XIII。
Jeffcameintotheuglyoldfamilyparlor,wherehismothersatmendingbythekerosene—lampwhichshehadkeptthroughallthehouseholdchanges,andpushedenoughofherworkasidefromthecornerofthetabletoresthisarmuponit。
\"Mother,Iwantyoutolistentome,andtowaittillIgetdone。Willyou?\"
Shelookedupathimoverherspectaclesfromthestockingshewasdarning;thechinaegggleamedthroughthefrayedplace。\"Whatnotionhaveyougotinyourhead,now?\"
\"It’saboutJackson。Heisn’twell。He’sgottoleaveoffworkandgoaway。\"
Themother’shanddroppedattheendoftheyarnshehaddrawnthroughthestockingheel,andshestaredatJeff。Thensheresumedherworkwiththedecisionexpressedinhertone。\"Yourfatherlivedtobesixtyyearsold,andJacksona’n’tforty!Thedoctorsaidtherewa’n’tanyreasonwhyheshouldn’tliveaslongashisfatherdid。\"
\"I’mnotsayinghewon’tlivetoahundred。I’msayingheoughtn’ttostayanotherwinterhere,\"Jeffsaid,decisively。
Mrs。Durginwassilentforatime,andthenshesaid。\"Jeff,isthatyournotionaboutJackson,orwhoseisit?\"
\"It’smine,now。\"
Mrs,Durginwaitedamoment。Thenshebegan,withafeelingquiteatvariancewithherwords:
\"Well,I’llthankCynthyWhit’elltomindherownbusiness!Ofcourse,\"
sheadded,andinwhatfollowedherfeelingworkedtothesurfaceinherwords,\"Iknow’tshethinkstheworldofJackson,andhedoesofher;
andIpresumeshemeanswell。Iguessshe’dbemoreapttonotice,iftherewasanychange,thanwhatIshould。Whatdidshesay?\"
Jefftold,asnearlyashecouldremember,andhetoldwhatCynthiaandhehadafterwardjointlyworkedoutastothebestthingforJacksontodo。Mrs。Durginlistenedfrowningly,butnotdisapprovingly,asitseemed;thoughattheendsheasked:\"AndwhatamIgoingtodo,withJacksongone?\"
Jefflaughed,withhisheaddown。\"Well,IguessyouandCynthycouldrunit,withFrankandMr。Whitwell。\"
\"Mr。Whit’ell!\"saidMrs。Durgin,concentratinginheraccentofhisnamethecontemptshecouldnotjustlypouroutontheothers。
\"Oh,\"Jeffwenton,\"IdidthinkthatIcouldtakeholdwithyou,ifyoucouldbringyourselftoletmeoffthislastyearatHarvard。\"
\"Jeff!\"saidhismother,reproachfully。\"Youknowyoudon’tmeanthatyou’dgiveupyourlastyearincollege?\"
\"Idomeanit,butIdon’texpectyoutodoit;andIdon’taskit。I
suggestedittoCynthy,whenwegottotalkingitover,andshesawitwouldn’tdo。\"
\"Well,sheshowedsomesensethattime,\"Mrs。Durginsaid。
\"Idon’tknowwhenCynthyhasn’tshownsense;exceptonce,andthenI
guessitwasmyfault。\"
\"Whatdoyoumean?\"
\"Why,thisafternoonIaskedhertomarrymesometime,andshesaidshewould。\"Helookedathismotherandlaughed,andthenhedidnotlaugh。
Hehadexpectedhertobepleased;hehadthoughttopavethewaywiththisconfessionforthedeclarationofhisintentionnottostudylaw,andtomakehisengagementtoCynthiaservehiminreconcilinghismothertotheotherfact。Butamenacingsuspensefollowedhiswords。
Hismotherbrokeoutatlast:\"YouaskedCynthyWhit’elltomarryyou!
Andshesaidshewould!Well,Icantellhershewon’t,then!\"
\"AndIcantellyoushewill!\"Jeffstormedback。Herosetohisfeetandstoodoverhismother。
Shebegansteadily,asifhehadnotspoken。\"Ifthatdesignin’——\"
\"Lookout,mother!Don’tyousayanythingagainstCynthia!She’sbeenthebestgirltoyouintheworld,andyouknowit。She’sbeenastruetoyouasJacksonhashimself。Shehasn’tgotaselfishboneinherbody,andshe’ssohonestshecouldn’tdesignanythingagainstyouoranyone,unlessshetoldyoufirst。Nowyoutakethatback!Takeitback!
She’snomoredesigningthan——thanyouare!\"
Mrs。Durginwasnotmovedbyhisstorming,butshewasinwardlyconvincedoferror。\"Idotakeitback。Cynthyisallright。She’sallyousayandmore。It’syourfault,then,andyou’vegotyourselftothank,forwhoseverfaultitis,she’llpack——\"
\"IfCynthypacks,Ipack!\"saidJeff。\"Understandthat。ThemomentsheleavesthishouseIleaveit,too,andI’llmarryheranyway。Frank’dleaveand——and——Pshaw!Whatdoyoucareforthat?ButIdon’tknowwhatyoumean!IalwaysthoughtyoulikedCynthyandrespectedher。Ididn’tbelieveIcouldtellyouathingthatwouldpleaseyoubetterthanthatshehadsaidshewouldhaveme。Butifitdon’t,allright。\"
Mrs。Durginheldherpeaceinbewilderment;shestaredathersonwithdazedeyes,underthespectaclesliftedaboveherforehead。Shefeltachangeofmoodinhisunchangedtoneofdefiance,andshemethimhalf—
way。\"ItellyouItakebackwhatIcalledCynthia,andItoldyouso。
But——butIdidn’teverexpectyoutomarryher。\"
\"Whydidn’tyou?Thereisn’toneofthesummerfolkstocomparewithher。She’sgotmoresensethanallof’em。I’veknownhereversinceI
canremember。Whydidn’tyouexpectit?\"
\"Ididn’texpectit。\"
\"Oh,Iknow!YouthoughtI’dseesomebodyinBoston——someswellgirl。
Well,theywouldn’tanyofthemlookatme,andiftheywould,theywouldn’tlookatyou。\"
\"Ishouldn’tcarewhethertheylookedatmeornot。\"
\"Itellyoutheywouldn’tlookatme。Youdon’tunderstandaboutthesethings,andIdo。Theymarrytheirownkind,andI’mnottheirkind,andIshouldn’tbeifIwasDanielWebsterhimself。DanielWebster!
Whoremembershim,orcaresforhim,oreverdid?Youdon’tbelieveit?
YouthinkthatbecauseI’vebeenatHarvard——Oh,can’tImakeyouseeit?
I’mwhattheycallajayinHarvard,andHarvarddon’tcountifyou’reajay。\"
Hismotherlookedathimwithoutspeaking。Shewouldnotconfesstheambitionhetaxedherwith,andperhapsshehadnothingsodefiniteinhermind。Perhapsitwasonlyherprideinhim,andherfaithinasplendidfutureforhim,thatmadeheraversetohismarriageinthelotshehadalwaysknown,andonalittlelowerlevelinitthatherown。
Shesaidatlast:
\"Idon’tknowwhatyoumeanbybeingajay。ButIguesswebetternotsayanythingmoreaboutthisto—night。\"
\"Allright,\"Jeffreturned。Thereneverwereanyformalgood—nightsbetweentheDurgins,andhewentawaynowwithoutfurtherwords。
Hismotherremainedsittingwherehelefther。Twoorthreetimesshedrewheremptydarning—needlethroughtheheelofthestockingshewasmending。
ShewasstillsittingtherewhenJacksonpassedonhiswaytobed,afterleavingtheofficeinchargeofthenightporter。Hefaltered,ashewentby,andashestoodonthethresholdshetoldhimwhatJeffhadtoldher。
\"That’sgood,\"hesaid,lifelessly。\"GoodforJeff,\"headded,thoughtfully,conscientiously。
\"Whya’n’titgoodforher,too?\"demandedJeff’smother,inquickresentmentoftheslightputuponhim。
\"Ididn’tsayitwa’n’t,\"saidJackson。\"Butit’sbetterforJeff。\"
\"Shemaybeverygladtogethim!\"
\"Ipresumesheis。She’salwayscaredforhim,Iguess。She’llknowhowtomanagehim。\"
\"Idon’tknow,\"saidMrs。Durgin,\"asIliketohaveyoutalkso,aboutJeff。Hewashere,justnow,wantin’togiveuphislastyearinHarvard,so’stoletyougooffonavacation。Hethinksyou’veworkedyourselfdown。\"
JacksonmadenorecognitionofJeff’sprofessedself—sacrifice。\"Idon’twantanyvacation。I’mfeelingfirst—ratenow。IguessthatstuffIhadfromthewritin’mediumhasbeguntotakeholdofme。Idon’tknowwhenI’vefeltsowell。IbelieveI’mgoingtogetstrongerthaneverIwas。
JeffsayIneededarest?\"
Somethinglikeasmileofcompassionforthedelusionofhisbrotherdawneduponthesickman’swastedface,whichwasblotchedwithlargefreckles,andstaredwithdim,largeeyesfromoutaframeworkofgrayishhair,andgrayishbeardcuttotheedgesofthecheeksandchin。
XXIV。
Mrs。DurginandCynthiadidnotseekanyformalmeetingthenextmorning。
Thecourseoftheirworkbroughtthemtogether,butitwasnottillaftertheyhadtransactedseveralhouseholdaffairsofpressingimportancethatMrs。Durginasked:\"What’sthisaboutyouandJeff?\"
\"Hashebeentellingyou?\"askedCynthia,inherturn,thoughsheknewhehad。
\"Yes,\"saidMrs。Durgin,withacertaindryness,whichwashalfhumorous。
\"Ipresume,ifyoutwoaresatisfied,it’sallright。\"
\"Iguesswe’resatisfied,\"saidthegirl,withatremorofreliefwhichshetriedtohide。
Nothingmorewassaid,andtherewasnophysicaldemonstrationofaffectionorrejoicingbetweenthewomen。Theyknewthatthetimewouldcomewhentheywouldtalkovertheaffairdowntothebonetogether,butnowtheywerecontenttorecognizethefact,andletthetimefortalkingarrivewhenitwould。\"Iguess,\"saidMrs。Durgin,\"you’dbettergoovertothehelps’houseandseehowthatyoungestMillergirl’sgittin’
along。She’doughttogiveupandgohomeifshea’n’tfitforherwork。\"
\"I’llgoandseeher,\"saidCynthia。\"Idon’tbelieveshe’sstrongenoughforawaitress,andIhavegottotellherso。\"
\"Well,\"returnedMrs。Durgin,glumly,afteramoment’sreflection,\"Ishouldn’twantyoushouldhurryher。Waittillshe’soutofbed,andgiveheranotherchance。\"
\"Allright。\"
Jeffhadbeenlurkingaboutfortheeventoftheinterview,andhewaylaidCynthiaonthepathtothehelps’house。
\"I’mgoingovertoseethatyoungestMillergirl,\"sheexplained。
\"Yes,Iknowallaboutthat,\"saidJeff。\"Well,mothertookitjustright,didn’tshe?Youcan’talwayscountonher;butIhadn’tmuchanxietyinthiscase。Shelikesyou,Cynthia。\"
\"Iguessso,\"saidthegirl,demurely;andshelookedawayfromhimtosmileherpleasureinthefact。
\"ButIbelieveifshehadn’tknownyouwerewithheraboutmylastyearinHarvard——itwouldhavebeendifferent。Icouldsee,whenIbroughtitinthatyouwantedmetogoback,hermindwasmadeupforyou。\"
\"Whyneedyousayanythingaboutthat?\"
\"Oh,Iknewitwouldclinchher。Iunderstandmother。Ifyouwantsomethingfromheryoumustn’taskitstraightout。Youmustproposesomethingverydisagreeable。Thenwhensherefusesthat,youcancomeinforwhatyouwerereallyafterandgetit。\"
\"Idon’tknow,\"saidCynthia,\"asIshouldliketothinkthatyourmotherhadbeentrickedintofeelingrightaboutme。\"
\"Tricked!\"ThecolorflashedupinJeff’sface。
\"Notthat,Jeff,\"saidthegirl,tenderly。\"ButyouknowwhatImean。
Ihopeyoutalkeditalloutfullywithher。\"
\"Fully?Idon’tknowwhatyoumean。\"
\"Aboutyournotstudyinglaw,and——everything。\"
\"Idon’tbelieveincrossingarivertillIcometoit,\"saidJeff。
\"Ididn’tsayanythingtoheraboutthat。\"
\"Youdidn’t!\"
\"No。Whathaditgottodowithourbeingengaged?\"
\"WhathadyourgoingbacktoHarvardtodowithit?IfyourmotherthinksI’mwithherinthat,she’llthinkI’mwithherintheother。
AndI’mnot。I’mwithyou。\"Sheletherhandfindhis,astheywalkedsidebyside,andgaveitalittlepressure。
\"It’sthegreatestthing,Cynthy,\"hesaid,breathlessly,\"tohaveyouwithmeinthat。But,ifyousaidIoughttostudylaw,Ishoulddoit。\"
\"Ishouldn’tsaythat,forIbelieveyou’reright;butevenifIbelievedyouwerewrong,Ishouldn’tsayit。Youhavearighttomakeyourlifewhatyouwantit;andyourmotherhasn’t。Onlyshemustknowit,andyoumusttellheratonce。\"
\"Atonce?\"
\"Yes——now。Whatgoodwillitdotoputitoff?You’renotafraidtotellher!\"
\"Idon’tlikeyoutousethatword。\"
\"AndIdon’tliketouseit。ButIknowhowitis。You’reafraidthatthebruntofitwillcomeonME。She’llthinkyou’reallright,butI’mallwrongbecauseIagreewithyou。\"
\"Somethinglikethat。\"
\"Well,now,I’mnotafraidofanythingshecansay;andwhatcouldshedo?Shecan’tpartus,unlessyoulether,andthenIshouldlether,too。\"
\"Butwhat’sthehurry?What’stheneedofdoingitrightoff?\"
\"Becauseit’sadeceitnottodoit。It’salie!\"
\"Idon’tseeitinthatlight。Imightchangemymind,andstillgoonandstudylaw。\"
\"Youknowyouneverwill。Now,Jeff!Whydoyouactso?\"
Jeffdidnotansweratonce。Hewalkedbesideherwithafaceoftroublethatbecameoneofresolveinthesetjaws。\"Iguessyou’reright,Cynthy。She’sgottoknowtheworst,andthesoonersheknowsitthebetter。\"
\"Yes!\"
Hehadanothermomentoffaltering。\"Youdon’twantIshouldtalkitoverwithMr。Westover?\"
\"Whathashegottodowithit?\"
\"That’strue!\"
\"Ifyouwanttoseeitintherightlight,youcanthinkyou’veletitrunontillafteryou’reoutofcollege,andthenyou’vegottotellher。
Supposesheaskedyouhowlongyouhadmadeupyourmindagainstthelaw,howshouldyoufeel?AndifsheaskedmewhetherI’dknownitallalong,andIhadtosayIhad,andthatI’dsupportedandencouragedyouinit,howshouldIfeel?\"
\"Shemightn’taskanysuchquestion,\"saidJeff,gloomily。Cynthiagavealittleimpatient\"Oh!\"andhehastenedtoadd:\"Butyou’reright;I’vegottotellher。I’lltellherto—night——\"
\"Don’twaittillto—night;doitnow。\"
\"Now?\"
\"Yes;andI’llgowithyouassoonasI’veseentheyoungestMillergirl。\"Theyhadreachedthehelps’housenow,andCynthiasaid:\"Youwaitoutsidehere,andI’llgorightbackwithyou。Oh,Ihopeitisn’tdoingwrongtoputitofftillI’veseenthatgirl!\"Shedisappearedthroughthedoor,andJeffwaitedbythestepsoutside,pluckinguponelonggrassstemafteranotherandbitingitintwo。WhenCynthiacameoutshesaid:\"Iguessshe’llbeallright。Nowcome,anddon’t—loseanothersecond。\"
\"You’reafraidIsha’n’tdoitifIwaitanylonger!\"
\"I’mafraidIsha’n’t。\"Therewasasilenceafterthis。
\"DoyouknowwhatIthinkofyou,Cynthy?\"askedJeff,hurryingtokeepupwithherquicksteps。\"You’vegotmorecourage——\"
\"Oh,don’tpraiseme,orIshallbreakdown!\"
\"I’llseethatyoudon’tbreakdown,\"saidJeff,tenderly。\"It’sthegreatestthingtohaveyougowithme!\"
\"Why,don’tyouSEE?\"shelamented。\"Ifyouwentalone,andtoldyourmotherthatIapprovedofit,youwouldlookasifyouwereafraid,andwantedtogetbehindme;andI’mnotgoingtohavethat。\"
Theyfound。Mrs。Durgininthedarkentryoftheoldfarmhouse,andCynthiasaid,withinvoluntaryimperiousness:\"Comeinhere,Mrs。Durgin;
Iwanttotellyousomething。\"
Sheledthewaytotheoldparlor,andshecheckedMrs。Durgin’squestion,\"HasthatMillergirl——\"
\"Itisn’tabouther,\"saidCynthy,pushingthedoorto。\"It’saboutmeandJeff。\"
Mrs。DurginbecameawareofJeff’spresencewithaneffectofsurprise。
\"Therea’n’tanythingmore,isthere?\"
\"Yes,thereis!\"Cynthiashrilled。\"Now,Jeff!\"
\"It’sjustthis,mother:CynthythinksIoughttotellyou——andshethinksIoughttohavetoldyoulastnight——sheexpectedmeto——thatI’mnotgoingtostudylaw。\"
\"AndIapproveofhisnotdoingit,\"Cynthiapromptlyfollowed,andsheputherselfbesideJeffwherehestoodinfrontofhismother’srocking—
chair。
Shelookedfromonetotheotherofthefacesbeforeher。\"I’msorryasonofmine,\"shesaid,withdignity,\"hadtobetoldhowtoactwithhismother。But,ifhehad,Idon’tknowasanybodyhadabetterrighttodoitthanthegirlthat’sgoingtomarryhim。AndI’llsaythis,CynthiaWhitwell,beforeIsayanythingelse:you’vebegunright。IwishIcouldsayJeffhad。\"
TherewasanuncomfortablemomentbeforeCynthiasaid:\"Heexpectedtotellyou。\"
\"OhYes!Iknow,\"saidhismother,sadly。Sheadded,sharply:\"Anddidbeexpecttotellmewhatheintendedtodoforalivin’?\"
\"Jefftooktheword。\"Yes,Idid。Iintendtokeepahotel。\"
\"Whathotel?\"askedMrs。Durgin,withatouchoftauntinginhertone。
\"Thisone。\"
Themotherofthebold,rebelliousboythatJeffhadbeenstirredinMrs。
Durgin’sheart,andshelookedathimwiththeeyes,thatusedtocondonehismischief。Butshesaid:\"Iguessyou’llfindoutthatthere’smorethanonehastoagreetothat。\"
\"Yes,therearetwo:youandJackson;andIdon’tknowbutwhatthree,ifyoucountCynthy,here。\"
Hismotherturnedtothegirl。\"Youthinkthisfellow’sgotsenseenoughtokeepahotel?\"
\"Yes,Mrs。Durgin,Ido。Ithinkhe’sgotgoodideasaboutahotel。\"
\"Andwhat’shegoin’todowithhiscollegeeducation?\"
Jeffinterposed。\"Youthinkthatallthecollegegraduatesturnoutlawyersanddoctorsandprofessors?Someof’emaremightygladtosweepoutbanksinhopesofaclerkship;andsometakeanysortofaplaceinamillorabusinesshouse,toworkup;andsomebumroundoutWest’oncattleranches;andsome,ifthey’relucky,getnewspaperreporters’
placesattendollarsaweek。\"
Cynthiafollowedwiththegeneralization:\"Idon’tbelieveanybodycanknowtoomuchtokeepahotel。Itwon’thurtJeffifhe’sbeentoHarvard,ortoEurope,either。\"
\"Iguessthere’sapairofyou,\"saidMrs。Durgin,withsuperficialcontempt。Shewassilentforatime,andtheywaited。\"Well,there!\"
shebrokeoutagain。\"I’vegotsomethingtochewuponforaspell,I
guess。Goalong,now,bothofyou!Andthenexttimeyou’vegottofaceyourmother,Jeff,don’tyoucomeinlookin’roundanybody’spetticoats!
I’llseeyoulateraboutallthis。\"
Theywentawaywiththejoyfulshameofchildrenwhohaveescapedpunishment。
\"That’sthelastofit,Cynthy,\"saidJeff。
\"Iguessso,\"thegirlassented,withacertaingriefinhervoice。
\"Iwishyouhadtoldherfirst!\"
\"Oh,nevermindthatnow!\"criedJeff,andinthedimpassagewayhetookherinhisarmsandkissedher。
Hewouldhavereleasedher,butshelingeredinhisembrace。\"Willyoupromisethatifthere’severanythinglikeitagain,youwon’twaitformetomakeyou?\"
\"Ilikeyourhavingmademe,butIpromise,\"hesaid。
Thenshetightenedherarmsroundhisneckandkissedhim。
XXV。
ThewillofJeff’smotherrelaxeditsgripuponthepurposesolongheld,asifthemerestrainofthetenacityhadweariedandweakenedit。Whenitfinallyappearedthatherambitionforhersonwasnothisambitionforhimselfandwouldneverbe,sheabandonedit。Perhapsitwastheeasierforhertoforegoherhopesofhisdistinctionintheworld,becauseshehadlearnedbeforethatshemustforegoherhopesofhiminotherways。ShehadvaguelyfanciedthatwiththeacquaintancehiscareeratHarvardwouldopentohimJeffwouldmakeasplendidmarriage。
Shehadfolloweddarklingandstumblinghiscourseinsocietyasfarashewouldreportittoher,andwhenhewouldnotsufferhertogloryinit,shebelievedthathewasforbiddingherfromapridethatwouldnotrecognizeanythingoutofthecommoninit。Sheexultedinhispride,andshetookallhissnubbingreservestenderly,assomanyproofsofhissuccess。
Atthebottomofherheartshehadbothfearandcontemptofalltowns—
people,whomshegeneralizedfromherexperienceofthemassummerfolksofagreaterorlessersilliness。Sheoftenfoundherselfunabletocopewiththem,evenwhenshefeltthatshehadtwicetheirsense;sheperceivedthattheyhadsomethingfromtheirtrainingthatwithallherundisciplinedforceshecouldneverhopetowinfromherownenvironment。
Butshebelievedthathersonwouldhavetheadvantageswhichbaffledherinthem,forhewouldhavetheirenvironment;andshehadwishedhimtorivethisholduponthoseadvantagesbytakingawifefromamongthem,andbylivingthelifeoftheirworld。Herwishes,ofcourse,hadnosuchdistinctformulation,andthefeelingshehadtowardCynthiaasapossiblebarriertoherambitionhadnomoredefinition。TherehadbeentimeswhenthefitnessofhermarriagewithJeffhadmovedthemother’shearttoajealousythatshealwayskeptsilent,whileshehopedfortheaccidentortheprovidencewhichshouldannulthedanger。ButGenevieveVostrandhadnotbeenthekindofaccidentortheprovidencethatshewouldhaveinvoked,andwhenshesawJeff’sfancyturningtowardher,Mrs。DurginhadveeredroundtoCynthia。AllthesameshekeptakeeneyeupontheyoungladiesamongthesummerfolkswhocametoLion’sHead,andtacitlycanvassedtheirmeritsandinclinationswithrespecttoJeffintheoften—imaginedeventofhiscaringforanyoneofthem。Shefoundthatherartfullycasualreferencestoherson’sbeinginHarvardscarcelyaffectedtheirmothersintherightway。Thefactmadethemthinkoftheheadwaiterswhomtheyhadmetatotherhotels,andwhowereworkingtheirwaythroughDartmouthorWilliamsorYale,anditrequiredalltheforceofJeff’srobustpersonalitytodissipatetheirerroneousimpressionsofhim。Hetooktheirdaughtersoutoftheirarmsandfromundertheirnosesonlongdrivesuponhisbuckboard,anditbecameaconventionwiththemtotreathisattentionssomewhatlikethoseofapowerfulbutfaithfulvassal。
Whetherhewasindifferent,orwhethertheyoungladieswerecoy,noneoftheseofficialflirtationscametoanything。Heseemednottocareforonemorethananother;helaughedandjokedwiththemall,andhadanofficialmannerwitheachwhichservedsomewhatlikeadisparityofyearsinputtingthemattheireasewithhim。Theyagreedthathewasveryhandsome,andsomethoughthimverytalented;buttheyquestionedwhetherhewasquitewhatyouwouldcallagentleman。Itistruethatthismisgivingattackedthemmostlyinthemass;singly,theywerelittleornotatalltroubledbyit,andtheyseverallybehavedinanunprincipledindifferencetoit。
Mrs。Durginhadthecourageofherownpurposes,butshehadthefearofJeff’s。AfterthefirstpangofthedisappointmentwhichtookfinalshapefromhisdeclarationthathewasgoingtomarryCynthia,shedidnotreallycaremuch。Shehadthehabitofthegirl;sherespectedher,sheevenlovedher。Thechildren,asshethoughtofthem,hadknowneachotherfromtheirearliestdays;JeffhadpersecutedCynthiathroughouthisgracelessboyhood,buthehadneverintimidatedher;andhismother,withallherweaknessforhim,feltthatitwaswellforhimthathiswifeshouldbebraveenoughtostandupagainsthim。