Half—consciously，hethought:’There’ssomethinginthisdamnedclimatewhichmakesonegoroundinaring。Allthesame，ImusthaveastrainofMayflyblood。’
InthismoodhereachedtheMeccaofhishopes。Itwasoneofthosequietmeetingsfavourabletosuchaswishtolookintohorses，ratherthanintothemouthsofbookmakers;andValclungtothepaddock。
HistwentyyearsofColoniallife，divestinghimofthedandyisminwhichhehadbeenbred，hadlefthimtheessentialneatnessofthehorseman，andgivenhimaqueerandratherblightingeyeoverwhathecalled\"thesillyhaw—haw\"ofsomeEnglishmen，the\"flappingcockatoory\"ofsomeEnglish—women——HollyhadnoneofthatandHollywashismodel。Observant，quick，resourceful，Valwentstraighttotheheartofatransaction，ahorse，adrink;andhewasonhiswaytotheheartofaMayflyfilly，whenaslowvoicesaidathiselbow:
\"Mr。ValDartie？How’sMrs。ValDartie？She’swell，Ihope。\"AndhesawbesidehimtheBelgianhehadmetathissisterImogen’s。
\"ProsperProfond——Imetyouatlunch，\"saidthevoice。
\"Howareyou？\"murmuredVal。
\"I’mverywell，\"repliedMonsieurProfond，smilingwithacertaininimitableslowness。\"Agooddevil，\"Hollyhadcalledhim。Well！
Helookedalittlelikeadevil，withhisdark，clipped，pointedbeard;asleepyonethough，andgood—humoured，withfineeyes，unexpectedlyintelligent。
\"Here’sagentlemanwantstoknowyou——cousinofyours——Mr。GeorgeForsyde。\"
Valsawalargeform，andafaceclean—shaven，bull—like，alittlelowering，withsardonichumourbubblingbehindafullgreyeye;heremembereditdimlyfromolddayswhenhewoulddinewithhisfatherattheIseeumClub。
\"Iusedtogoracingwithyourfather，\"Georgewassaying:\"How’sthestud？Liketobuyoneofmyscrews？\"
Valgrinned，tohidethesuddenfeelingthatthebottomhadfallenoutofbreeding。Theybelievedinnothingoverhere，noteveninhorses。GeorgeForsyte，ProsperProfond！Thedevilhimselfwasnotmoredisillusionedthanthosetwo。
\"Didn’tknowyouwerearacingman，\"hesaidtoMonsieurProfond。
\"I’mnot。Idon’tcareforit。I’mayachtin’man。Idon’tcareforyachtin’either，butIliketoseemyfriends。I’vegotsomelunch，Mr。ValDartie，justasmalllunch，ifyou’dliketo’avesome;notmuch——justasmallone——inmycar。\"
\"Thanks，\"saidVal;\"verygoodofyou。I’llcomealonginaboutquarterofanhour。\"
\"Overthere。Mr。Forsyde’scomin’，\"andMonsieurProfond\"poinded\"
withayellow—glovedfinger;\"smallcar，withasmalllunch\";hemovedon，groomed，sleepy，andremote，GeorgeForsytefollowing，neat，huge，andwithhisjestingair。
ValremainedgazingattheMayflyfilly。GeorgeForsyte，ofcourse，wasanoldchap，butthisProfondmightbeabouthisownage;Valfeltextremelyyoung，asiftheMayflyfillywereatoyatwhichthosetwohadlaughed。Theanimalhadlostreality。
\"That’small’mare\"——heseemedtohearthevoiceofMonsieurProfond—
—\"whatdoyouseeinher？——wemustalldie！\"
AndGeorgeForsyte，cronyofhisfather，racingstill！TheMayflystrain——wasitanybetterthananyother？Hemightjustaswellhaveaflutterwithhismoneyinstead。
\"No，bygum！\"hemutteredsuddenly，\"ifit’snogoodbreedinghorses，it’snogooddoinganything。WhatdidIcomefor？I’llbuyher。\"
Hestoodbackandwatchedtheebbofthepaddockvisitorstowardthestand。Nattyoldchips，shrewdportlyfellows，Jews，trainerslookingasiftheyhadneverbeenguiltyofseeingahorseintheirlives;tall，flapping，languidwomen，orbrisk，loud—voicedwomen;
youngmenwithanairasiftryingtotakeitseriously——twoorthreeofthemwithonlyonearm。
’Lifeoverhere’sagame！’thoughtVal。’Muffinbellrings，horsesrun，moneychangeshands;ringagain，runagain，moneychangesback。’
But，alarmedathisownphilosophy，hewenttothepaddockgatetowatchtheMayflyfillycanterdown。Shemovedwell;andhemadehiswayovertothe\"small\"car。The\"small\"lunchwasthesortamandreamsofbutseldomgets;andwhenitwasconcludedMonsieurProfondwalkedbackwithhimtothepaddock。
\"Yourwife’sanicewoman，\"washissurprisingremark。
\"NicestwomanIknow，\"returnedValdryly。
\"Yes，\"saidMonsieurProfond;\"shehasaniceface。Iadmirenicewomen。\"
Vallookedathimsuspiciously，butsomethingkindlyanddirectintheheavydiabolismofhiscompaniondisarmedhimforthemoment。
\"Anytimeyouliketocomeonmyyacht，I’llgiveherasmallcruise。\"
\"Thanks，\"saidVal，inarmsagain，\"shehatesthesea。\"
\"SodoI，\"saidMonsieurProfond。
\"Thenwhydoyouyacht？\"
TheBelgian’seyessmiled。\"Oh！Idon’tknow。I’vedoneeverything;
it’sthelastthingI’mdoin’。\"
\"Itmustbed—dexpensive。Ishouldwantmorereasonthanthat。\"
MonsieurProsperProfondraisedhiseyebrows，andpuffedoutaheavylowerlip。
\"I’maneasy—goin’man，\"hesaid。
\"WereyouintheWar？\"askedVal。
\"Ye—es。I’vedonethattoo。Iwasgassed;itwasasmallbitunpleasant。\"Hesmiledwithadeepandsleepyairofprosperity，asifhehadcaughtitfromhisname。
Whetherhissaying\"small\"whenheoughttohavesaid\"little\"wasgenuinemistakeoraffectationValcouldnotdecide;thefellowwasevidentlycapableofanything。
AmongtheringofbuyersroundtheMayflyfillywhohadwonherrace，MonsieurProfondsaid:
\"Yougoin’tobid？\"
Valnodded。WiththissleepySatanathiselbow，hefeltinneedoffaith。ThoughplacedabovetheultimateblowsofProvidencebytheforethoughtofagrand—fatherwhohadtiedhimupathousandayeartowhichwasaddedthethousandayeartiedupforHollybyhergrand—father，Valwasnotflushofcapitalthathecouldtouch，havingspentmostofwhathehadrealisedfromhisSouthAfricanfarmonhisestablishmentinSussex。Andverysoonhewasthinking:’Dashit！she’sgoingbeyondme！’Hislimit—sixhundred—wasexceeded;hedroppedoutofthebidding。TheMayflyfillypassedunderthehammeratsevenhundredandfiftyguineas。HewasturningawayvexedwhentheslowvoiceofMonsieurProfondsaidinhisear:
\"Well，I’veboughtthatsmallfilly，butIdon’twanther;youtakeherandgivehertoyourwife。\"
Vallookedatthefellowwithrenewedsuspicion，butthegoodhumourinhiseyeswassuchthathereallycouldnottakeoffence。
\"ImadeasmalllotofmoneyintheWar，\"beganMonsieurProfondinanswertothatlook。\"I’adarmamentshares。Iliketogiveitaway。I’malwaysmakin’money。Iwantverysmalllotmyself。I
likemyfriendsto’aveit。\"
\"I’llbuyherofyouatthepriceyougave，\"saidValwithsuddenresolution。
\"No，\"saidMonsieurProfond。\"Youtakeher。Idon’wanther。\"
\"Hangit！onedoesn’t——\"
\"Whynot？\"smiledMonsieurProfond。\"I’mafriendofyourfamily。\"
\"Sevenhundredandfiftyguineasisnotaboxofcigars，\"saidValimpatiently。
\"Allright;youkeepherformetillIwanther，anddowhatyoulikewithher。\"
\"Solongasshe’syours，\"saidVal。\"Idon’tmindthat。\"
\"That’sallright，\"murmuredMonsieurProfond，andmovedaway。
Valwatched;hemightbe\"agooddevil，\"butthenagainhemightnot。
HesawhimrejoinGeorgeForsyte，andthereaftersawhimnomore。
Hespentthosenightsafterracingathismother’shouseinGreenStreet。
WinifredDartieatsixty—twowasmarvellouslypreserved，consideringthethree—and—thirtyyearsduringwhichshehadputupwithMontagueDartie，tillalmosthappilyreleasedbyaFrenchstaircase。ItwastoheravehementsatisfactiontohaveherfavouritesonbackfromSouthAfricaafterallthistime，tofeelhimsolittlechanged，andtohavetakenafancytohiswife。Winifred，whointhelateseventies，beforehermarriage，hadbeeninthevanguardoffreedom，pleasure，andfashion，confessedheryouthoutclassedbythedonzellasoftheday。Theyseemed，forinstance，toregardmarriageasanincident，andWinifredsometimesregrettedthatshehadnotdonethesame;asecond，third，fourthincidentmighthavesecuredherapartneroflessdazzlinginebriety;though，afterall，hehadleftherVal，Imogen，Maud，Benedict（almostacolonelandunharmedbytheWar——noneofwhomhadbeendivorcedasyet。Thesteadinessofherchildrenoftenamazedonewhorememberedtheirfather;but，asshewasfondofbelieving，theywerereallyallForsytes，favouringherself，withtheexception，perhaps，ofImogen。Herbrother’s\"littlegirl\"FleurfranklypuzzledWinifred。Thechildwasasrestlessasanyofthesemodernyoungwomen0——\"She’sasmallflameinadraught，\"ProsperProfondhadsaidonedayafterdinner——butshedidnotflop，ortalkatthetopofhervoice。ThesteadyForsyteisminWinifred’sowncharacterinstinctivelyresentedthefeelingintheair，themoderngirl’shabitsandhermotto:\"All’smuchofamuchness！Spend，to—morrowweshallbepoor！\"ShefounditasavinggraceinFleurthat，havingsetherheartonathing，shehadnochangeofheartuntilshegotit——though——whathappenedafter，Fleurwas，ofcourse，tooyoungtohavemadeevident。Thechildwasa\"veryprettylittlething，\"too，andquiteacredittotakeabout，withhermother’sFrenchtasteandgiftforwearingclothes;
everybodyturnedtolookatFleur——greatconsiderationtoWinifred，aloverofthestyleanddistinctionwhichhadsocruellydeceivedherinthecaseofMontagueDartie。
IndiscussingherwithVal，atbreakfastonSaturdaymorning，Winifreddweltonthefamilyskeleton。
\"Thatlittleaffairofyourfather—in—lawandyourAuntIrene，Val——
it’soldasthehills，ofcourse，Fleurneedknownothingaboutit——
makingafuss。YourUncleSoamesisveryparticularaboutthat。Soyou’llbecareful。\"
\"Yes！Butit’sdashedawkward——Holly’syounghalf—brotheriscomingtolivewithuswhilehelearnsfarming。He’stherealready。\"
\"Oh！\"saidWinifred。\"Thatisagaff！Whatishelike？\"
\"Onlysawhimonce——atRobinHill，whenwewerehomein1909;hewasnakedandpaintedblueandyellowinstripes——ajollylittlechap。\"
Winifredthoughtthat\"rathernice，\"andaddedcomfortably:\"Well，Holly’ssensible;she’llknowhowtodealwithit。Ishan’ttellyouruncle。It’llonlybotherhim。It’sagreatcomforttohaveyouback，mydearboy，nowthatI’mgettingon。\"
\"Gettingon！Why！you’reasyoungasever。ThatchapProfond，Mother，isheallright？\"
\"ProsperProfond！Oh！themostamusingmanIknow。\"
Valgrunted，andrecountedthestoryoftheMayflyfilly。
\"That’ssolikehim，\"murmuredWinifred。\"Hedoesallsortsofthings。\"
\"Well，\"saidValshrewdly，\"ourfamilyhaven’tbeentooluckywiththatkindofcattle;they’retoolight—heartedforus。\"
Itwastrue，andWinifred’sbluestudylastedafullminutebeforesheanswered:
\"Oh！well！He’saforeigner，Val;onemustmakeallowances。\"
\"Allright，I’llusehisfillyandmakeituptohim，somehow。\"
Andsoonafterhegaveherhisblessing，receivedakiss，andleftherforhisbookmaker’s，theIseeumClub，andVictoriastation。
VI
JON
Mrs。ValDartie，aftertwentyyearsofSouthAfrica，hadfallendeeplyinlove，fortunatelywithsomethingofherown，fortheobjectofherpassionwastheprospectinfrontofherwindows，thecoolclearlightonthegreenDowns。ItwasEnglandagain，atlast！
Englandmorebeautifulthanshehaddreamed。Chancehad，infact，guidedtheValDartiestoaspotwheretheSouthDownshadrealcharmwhenthesunshone。Hollyhadenoughofherfather’seyetoapprehendtherarequalityoftheiroutlinesandchalkyradiance;togouptherebytheravine—likelaneandwanderalongtowardChanctonburyorAmberley，wasstilladelightwhichshehardlyattemptedtosharewithVal，whoseadmirationofNaturewasconfusedbyaForsyte’sinstinctforgettingsomethingoutofit，suchastheconditionoftheturfforhishorses’exercise。
DrivingtheFordhomewithacertainhumouring，smoothness，shepromisedherselfthatthefirstuseshewouldmakeofJonwouldbetotakehimupthere，andshowhim\"theview\"underthisMay—daysky。
Shewaslookingforwardtoheryounghalf—brotherwithamotherlinessnotexhaustedbyVal。Athree—dayvisittoRobinHill，soonaftertheirarrivalhome，hadyieldednosightofhim——hewasstillatschool;sothatherrecollection，likeVal’s，wasofalittlesunny—
hairedboy，stripedblueandyellow，downbythepond。
ThosethreedaysatRobinHillhadbeenexciting，sad，embarrassing。
Memoriesofherdeadbrother，memoriesofVal’scourtship;theageingofherfather，notseenfortwentyyears，somethingfunerealinhisironicgentlenesswhichdidnotescapeonewhohadmuchsubtleinstinct;aboveall，thepresenceofherstepmother，whomshecouldstillvaguelyrememberasthe\"ladyingrey\"ofdayswhenshewaslittleandgrandfatheraliveandMademoiselleBeaucesocrossbecausethatintrudergavehermusiclessons——alltheseconfusedandtantalisedaspiritwhichhadlongedtofindRobinHilluntroubled。
ButHollywasadeptatkeepingthingstoherself，andallhadseemedtogoquitewell。
Herfatherhadkissedherwhenshelefthim，withlipswhichshewassurehadtrembled。
\"Well，mydear，\"hesaid，\"theWarhasn’tchangedRobinHill，hasit？
IfonlyyoucouldhavebroughtJollybackwithyou！Isay，canyoustandthisspiritualisticracket？Whentheoak—treedies，itdies，I’mafraid。\"
>Fromthewarmthofherembraceheprobablydivinedthathehadletthecatoutofthebag，forherodeoffatonceonirony。
\"Spiritualism——queerword，whenthemoretheymanifestthemoretheyprovethatthey’vegotholdofmatter。\"
\"How？\"saidHolly。
\"Why！Lookattheirphotographsofauricpresences。Youmusthavesomethingmaterialforlightandshadetofallonbeforeyoucantakeaphotograph。No，it’llendinourcallingallmatterspirit，orallspiritmatter——Idon’tknowwhich。\"
\"Butdon’tyoubelieveinsurvival，Dad？\"
Jolyonhadlookedather，andthesadwhimsicalityofhisfaceimpressedherdeeply。
\"Well，mydear，Ishouldliketogetsomethingoutofdeath。I’vebeenlookingintoitabit。ButforthelifeofmeIcan’tfindanythingthattelepathy，sub—consciousness，andemanationfromthestorehouseofthisworldcan’taccountforjustaswell。WishI
could！Wishesfatherthoughtbuttheydon’tbreedevidence。\"
Hollyhadpressedherlipsagaintohisforeheadwiththefeelingthatitconfirmedhistheorythatallmatterwasbecomingspirit——hisbrowfelt，somehow，soinsubstantial。
Butthemostpoignantmemoryofthatlittlevisithadbeenwatching，unobserved，herstepmotherreadingtoherselfaletterfromJon。Itwas——shedecided——theprettiestsightshehadeverseen。Irene，lostasitwereintheletterofherboy，stoodatawindowwherethelightfellonherfaceandherfinegreyhair;herlipsweremoving，smiling，herdarkeyeslaughing，dancing，andthehandwhichdidnotholdtheletterwaspressedagainstherbreast。Hollywithdrewasfromavisionofperfectlove，convincedthatJonmustbenice。
Whenshesawhimcomingoutofthestationwithakit—bagineitherhand，shewasconfirmedinherpredisposition。HewasalittlelikeJolly，thatlong—lostidolofherchildhood，buteager—lookingandlessformal，withdeepereyesandbrighter—colouredhair，forheworenohat;altogetheraveryinteresting\"little\"brother！
Histentativepolitenesscharmedonewhowasaccustomedtoassuranceintheyouthfulmanner;hewasdisturbedbecauseshewastodrivehimhome，insteadofhisdrivingher。Shouldn’thehaveashot？Theyhadn’tacaratRobinHillsincetheWar，ofcourse，andhehadonlydrivenonce，andlandedupabank，sosheoughtn’ttomindhistrying。Hislaugh，softandinfectious，wasveryattractive，thoughthatword，shehadheard，wasnowquiteold—fashioned。Whentheyreachedthehousehepulledoutacrumpledletterwhichshereadwhilehewaswashing——aquiteshortletter，whichmusthavecostherfathermanyapangtowrite。
\"MYDEAR，\"YouandValwillnotforget，Itrust，thatJonknowsnothingoffamilyhistory。HismotherandIthinkheistooyoungatpresent。
Theboyisverydear，andtheappleofhereye。Verbumsapientibus。
yourlovingfather，\"J。F。\"
Thatwasall;butitrenewedinHollyanuneasyregretthatFleurwascoming。
AfterteashefulfilledthatpromisetoherselfandtookJonupthehill。Theyhadalongtalk，sittingaboveanoldchalk—pitgrownoverwithbramblesandgoosepenny。Milkwortandliverwortstarredthegreenslope，thelarkssang，andthrushesinthebrake，andnowandthenagullflightinginlandwouldwheelverywhiteagainstthepalingsky，wherethevaguemoonwascomingup。Deliciousfragrancecametothem，asiflittleinvisiblecreatureswererunningandtreadingscentoutofthebladesofgrass。
Jon，whohadfallensilent，saidrathersuddenly:
\"Isay，thisiswonderful！There’snofatonitatall。Gull’sflightandsheep—bells\"
\"’Gull’sflightandsheep—bells’！You’reapoet，mydear！\"
Jonsighed。
\"Oh，Golly！Nogo！\"
\"Try！Iusedtoatyourage。\"
\"Didyou？Mothersays’try’too;butI’msorotten。Haveyouanyofyoursformetosee？\"
\"Mydear，\"Hollymurmured，\"I’vebeenmarriednineteenyears。IonlywroteverseswhenIwantedtobe。\"
\"Oh！\"saidJon，andturnedoveronhisface:theonecheekshecouldseewasacharmingcolour。WasJon\"touchedinthewind，\"then，asValwouldhavecalledit？Already？But，ifso，allthebetter，hewouldtakenonoticeofyoungFleur。Besides，onMondayhewouldbeginhisfarming。Andshesmiled。WasitBurnswhofollowedtheplough，oronlyPiersPlowman？Nearlyeveryyoungmanandmostyoungwomenseemedtobepoetsnow，judgingfromthenumberoftheirbooksshehadreadoutinSouthAfrica，importingthemfromHatchusandBumphards;andquitegood——oh！quite;muchbetterthanshehadbeenherself！Butthenpoetryhadonlyreallycomeinsinceherday——withmotor—cars。Anotherlongtalkafterdinneroverawoodfireinthelowhall，andthereseemedlittlelefttoknowaboutJonexceptanythingofrealimportance。Hollypartedfromhimathisbedroomdoor，havingseentwiceoverthathehadeverything，withtheconvictionthatshewouldlovehim，andValwouldlikehim。Hewaseager，butdidnotgush;hewasasplendidlistener，sympathetic，reticentabouthimself。Heevidentlylovedtheirfather，andadoredhismother。Helikedriding，rowing，andfencingbetterthangames。
Hesavedmothsfromcandles，andcouldn’tbearspiders，butputthemoutofdoorsinscrewsofpapersoonerthankillthem。Inaword，hewasamiable。Shewenttosleep，thinkingthathewouldsufferhorriblyifanybodyhurthim;butwhowouldhurthim？
Jon，ontheotherhand，satawakeathiswindowwithabitofpaperandapencil，writinghisfirst\"realpoem\"bythelightofacandlebecausetherewasnotenoughmoontoseeby，onlyenoughtomakethenightseemflutteryandasifengravedonsilver。JustthenightforFleurtowalk，andturnhereyes，andleadon—overthehillsandfaraway。AndJon，deeplyfurrowedinhisingenuousbrow，mademarksonthepaperandrubbedthemoutandwrotetheminagain，anddidallthatwasnecessaryforthecompletionofaworkofart;andhehadafeelingsuchasthewindsofSpringmusthave，tryingtheirfirstsongsamongthecomingblossom。Jonwasoneofthoseboys（notmany）
inwhomahome—trainedloveofbeautyhadsurvivedschoollife。Hehadhadtokeepittohimself，ofcourse，sothatnoteventhedrawing—masterknewofit;butitwasthere，fastidiousandclearwithinhim。Andhispoemseemedtohimaslameandstiltedasthenightwaswinged。Buthekeptit，allthesame。Itwasa\"beast，\"
butbetterthannothingasanexpressionoftheinexpressible。Andhethoughtwithasortofdiscomfiture:’Ishan’tbeabletoshowittoMother。’Hesleptterriblywell，whenhedidsleep，overwhelmedbynovelty。
VII
FLEUR
Toavoidtheawkwardnessofquestionswhichcouldnotbeanswered，allthathadbeentoldJonwas:
\"There’sagirlcomingdownwithValfortheweek—end。\"
Forthesamereason，allthathadbeentoldFleurwas:\"We’vegotayoungsterstayingwithus。\"
Thetwoyearlings，asValcalledtheminhisthoughts，metthereforeinamannerwhichforunpreparednessleftnothingtobedesired。
TheywerethusintroducedbyHolly:
\"ThisisJon，mylittlebrother;Fleur’sacousinofours，Jon。\"
Jon，whowascominginthroughaFrenchwindowoutofstrongsunlight，wassoconfoundedbytheprovidentialnatureofthismiracle，thathehadtimetohearFleursaycalmly:\"Oh，howdoyoudo？\"asifhehadneverseenher，andtounderstanddimlyfromthequickestimaginablelittlemovementofherheadthatheneverhadseenher。Hebowedthereforeoverherhandinanintoxicatedmanner，andbecamemoresilentthanthegrave。Heknewbetterthantospeak。
Onceinhisearlylife，surprisedreadingbyanightlight，hehadsaidfatuously\"Iwasjustturningovertheleaves，Mum，\"andhismotherhadreplied:\"Jon，nevertellstories，becauseofyourfacenobodywilleverbelievethem。\"
Thesayinghadpermanentlyunderminedtheconfidencenecessarytothesuccessofspokenuntruth。HelistenedthereforetoFleur’sswiftandraptallusionstothejollinessofeverything，pliedherwithsconesandjam，andgotawayassoonasmightbe。Theysaythatindeliriumtremensyouseeafixedobject，preferablydark，whichsuddenlychangesshapeandposition。Jonsawthefixedobject;ithaddarkeyesandpassablydarkhair，andchangeditsposition，butneveritsshape。Theknowledgethatbetweenhimandthatobjecttherewasalreadyasecretunderstanding（howeverimpossibletounderstand）thrilledhimsothathewaitedfeverishly，andbegantocopyouthispoem——whichofcoursehewouldneverdareto——showher——
tillthesoundofhorses’hoofsrousedhim，and，leaningfromhiswindow，hesawherridingforthwithVal。Itwasclearthatshewastednotime，butthesightfilledhimwithgrief。Hewastedhis。
Ifhehadnotbolted，inhisfearfulecstasy，hemighthavebeenaskedtogotoo。Andfromhiswindowhesatandwatchedthemdisappear，appearagaininthechineoftheroad，vanish，andemergeoncemoreforaminuteclearontheoutlineoftheDown。’Sillybrute！’hethought;’Ialwaysmissmychances。’
Whycouldn’thebeself—confidentandready？And，leaninghischinonhishands，heimaginedtheridehemighthavehadwithher。A
week—endwasbutaweek—end，andhehadmissedthreehoursofit。
Didheknowanyoneexcepthimselfwhowouldhavebeensuchaflat？
Hedidnot。
Hedressedfordinnerearly，andwasfirstdown。Hewouldmissnomore。ButhemissedFleur，whocamedownlast。Hesatoppositeheratdinner，anditwasterrible——impossibletosayanythingforfearofsayingthewrongthing，impossibletokeephiseyesfixedonherintheonlynaturalway;insum，impossibletotreatnormallyonewithwhominfancyhehadalreadybeenoverthehillsandfaraway;
conscious，too，allthetime，thathemustseemtoher，toallofthem，adumbgawk。Yes，itwasterrible！Andshewastalkingsowell——swoopingwithswiftwingthiswayandthat。Wonderfulhowshehadlearnedanartwhichhefoundsodisgustinglydifficult。Shemustthinkhimhopelessindeed！
Hissister’seyes，fixedonhimwithacertainastonishment，obligedhimatlasttolookatFleur;butinstantlyhereyes，verywideandeager，seemingtosay，\"Oh！forgoodness’sake！\"obligedhimtolookatVal，whereagrinobligedhimtolookathiscutlet——that，atleast，hadnoeyes，andnogrin，andheateithastily。
\"Jonisgoingtobeafarmer，\"heheardHollysay;\"afarmerandapoet。\"
Heglancedupreproachfully，caughtthecomicliftofhereyebrowjustliketheirfather’s，laughed，andfeltbetter。
ValrecountedtheincidentofMonsieurProsperProfond;nothingcouldhavebeenmorefavourable，for，inrelatingit，heregardedHolly，whointurnregardedhim，whileFleurseemedtoberegardingwithaslightfrownsomethoughtofherown，andJonwasreallyfreetolookatheratlast。Shehadonawhitefrock，verysimpleandwellmade;
herarmswerebare，andherhairhadawhiteroseinit。Injustthatswiftmomentoffreevision，aftersuchintensediscomfort，Jonsawhersublimated，asoneseesinthedarkaslenderwhitefruit—
tree;caughtherlikeaverseofpoetryflashedbeforetheeyesofthemind，oratunewhichfloatsoutinthedistanceanddies。
Hewonderedgiddilyhowoldshewas——sheseemedsomuchmoreself—
possessedandexperiencedthanhimself。Whymustn’thesaytheyhadmet？Herememberedsuddenlyhismother’sface;puzzled，hurt—
looking，whensheanswered:\"Yes，they’rerelations，butwedon’tknowthem。\"Impossiblethathismother，wholovedbeauty，shouldnotadmireFleurifshedidknowher。
AlonewithValafterdinner，hesippedportdeferentiallyandansweredtheadvancesofthisnew—foundbrother—in—law。Astoriding（alwaysthefirstconsiderationwithVal）hecouldhavetheyoungchestnut，saddleandunsaddleithimself，andgenerallylookafteritwhenhebroughtitin。Jonsaidhewasaccustomedtoallthatathome，andsawthathehadgoneuponeinhishost’sestimation。
\"Fleur，\"saidVal，\"can’tridemuchyet，butshe’skeen。Ofcourse，herfatherdoesn’tknowahorsefromacart—wheel。DoesyourDadride？\"
\"Heusedto;butnowhe’s——youknow，he’s——\"Hestopped，sohatingtheword\"old。\"Hisfatherwasold，andyetnotold;no——never！
\"Quite，\"mutteredVal。\"IusedtoknowyourbrotherupatOxford，agesago，theonewhodiedintheBoerWar。WehadafightinNewCollegeGardens。Thatwasaqueerbusiness，\"headded，musing;\"agooddealcameoutofit。\"
Jon’seyesopenedwide;allwaspushinghimtowardhistoricalresearch，whenhissister’svoicesaidgentlyfromthedoorway:
\"Comealong，youtwo，\"andherose，hisheartpushinghimtowardsomethingfarmoremodern。