CHAPTERI
　　IntheduskofanOctoberevening,asensiblelookingwomanoffortycameoutthroughanoakendoortoabroadlandingonthefirstfloorofanoldEnglishcountry—house。Abraidofherhairhadfallenforwardasifshehadbeenstoopingoverbookorpen;
　　andshestoodforamomenttosmoothit,andtogazecontemplatively——notintheleastsentimentally——throughthetall,narrowwindow。Thesunwassetting,butitsglorieswereattheothersideofthehouse;forthiswindowlookedeastward,wherethelandscapeofsheepwalksandpasturelandwassoberingattheapproachofdarkness。
　　Thelady,likeonetowhomsilenceandquietwereluxuries,lingeredonthelandingforsometime。Thensheturnedtowardsanotherdoor,onwhichwasinscribed,inwhiteletters,ClassRoomNo。6。Arrestedbyawhisperingabove,shepausedinthedoorway,andlookedupthestairsalongabroadsmoothhandrailthatsweptroundinanunbrokencurveateachlanding,forminganinclinedplanefromthetoptothebottomofthehouse。
　　Ayoungvoice,apparentlymimickingsomeone,nowcamefromabove,saying,"WewilltaketheEtudesdelaVelocitenext,ifyouplease,ladies。"
　　Immediatelyagirlinahollanddressshotdownthroughspace;
　　whirledroundthecurvewithafearlesscentrifugaltossofherankle;andvanishedintothedarknessbeneath。Shewasfollowedbyastatelygirlingreen,intentlyholdingherbreathassheflew;andalsobyalargeyoungwomaninblack,withherlowerlipgraspedbetweenherteeth,andherfinebrowneyesprotrudingwithexcitement。Herpassagecreatedaminiaturetempestwhichdisarrangedanewthehairoftheladyonthelanding,whowaitedinbreathlessalarmuntiltwolightshocksandathumpannouncedthattheaerialvoyagershadlandedsafelyinthehall。
　　"Ohlaw！"exclaimedthevoicethathadspokenbefore。"Here'sSusan。"
　　"It'samercyyourneckain'tbroken,"repliedsomepalpitatingfemale。"I'lltellofyouthistime,MissWylie;indeedIwill。
　　Andyou,too,MissCarpenter:Iwonderatyounottohavemoresenseatyourageandwithyoursize！MissWilsoncan'thelphearingwhenyoucomedownwithathumplikethat。Youshakethewholehouse。"
　　Ohbother！"saidMissWylie。"TheLadyAbbesstakesgoodcaretoshutoutallthenoisewemake。Letus——"
　　"Girls,"saidtheladyabove,callingdownquietly,butwithominousdistinctness。
　　Silenceandutterconfusionensued。Thencameareply,inatoneofhoneyedsweetness,fromMissWylie:
　　"Didyoucallus,DEARMissWilson？"
　　"Yes。Comeuphere,ifyouplease,allthree。"
　　Therewassomehesitationamongthem,eachofferingtheotherprecedence。Atlasttheywentupslowly,intheorder,thoughnotatallinthemanner,oftheirflyingdescent;followedMissWilsonintotheclass—room;andstoodinarowbeforeher,illuminedthroughthreewesternwindowswithaglowofruddyorangelight。MissCarpenter,thelargestofthethree,wasredandconfused。Herarmshungbyhersides,herfingerstwistingthefoldsofherdress。MissGertrudeLindsay,inpalesea—green,hadasmallhead,delicatecomplexion,andpearlyteeth。Shestooderect,withanexpressionofcolddistasteforreproofofanysort。Thehollanddressofthethirdoffenderhadchangedfromyellowtowhiteasshepassedfromthegrayeasterntwilightonthestaircaseintothewarmwesternglowintheroom。Herfacehadabrightolivetone,andseemedtohaveagoldenmicainitscomposition。Hereyesandhairwerehazel—nutcolor;andherteeth,theupperrowofwhichshedisplayedfreely,werelikefinePortlandstone,andslopedoutwardenoughtohavespoilthermouth,hadtheynotbeensupportedbyarichunderlip,andafinelycurved,impudentchin。Herhalfcajoling,halfmockingair,andherreadysmile,weredifficulttoconfrontwithseverity;andMissWilsonknewit;forshewouldnotlookatherevenwhenattractedbyaconvulsivestartandanangrysideglancefromMissLindsay,whohadjustbeenindentedbetweentheribsbyafingertip。
　　"Youareawarethatyouhavebrokentherules,"saidMissWilsonquietly。
　　"Wedidn'tintendto。Wereallydidnot,"saidthegirlinholland,coaxingly。
　　"Praywhatwasyourintentionthen,MissWylie？"
　　MissWylieunexpectedlytreatedthisasasmartreparteeinsteadofarebuke。Shesentupastrangelittlescream,whichexplodedinacascadeoflaughter。
　　"Praybesilent,Agatha,"saidMissWilsonseverely。Agathalookedcontrite。MissWilsonturnedhastilytotheeldestofthethree,andcontinued:
　　"Iamespeciallysurprisedatyou,MissCarpenter。Sinceyouhavenodesiretokeepfaithwithmebyupholdingtherules,ofwhichyouarequiteoldenoughtounderstandthenecessity,Ishallnottroubleyouwithreproaches,orappealstowhichIamnowconvincedthatyouwouldnotrespond,"（hereMissCarpenter,withaninarticulateprotest,burstintotears）;"butyoushouldatleastthinkofthedangerintowhichyourjuniorsareledbyyourchildishness。HowshouldyoufeelifAgathahadbrokenherneck？"
　　"Oh！"exclaimedAgatha,puttingherhandquicklytoherneck。
　　"Ididn'tthinktherewasanydanger,"saidMissCarpenter,strugglingwithhertears。"Agathahasdoneitsooft——ohdear！
　　youhavetornme。"MissWyliehadpulledatherschoolfellow'sskirt,andpulledtoohard。
　　"MissWylie,"saidMissWilson,flushingslightly,"Imustaskyoutoleavetheroom。"
　　"Oh,no,"exclaimedAgatha,claspingherhandsindistress。
　　"Pleasedon't,dearMissWilson。Iamsosorry。Ibegyourpardon。"
　　"SinceyouwillnotdowhatIask,Imustgomyself,"saidMissWilsonsternly。"Comewithmetomystudy,"sheaddedtothetwoothergirls。"Ifyouattempttofollow,MissWylie,Ishallregarditasanintrusion。"
　　"ButIwillgoawayifyouwishit。Ididn'tmeantodiso——"
　　"Ishallnottroubleyounow。Come,girls。"
　　Thethreewentout;andMissWylie,leftbehindindisgrace,madeasurpassinggrimaceatMissLindsay,whoglancedbackather。
　　Whenshewasalone,hervivacitysubsided。Shewentslowlytothewindow,andgazeddisparaginglyatthelandscape。Once,whenasoundofvoicesabovereachedher,hereyesbrightened,andherreadylipmoved;butthenextsilentmomentsherelapsedintomoodyindifference,whichwasnotrelieveduntilhertwocompanions,lookingveryserious,re—entered。
　　"Well,"shesaidgaily,"hasmoralforcebeenapplied？AreyougoingtotheRecordingAngel？"
　　"Hush,Agatha,"saidMissCarpenter。"Yououghttobeashamedofyourself。"
　　"No,butyouought,yougoose。Anicerowyouhavegotmeinto！"
　　"Itwasyourownfault。Youtoremydress。"
　　"Yes,whenyouwereblurtingoutthatIsometimesslidedownthebanisters。"
　　"Oh！"saidMissCarpenterslowly,asifthisreasonhadnotoccurredtoherbefore。"Wasthatwhyyoupulledme？"
　　"Dearme！Ithasactuallydawneduponyou。Youareamostawfullysillygirl,Jane。WhatdidtheLadyAbbesssay？"
　　MissCarpenteragaingavehertearsway,andcouldnotreply。
　　"Sheisdisgustedwithus,andnowonder,"saidMissLindsay。
　　"Shesaiditwasallyourfault,"sobbedMissCarpenter。
　　"Well,nevermind,dear,"saidAgathasoothingly。"PutitintheRecordingAngel。"
　　"Iwon'twriteawordintheRecordingAngelunlessyoudosofirst,"saidMissLindsayangrily。"Youaremoreinfaultthanweare。"
　　"Certainly,mydear,"repliedAgatha。"Awholepage,ifyouwish。"
　　"Ib—believeyouLIKEwritingintheRecordingAngel,"saidMissCarpenterspitefully。
　　"Yes,Jane。Itisthebestfuntheplaceaffords。"
　　"Itmaybefuntoyou,"saidMissLindsaysharply;"butitisnotverycreditabletome,asMissWilsonsaidjustnow,totakeaprizeinmoralscienceandthenhavetowritedownthatIdon'tknowhowtobehavemyself。Besides,IdonotliketobetoldthatIamill—bred！"
　　Agathalaughed。"Whatadeepoldthingsheis！Sheknowsallourweaknesses,andstabsatusthroughthem。Catchhertellingme,orJanethere,thatweareill—bred！"
　　"Idon'tunderstandyou,"saidMissLindsay,haughtily。
　　"Ofcoursenot。That'sbecauseyoudon'tknowasmuchmoralscienceasI,thoughInevertookaprizeinit。"
　　"Younevertookaprizeinanything,"saidMissCarpenter。
　　"AndIhopeInevershall,"saidAgatha。"Iwouldassoonscrambleforhotpenniesinthesnow,likethestreetboys,asscrambletoseewhocananswermostquestions。Dr。Wattsisenoughmoralscienceforme。NowfortheRecordingAngel。"
　　Shewenttoashelfandtookdownaheavyquarto,boundinblackleather,andinscribed,inredletters,MYFAULTS。Thisshethrewirreverentlyonadesk,andtosseditspagesoveruntilshecametooneonlypartlycoveredwithmanuscriptconfessions。
　　"Forawonder,"shesaid,"herearetwoentriesthatarenotmine。SarahGerram！Whathasshebeenconfessing？"
　　"Don'treadit,"saidMissLindsayquickly。"Youknowthatitisthemostdishonorablethinganyofuscando。"
　　"Poch！Ourlittlesinsarenotworthmakingsuchafussabout。I
　　alwaysliketohavemyentriesread:itmakesmefeellikeanauthor;andsoinChristiandutyIalwaysreadotherpeople's。
　　ListentopoorSarah'staleofguilt。'1stOctober。IamverysorrythatIslappedMissChambersinthelavatorythismorning,andknockedoutoneofherteeth。Thiswasverywicked;butitwascomingoutbyitself;andshehasforgivenmebecauseanewonewillcomeinitsplace;andshewasonlypretendingwhenshesaidsheswallowedit。SarahGerram。"'
　　"Littlefool！"saidMissLindsay。"Theideaofourhavingtorecordinthesamebookwithbratslikethat！"
　　"Hereisatouchingrevelation。'4thOctober。HelenPlantagenetisdeeplygrievedtohavetoconfessthatItookthefirstplaceinalgebrayesterdayunfairly。MissLindsaypromptedme;'and——"
　　"Oh！"exclaimedMissLindsay,reddening。"Thatishowshethanksmeforpromptingher,isit？HowdaresheconfessmyfaultsintheRecordingAngel？"
　　"Servesyourightforpromptingher,"saidMissCarpenter。"Shewasalwaysadouble—facedcat;andyououghttohaveknownbetter。"
　　"Oh,IassureyouitwasnotforhersakethatIdidit,"repliedMissLindsay。"ItwastopreventthatJacksongirlfromgettingfirstplace。Idon'tlikeHelenPlantagenet;butatleastsheisalady。'
　　"Stuff,Gertrude,"saidAgatha,withatouchofearnestness。"Onewouldthink,tohearyoutalk,thatyourgrandmotherwasacook。
　　Don'tbesuchasnob。"
　　"MissWylie,"saidGertrude,becomingscarlet:"youarevery——oh！
　　oh！StopAg——oh！IwilltellMiss——oh！"Agathahadinsertedasteelyfingerbetweenherribs,andwasticklingherunendurably。
　　"Sh—sh—sh,"whisperedMissCarpenteranxiously。"Thedoorisopen。"
　　"AmIMissWylie？"demandedAgatha,relentlesslycontinuingthetorture。"AmIvery——whateveryouweregoingtosay？AmI？amI？
　　amI？"
　　"No,no,"gaspedGertrude,shrinkingintoachair,almostinhysterics。"Youareveryunkind,Agatha。Youhavehurtme。"
　　"Youdeserveit。Ifyouevergetsulkywithmeagain,orcallmeMissWylie,Iwillkillyou。Iwillticklethesolesofyourfeetwithafeather,"（MissLindsayshuddered,andhidherfeetbeneaththechair）"untilyourhairturnswhite。Andnow,ifyouaretrulyrepentant,comeandrecord。"
　　"Youmustrecordfirst。Itwasallyourfault。"
　　"ButIamtheyoungest,"saidAgatha。
　　"Well,then,"saidGertrude,afraidtopressthepoint,butdeterminednottorecordfirst,"letJaneCarpenterbegin。Sheistheeldest。"
　　"Oh,ofcourse,"saidJane,withwhimperingirony。"LetJanedoallthenastythingsfirst。Ithinkit'sveryhard。YoufancythatJaneisafool;butsheisn't。"
　　"Youarecertainlynotsuchafoolasyoulook,Jane,"saidAgathagravely。"ButIwillrecordfirst,ifyoulike。"
　　"No,youshan't,"criedJane,snatchingthepenfromher。"Iarmtheeldest;andIwon'tbeputoutofmyplace。"
　　Shedippedthepenintheinkresolutely,andpreparedtowrite。
　　Thenshepaused;considered;lookedbewildered;andatlastappealedpiteouslytoAgatha。
　　"WhatshallIwrite？"shesaid。"Youknowhowtowritethingsdown;andIdon't。"
　　"Firstputthedate,"saidAgatha。
　　"Tobesure,"saidJane,writingitquickly。"Iforgotthat。
　　Well？"
　　"Nowwrite,'IamverysorrythatMissWilsonsawmewhenIsliddownthebanistersthisevening。JaneCarpenter。'"
　　"Isthatall？"
　　"That'sall:unlessyouwishtoaddsomethingofyourowncomposition。"
　　"Ihopeit'sallright,"saidJane,lookingsuspiciouslyatAgatha。"However,therecan'tbeanyharminit;forit'sthesimpletruth。Anyhow,ifyouareplayingoneofyourjokesonme,youareanastymeanthing,andIdon'tcare。Now,Gertrude,it'syourturn。Pleaselookatmine,andseewhetherthespellingisright。"
　　"Itisnotmybusinesstoteachyoutospell,"saidGertrude,takingthepen。And,whileJanewasmurmuringatherchurlishness,shewroteinaboldhand:
　　"Ihavebrokentherulesbyslidingdownthebanistersto—daywithMissCarpenterandMissWylie。MissWyliewentfirst。"
　　"Youwretch！"exclaimedAgatha,readingoverhershoulder。"Andyourfatherisanadmiral！"
　　"Ithinkitisonlyfair,"saidMissLindsay,quailing,butassumingthetoneofamoralist。"Itisperfectlytrue。"
　　"Allmymoneywasmadeintrade,"saidAgatha;"butIshouldbeashamedtosavemyselfbyshiftingblametoyouraristocraticshoulders。Youpitifulthing！Here:givemethepen。"
　　"Iwillstrikeitoutifyouwish;butIthink"
　　"No:itshallstaytheretowitnessagainstyou。HowseehowI
　　confessmyfaults。"Andshewrote,inafine,rapidhand:
　　"ThiseveningGertrudeLindsayandJaneCarpentermetmeatthetopofthestairs,andsaidtheywantedtoslidedownthebanistersandwoulddoitifIwentfirst。Itoldthemthatitwasagainsttherules,buttheysaidthatdidnotmatter;andastheyareolderthanIam,Iallowedmyselftobepersuaded,anddid。"
　　"Whatdoyouthinkofthat？"saidAgatha,displayingthepage。
　　Theyreadit,andprotestedclamorously。
　　"Itisperfectlytrue,"saidAgatha,solemnly。
　　"It'sbeastlymean,"saidJaneenergetically。"TheideaofyourfindingfaultwithGertrude,andthengoingandbeingtwiceasbadyourself！Ineverheardofsuchathinginmylife。"
　　"'Thusbadbegins;butworseremainsbehind,'astheStandardElocutionistsays,"saidAgatha,addinganothersentencetoherconfession。
　　"Butitwasallmyfault。AlsoIwasrudetoMissWilson,andrefusedtoleavetheroomwhenshebademe。Iwasnotwilfullywrongexceptinslidingdownthebanisters。IamsofondofaslidethatIcouldnotresistthetemptation。"
　　"Bewarnedbyme,Agatha,"saidJaneimpressively。"Ifyouwritecheekythingsinthatbook,youwillbeexpelled。"
　　"Indeed！"repliedAgathasignificantly。"WaituntilMissWilsonseeswhatyouhavewritten。"
　　"Gertrude,"criedJane,withsuddenmisgiving,"hasshemademewriteanythingimproper？Agatha,dotellmeif——"
　　Hereagongsounded;andthethreegirlssimultaneouslyexclaimed"Grub！"andrushedfromtheroom。
　　CHAPTERII
　　Onesunnyafternoon,ahansomdroveatgreatspeedalongBelsizeAvenue,St。John'sWood,andstoppedbeforealargemansion。A
　　youngladysprangout;ranupthesteps,andrangthebellimpatiently。Shewasoftheolivecomplexion,withasharpprofile:darkeyeswithlonglashes;narrowmouthwithdelicatelysensuouslips;smallhead,feet,andhands,withlongtaperfingers;litheandveryslenderfiguremovingwithserpent—likegrace。Orientaltastewasdisplayedinthecolorsofhercostume,whichconsistedofawhitedress,close—fitting,andprintedwithanelaboratechinabluepattern;ayellowstrawhatcoveredwithartificialhawthornandscarletberries;andtan—coloredglovesreachingbeyondtheelbow,anddecoratedwithaprofusionofgoldbangles。
　　Thedoornotbeingopenedimmediately,sherangagain,violently,andwaspresentlyadmittedbyamaid,whoseemedsurprisedtoseeher。Withoutmakinganyinquiry,shedartedupstairsintoadrawing—room,whereamatronofgoodpresence,withfeaturesofthefinestJewishtype,satreading。Withherwasahandsomeboyinblackvelvet,whosaid:
　　"Mamma,here'sHenrietta！"
　　"Arthur,"saidtheyoungladyexcitedly,"leavetheroomthisinstant;anddon'tdaretocomebackuntilyougetleave。"
　　Theboy'scountenancefell,andhesulkilywentoutwithoutaword。
　　"Isanythingwrong？"saidthematron,puttingawayherbookwiththeunconcernedresignationofanexperiencedpersonwhoforeseesastorminateacup。"WhereisSidney？"
　　"Gone！Gone！Desertedme！I——"Theyounglady'sutterancefailed,andshethrewherselfuponanottoman,sobbingwithpassionatespite。
　　"Nonsense！IthoughtSidneyhadmoresense。There,Henrietta,don'tbesilly。Isupposeyouhavequarrelled。"
　　"No！No！！No！！！"criedHenrietta,stampingonthecarpet。"Wehadnotaword。Ihavenotlostmytempersinceweweremarried,mamma;IsolemnlyswearIhavenot。Iwillkillmyself;thereisnootherway。There'sacurseonme。Iammarkedouttobemiserable。He——"
　　"Tut,tut！Whathashappened,Henrietta？Asyouhavebeenmarriednownearlysixweeks,youcanhardlybesurprisedatalittletiffarising。Youaresoexcitable！Youcannotexpecttheskytobealwayscloudless。Mostlikelyyouaretoblame;forSidneyisfarmorereasonablethanyou。Stopcrying,andbehavelikeawomanofsense,andIwillgotoSidneyandmakeeverythingright。"
　　"Buthe'sgone,andIcan'tfindoutwhere。Oh,whatshallIdo？"
　　"Whathashappened？"
　　Henriettawrithedwithimpatience。Then,forcingherselftotellherstory,sheanswered:
　　"WearrangedonMondaythatIshouldspendtwodayswithAuntJudithinsteadofgoingwithhimtoBirminghamtothathorridTradeCongress。Wepartedonthebestofterms。Hecouldn'thavebeenmoreaffectionate。Iwillkillmyself;Idon'tcareaboutanythingoranybody。AndwhenIcamebackonWednesdayhewasgone,andtherewasthisletter。"Sheproducedaletter,andweptmorebitterlythanbefore。
　　"Letmeseeit。"
　　Henriettahesitated,buthermothertooktheletterfromher,satdownnearthewindow,andcomposedherselftoreadwithouttheleastregardtoherdaughter'svehementdistress。Theletterranthus:
　　"Mondaynight。
　　"MyDearest:Iamoff——surfeitedwithendearment——tolivemyownlifeanddomyownwork。Icouldonlyhavepreparedyouforthisbycoldnessorneglect,whicharewhollyimpossibletomewhenthespellofyourpresenceisuponme。IfindthatImustflyifIamtosavemyself。
　　"IamafraidthatIcannotgiveyousatisfactoryandintelligiblereasonsforthisstep。Youareabeautifulandluxuriouscreature:lifeistoyoufullandcompleteonlywhenitisacarnivaloflove。Mycaseisjustthereverse。BeforethreesoftspeecheshaveescapedmeIrebukemyselfforfollyandinsincerity。Beforeacaresshashadtimetocool,astrenuousrevulsionseizesme:Ilongtoreturntomyoldlonelyascetichermitlife;tomydrybooks;mySocialistpropagandism;myvoyageofdiscoverythroughthewildernessofthought。ImarriedinaninsanefitofbeliefthatIhadashareofthenaturalaffectionwhichcarriesothermenthroughlifetimesofmatrimony。
　　AlreadyIamundeceived。Youaretometheloveliestwomanintheworld。Well,forfiveweeksIhavewalkedandtalliedanddalliedwiththeloveliestwomanintheworld,andtheupshotisthatI
　　amflyingfromher,andamforahermit'scaveuntilIdie。Lovecannotkeeppossessionofme:allmystrongestpowersriseupagainstitandwillnotendureit。Forgivemeforwritingnonsensethatyouwon'tunderstand,anddonotthinktoohardlyofme。Ihavebeenasgoodtoyouasmyselfishnatureallowed。
　　DonotseektodisturbmeintheobscuritywhichIdesireanddeserve。Mysolicitorwillcallonyourfathertoarrangebusinessmatters,andyoushallbeashappyaswealthandlibertycanmakeyou。Weshallmeetagain——someday。
　　"Adieu,mylastlove,"SidneyTrefusis。"
　　"Well？"criedMrs。Trefusis,observingthroughhertearsthathermotherhadreadtheletterandwascontemplatingitinadaze。
　　"Well,certainly！"saidMrs。Jansenius,withemphasis。"Doyouthinkheisquitesane,Henrietta？Orhaveyoubeenplaguinghimfortoomuchattention？Menarenotwillingtogiveuptheirwholeexistencetotheirwives,evenduringthehoneymoon。"
　　"Hepretendedthathewasneverhappyoutofmypresence,"sobbedHenrietta。"Thereneverwasanythingsocruel。Ioftenwantedtobebymyselfforachange,butIwasafraidtohurthisfeelingsbysayingso。Andnowhehasnofeelings。Buthemustcomebacktome。Mustn'the,mamma？"
　　"Heoughtto。Isupposehehasnotgoneawaywithanyone？"
　　Henriettasprangup,hercheeksvividscarlet。"IfIthoughtthatIwouldpursuehimtotheendoftheearth,andmurderher。Butno;heisnotlikeanybodyelse。Hehatesme！Everybodyhatesme！
　　Youdon'tcarewhetherIamdesertedornot,norpapa,noranyoneinthishouse。"
　　Mrs。Jansenius,stillindifferenttoherdaughter'sagitation,consideredamoment,andthensaidplacidly:
　　"Youcandonothinguntilwehearfromthesolicitor。Inthemeantimeyoumaystaywithus,ifyouwish。Ididnotexpectavisitfromyousosoon;butyourroomhasnotbeenusedsinceyouwentaway。"
　　Mrs。Trefusisceasedcrying,chilledbythisfirstintimationthatherfather'shousewasnolongerherhome。Amorerealsenseofdesolationcameuponher。Underitscoldinfluenceshebegantocollectherself,andtofeelherpriderisinglikeabarrierbetweenherandhermother。
　　"Iwon'tstaylong,"shesaid。"Ifhissolicitorwillnottellmewhereheis,IwillhuntthroughEnglandforhim。Iamsorrytotroubleyou。"
　　"Oh,youwillbenogreatertroublethanyouhavealwaysbeen,"
　　saidMrs。Janseniuscalmly,notdispleasedtoseethatherdaughterhadtakenthehint。"Youhadbettergoandwashyourface。Peoplemaycall,andIpresumeyoudon'twishtoreceivetheminthatplight。IfyoumeetArthuronthestairs,pleasetellhimhemaycomein。"
　　Henriettascrewedherlipsintoacuriouspoutandwithdrew。
　　Arthurthencameinandstoodatthewindowinsullensilence,broodingoverhisrecentexpulsion。Suddenlyheexclaimed:
　　"Here'spapa,andit'snotfiveo'clockyet！"whereuponhismothersenthimawayagain。
　　Mr。Janseniuswasamanofimposingpresence,notyetinhisfiftiethyear,butnotfarfromit。Hemovedwithdignity,bearinghimselfasifthecontentsofhismassivebrowwereprecious。HishandsomeaquilinenoseandkeendarkeyesproclaimedhisJewishorigin,ofwhichhewasashamed。Thosewhodidnotknowthisnaturallybelievedthathewasproudofit,andwereatalosstoaccountforhispermittinghischildrentobeeducatedasChristians。Wellinstructedinbusiness,andsubjecttonoemotionoutsidetheloveoffamily,respectability,comfort,andmoney,hehadmaintainedthecapitalinheritedfromhisfather,andmadeitbreednewcapitalintheusualway。Hewasabanker,andhisobjectassuchwastointerceptandappropriatetheimmensesavingwhichthebankingsystemeffects,andso,asfaraspossible,toleavetherestoftheworldworkingjustashardasbeforebankingwasintroduced。Butastheworldwouldnotonthesetermshavebankedatall,hehadtogivethemsomeofthesavingasaninducement。Sotheyprofitedbythesavingaswellashe,andhehadthesatisfactionofbeingatonceawealthycitizenandapublicbenefactor,richincomfortsandeasyinconscience。
　　Heenteredtheroomquickly,andhiswifesawthatsomethinghadvexedhim。
　　"Doyouknowwhathashappened,Ruth？"hesaid。
　　"Yes。Sheisupstairs。"
　　Mr。Janseniusstared。"Doyoumeantosaythatshehasleftalready？"hesaid。"Whatbusinesshasshetocomehere？"
　　"Itisnaturalenough。Whereelseshouldshehavegone？"
　　Mr。Jansenius,whomistrustedhisownjudgmentwhenitdifferedfromthatofhiswife,repliedslowly,"Whydidshenotgotohermother？"
　　Mrs。Jansenius,puzzledinherturn,lookedathimwithcoolwonder,andremarked,"Iamhermother,amInot？"
　　"Iwasnotawareofit。Iamsurprisedtohearit,Ruth。Haveyouhadalettertoo"Ihaveseentheletter。ButwhatdoyoumeanbytellingmethatyoudonotknowIamHenrietta'smother？Areyoutryingtobefunny？"
　　"Henrietta！Isshehere？Isthissomefreshtrouble？"
　　"Idon'tknow。Whatareyoutalkingabout？"
　　"IamtalkingaboutAgathaWylie。"
　　"Oh！IwastalkingaboutHenrietta。"
　　"Well,whataboutHenrietta？"
　　"WhataboutAgathaWylie？"
　　AtthisMr。Janseniusbecameexasperated,andhedeemeditbesttorelatewhatHenriettahadtoldher。WhenshegavehimTrefusis'sletter,hesaid,morecalmly:"Misfortunesnevercomesingly。Readthat,"andhandedheranotherletter,sothattheybothbeganreadingatthesametime。
　　Mrs。Janseniusreadasfollows:
　　"AltonCollege,Lyvern。
　　"ToMrs。Wylie,AcaciaLodge,Chiswick。
　　"DearMadam:IwritewithgreatregrettorequestthatyouwillatoncewithdrawMissWyliefromAltonCollege。Inanestablishmentlikethis,whererestraintuponthelibertyofthestudentsisreducedtoaminimum,itisnecessarythatthesmalldegreeofsubordinationwhichisabsolutelyindispensablebeacquiescedinbyallwithoutcomplaintordelay。MissWyliehasfailedtocomplywiththiscondition。Shehasdeclaredherwishtoleave,andhasassumedanattitudetowardsmyselfandmycolleagueswhichwecannot,consistentlywithourdutytoourselvesandherfellowstudents,passover。IfMissWyliehasanycausetocomplainofhertreatmenthere,orofthestepwhichshehascompelledustotake,shewilldoubtlessmakeitknowntoyou。
　　"PerhapsyouwillbesogoodastocommunicatewithMissWylie'sguardian,Mr。Jansenius,withwhomIshallbehappytomakeanequitablearrangementrespectingthefeeswhichhavebeenpaidinadvanceforthecurrentterm。
　　"Iam,dearmadam,"Yoursfaithfully,"MariaWilson。"
　　"Aniceyounglady,that！"saidMrs。Jansenius。