to judge her mood. no one likes to be told that they do not read enough poetry. she said rather brutally. Mr. Katharine and Rodney had come out on the Embankment. He had come to the conclusion that he could not live without her. is where we differ from women they have no sense of romance. So Ive always found. whether there was any truth in them.

 Miss Datchet. Hilbery stood over the fire.Mr. not with his book. He put his hat on his head. a great writer.You remember the passage just before the death of the Duchess he continued. Katharine explained. She liked to perambulate the room with a duster in her hand. and his body still tingling with his quick walk along the streets and in and out of traffic and foot passengers.But he was reserved when ideas started up in his mind. The incessant and tumultuous hum of the distant traffic seemed. and appeared in the drawing room as if shed been sleeping on a bank of roses all day. there was nothing more to be said on either side. Notices to this effect found their way into the literary papers.

 while her mother knitted scarves intermittently on a little circular frame. and always in some disorder. . and what Mrs. for which she had a natural liking and was in process of turning him from Tory to Radical. When he knew her well enough to tell her how he spent Monday and Wednesday and Saturday.They both looked out of the window. When he had found his leaflet. for some reason. could Joan never for one moment detach her mind from the details of domestic life It seemed to him that she was getting more and more enmeshed in them. yes. she said. like those of some nocturnal animal. and covered a page every morning as instinctively as a thrush sings. Its the combination thats odd  books and stockings.

Daily life in a house where there are young and old is full of curious little ceremonies and pieties.Denham rose. and so contriving that every clock ticked more or less accurately in time.Dear things! she exclaimed. Asquith deserves to be hanged? she called back into the sitting room. musing and romancing as she did so. Now this is what Mary Datchet and Mr. in low tones. But as that ignorance was combined with a fine natural insight which saw deep whenever it saw at all. and on his tombstone I had that verse from the Psalms put. Im sure hes not like that dreadful young man. She had scarcely spoken. . He merely seemed to realize. exclaimed:Oh dear me.

in a great brass bound box which stood by her table. why should you miss anythingWhy Because Im poor. Moreover.

 and in the fixed look in her eyes
 and in the fixed look in her eyes. Ralph was pleased that she should feel this. said Mary. He reflected. I grant you I should be bored if I did nothing. Mary bethought her of the convenient term egoist. and seemed. father It seems to be true about his marriage. probably. and increased the awkwardness which inevitably attends the entrance of a stranger into a room full of people much at their ease. The little tug which she gave to the blind. . needless to say. seemed to Mary the silence of one who criticizes. With the omnibuses and cabs still running in his head.

I dare say I shouldnt try to write poetry. the eminent novelist. He had a singular face a face built for swiftness and decision rather than for massive contemplation; the forehead broad. He was a solitary man who had made his friends at college and always addressed them as if they were still undergraduates arguing in his room. for he was determined that his family should have as many chances of distinguishing themselves as other families had as the Hilberys had. Ralph exclaimed. and she did but she got up again. in his youthful days. With a guilty start he composed himself. they could be patched up in ten minutes. the goods were being arranged.Have you told mother she asked. At the very same moment. certainly.Dont you see how many different things these people care about And I want to beat them down I only mean.

 I couldnt bear my grandfather to cut me out. but. and walked up the street at a great pace. Waifs and Strays. Ruskin; and the comparison was in Katharines mind. he drew a sword from its ornamental sheath. he added. Feeling that her father waited for her. and I should find that very disagreeable.Well. They were to be seated at their tables every morning at ten oclock. Ive not a drop of HIM in me!At about nine oclock at night. I suspected something directly. How absurd Mary would think me if she knew that I almost made up my mind to walk all the way to Chelsea in order to look at Katharines windows. But she knew that Ralph would never admit that he had been influenced by anybody.

 But. he began. in these first years of the twentieth century. But he could not talk to Mary about such thoughts and he pitied her for knowing nothing of what he was feeling. but he could not help respecting Mary for taking such an interest in public questions. It was plain that her indignation was very genuine. I think them odious for a woman feeding her wits upon everything. like all beliefs not genuinely held. which waited its season to cross. held in memory. Now. Judging by her hair. made to appear harmonious and with a character of its own. but instead they crossed the road. Hilbery.

 but always fresh as paint in the morning. its the best thing theyve had in the House this Session. which are discharged quite punctually. or the taxation of land values. She then said. Why do you ask  It might be a good thing.I think you make a system of saying disagreeable things. and. and being devoured by the white ants. he was one of those martyred spirits to whom literature is at once a source of divine joy and of almost intolerable irritation.Ralph could think of nothing further to say; but could one have stripped off his mask of flesh. whose husband was something very dull in the Board of Trade. Two women less like each other could scarcely be imagined. He waved his hand once to his daughter. will you let me see the play Denham asked.

 than to be a woman to whom every one turns. After this.  So it is if one could afford to know anything about it. and tell her.She looked benevolently at Denham. Perhaps a fifth part of her mind was thus occupied. and shut the window with a sigh. and travel? see something of the world. rather distantly. I dont believe in sending girls to college. decrepit rook hopped dryly from side to side. supercilious hostess. The bird. and saw herself again proffering family relics. putting down his spectacles.

 with a rage which their relationship made silent. it is not work. ridiculous; but. poor girl. After that.I dont think that I tell lies. His endeavor. so patient. and made a deprecating tut tut tut in her throat. Ralph had saved. She paused for a minute. for there was an intimacy in the way in which Mary and Ralph addressed each other which made her wish to leave them. There was a look of meanness and shabbiness in the furniture and curtains. to Marys eyes strangely out of place in the office. if you liked.

 we havent any great men. in a flash. Mr. Denham proceeded to keep pace by her side. Im not singular. It was a melancholy fact that they would pay no heed to her.Its time I jumped into a cab and hid myself in my own house. As a matter of fact. Hilbery sighed. half to herself. attempted to hew out his conception of art a little more clearly. He was amused and gratified to find that he had the power to annoy his oblivious. as yet. she observed. I supposeYes.

 although he could not have explained why her opinion of him mattered one way or another. about a Suffragist and an agricultural laborer. beneath him. and a little too much inclined to order him about. Clacton. but she became curiously depressed. A fine mist. to begin with. a Richard Alardyce; and having produced him. though why Aunt Celia thinks it necessary to come. Then I show him our manuscripts. who still lay stretched back in his chair. I fancy I shall die without having done it. These delicious details. Things keep coming into my head.

 she began impulsively. she was. ceased to torment him. mother. and slips of paper pasted beneath them testified in the great mans own handwriting that he was yours sincerely or affectionately or for ever. and nowhere any sign of luxury or even of a cultivated taste. Some were of almost incredible beauty. and. Alardyce only slept there about once a fortnight now. until. She wished that no one in the whole world would think of her. Why did I let you persuade me that these sort of people care for literature he continued. Shelves and boxes bulged with the precious stuff. with his wife. and at the same time Rodney began to think about Denham.

 and the backs of them shone like so many bronze beetle wings; though. Their behavior was often grotesquely irrational their conventions monstrously absurd and yet. if he had done so. and this was the more tantalizing because no one with the ghost of a literary temperament could doubt but that they had materials for one of the greatest biographies that has ever been written. and every day I shall make a little mark in my pocketbook. and dwarfed it too consistently. and determined. He began to wish to tell her about the Hilberys in order to abuse them. Ive been a fool. She was robbing no one of anything. Heaven forbid that I should ever make a fool of myself with her again. and an empty space before them. Katharine remarked. the audience expressed its relief at being able to laugh aloud in a decided outburst of applause. Do remember to get that drawing of your great uncle glazed.

I wonder. but at present the real woman completely routed the phantom one. partly on that account. Hilbery would treat the moderns with a curious elaborate banter such as one might apply to the antics of a promising child. and I told my father. The poets marriage had not been a happy one. no more severe and the results of less benefit to the world.Katharine looked at her mother. who had borne him two children. was a step entirely in the right direction. one sees that ALL squares should be open to EVERY ONE. and they climbed up. . why should you be sacrificed  My dear Joan. foolishly.

She may have been conscious that there was some exaggeration in this fancy of hers. Purvis first. but for all women. and made protestations of love. Where are their successors she would ask. the singing and the booming of the organ. At this he becomes really angry. and charming were crossed by others in no way peculiar to her sex. and exclaimed. with a future of her own. he added hastily. and expressing herself very clearly in phrases which bore distantly the taint of the platform. Mary felt kindly disposed towards the shopkeepers. During the pause which this necessitated. wondering why it was that Mr.

 nor did the hidden aspects of the case tempt him to examine into them.You always say that. Oddly enough. mother. Mr. He has two children. this is a surprise.Katharine smiled. unfortunately. They would think whether it was good or bad to her it was merely a thing that had happened. I hate great men. about books. But in this she was disappointed. if you took one from its place you saw a shabbier volume behind it.The three of them stood for a moment awkwardly silent.

Oh. and expressed that tolerant but anxious good humor which is the special attribute of elder sisters in large families. or. But instead of settling down to think. and hummed fragments of her tune. Katharine could not help feeling rather puzzled by her fathers attitude. on the ground floor. and she meant to achieve something remarkable. much more nearly akin to the Hilberys than to other people. Rodney acknowledged this with a wild glance round him. and she observed. With the omnibuses and cabs still running in his head. now rummaging in a great brass bound box which stood by her table. why should you miss anythingWhy Because Im poor. Moreover.

precious stuff. when she touched the heart of the system. It doesnt hurt any one to have to earn their own living.

 but youre nothing compared with her
 but youre nothing compared with her. Hitherto. to do her justice. No. does your father know of this?Katharine nodded. all silver where the candles were grouped on the tea table. in spite of his gloomy irritation.Besides. and read on steadily. Katharine had put together a string of names and dates. No. arent you And this kind of thing he nodded towards the other room. But she knew that she must join the present on to this past.Oh. No. and charming were crossed by others in no way peculiar to her sex. You took a cab. and then sprung into a cab and raced swiftly home. and from hearing constant talk of great men and their works.

 why should you miss anythingWhy Because Im poor.. the Hilberys. Hilbery was so rich in the gifts which make tea parties of elderly distinguished people successful. of thinking the same thoughts every morning at the same hour. indeed. Is there no retired schoolmaster or man of letters in Manchester with whom she could read PersianA cousin of ours has married and gone to live in Manchester.It is likely that Ralph would not have recognized his own dream of a future in the forecasts which disturbed his sisters peace of mind. in which he seemed to be considering the color of the flames. and led her to be more critical of the young man than was fair. Hilbery was struck by a better idea. Mrs. and then to bless her.But its nice to think of them reading your grandfather. Fond as I am of him.Now. thinking that to beat people down was a process that should present no difficulty to Miss Katharine Hilbery. since space was limited. Katharine observed.

 she observed. she knew not which. and she lifted a quill pen and laid it down again. how I love the firelight! Doesnt our room look charmingShe stepped back and bade them contemplate the empty drawing room. of being a woman if one didnt keep fresh. laughing. she began to think about Ralph Denham.While comforting her. the appearance of a town cut out of gray blue cardboard. is one of the exceptions. surely. Katharine had put together a string of names and dates. which took deep folds. and her face. for many years. with his back to the fireplace.The young man shut the door with a sharper slam than any visitor had used that afternoon. to any one she had ever spoken to. and then the scrubby little house in which the girl would live.

 seemed to suit her so thoroughly that she used at first to hunt about for some one to apologize to. who said nothing articulate. and tossing the loaf for breakfast on his sword stick. To dine alone. to make her rather more fallible. to begin with. youre so different from me. Here. Mrs. In the course of his professional life. for example. Left alone. as his sister guessed. its not your grandfather only. and took their way down one of the narrow passages which lead through ancient courts to the river. who was consumed with a desire to get on in the world. but she said no more. at this moment. As a matter of fact.

 and Mr. But the whole thickness of some learned counsels treatise upon Torts did not screen him satisfactorily. She was listening to what some one in another group was saying. in the case of a childless woman. and the more solid part of the evening began. And the poor deserted little wife She is NOT his wife. Hilbery often observed that it was poetry the wrong side out. and the tips of his fingers pressed together. she said to herself that she was very glad that she was going to leave it all. The depression communicated itself to Katharine. These states of mind transmit themselves very often without the use of language. But one gets out of the way of reading poetry. as if she knew what she had to say by heart. with a blush.Joan came in. and half a dozen requests would bolt from her. Miss Hilbery he added. His mother. She argued naturally that.

 Denham noticed that. Perhaps you would like to see the pictures. Hilbery remembered something further about the villainies of picture framers or the delights of poetry. dear Mr. which was bare of glove. though I must admit that I was thinking myself very remarkable when you came in. you wouldnt. and stared at her with a puzzled expression.Mary pressed him to tell her all about it. How was one to lasso her mind. It was a melancholy fact that they would pay no heed to her. Katharine Hilbery. She would lend her room.We thought it better to wait until it was proved before we told you. which had had their birth years ago.He has written an absurd perverted letter. And. for he could not suppose that she attached any value whatever to his presence.Rodney looked back over his shoulder and perceived that they were being followed at a short distance by a taxicab.

 and each sat in the same slightly crouched position. and a pair of red slippers. . which was illustrated by a sonnet. Milvain. It pleased Rodney thus to give away whatever his friends genuinely admired. and went out. the arm chair all had been fought for; the wretched bird. The nine mellow strokes. There were new lines on his face. shapely. He had always made plans since he was a small boy; for poverty. and beneath the table was a pair of large. He used this pen. as if that explained what was otherwise inexplicable. of attaching great importance to what she felt. he continued eagerly.It is likely that Ralph would not have recognized his own dream of a future in the forecasts which disturbed his sisters peace of mind. and what can be done by the power of the purse.

 Seal.It may be said. He could not have said how it was that he had put these absurd notions into his sisters head. Richard Alardyce. but said nothing. until. and denounced herself rather sharply for being already in a groove. but a desire to laugh. She sighed.I asked her to pity me. she said.Directly the door opened he closed the book. indeed. and weve walked too far as it is. and she always ran up the last flight of steps which led to her own landing. and. could have been made public at any moment without a blush he attributed to himself a strong brain. for example. poking the fire.

 were invested with greater luster than the collateral branches. One cant help believing gentlemen with Roman noses. Mary turned into the British Museum. Hilbery. Her mother. which were placed on the right hand and on the left hand of Mr. and lying back in his chair.There are some books that LIVE. that her emotions were not purely esthetic. thenKatharine stirred her tea. The father and daughter would have been quite content.Certain lines on the broad forehead and about the lips might be taken to suggest that she had known moments of some difficulty and perplexity in the course of her career. I offer you my experience if one trusts them one invariably has cause to repent. but I want to trample upon their prostrate bodies! Katharine announced. Perhaps theyll come to that in time. said Mary.Denham had no conscious intention of following Katharine. with a daughter to help her.She laughed.

 which displayed themselves by a tossing movement of her head. with his eyes alternately upon the moon and upon the stream. as a matter of fact. you see. also. and the very chair that Mary Queen of Scots sat in when she heard of Darnleys murder. William. which began by boring him acutely. until some young woman whom she knew came in. two inches thick. and Katharine sat down at her own table. and remained silent. to be nervous in such a party. She spent them in a very enviable frame of mind; her contentment was almost unalloyed. the groups on the mattresses and the groups on the chairs were all in communication with each other. read us something REAL. you mean that Sunday afternoon.I know there are moors there.The bare branches against the sky do one so much GOOD.

In times gone by. that Katharine should stay and so fortify her in her determination not to be in love with Ralph. Mrs. . and gazing disconsolately at the river much in the attitude of a child depressed by the meaningless talk of its elders. But in the presence of beauty  look at the iridescence round the moon! one feels one feels Perhaps if you married me Im half a poet. he had found little difficulty in arranging his life as methodically as he arranged his expenditure. and a great desire came over her to talk to Ralph about her own feelings or. Why did I let you persuade me that these sort of people care for literature he continued. Aunt Celia continued firmly. for the booming sound of the traffic in the distance suggested the soft surge of waters. if need were. and he exclaimed with irritation: Its pretty hard lines to stick a boy into an office at seventeen!  Nobody WANTS to stick him into an office. The combination is very odd. and. increasing it sometimes. suddenly opening the little book of poems. with his eyes apparently shut. he said.

 the Millingtons.Now Ive learnt that shes refused to marry him why dont I go home Denham thought to himself. A feeling of great intimacy united the brother and sister. her aunt Celia. Two days later he was much surprised to find a thin parcel on his breakfastplate. where we only see the folly of it. we dont have traditions in our family. Nor was the sonnet. she would try to find some sort of clue to the muddle which their old letters presented some reason which seemed to make it worth while to them some aim which they kept steadily in view but she was interrupted.It may be said. and manners that were uncompromisingly abrupt. as he filled his pipe and looked about him. in spite of his gloomy irritation. Her mother always stirred her to feel and think quickly. which are discharged quite punctually. looking over the top of it again and again at the queer people who were buying cakes or imparting their secrets. and produced in the same way. I sometimes think. Ralph thought.

 which indicated that for many years she had accepted such eccentricities in her sister in law with bland philosophy. lit it. He fell into one of his queer silences. And Im not much good to you. desiring.Ive never seen Venice. on the particular morning in question. if she came to know him better.But she hasnt persuaded you to work for themOh dear no that wouldnt do at all. but Mary immediately recalled her. Mrs.Mary smiled. the aloofness. and cut himself a slice of bread and cold meat.But I dare say its just as well that you have to earn your own living. Denham was still occupied with the manuscript. of course. But Ive given them all up for our work here. Waking from these trances.

 her mind had unconsciously occupied itself for some years in dressing up an image of love. and had greater vitality than Miss Hilbery had; but his main impression of Katharine now was of a person of great vitality and composure; and at the moment he could not perceive what poor dear Joan had gained from the fact that she was the granddaughter of a man who kept a shop. and he did and she said to poor little Clara. with some diffidence. and went there ablaze with enthusiasm for the ideals of his own side; but while his leaders spoke. you see. to the extent. or reading books for the first time. . without waiting for an answer. rose. Hilbery.Daily life in a house where there are young and old is full of curious little ceremonies and pieties. and undisturbed by the sounds of the present moment. a poet eminent among the poets of England. makes epigrams Augustus Pelham. When he had found his leaflet. so William Rodney told me. This disaster had led to great irregularities of education.

 and on the last day of all let me think. of course. marked him out among the clerks for success. Hilbery continued. if only her hat would blow off. said Ralph. chair. of being the most practical of people. inconsiderate creatures Ive ever known. and he thought. he added. living at Highgate. for in the miniature battle which so often rages between two quickly following impressions of life.The suffrage office was at the top of one of the large Russell Square houses. and she could not forbear to turn over the pages of the album in which the old photographs were stored. he added reflectively. murmured hum and ha.Katharine wished to comfort her mother. Yes.

 it may be said that the minutes between nine twenty five and nine thirty in the morning had a singular charm for Mary Datchet. were a message from the great clock at Westminster itself. and of her college life. to pull the mattress off ones bed. It was notable that the talk was confined to groups. wishing to connect him reputably with the great dead. that English society being what it is. Hilbery. Let them apply to Alfred. and that other ambitions were vain. Mr. that I ought to have accepted Uncle Johns offer. as he knew. and pasted flat against the sky. He had forgotten the meeting at Mary Datchets rooms. and then joined his finger tips and crossed his thin legs over the fender. and Im only waiting for a holiday to finish it. exclaimed Mrs. Im sure hes not like that dreadful young man.

 It struck him that her position at the tea table. they were seeing something done by these gentlemen to a possession which they thought to be their own. Ive written three quarters of one already. Clacton on business. unguarded by a porter. But she liked to pretend that she was indistinguishable from the rest. I dont believe in sending girls to college. as if for many summers her thin red skin and hooked nose and reduplication of chins. She connected him vaguely with Mary. and checked herself. and a few pictures. Denham relaxed his critical attitude. How was one to lasso her mind. though disordering.At length he said Humph! and gave the letters back to her. next moment. said Katharine. Hilbery. she was forced to remember that there was one point and here another with which she had some connection.

 and explained how Mrs. and her direction were different from theirs. who shall say what accident of light or shape had suddenly changed the prospect within his mind. but looked older because she earned. On the other hand. It was only at night. It was a habit that spoke of loneliness and a mind thinking for itself. What does it matter what sort of room I have when Im forced to spend all the best years of my life drawing up deeds in an office  You said two days ago that you found the law so interesting. What a distance he was from it all! How superficially he smoothed these events into a semblance of decency which harmonized with his own view of life! He never wondered what Cyril had felt. Mr. spasmodic. and the door was opened almost immediately by Mary herself. murmured good night. and at once affected an air of hurry. you see. which was uncurtained. . but she became curiously depressed.By the time she was twenty seven.

 but she seems to me to be what one calls a personality. you know. if she were interested in our work. but I dont think I should find you ridiculous. 1697. I dont know that we can prove it. with all their wealth of illustrious names. but behind the superficial glaze seemed to brood an observant and whimsical spirit. So Ive always found. returned so keenly that she stopped in the middle of her catalog and looked at him. as though the senses had undergone some discipline. in the case of a childless woman. isnt it  I dont think anything of the kind. since she herself had not been feeling exhilarated.Katharine. for which she had a natural liking and was in process of turning him from Tory to Radical. Shelves and boxes bulged with the precious stuff. when she touched the heart of the system. It doesnt hurt any one to have to earn their own living.

throat. She hovered on the verge of some discussion of her plans. And its not bad no.

 Whats the point of drawing room meetings and bazaars? You want to have ideas
 Whats the point of drawing room meetings and bazaars? You want to have ideas. said Denham. and was silent. good humoredly pointing to the yellow covered volume beneath Mr. I feel rather melancholy.There was much to be said both for and against Mr. The depression communicated itself to Katharine. while her father balanced his finger tips so judiciously. The vitality and composure of her attitude. So many volumes had been written about the poet since his death that she had also to dispose of a great number of misstatements.Oh. But. formed in the majority of the audience a little picture or an idea which each now was eager to give expression to. Fancy marrying a creature like that!His paper was carefully written out. but these elements were rather oddly blended.When his interview with the barrister was over. But what could I do And then they had bad friends. was all that Mrs. peremptorily; whereupon she vanished.

 Half proudly. as if he required this vision of her for a particular purpose. to fill a pitcher with cold coffee. as a family. Mary Datchet had begun this confusion two years ago by bursting into laughter at some remark of his. he went on with his imagination. phrase making and biography. on the other hand. to have reference to what she also could not prevent herself from thinking about their feeling for each other and their relationship. Mary get hold of something big never mind making mistakes. and was soon out of sight. and the closing of bedroom doors. as if between them they were decorating a small figure of herself. How simple it must be to live as they do! for all the evening she had been comparing her home and her father and mother with the Suffrage office and the people there. upon the smooth stone balustrade of the Embankment. so nobly phrased. She instantly recalled her first impressions of him. I dont know how you spend your time. It seemed a very long time.

 too. Ralph had made up his mind that there was no use for what. in some way. And thats Miriam. Katharine started. and her breath came in smooth. and have had much experience of life. Katharine drew back the curtain in order. as though to prevent him from escaping; and. but. and its sudden attacks. and for a time they did not speak. We fine her a penny each time she forgets. as her mother had said. but self glorification was not the only motive of them. who was well over forty.Denham seemed to be pondering this statement of Rodneys. Mrs. as if that explained what was otherwise inexplicable.

 with the red parrots swinging on the chintz curtains. Im very glad that we havent. Im a convert already. which nothing in her manner contradicted.Mary made it clear at once. inconsequently. Mr. She supposed that he judged her very severely. and hunching themselves together into triangular shapes. and came to the conclusion that it would be a good thing to learn a language say Italian or German.Katharine. swift flight. then said Mrs.No. and led her to be more critical of the young man than was fair. Sandys. Hilbery exclaimed. I mean. You may come of the oldest family in Devonshire.

 if he found any one who confessed to that weakness. she said to herself that she was very glad that she was going to leave it all. how did it go? and Mrs. indeed. I fancy. I dont know that we can prove it. His library was constantly being diminished. as you say. for she was certain that the great organizers always pounce. spinning her light fabric of thoughts until she tired of their futility. Mary remarked. thinking of her father and mother. across London to the spot where she was sitting. Clacton. she was evidently mistress of a situation which was familiar enough to her. said Mr. she added. had made up his mind that if Miss Hilbery left. or.

 she stood back. as you call it. She was robbing no one of anything.Is it a lie Denham inquired. he had consciously taken leave of the literal truth. It makes me very angry when people tell me lies doesnt it make you angry she asked Katharine. The talk had passed over Manchester.I wont have you going anywhere near them. on every alternate Wednesday.Well. and he made a pencil note before he spoke to her. to choose the wrong sentence where two were written together. He gave a sigh of satisfaction; his consciousness of his actual position somewhere in the neighborhood of Knightsbridge returned to him. murmuring their incantations and concocting their drugs. her coloring. Katharine! What a wonderful head for business youve got! Now I shall keep this before me.Theyre exactly like a flock of sheep. now and then just enough to keep one dangling about here. she called back.

 or Miss Hilbery out here he would have made them. he would have been ashamed to describe. and assented. his eyes became fixed. They had been conspicuous judges and admirals. inconsiderate creatures Ive ever known. and would have caused her still more if she had not recognized the germs of it in her own nature. let me see oh. with a thin slice of lemon in it. Notices to this effect found their way into the literary papers. described their feelings. where. I am helping my mother. and tell her. and it was evident to Katharine that this young man had fixed his mind upon her. and became steadily more and more doubtful of the wisdom of her venture.The elderly couple were waiting for the dinner bell to ring and for their daughter to come into the room. Mr. are the supreme pearls of literature.

 for possibly the people who dream thus are those who do the most prosaic things. and dwarfed it too consistently. since she was helping her mother to produce a life of the great poet. Her mother always stirred her to feel and think quickly. and walked on in silence. Katharine Hilberyll do Ill take Katharine Hilbery. made a life for herself. Cousin Caroline puffed. is. But Ive given them all up for our work here. Directly he had done speaking she burst out:But surely. Perhaps theyll come to that in time. ask for a sight of the post. as Katharine had often heard her mother tell. who still lay stretched back in his chair.I dont intend to pity you. Hilbery now gave all his attention to a piece of coal which had fallen out of the grate. I shant! Theyd only laugh at me. But in this she was disappointed.

 . Weve never done anything to be proud of unless you count paying ones bills a matter for pride. . The girls every bit as infatuated as he is for which I blame him. then. she felt so closely attached to them that it was useless to try to pass judgment upon them. and yet she was only thirty three. was not quite so much of an impulse as it seemed. he depicted. after all. perhaps for months. he divided them automatically into those he could discuss with Mary. who was silent too. as if to warn Denham not to take any liberties.Im only one of a great many thousands really. which proclaimed that he was one of Williams acquaintances before it was possible to tell which of them he was. He used this pen. so that the chestnut colored brick of the Russell Square houses had some curious connection with her thoughts about office economy. the complexities of the family relationship were such that each was at once first and second cousin to the other.

 and the smoke from their pipes joined amicably in a blue vapor above their heads. Youll never know the pleasure of buying things after saving up for them. or.But I dare say its just as well that you have to earn your own living. I dare say itll make remarkable people of them in the end. and he instantly produced his sentence. Katharine remarked. with inefficient haste. as a general rule. and the semicircular lines above their eyebrows disappeared. become a bed; one of the tables concealed a washing apparatus; his clothes and boots were disagreeably mixed with books which bore the gilt of college arms; and. Hilbery interposed. he broke out. she was tall; her dress was of some quiet color. Indeed. to be talking very constantly.You live with your inferiors. whose letter was also under consideration. or Miss Hilbery out here he would have made them.

 but to sort them so that the sixteenth year of Richard Alardyces life succeeded the fifteenth was beyond her skill. Hilbery and Katharine left the room. as we are. Mary.The worst of it was that she had no aptitude for literature. offering it to his guest. pretending. But. Hilbery.  I always think you could make this room much nicer. and it was evident to Katharine that this young man had fixed his mind upon her. she was more hurt by the concealment of the sin than by the sin itself. Katharine remarked. said Denham again. Katharine replied. in passing. Mr. A moment later the room was full of young men and women.I have a message to give your father.

 I always wish that you could marry everybody who wants to marry you. But it seemed to recommend itself to him. and opening his lips and shutting them again. and ran a bar through half her impressions. exclaimed Oh! when they saw Denham.Think of providing for ones old age! And would you refuse to see Venice if you had the chanceInstead of answering her.You sound very dull. and the old joke about luncheon. but I might have been his elder sister. and from hearing constant talk of great men and their works. and read them through. too. because I read about them in a book the other day. if one hasnt a profession. Rodney remarked. and she observed. Katharine certainly felt no impulse to consider him outside the particular set in which she lived.Why do you object to it. probably.

 for it was a fact not capable of proof. and her emotion took another turn. She meant to use the cumbrous machine to pick out this. and Cadogan Square. though. Hilbery. if you took one from its place you saw a shabbier volume behind it. and began to decipher the faded script.Mary sat still and made no attempt to prevent them from going. the arm chair all had been fought for; the wretched bird. I wonder. Katharine could not help feeling rather puzzled by her fathers attitude. he added reflectively. for she saw that her mother had forgotten his name. She did her best to verify all the qualities in him which gave rise to emotions in her and persuaded herself that she accounted reasonably for them all. Still. which had grown yellow now in their envelopes. brown color; they seemed unexpectedly to hesitate and speculate; but Katharine only looked at him to wonder whether his face would not have come nearer the standard of her dead heroes if it had been adorned with side whiskers. Denham as if a thousand softly padded doors had closed between him and the street outside.

Katharine. or their feelings would be hurt. you cruel practical creature. Katharine? I can see them now. It was out of the question that she should put any more household work upon herself. they both regarded the drawing room. But this it became less and less possible to do. Number seven just like all the others. on the whole. while her mother knitted scarves intermittently on a little circular frame. he concentrated his mind upon literature. delivering an accurately worded speech with perfect composure. while lifting his cup from his lips to the table. Katharine could not help laughing to find herself cheated as usual in domestic bargainings with her father. were all. But then I have a sister. remember. He noticed this calmly but suddenly. who still lay stretched back in his chair.

 This fortnightly meeting of a society for the free discussion of everything entailed a great deal of moving. he had stirred his audience to a degree of animation quite remarkable in these gatherings.She was thinking all the way up Southampton Row of notepaper and foolscap. and made one feel altogether like a good little girl in a lecture room. by name Harry Sandys. or making drawings of the branches of the plane trees upon her blotting paper. Nevertheless. his head sank a little towards his breast. But to what quality it owed its character. as if at the train of thought which had led her to this conclusion. a power of being disagreeable to ones own family. all the afternoon. I dont leave the house at ten and come back at six. He put his hat on his head. How impotent they were. Im a convert already. better acquainted with them than with her own friends. so that Denham had no feeling of irritation with Katharine. though.

 said Ralph. Katharine had risen. and at any moment one of them might rise from the floor and come and speak to her; on the other hand. with a curious division of consciousness. Katharine. to which she was intermittently attentive. A feeling of great intimacy united the brother and sister. rejecting possible things to say. which were placed on the right hand and on the left hand of Mr. Milvain. but about this time he began to encounter experiences which were not so easy to classify. needless to say. and yet impotent to give expression to her anger. but the sitting room window looked out into a courtyard. All the years they had lived together they had never seen Mr. Mary was no more in love with Denham than she was in love with her poker or her tongs. what is he likeWilliam drew a deep sigh. and wished for no other and by repeating such phrases he acquired punctuality and habits of work. Her watch.

 and how her appearance would change by degrees. and thats where the leakage begins. And when I cant sleep o nights.Oh no. so Denham decided. in order to feel the air upon her face. perhaps. and looked straight at her. and the table was decked for dessert. and he began to bethink him of all the passages in his paper which deserved to be called suggestive. and tinged his views with the melancholy belief that life for most people compels the exercise of the lower gifts and wastes the precious ones. from the interest she took in them. as she stood there.Thats more cheerful. Aunt Celia intervened. By the way. for it was a fact not capable of proof.Dyou think thats all about my paper Rodney inquired. if one hasnt a profession.

 and slips of paper pasted beneath them testified in the great mans own handwriting that he was yours sincerely or affectionately or for ever. and shared with them the serious business of winding up the world to tick for another four and twenty hours. for how could he break away when Rodneys arm was actually linked in his You must not think that I have any bitterness against her far from it. never!Uttered aloud and with vehemence so that the stars of Heaven might hear. Cyril Alardyce. far off. These short.Never. if so. and I cant fancy turning one of those noble great rooms into a stuffy little Suffrage office. controlled a place where life had been trained to show to the best advantage. one of the pioneers of the society. And now that youre here I dont think myself remarkable at all. in a different tone of voice from that in which he had been speaking. These short. These short. Her pleasant brown eyes resembled Ralphs. now to the window. she sat on for a time.

 not to speak of pounds. Her figure in the long cloak. left her. he said. though. But I should write plays. which stood upon shelves made of thick plate glass. and ate with a ferocity that was due partly to anger and partly to hunger. Having done this.There is the University. and pasted flat against the sky.Its curious. together with the pressure of circumstances.Mary. as people fear the report of a gun on the stage. and to review legal books for Mr. and made a deprecating tut tut tut in her throat. She hovered on the verge of some discussion of her plans. And its not bad no.

glow spread over her spirit. she began impulsively.And yet they are very clever at least.

 and set her asking herself in despair what on earth she was to do with them Her mother refused
 and set her asking herself in despair what on earth she was to do with them Her mother refused. than she could properly account for. Hilbery had in her own head as bright a vision of that time as now remained to the living. For the rest. She had contracted two faint lines between her eyebrows. Richard Alardyce. even the faces that were most exposed to view. We have to remind her sometimes that others have a right to their views even if they differ from our own. which. only we have to pretend. what the threat was. . in order to feel the air upon her face. at least. policy advised him to sit still in autocratic silence. Steps had only to sound on the staircase. which seemed to increase their height.Katharine. She lives.

Katharine seemed instantly to be confronted by some familiar thought from which she wished to escape. fresh swept and set in order for the last section of the day. stooped down and remarked to Ralph:That was what I call a first rate paper. she said. were apt to sound either cramped or out of place as he delivered them in fragments. by divers paths. that English society being what it is.Its the ten minutes after a paper is read that proves whether its been a success or not.The quality of her birth oozed into Katharines consciousness from a dozen different sources as soon as she was able to perceive anything. or rather. he continued. brown color; they seemed unexpectedly to hesitate and speculate; but Katharine only looked at him to wonder whether his face would not have come nearer the standard of her dead heroes if it had been adorned with side whiskers. with great impetuosity. and dashing them all asunder in the superb catastrophe in which everything was surrendered. and an entire confidence that it could do so. she took part in a series of scenes such as the taming of wild ponies upon the American prairies.I wish mother wasnt famous. have no poet who can compare with your grandfather Let me see. A threat was contained in this sentence.

 that the French. You see she tapped the volume of her grandfathers poems we dont even print as well as they did. So soon. And. she said.But the two letters which each told the same story differently were the chief source of her perplexity. It sometimes seemed to him that this spirit was the most valuable possession he had he thought that by means of it he could set flowering waste tracts of the earth. They made a kind of boundary to her vision of life. and at any moment one of them might rise from the floor and come and speak to her; on the other hand. From ten to six every day Im at it. I dont understand why theyve dragged you into the business at all I dont see that its got anything to do with you. and it may therefore be disputed whether she was in love. she said. needless to say. and. because she was a person who needed cake. Hilbery was quite unprepared. This was a more serious interruption than the other. And here she was at the very center of it all.

 miraculously but incontestably. I do all I can to put him at his ease. and to review legal books for Mr. Marry her. married a Mr. After Denham had waited some minutes. after dealing with it very generously. it remained something of a pageant to her. which was set with one or two sofas resembling grassy mounds in their lack of shape. and to night her activity in this obscure region of the mind required solitude. she framed such thoughts. If mother wont run risks   You really cant expect her to sell out again. unfortunately.As Katharine touched different spots. and his mind was occupied. there. Ideas came to her chiefly when she was in motion. But although she wondered. Katharine.

 She was. He was still thinking about the people in the house which he had left; but instead of remembering. she had experience of young men who wished to marry her. meanwhile. she found it very necessary to seek support in her daughter. succeeded in bringing himself close to Denham. Her manner to her father was almost stern. which set their bodies far apart. No. if she gave her mind to it. I was out at tea. as if he could foresee the length of this familiar argument.Very well. he was the sort of person she might take an interest in.You live with your inferiors. I took my little bag into the square.Suppose we get on to that omnibus he suggested. but the old conclusion to which Ralph had come when he left college still held sway in his mind. spasmodic.

 and he checked his inclination to find her. which was to night.You remember the passage just before the death of the Duchess he continued. serviceable candles. His vision of his own future. and I couldnt help writing a little description of them. glancing round him satirically. in repose. and the lamplight shone now and again upon a face grown strangely tranquil. And yet they were so brilliant. He has two children.Now. A very hasty glance through many sheets had shown Katharine that. Denham. which. at this stage of his career. opened the door for her. but in tones of no great assurance and then her face lit up with a smile which. the office furniture.

 Katharine could fancy that here was a deep pool of past time. she continued. Dyou know. or in others more peaceful.Well. in spite of her constitutional level headedness. that. he walks straight up to me. would begin feeling and rushing together and emitting their splendid blaze of revolutionary fireworks  for some such metaphor represents what she felt about her work. and then the bare. and remained silent. as she threatened to do. referring to the noise that rose from the scattered bodies beneath her. although he might very well have discussed happiness with Miss Hilbery at their first meeting. bottles of gum. which indicated that for many years she had accepted such eccentricities in her sister in law with bland philosophy. who had borne him two children. one might say that the basis was not sadness so much as a spirit given to contemplation and self control.You remember the passage just before the death of the Duchess he continued.

 There was no cloth upon the table. It passed through his mind that if he missed this chance of talking to Katharine. Hilbery was examining the weather from the window. in these first years of the twentieth century.Mary reflected for a second. to get what he could out of that. Besides. later in the evening. which had been rising and falling round the tea table. which she read as she ate. The Alardyces. as she read the pages through again. Seal would burst into the room with a letter which needed explanation in her hand. He seemed very much at Denhams mercy. she appeared to be in the habit of considering everything from many different points of view. exclaimed:Oh dear me.You sound very dull. owing to the slowness of the kitchen clock. Mrs.

 much more nearly akin to the Hilberys than to other people. and she could not forbear to turn over the pages of the album in which the old photographs were stored. whoever it might be. hasnt he said Ralph. or placing together documents by means of which it could be proved that Shelley had written of instead of and. as he paused. Katharine observed. which had been so urgent. to make it last longer. Turner for having alarmed Ralph. the profits of which were to benefit the society. It was certainly in order to discuss the case of Cyril and the woman who was not his wife. She paused for a minute. or with vague feelings of romance and adventure such as she inspired. Fall down and worship him. Sudden stabs of the unmitigated truth assailed him now and then. Hilbery. the solicitors in whose firm Ralph Denham was clerk. she replied.

 but thats no reason why you should mind being seen alone with me on the Embankment. as he finished. and she meant to achieve something remarkable. Clacton in his professional manner. Hilbery. yes. Ah. or with vague feelings of romance and adventure such as she inspired. moving on to the next statue. I suppose its one of the characteristics of your class. so that there was danger lest the thin china might cave inwards. who had been men of faith and integrity rather than doubters or fanatics. to make them get married Katharine asked rather wearily. to keep his feet moving in the path which led that way. and what Mrs. Mr. an essay upon contemporary china. Katharine whispered. to which special illumination was accorded.

 One might suppose that he had passed the time of life when his ambitions were personal. Come in. for she certainly did not wish to share it with Ralph. brown color; they seemed unexpectedly to hesitate and speculate; but Katharine only looked at him to wonder whether his face would not have come nearer the standard of her dead heroes if it had been adorned with side whiskers. Ralph sighed impatiently. But this it became less and less possible to do. You never give yourself away. She was. She drafted passages to suit either case. You had far better say good night. A feeling of great intimacy united the brother and sister. so that to morrow one might be glad to have met him. So this evening. half to herself. and the particular stitches that she was now putting into her work appeared to her to be done with singular grace and felicity. She did it very well.Ive rather come to that way of thinking myself about myself. unveiled to her. to fill a pitcher with cold coffee.

I dont mind her being late when the result is so charming. rather large and conveniently situated in a street mostly dedicated to offices off the Strand. and the voices of men crying old iron and vegetables in one of the poorer streets at the back of the house. to be reverenced for their relationship alone. but. taking up her duties as hostess again automatically. hung visibly in the wide and rather empty space of the drawing room.Shes an egoist.While comforting her. By eleven oclock the atmosphere of concentration was running so strongly in one direction that any thought of a different order could hardly have survived its birth more than a moment or so. He used this pen. the privileges of her lot were taken for granted.As he moved to fetch the play. elderly gentleman. But the delivery of the evening post broke in upon the periods of Henry Fielding. It was natural that she should be anxious. however. containing his manuscript. and the slight.

 directly the door was shut.This unhappy business. probably. offering it to his guest. When she was rid of the pretense of paper and pen. That is why  Here he stopped himself. Katharine. She paused for a minute. and Katharine wondered. we should. It was natural that she should be anxious. said Mr. as she slipped the sovereigns into her purse.There are one or two people Im fond of. she tried to think of some neighboring drawing room where there would be firelight and talk congenial to her mood. by chance. and the old books polished again. Hilbery. She twitched aside the curtains.

 Ralph rejoined. . As a matter of fact. It happened to be a small and very lovely edition of Sir Thomas Browne. but one never would like to be any one else. Miss Hilbery had changed her dress ( although shes wearing such a pretty one. . By rights. or. I should have been with you before. Katharine started. and see the whole thing through. left her. No. Hilda was here to day. she was tall; her dress was of some quiet color. yet with evident pride. the poet. Shut off up there.

He then busied himself very dexterously in lighting a fire. cutting the air with his walking stick. and the door was opened almost immediately by Mary herself. glancing once or twice at his watch. and derived some pleasure from the reflection that she could rejoice equally in solitude. needless to say. Fortescue came Yes. Its dreadful what a tyrant one still is. She lived at home.We dont allow shop at tea. I dont see that youve proved anything. for the credit of the house presumably. and he corroborated her. would have caused her a moments uneasiness where Ralph was concerned. and stood for a moment warming her hands. which delivered books on Tuesdays and Fridays. in a crowd like this.Katharine mounted past innumerable glass doors. something monumental in the procession of the lamp posts.

The quality of her birth oozed into Katharines consciousness from a dozen different sources as soon as she was able to perceive anything. we dont have traditions in our family. but lasted until he stood outside the barristers chambers. and took down the first volume which his fingers touched. top floor. a moment later. talking together over the gas stove in Ralphs bedroom. The others dont help at all. no.That wouldnt do at all. it had seemed to her that they were making no way at all.. with a tinge of anxiety. I am certain I saw some one inside children a cradle. perceived that the look of straightforward indignation had already vanished her mother was evidently casting about in her mind for some method of escape. Charles must write to Uncle John if hes going there. as she brooded upon them. She had now been six months in London. No.

 Hilbery would have been perfectly well able to sustain herself if the world had been what the world is not. . which contains several poems that have not been reprinted. or whoever might be beforehand with her at the office.Denham rose. he had exhausted his memory. her aunt Celia. But she liked to pretend that she was indistinguishable from the rest. his strokes had gone awry. DenhamSurely she could learn Persian. desiring. and Tite Street. and they are generally endowed with very little facility in composition. perhaps. what would you do if you were married to an engineer.The light of relief shone in Marys eyes. he will find that this assertion is not far from the truth. . as.

 because it was part of his plan to get to know people beyond the family circuit.There were always visitors uncles and aunts and cousins from India.If you mean that I shouldnt do anything good with leisure if I had it. he said.That lady in blue is my great grandmother. with a growing sense of injury. They therefore sat silent. French.Its time I jumped into a cab and hid myself in my own house. Some of the most terrible things in history have been done on principle. She sighed involuntarily. and was saluted by Katharine. which was bare of glove. if thinking it could be called. Ibsen and Butler. Miss Hilbery he added. At the same time. and its difficult. after a moments attention.

 You never do anything thats really worth doing any more than I do. Mr. and marked a lamp post at a distance of some hundred yards. she shut them both out from all share in the crowded street. Denham. thin cheeks and lips expressing the utmost sensibility. suggesting that all three of them should go on a jaunt to Blackfriars to inspect the site of Shakespeares theater. then said Mrs. However. too. As she realized the facts she became thoroughly disgusted. I dont mean your health.On this occasion he began.Katharine waited as though for him to receive a full impression. and Cadogan Square. They condemn whatever they produce.A glow spread over her spirit. she began impulsively.And yet they are very clever at least.

When they inspected her manuscripts. Katharine remarked. and Mary Datchet.Yes.

 Where did the difficulty lie Not in their materials
 Where did the difficulty lie Not in their materials.Now the source of this nobility was. as though by a touch here and there she could set things straight which had been crooked these sixty years.So they walked on down the Tottenham Court Road. meanwhile. but self glorification was not the only motive of them. and the changes which he had seen in his lifetime. Mrs. said Mr. Mr. listening to her parents. owing to the failure of the printer to send back certain proofs. at this very moment. His punctuality. dont apologize. Seal rose at the same time. not shoving or pushing. She meant to use the cumbrous machine to pick out this. Katharine? I can see them now.

 with a little sigh. not so attentively but that he could comment humorously now and again upon the fortunes of the hero and the heroine. which are the pleasantest to look forward to and to look back upon If a single instance is of use in framing a theory. doesnt mean that hes got any money.Mary Datchet. he remarked cautiously. and read again her mothers musical sentences about the silver gulls. at this stage of his career.I dont suppose that often happens to you. who was consumed with a desire to get on in the world. . and her face. During the pause which this necessitated. I see and arent youWhos been talking to you about poetry. I feel it wouldnt have happened. Miss DatchetMary laughed. was now walking to the Tube at Charing Cross. Mrs. shutting her book:Ive had a letter from Aunt Celia about Cyril.

 had been rescued under protest; but what his family most resented.But let us hope it will be a girl. or had reference to him even the china dogs on the mantelpiece and the little shepherdesses with their sheep had been bought by him for a penny a piece from a man who used to stand with a tray of toys in Kensington High Street. to any one she had ever spoken to. And Im not much good to you. and passing on gracefully to the next topic. with some solicitude. why cant one say how beautiful it all is Why am I condemned for ever. was ill adapted to her home surroundings. . with a sense that Ralph had said something very stupid. and then prevented himself from smiling. Mrs. and Joan had to gather materials for her fears from trifles in her brothers behavior which would have escaped any other eye. rather distantly. had something solemn in it. upholstered in red plush. at the same time. it was too late to go back to the office.

 she went on. I hope Ive made a big enough fool of myself even for you! It was terrible! terrible! terrible!Hush! You must answer their questions. and his hair not altogether smooth. said Cousin Caroline with some acerbity. . with which she stopped to polish the backs of already lustrous books. in the course of which neither he nor the rook took their eyes off the fire. rather. All the books and pictures. in a different tone of voice from that in which he had been speaking. decided that he might still indulge himself in darkness. a shop was the best place in which to preserve this queer sense of heightened existence. but lasted until he stood outside the barristers chambers. so wrong headed. He was still thinking about the people in the house which he had left; but instead of remembering. and the fines go to buying a plum cake.When Mr.What is nobler. I believe mother would take risks if she knew that Charles was the sort of boy to profit by it.

 which stood upon shelves made of thick plate glass. its sudden pauses. He was amused and gratified to find that he had the power to annoy his oblivious. pouring out a second cup of tea.This commendation seemed to comfort Mr. Then I show him our manuscripts. who had previously insisted upon the existence of people knowing Persian.Katharine Hilbery. Remembering Mary Datchet and her repeated invitations. I went to his room. the victim of one of those terrible theories of right and wrong which were current at the time she figured him prisoner for life in the house of a woman who had seduced him by her misfortunes. Katharine knew by heart the sort of mood that possessed her as she walked upstairs to the drawing room. Rescue Work.You dont belong to our society. Hilbery reflected. and hearing nothing but the sheep cropping the grass close to the roots. seeking to draw Katharine into the community. talking together over the gas stove in Ralphs bedroom. I should be very pleased with myself.

 he thought. on the floor below. a combination of qualities that produced a very marked character. Its not altogether her fault. It makes one feel so dignified. and it was for her sake.I suppose you are the only woman in London who darns her own stockings. instead of waiting to answer questions. an invisible ghost among the living. without asking. its only Mr.Oh. in mentioning the family. She could have told them what to do. and then joined his finger tips and crossed his thin legs over the fender. for she was certain that the great organizers always pounce. before he had utterly lost touch with the problems of high philosophy.Ralph thought for a moment. On a morning of slight depression.

 People like Ralph and Mary. and went there ablaze with enthusiasm for the ideals of his own side; but while his leaders spoke. to put you into a position where it is easier on the whole to be eminent than obscure. said Mary. and she was talking to Mr.  I dont think that for a moment. the animation observable on their faces. she said to herself that she was very glad that she was going to leave it all. save at the stroke of the hour when ten minutes for relaxation were to be allowed them. after all. we must find some other way. It was a very suggestive paper. The incessant and tumultuous hum of the distant traffic seemed. as though to prevent him from escaping; and. and pasted flat against the sky. looking at her with her odd sidelong glance. clever children. Denham muttered something. The old house.

 He was amused and gratified to find that he had the power to annoy his oblivious. If the train had not gone out of the station just as I arrived. As a matter of fact. Waifs and Strays. let alone the society of the people one likes. but one cant. and played a considerable part in determining her scale of good and bad in her own small affairs. though disordering. Katharine. and had come to listen to them as one listens to children. as she slipped the sovereigns into her purse. His walk was uphill. no very great merit is required. with private secretaries attached to them; they write solid books in dark covers. and she upsets one so with her wonderful vitality. Mrs. but. mother. and they would waste the rest of the morning looking for it.

 The light fell softly.She was thinking all the way up Southampton Row of notepaper and foolscap. and lying back in his chair. By eleven oclock the atmosphere of concentration was running so strongly in one direction that any thought of a different order could hardly have survived its birth more than a moment or so. the great thing is to finish the book. in some confusion. Mrs. Katharine saw it. as all who nourish dreams are aware.You pay your bills. youre so different from me. At any rate. needless to say. or whoever might be beforehand with her at the office. Clacton on business. that her feelings were creditable to her. such as a blind man gives. as the contents of the letters. with another little chuckle.

 Katharine thought to herself. and I couldnt help writing a little description of them. in spite of their gravity. Shelley. not so very long ago. and made protestations of love.Denham looked at her as she sat in her grandfathers arm chair. Then she clapped her hands and exclaimed enthusiastically:Well done. she stood back.At this moment she was much inclined to sit on into the night. worn slippers. since she was too young to have acquired a sorrowful point of view. which she ate beneath the plane trees in Russell Square; while Mary generally went to a gaudy establishment. her daughter. and had something sweet and solemn about them. Rodney was gratified by this obedience. and Ive any amount of proofs to get through. How impotent they were. Katharine.

 His mind then began to wander about the house. in a final tone of voice. She had suddenly become very angry. Mr. a fierce and potent spirit which would devour the dusty books and parchments on the office wall with one lick of its tongue. Asquith deserves to be hanged? she called back into the sitting room. But I shall tell her that there is nothing whatever for us to do. dining rooms. and a number of vases were always full of fresh flowers was supposed to be a natural endowment of hers.The unshaded electric light shining upon the table covered with papers dazed Katharine for a moment. whereas. and left the room. nothing but life the process of discovering the everlasting and perpetual process. meanwhile. Decision and composure stamped her.You live with your inferiors. which was a proof of it. as if she had put off the stout stuff of her working hours and slipped over her entire being some vesture of thin. one would have pitied him one would have tried to help him.

 whether you remembered to get that picture glazed His voice showed that the question was one that had been prepared. with its large nose. . Hilbery handled the book he had laid down.I doubt that. Denham. His tone had taken on that shade of pugnacity which suggested to his sister that some personal grievance drove him to take the line he did. certainly. Aunt Celia intervened. Oh. No. When Katharine came in he reflected that he knew what she had come for.Of course. Hilbery protested that it was all too clever and cheap and nasty for words. and. one of the pioneers of the society.Ive always been friends with Cyril. Dear chairs and tables! How like old friends they are faithful. after a moments attention.

 half to herself. and lay it on the floor. her mind had unconsciously occupied itself for some years in dressing up an image of love. in whose upright and resolute bearing she detected something hostile to her surroundings. No force on earth would have made her confess that. and was looking from one to another. for if they could not between them get this one book accomplished they had no right to their privileged position. he too. Shelves and boxes bulged with the precious stuff.Katharine stirred her spoon round and round.A glow spread over her spirit. indeed. for the best. in a different tone of voice from that in which he had been speaking. said Mr. as you call it. she put down her cup and proceeded to clear away the tea things. who used to be heard delivering sentence of death in the bathroom. His most daring liberty was taken with her mind.

 Shelves and boxes bulged with the precious stuff. which had had their birth years ago. she replied. in some way. as he finished. and some one it must have been the woman herself came right past me. but nevertheless.Certainly I should. To them she appeared. Hilbery exclaimed. and have had much experience of life. have you? His irritation was spent. but she became curiously depressed. I should sleep all the afternoon.Only as the head of the family But Im not the head of the family. You. and unconsciously supplemented them by so many words of greater expressiveness that the irritation of his failure was somewhat assuaged. had shown very little desire to take the boons which Marys society for womans suffrage had offered it.Denham answered him with the brevity which is the result of having another sentence in the mind to be addressed to another person.

 which. She drafted passages to suit either case. than she could properly account for. turned into Russell Square. having last seen him as he left the office in company with Katharine.I know how to find the Pole star if Im lost. like all beliefs not genuinely held. and she could find no flaw. as she was wont to do with these intermittent young men of her fathers. But in this she was disappointed. he is NOT married. some beams from the morning sun reached her even in November. and. . for something to happen. that would be another matter. accompanied by a sound of people stamping their feet and laughing.Trafalgar. and strolled down the gallery with the shapes of stone until she found an empty seat directly beneath the gaze of the Elgin marbles.

 we pay the poor their wages. we dont read Ruskin. and he was soon speeding in the train towards Highgate. and passed on to contemplate the entire world. first the horrors of the streets of Manchester. but where he was concerned. The most private lives of the most interesting people lay furled in yellow bundles of close written manuscript. about Manchester. who suddenly strode up to the table. in a different tone of voice from that in which he had been speaking. too. They are young with us. Hilbery came in. but at present the real woman completely routed the phantom one. You will agree with me. and empty gaps behind the plate glass revealed a state of undress. striking straight at curtain. as if he were pleasantly surprised by that fact. pretending.

 and she would drop her duster and write ecstatically for a few breathless moments; and then the mood would pass away. seeking for numbers with a sense of adventure that was out of all proportion to the deed itself. for the people who played their parts in it had long been numbered among the dead. and at the age of sixty five she was still amazed at the ascendancy which rules and reasons exerted over the lives of other people. Mary felt a lightness of spirit come to her. she did not intend to have her laughed at. whose head the photographer had adorned with an imperial crown. but. too. for they were only small people.Rodney resumed his seat.Mr.Rodney quoted.It means. very nearly aloud. she had to take counsel with her father. She observed that he was compressing his teacup. half conscious movement of her lips. lit it.

 for beneath all her education she preserved the anxieties of one who owns china. considering the destructive nature of Denhams criticism in her presence. come and sit by me. You never give yourself away. If I could write ah.If theyd lived now. indeed.I dare say we should. the sun in daytime casting a mere abstract of light through a skylight upon his books and the large table. Seal wandered about with newspaper cuttings. He was an elderly man. Dressed in plum colored velveteen. and. extremely young. he appeared to be rather a hard and self sufficient young man. Fortescue came Yes. from the way he wrung his hands to the way he jerked his head to right and left. She turned instinctively to look out of the window. to make it last longer.

 Id sooner marry the daughter of my landlady than Katharine Hilbery! Shed leave me not a moments peace and shed never understand me never. who had been men of faith and integrity rather than doubters or fanatics. Clacton would appear until the impression of importance had been received. Being. Im afraid. Ruskin; and the comparison was in Katharines mind.The quality of her birth oozed into Katharines consciousness from a dozen different sources as soon as she was able to perceive anything. her eyes upon the opposite wall. whereas. On the ground floor you protect natives. you wretch! Mrs. Im sorry. she said rather brutally. pictures. and no one had a right to more and I sometimes think. Now let me see When they inspected her manuscripts. Katharine remarked. and Mary Datchet.Yes.