\"YouknowhewasupatLion’sHeadinFebruary,andgotawinterimpressionofthemountain。Didyouseeit?\"
\"No。Wasthatwhatyouweretalkingabout?\"
\"Wetalkedaboutsomethingagreatdealmoreinteresting——theimpressionhegotofme。\"
\"Winterimpression。\"
\"Coldenough。HehadcometotheconclusionthatIwasveryselfishandunworthy;thatIusedotherpeopleformyownadvantage,orletthemusethemselves;thatIwastreacherousandvindictive,andifIdidn’tbetrayamanIcouldn’tbehappytillIhadbeatenhim。HesaidthatifIeverbehavedwell,itcameafterIhadbeensuccessfulonewayortheother。\"
\"Howperfectlyfascinating!\"Bessierestedherelbowonthecornerofthetable,andherchininthepalmofthehandwhosethinfingerstappedherredlips;thelightsleevefelldownandshowedherpretty,leanlittleforearm。\"Diditstrikeyouastrue,atall?\"
\"Icouldseehowitmightstrikehimastrue。\"
\"Nowyouarecandid。Butgoon!Whatdidheexpectyoutodoaboutit?\"
\"Nothing。Hesaidhedidn’tsupposeIcouldhelpit。\"
\"Thisisimmense,\"saidBessie。\"IhopeI’mtakingitallin。Howcamehetogiveyouthisflatteringlittleimpression?Sohopeful,too!Or,perhapsyourfranknessdoesn’tgoanyfarther?\"
\"Oh,Idon’tmindsaying。Heseemedtothinkitwasasortofabstractdutyheowedtomypeople。\"
\"Your—folks?\"askedBessie。
\"Yes,\"saidJeff,withacertaindryness。Butasherfacelookedblanklyinnocent,hemusthavedecidedthatshemeantnothingoffensive。Herelaxedintoabroadsmile。\"It’saqueerhouseholdupthere,inthewinter。Iwonderwhatyouwouldthinkofit。\"
\"Youmightdescribeittome,andperhapsweshallsee。\"
\"Youcouldn’trealizeit,\"saidJeff,withafinalitythatpiquedher。
Hereachedoutforthebottleofapollinaris,withsomehowtheeffectofbeinginanotherstudent’sroom,andpouredhimselfaglass。Thiswouldhaveamusedher,ninetimesoutoften,butthetenthtimehadcomewhenshechosetoresentit。
\"Isuppose,\"shesaid,\"youareallverymuchexcitedaboutClassDayatCambridge。\"
\"Thatsoundslikearemarkmadetoopenthewaytoconversation。\"Jeffwentontoburlesqueareplyinthesamespirit。\"Oh,verymuchsoindeed,MissLynde!Wearealllookingforwardtoitsoeagerly。Areyoucoming?\"
Sherejectedhisleadwithaslightsighsoskilfullydrawnthatitdeceivedhimwhenshesaid,gravely:
\"Idon’tknow。It’sapttobeaverybafflingtimeatthebest。Allthementhatyoulikearetakenupwiththeirownpeople,andeventhementhatyoudon’tlikeovervaluethemselves,andthinkthey’redoingyouafavoriftheygiveyouaturnattheGymorbringyouaplateofsomething。\"
\"Well,theyare,aren’tthey?\"
\"Isuppose,yes,that’swhatmakesmehateit。Onedoesn’tliketohavesuchmendooneafavor。Andthen,Juniorsgetyoungereveryyear!EvenaniceJuniorisonlyaJunior,\"sheconcluded,withasadfallofhermockingvoice。\"
\"Idon’tbelievethere’saSeniorinHarvardthatwouldn’tforsakehisfamilyandcometotherescueifyourfeelingscouldbeknown,\"saidJeff。Heliftedthebottleathiselbowandfounditempty,andthisseemedtoremindhimtorise。
\"Don’tmakethemknown,please,\"saidBessie。\"Ishouldn’twantanovation。\"Shesat,afterhehadrisen,asifshewishedtodetainhim,butwhenhecameuptotakeleaveshehadtoputherhandinhis。Shelookedatitthere,andsodidhe;itseemedverylittleandslim,aboutone—thirdthesizeofhispalm,anditseemedtogotonothinginhisgrasp。\"Ishouldthink,\"sheadded,\"thatthejayswouldhavethebesttimeonClassDay。Ishouldliketodanceatoneoftheirspreads,anddoeverythingtheydid。Itwouldbetwicethefun,andtherewouldbesomenatureinit。IshouldliketoseeajayClassDay。\"
\"Ifyou’llcomeout,I’llshowyouone,\"saidJeff,withoutwincing。
\"Oh,willyou?\"shesaid,takingawayherhand。\"Thatwouldbedelightful。Butwhatwouldbecomeofyourfolks?\"Shecaughtacornerofhermouthwithherteeth,asifthewordhadslippedout。
\"Doyoucallthemfolks?\"askedJeff,quietly:
\"I——supposed——Don’tyou?\"
\"NotinBoston。IdoatLion’sHead。\"
\"Oh!Well—people。\"
\"Idon’tknowasthey’recoming。\"
\"Howdelightful!Idon’tmeanthat;butifthey’renot,andifyoureallyknewsomejays,andcouldgetmealittleglimpseoftheirClassDay——\"
\"IthinkIcouldmanageitforyou。\"Hespokeasbefore,buthelookedatherwithamockeryinhislipsandeyesasintelligentasherown,andthelatentchangeinhismoodgaveherthesenseofbeinginthepresenceofavividemotion。Sheroseinherexcitement;shecouldseethatheadmiredher,andwasenjoyingherinsolencetoo,inaway,thoughinawaythatshedidnotthinkshequiteunderstood;andshehadthewishtomakehimadmireheralittlemore。
Sheletalightoflaughtercomeintohereyes,ofharmlessmischiefplayedtoanend。\"Idon’tdeserveyourkindness,andIwon’tcome。
I’vebeenverywicked,don’tyouthink?\"
\"Notvery——foryou,\"saidJeff。
\"Oh,howgood!\"shebrokeout。\"Butbefranknow!I’veoffendedyou。\"
\"How?IknowI’majay,andinthecountryI’vegotfolks。\"
\"Ah,Iseeyou’rehurtatmyjoking,andI’mawfullysorry。Iwishtherewassomewayofmakingyouforgiveme。Butitcouldn’tbethatalone,\"
shewentonratheraimlesslyastoherwords,trustingtohisanswerforsomeleading,andwillingmeanwhiletoprolongthesituationfortheeffectinhernerves。Ithadbeenaverydullandtediousday,andshewasfindingmuchmorethanshecouldhaveexpectedinthemingledfearandslightwhichheinspiredherwithinsuchsingularmeasure。Thesefemininesubtletiesofmotivearebeyondanybutthefinestnaturesintheothersex,andperhapsallthatJeffperceivedwasthenoteofinsincerityinherwords。
\"Couldn’tbewhatalone?\"heasked。
\"WhatI’vesaid,\"sheventured,lettinghereyesfall;buttheywerenoteyesthatfelleffectively,andsheinstantlyliftedthemagaintohis。
\"Youhaven’tsaidanything,andifyou’vethoughtanything,whathaveI
gottodowiththat?Ithinkallsortsofthingsaboutpeople——orfolks,asyoucallthem——\"
\"Oh,thankyou!Nowyouareforgivingme!\"
\"Ithinkthemaboutyou\"
\"Oh,dositdownandtellmethekindofthingsyouthinkaboutme!\"
Bessieimplored,sinkingbackintoherchair。
\"Youmightn’tlikethem。\"
\"Butiftheywoulddomegood?\"
\"WhatshouldIwanttodoyougoodfor?\"
\"That’strue,\"sighedBessie,thoughtfully。
\"People——folks——\"
\"Thankyousomuch!\"
\"Don’ttrytodoeachothergood,unlessthey’recrankslikeLancaster,orboreslikeMrs。Bevidge——\"
\"YoubelongtotheanalyticalschoolofSeniors!Goon!\"
\"That’sall,\"saidJeff。
\"Andyoudon’tthinkI’vetriedtodoyougood?\"
Helaughed。Hercomedywasdelicioustohim。Hehadneverfound,anybodysoamusing;healmostrespectedherforit。
\"Ifthatisyouropinionofme,Mr。Durgin,\"shesaid,verygravely,\"Iamsorry。MayIremarkthatIdon’tseewhyyoucome,then?\"
\"Icantellyou,\"saidJeff,andheadvanceduponherwhereshesatsoabruptlythatshestartedandshrankbackinherchair。\"Icomebecauseyou’vegotbrains,andyou’retheonlygirlthathas——here。\"TheywereAlan’swords,almosthiswords,andforaninstantshethoughtofherbrother,endwonderedwhathewouldthinkofthisjay’spraisingherinhisterms。\"Because,\"Jeffwenton,\"you’vegotmoresenseandnonsense——thanallthewomenhereputtogether。Becauseit’sbetterthanaplaytohearyoutalk——andact;andbecauseyou’regraceful——andfascinating,andchic,and——Good—night,MissLynde。\"
Heputouthishand,butshedidnottakeitassherosehaughtily。
\"We’vesaidgood—nightonce。Iprefertosaygood—byethistime。I’msureyouwillunderstandwhyafterthisIcannotseeyouagain。\"Sheseemedtoexaminehimfortheeffectofthesewordsuponhimbeforeshewenton。
\"No,Idon’tunderstand,\"heanswered,coolly;\"butitisn’tnecessaryI
should;andI’mquitewillingtosaygood—bye,ifyouprefer。Youhaven’tbeensofrankwithmeasIhavewithyou;butthatdoesn’tmakeanydifference;perhapsyounevermeanttobe,orcouldn’tbe,ifyoumeant。Good—bye。\"Hebowedandturnedtowardthedoor。
Sheflutteredbetweenhimandit。\"Iwishtoknowwhatyouaccusemeof!\"
\"I?Nothing。\"
\"YouimplythatIhavebeenunjusttowardyou。\"
\"Ohno!\"
\"AndIcan’tletyougotillyouproveit。\"
\"Provetoawomanthat——Willyouletmepass?\"
\"No!\"Shespreadherslenderarmsacrossthedoorway。
\"Oh,verywell!\"Jefftookherhandsandputthembothintheholdofoneofhislarge,strongbands。Then,withthecontact,itcametohim,fromavariedexperienceofgirlsinhisrusticpast,thatthisyounglady,whowasnothingbutagirlafterall,wasplayinghercomedywithacertainpurpose,howeverlittleshemightknowitorownit。Heputhisotherlarge,stronghanduponherwaist,andpulledhertohimandkissedher。Anothersortofman,nomatterwhathehadbelievedofher,wouldhavefelthisactasacrilegethenandthere。Jeffonlyknewthatshehadnotmadethefainteststraggleagainsthim;shehadeventrembledtowardhim,andhebrutallyexultedinthebeliefthathehaddonewhatshewished,whetheritwaswhatshemeantornot。
She,forherpart,realizedthatshehadbeenkissedasonceshehadhappenedtoseeoneofthemaidskissedbythegrocer’sboyatthebasementdoor。Inaninstantthismanhadabolishedallherdefencesoffamily,ofsociety,ofpersonality,andputhimselfonalevelwithherinthemostsacredthingsoflife。Hermindgraspedthefactandsherealizeditintellectually,whileasyetallheremotionsseemedparalyzed。Shedidnotknowwhethersheresenteditasanabominableoutrageornot;whethershehatedthemanforitornot。Butperhapshewasinlovewithher,andhisloveoverpoweredhim;inthatcaseshecouldforgivehim,ifshewereinlovewithhim。Sheaskedherselfwhethershewas,andwhethershehadbetrayedherselftohimsothathewassomehowwarrantedinwhathedid。Shewonderedifanothersortofmanwouldhavedoneit,agentleman,whobelievedshewasinlovewithhim。Shewonderedifshewereasmuchshockedasshewasastonished。
Sheknewthattherewaseverythinginthesituationtomakethefactshocking,butshegotnodistinctreplyfromherjarredconsciousness。
Itoughttobeknown,andknownatonce;sheoughttotellherbrother,assoonasshesawhim;shethoughtoftellingheraunt,andshefanciedhavingtoshouttheaffairintoherear,andhavingtorepeat,\"Hekissedme!Don’tyouunderstand?Kissedme!\"Thenshereflectedwithastartthatshecouldnevertellanyone,thatinthemidstofherworldshewasaloneinrelationtothis;shewasashelplessandfriendlessasthepoorestandlowliestgirlcouldbe。Shewasmoreso,forifshewerelikethemaidwhomthegrocer’sboykissedshewouldbeofanorderofthingsinwhichshecouldadvisewithsomeoneelsewhohadbeenkissed;
andshewouldknowwhattofeel。
Sheaskedherselfwhethershewasatallmovedatheart;tillnowitseemedtoherthatithadnotbeendifferentwithhertowardhimfromwhatithadbeentowardalltheothermenwhosemeaningshewouldhavelikedtofindout。Shehadnotintheleastrespectedthem,andshedidnotrespecthim;butifithappenedbecausehewasovercomebyhisloveforher,andcouldnothelpit,thenperhapsshemustforgivehimwhethershecaredforhimornot。
Theseideaspresentedthemselveswiththesimultaneityofthingsinadreaminthatinstantwhenshelingeredhelplesslyinhishold,andsheevenwonderedifbyanychanceAndrewhadseenthem;butsheheardhissteponthefloorbelow;andatthesametimeitappearedtoherthatshemustbeinlovewiththismanifshedidnotresentwhathehaddone。
XLIII
Westoverwassittingatanopenwindowofhisstudiosmokingoutintotheeveningair,andlookingdownintothethinlyfoliagedtopsofthepublicgarden,wheretheelectricsfaintedandflushedandhissed。Carstroopedbyinthetroubledstreet,scrapingthewiresoverheadthatscreamedasifwithpainatthetouchoftheirtrolleys,andkindlingnowandagainasoftplanet,asthetrolleysstruckthebatlikeplatesthatconnectedthecrossinglines。Thepainterwasgettingalmostasmuchpleasureoutoftheplanetsaspainoutofthescreams,andhewasinanafter—dinnerlanguorinwhichhewasveryreluctanttorecognizeastep,whichhethoughtheknew,onhisstairsandhisstairs—landing。Aknockathisdoorfollowedthesoundoftheapproachingsteps。Heliftedhimself,andcalledout,inhospitably,\"Comein!\"and,asheexpected,JeffDurgincamein。Westover’smeetingswithhimhadbeenanincreasingdiscomfortsincehisreturnfromLion’sHead。TheuneasinesswhichhecommonlyfeltatthefirstmomentofencounterwithhimyieldedlessandlesstotheinfluenceofJeff’scynicalbonhomie,anditreturnedinforceassoonastheyparted。
Itwasratherdimintheplace,exceptforthelightthrownupintoitfromtheturmoiloflightsoutside,buthecouldseethattherewasnothingofthesmilingmockeryonJeff’sfacewhichhabituallyexpressedhisinnerhardihood。Itwasafrowningmockery。
\"Hello!\"saidWestover,\"Hello!\"answeredJeff。\"AnycommandsforLion’sHead?\"
\"Whatdoyoumean?\"
\"I’mgoingupthereto—morrow。I’vegottoseeCynthia,andtellherwhatI’vebeendoing。\"
Westoverwaitedamomentbeforeheasked:\"Doyouwantmetoaskwhatyou’vebeendoing?\"
\"Ishouldn’tmindit。\"
Thepainterpausedagain。\"Idon’tknowthatIcaretoask。Isitanygood?\"
\"No!\"shoutedJeff。\"It’stheworstthingyet,Iguessyou’llthink。
Icouldn’thavebelieveditmyself,ifIhadn’tbeenthroughit。
Ishouldn’thavesupposedIwassuchafool。Idon’tcareforthegirl;
Ineverdid。\"
\"Cynthia?\"
\"Cynthia?No!MissLynde。Oh,trytotakeitin!\"Jeffcried,withalaughatthedazeinWestover’sface。\"Youmusthaveknownabouttheflirtation;ifyouhaven’t,you’retheonlyone。\"Hisvanityinthefactbetrayeditselfinhisvoice。\"Itcametoacrisislastweek,andwetriedtomakeeachotherbelievethatwewereinearnest。Buttherewon’tbeanyreallovelost。\"
Westoverdidnotspeak。Hecouldnotmakeoutwhetherhewassurprisedorwhetherhewasshocked,anditseemedtohimthathewasneithersurprisednorshocked。Hewonderedwhetherhehadreallyexpectedsomethingofthekind,soonerorlater,orwhetherhewasnotalwayssoapprehensiveofsomedeviltryinDurginthatnothinghedidcouldquitetakehimunawares。Atlasthesaid:\"Isupposeit’strue——eventhoughyousayit。It’sprobablytheonlytruthinyou。\"
\"That’ssomethinglike,\"saidJeff,asifthecontemptgavehimasortofpleasure;andhisheavyfacelightedupandthendarkenedagain。
\"Well,\"saidWestover,\"whatarewegoingtodo?You’vecometotellme。\"
\"I’mgoingtobreakwithher。Idon’tcareforher——that!\"Hesnappedhisfingers。\"ItoldherIcaredbecausesheprovokedmeto。Ithappenedbecauseshewantedittoandleduptoit。\"
\"Ah!\"saidWestover。\"Youputitonher!\"ButhewaitedforDurgin’sjustificationwithadreadthatheshouldfindsomethinginit。
\"Pshaw!What’stheuse?It’sbeenagamefromthebeginning,andaquestionwhichshouldruin。Iwon。Shemeanttothrowmeover,ifthetimecameforher,butitcameformefirst,andit’sonlyaquestionnowwhichshallbreakfirst;we’vebothbeennearitonceortwicealready。
Idon’tmeansheshallgetthestartofme。\"
Westoverhadaglimpseoftheinnateenmityofthesexesinthisgame;
ofitspresenceinpassionthatwaslivedandofitsprevalenceinpassionthatwasplayed。Butthefateofneithergamblerconcernedhim;
hewasimpatientofhisinterestinwhatJeffnowwentontotellhim,withoutscrupleconcerningher,orpalliationofhimself。Hescarcelyrealizedthathewaslistening,butafterwardheremembereditall,withalittlepityforBessieandnoneforJeff,butwithmoreshameforher,too。Loveseemsmoresacredlyconfidedtowomenthantomen;itisandmustbeahigherandfineraswellasaholierthingwiththem;theirblameforitsbetrayalmustalwaysbetheheavier。HehadsometimessuspectedBessie’swillingnesstoamuseherselfwithJeff,aswithanyothermanwhowouldletherplaywithhim;andhewouldnothaverelieduponanythinginhimtodefeatherpurpose,ifithadbeenanythingsoseriousasapurpose。
AttheendofDurgin’sstoryhemerelyasked:\"AndwhatareyougoingtodoaboutCynthia?\"
\"Iamgoingtotellher,\"saidJeff。\"That’swhatIamgoinguptherefor。\"
Westoverrose,butJeffremainedsittingwherehehadputhimselfastrideofachair,withhisfaceovertheback。Thepainterwalkedslowlyupanddownbeforehiminthecapriciousplayofthestreetlight。Heturnedalittlesick,andhestoppedamomentatthewindowforabreathofair。
\"Well?\"askedJeff。
\"Oh!Youwantmyadvice?\"Westoverstillfeltphysicallyincapableoftheindignationwhichhestronglyimagined。\"Idon’tknowwhattosaytoyou,Durgin。Youtranscendmypowers。Areyouabletoseethiswholethingyourself?\"
\"Iguessso,\"Jeffanswered。\"Idon’tidealizeit,though。Ilookatfacts;they’rebadenough。Youdon’tsupposethatMissLyndeisgoingtobreakherheartover——\"
\"Idon’tbelieveIcareforMissLyndeanymorethanIcareforyou。
ButIbelieveIwishyouwerenotgoingtobreakwithher。\"
\"Why?\"
\"Becauseyouandshearefitforeachother。Ifyouwantmyadvice,I
adviseyoutobetruetoher——ifyoucan。\"
\"AndCynthia?\"
\"Breakwithher。\"
\"Oh!\"Jeffgaveasnortofderision。
\"You’renotfitforher。Youcouldn’tdoacruelerthingforherthantokeepfaithwithher。\"
\"Doyoumeanit?\"
\"Yes,Imeanit。SticktoMissLynde——ifshe’llletyou。\"
JeffseemedpuzzledbyWestover’sattitude,whichwaseithertoosincereortooironicalforhim。Hepushedhishat,whichhehadkepton,backfromhisforehead。\"DamnedifIdon’tbelieveshewould,\"hemusedaloud。Thenotionseemedtoflatterhimandrepayhimforwhathemusthavebeensuffering。Hesmiled,buthesaid:\"Shewouldn’tdo,evenifshewereanygood。Cynthiaisworthamillionofher。Ifshewantstogivemeupaftersheknowsallaboutme,wellandgood。Ishu’n’tblameher。ButIshallgiveherafairchance,andIshu’n’twhitewashmyself;
youneedn’tbeafraidofthat,Mr。Westover。\"
\"WhyshouldIcarewhatyoudo?\"askedthepainter,scornfully。
\"Well,youcan’t,onmyaccount,\"Durginallowed。\"Butyoudocareonheraccount。\"
\"Yes,Ido,\"saidWestover,sittingdownagain,andhedidnotsayanythingmore。
Durginwaitedalongwhileforhimtospeakbeforeheasked:\"Thenthat’sreallyyouradvice,isit?\"
\"Yes,breakwithher。\"
\"AndsticktoMissLynde。\"
\"Ifshe’llletyou。\"
Jeffwassilentinhisturn。Hestartedfromhissilencewithalaugh。
\"She’dmakeadaisylandladyforLion’sHead。Ibelieveshewouldliketotryitawhilejustforthefun。Butaftertheballwasover——well,itwouldbeagoodjoke,ifitwasajoke。Cynthiaisawoman——shea’n’tanycorpse—light。Sheunderstandsme,andshedon’toverrateme,either。
SheknewjusthowmuchIwasworth,andshetookmeatherownvaluation。
I’vegotmywayinlifemarkedout,andshebelievesinitasmuchasI
do。Ifanybodycankeepmelevelandmakethebestofme,shecan,andshe’sgoingtohavethechance,ifshewantsto。I’mgoingtoactsquarewithheraboutthewholething。Iguessshe’sthebestjudgeinacaselikethis,andIshalllaythewholecasebeforeher,don’tyoubeafraidofthat。Andshe’sgottohaveafreefield。Why,eveniftherewa’n’tanyquestionofher,\"hewenton,fallingmoreandmoreintohisvernacular,\"Idon’tbelieveIshouldcareinthelongrunforthisotherone。Wecouldn’tmakeitgoforanytimeatall。Shewantsexcitement,andafterthesummerfolksbegantoleave,andwe’dbeentoFloridaforawinter,andthencamebacktoLion’sHead—well!Thisplanethasn’tgotexcitementenoughinitforthatgirl,andIdoubtifthesolarsystemhas。Atanyrate,I’mnotgoingtoactasadvance—agentforher。\"
\"Isee,\"saidWestover,\"thatyou’vebeenreasoningitallout,andI’mnotsurprisedthatyou’vekeptyourownadvantagesteadilyinmind。
Idon’tsupposeyouknowwhatasavageyouare,andIdon’tsupposeI
couldteachyou。Isha’n’ttry,atanyrate。I’lltakeyouonyourownground,andItellyouagainyouhadbetterbreakwithCynthia。Iwon’tsaythatit’swhatyouoweher,forthatwon’thaveanyeffectwithyou,butit’swhatyouoweyourself。Youcan’tdoawrongthingandprosperonit——\"
\"Ohyes,youcan,\"Jeffinterrupted,withasneeringlaugh。\"Howdoyousupposeallthebigfortunesweremade?BykeepingtheCommandments?\"
\"No。Butyou’reanunluckymaniflifehasn’ttaughtyouthatyoumustpayinsufferingofsomekind,soonerorlater,foreverywrongthingyoudo——\"
\"Nowthat’soneofyourold—fashionedsuperstitions,Mr。Westover,\"saidJeff,withagrowingkindlinessinhistone,asifthepatheticdelusionofsuchamanreallytouchedhim。\"Youpay,oryoudon’tpay,justasithappens。Ifyougethitsoonafteryou’vedonewrong,youthinkit’sretribution,andifitholdsofftillyou’veforgottenallaboutit,youthinkit’sastrangeProvidence,andyoupuzzleoverit,butyoudon’treform。Youkeeprightalongintheoldway。Prosperityandadversity,they’vegotnothingtodowithconduct。Ifyou’reastrongman,yougetthere,andifyou’reaweakman,alltherighteousnessintheuniversewon’thelpyou。ButIproposetodowhat’srightaboutCynthia,andnotwhat’swrong;andaccordingtoyourowntheory,oflife——whichwon’tholdwateraminute——Ioughttobeblessedtothethirdandfourthgeneration。
Idon’tlookforthat,though。IshallbeblessedifIlookoutformyself;andifIdon’t,Ishallsufferformywantofforesight。ButI
sha’n’tsufferforanythingelse。Well,I’mgoingtocutsomeofmyrecitations,andI’mgoinguptoLion’sHead,to—morrow,tosettlemybusinesswithCynthia。I’vegotalittlebusinesstolookafterherewithsomeoneelsefirst,andIguessIshallhavetobeaboutit。I
don’tknowwhichIshalllikethebest。\"Herose,andwentovertowhereWestoverwassitting,andheldouthishandtohim。
\"Whatisit?\"askedWestover。
\"AnycommandsforLion’sHead?\"Jeffsaid,asatfirst。
\"No,\"saidWestover,turninghisfaceaway。
\"Oh,allright。\"Durginputhishandintohispocketunshaken。