Thewordswereindefinite,butthevoicewasnot。Neitherwastheviciousgestureofthebandagedhand,whichconcludeditsorbitinthedirectionofthedoorinamannersufficientfortheswiftdispersalofGeorgeandJacksonandseveralfemaleservantswhohoveredbehindMrs。Sheridan。Theyfledlightly。
　　"Papa,papa！"wailedMrs。Sheridan。"Lookatyourhand！You'doughtn'ttobeensoroughwithEdie;youhurtyourhandonhershoulder。Look！"
　　Therewas,infact,aspreadingredstainuponthebandagesatthetipsofthefingers,andSheridanputhishandbackinthesling。"Nowthen！"herepeated。"Yougoin'toleavemyhouse？"
　　"HewillNOT！"sobbedEdith。"Don'tyouDAREorderhimout！"
　　"Don'tyoubother,dear,"saidLamhorn,quietly。"Hedoesn'tunderstand。YOU
　　mustn'tbetroubled。"Pallorwasbecomingtohim;helookedveryhandsome,andashelefttheroomheseemedinthegirl'sdistraughteyesapersecutednoble,indifferenttotherabbleyawpinginsultathisheels——therabblebeingenactedbyherfather。
　　"Don'tcomeback,either！"said,Sheridan,realisticinthisimpersonation。
　　"Keepoffthepremises！"hecalledsavagelyintothehall。"Thisfamily'sthroughwithyou！"
　　"ItisNOT！"Edithcried,breakingfromhermother。"You'llSEEaboutthat！
　　You'llfindout！You'llfindoutwhat'llhappen！What'sHEdone？IguessifIcanstandit,it'snoneofYOURbusiness,isit？What'sHEdone,I'dliketoknow？Youdon'tknowanythingaboutit。Don'tyous'posehetoldME？Shewascrazyabouthimsoonashebegangoingthere,andheflirtedwithheralittle。That'severythinghedid,anditwasbeforehemetME！Afterthathewouldn't,anditwasn'tanything,anyway——heneverwasseriousaminuteaboutit。SHEwantedittobeserious,andshewasboundshewouldn'tgivehimup。
　　Hetoldherlongagohecaredaboutme,butshekeptpersecutinghimand——"
　　"Yes,"saidSheridan,sternly;"that'sHISsideofit！That'lldo！Hedoesn'tcomeinthishouseagain！"
　　"Youlookout！"Edithcried。
　　"Yes,I'lllookout！I'd'a'toldyouto—dayhewasn'ttobeallowedonthepremises,butIhadotherthingsonmymind。IhadAbercrombielookupthisyoungmanprivately,andhe'sno'count。He'sno'countonearth！He'snogood！He'sNOTHIN'！Butitwouldn'tmatterifhewasGeorgeWashington,afterwhat'shappenedandwhatI'veheardto—night！"
　　"But,papa,"Mrs。Sheridanbegan,"ifEdiesaysitwasallSibyl'sfault,makin'uptohim,andheneverencouragedhermuch,nor——"
　　"'Senough！"heroared。"Hekeepsoffthesepremises！Andifanyofyousomuchaseverspeakhisnametomeagain——"
　　ButEdithscreamed,clappingherhandsoverherearstoshutoutthesoundofhisvoice,andranup—stairs,sobbingloudly,followedbyhermother。However,Mrs。Sheridandescendedafewminuteslaterandjoinedherhusbandinthelibrary。Bibbs,stillsittinginhisgoldchair,sawherpass,rousedhimselffromreverie,andstrolledinafterher。
　　"Shelockedherdoor,"saidMrs。Sheridan,shakingherheadwoefully。"Shewouldn'tevenanswerme。Theywasn'tasoundfromherroom。"
　　"Well,"saidherhusband,"shecansettlehermindtoit。Sheneverspeakstothatfellowagain,andifhetriestotelephoneherto—morrow——Here！Youtellthehelpifhecallsuptoringoffandsayit'smyorders。No,youneedn't。I'lltell'emmyself。"
　　"Betternot,"saidBibbs,gently。
　　Hisfatherglaredathim。
　　"It'snogood,"saidBibbs。"Mother,whenyouwereinlovewithfather——"
　　"Mygoodness！"shecried。"Youain'ta—goin'tocompareyourfathertothat——"
　　"Edithfeelsabouthimjustwhatyoudidaboutfather,"saidBibbs。"AndifYOURfatherhadtoldyou——"
　　"Iwon'tLISTENtosuchsillytalk！"shedeclared,angrily。
　　"Soyou'rehandin'outyouradvice,areyou,Bibbs？"saidSheridan。"Whatisit？"
　　"Letherseehimallshewants。"
　　"You'rea——"Sheridangaveitup。"Idon'tknowwhattocallyou！"
　　"Letherseehimallshewants,"Bibbsrepeated,thoughtfully。"You'reupagainstsomethingtoostrongforyou。IfEdithwereaweaklingyou'dhaveachancethisway,butsheisn't。She'sgotalotofyourdetermination,father,andwithwhat'sgoingoninsideofhershe'llbeatyou。Youcan'tkeepherfromseeinghim,aslongasshefeelsabouthimthewayshedoesnow。
　　Youcan'tmakeherthinklessofhim,either。Nobodycan。Youronlychanceisthatshe'lldoitforherself,andifyougivehertimeandgoeasysheprobablywill。Marriagewoulddoitforherquickest,butthat'sjustwhatyoudon'twant,andasyouDON'Twantit,you'dbetter——"
　　"Ican'tstandanymore！"Sheridanburstout。"Ifit'scometoBIBBSadvisin'
　　mehowtorunthishouseIbetterresign。Mamma,where'sthatniggerGeorge？
　　MaybeHE'SgotsomeplanhowIbettermanagemyfamily。Bibbs,forGod'ssakegoandlaydown！'Letherseehimallshewants'！Oh,Lord！here'swisdom;
　　here's——"
　　"Bibbs,"saidMrs。Sheridan,"ifyouhaven'tgotanythingtodo,youmightstepoverandtakeSibyl'swrapshome——sheleft'eminthehall。Idon'tthinkyouseemtoquietyourpoorfatherverymuchjustnow。"
　　"Allright。"AndBibbsboreSibyl'swrapsacrossthestreetanddeliveredthemtoRoscoe,whomethimatthedoor。Bibbssaidonly,"Forgotthese,"
　　and,"Goodnight,Roscoe,"cordiallyandcheerfully,andreturnedtotheNewHouse。Hismotherandfatherwerestilltalkinginthelibrary,butwithdiscretionhepassedrapidlyonandupwardtohisownroom,andthereheproceededtowriteinhisnote—book。
　　ThereseemstobeanothercuriousthingaboutLove[Bibbswrote]。
　　Loveisblindwhileitlivesandonlyopensitseyesandbecomesverywideawakewhenitdies。Letitaloneuntilthen。
　　Youcannotreasonwithloveorwithanyotherpassion。Thewisewillnotwishforlove——norforambition。Thesearepassionsandbringothersintheirtrain——hatredsandjealousies——allblind。Friendshipandaquietheartforthewise。
　　Whataturbulenceislove！Itisdangerousforablindthingtobeturbulent;thereareprecipicesinlife。Onewouldnotcrossamountain—passwithathickclothoverhiseyes。Loversdo。Friendshipwalksgentlyandwithopeneyes。
　　Towalktochurchwithafriend！Tositbesideherthere！Torisewhensherises,andtotouchwithone'sthumbandfingerstheotherhalfofthehymn—bookthatsheholds！Whatlover,withhisfierceways,couldknowthistranscendenthappiness？
　　Friendshipbringseverythingthatheavencouldbring。Thereisnolaborthatcannotbecomealivingraptureifyouknowthatafriendisthinkingofyouasyoulabor。Soyousingatyourwork。
　　Fortheworkispartofthethoughtsofyourfriend;soyouloveit！
　　Loveisdemandingandclaimingandinsistent。Friendshipisallkindness——itmakestheworldgloriouswithkindness。Whatcoloryouseewhenyouwalkwithafriend！Youseethatthegrayskyisbrilliantandshimmering;youseethatthesmokehaswarmbrownsandismarvelouslysculptured——theairbecomesiridescent。Youseethegoldinbrownhair。Lightfloodseverything。
　　Whenyouwalktochurchwithafriendyouknowthatlifecangiveyounothingricher。Youpraythattherewillbenochangeinanythingforever。
　　Whatanadorablethingitistodiscoveralittlefoibleinyourfriend,abitofvanitythatgivesyouonethingmoreabouthertoadore！Onacoldmorningshewillperhapswalktochurchwithyouwithoutherfurs,andshewillblushandreturnanevasiveanswerwhenyouaskherwhyshedoesnotwearthem。Youwillsaynomore,becauseyouunderstand。Shelooksbeautifulinherfurs;
　　youlovetheirdarknessagainsthercheek;butyoucomprehendthattheyconcealthelovelinessofherthroatandthefinelineofherchin,andthatshealsohascomprehendedthis,and,wishingtolookstillmorebewitching,discardsherfursattheriskoftakingcold。Soyouholdyourpeace,andtrytolookasifyouhadnotthoughtitout。
　　Thistheoryissatisfactoryexceptthatitdoesnotaccountfortheabsenceofthemuff。Ah,well,theremustalwaysbeamysterysomewhere！Mysteryisapartofenchantment。
　　Manuallaborisbest。Yourheartcansingandyourmindcandreamwhileyourhandsareworking。Youcouldnothaveasingingheartandadreamingmindalldayifyouhadtoschemeoutdollars,orifyouhadtoaddcolumnsoffigures。Thosethingstakeyourattention。Youcannotbethinkingofyourfriendwhileyouwritelettersbeginning"Yoursofthe17thinst。rec'dandcontentsdulynoted。"Buttoworkwithyourhandsallday,thinkingandsinging,andthen,afternightfall,toheartheineffablekindnessofyourfriend'sgreeting——alwaysthere——foryou！Whowouldwakefromsuchadreamasthis？
　　Dawnandthesea——musicinmoonlitgardens——nightingalesserenadingthroughalmond—grovesinbloom——whatcouldbringsuchthingsintothecity'sturmoil？Yettheyarehere,androsesblossominthesoot。Thatiswhatitmeansnottobealone！Thatiswhatafriendgivesyou！
　　Havingthusdemonstratedthathewasabouttwenty—fiveandhadformedasomewhatindefinitedefinitionoffriendship,butoneentirelyhisown（andperhapsMary's）Bibbswenttobed,andwastheonlySheridantosleepsoundlythroughthenightandtowakeatdawnwithalightheart。
　　Hischeerfulnesswasvaguelydiminishedbythetroublousstateofaffairsofhisfamily。Hehadrecognizedhisconditionwhenhewrote,"Whowouldwakefromsuchadreamasthis？"Bibbswasasympatheticperson,easilytouched,buthewasindeedlivinginadream,andallthingsoutsideofitwereveiledandremote——forthatisthewayofyouthinadream。AndBibbs,whohadneverbeforebeenofanyage,eitheroldoryoung,hadcometohisyouthatlast。
　　Hewentwhistlingfromthehousebeforeevenhisfatherhadcomedown—stairs。
　　Therewasafogoutdoors,saturatedwithafinepowderofsoot,andthoughBibbsnoticedabsentlythedimshapeofanautomobileatthecurbbeforeRoscoe'shouse,hedidnotrecognizeitasDr。Gurney's,butwentcheerilyonhiswaythroughthedingymist。Andwhenhewasoncemoreinstalledbesidehisfaithfulzinc—eaterhewhistledandsangtoit,asotherworkmendidtotheirownmachinessometimes,whenthingswentwell。Hiscomradesintheshopglancedathimamusedlynowandthen。Theylikedhim,andheatehislunchatnoonwithagroupofSocialistswhoapprovedofhisideasandtalkedofelectinghimtotheirassociation。
　　Theshortdaysoftheyearhadcome,anditwasdarkbeforethewhistlesblew。
　　Whenthesignalcame,Bibbswenttotheoffice,wherehedivestedhimselfofhisoveralls——hissingledivergencefromtheroutineofhisfellow—workmen——andafterthatheusedsoapandwatercopiously。Thiswashistransformationscene:hepassedintotheofficearatherfrailyoungworking—mannoticeablybegrimed,andpassedoutofittothepavementacheerfullypre—occupiedsampleofgentry,fastidioustothepointofelegance。
　　Thesidewalkwascrowdedwiththebearersofdinner—pails,menandboysandwomenandgirlsfromthework—roomsthatclosedatfive。Manyhurriedandsomeloitered;theywentbotheastandwest,jostlingoneanother,andBibbs,turninghisfacehomeward,wasforcedtogoslowly。
　　Comingtowardhim,asslowly,throughthecrowd,atallgirlcaughtsightofhislong,thinfigureandstoodstilluntilhehadalmostpassedher,forinthethickcrowdandthethickergloomhedidnotrecognizeher,thoughhisshoulderactuallytouchedhers。Hewouldhavegoneby,butshelaugheddelightedly;andhestoppedshort,startled。Twoboys,onechasingtheother,sweptbetweenthem,andBibbsstoodstill,peeringabouthimindeepperplexity。Sheleanedtowardhim。
　　"IknewYOU！"shesaid。
　　"Goodheavens！'criedBibbs。"Ithouhgtitwasyourvoicecomingoutofastar！"
　　"There'sonlysmokeoverhead,"saidMary,andlaughedagain。"Therearen'tanystars。"
　　"Ohyes,therewere——whenyoulaughed！"
　　Shetookhisarm,andtheywenton。"I'vecometowalkhomewithyou,Bibbs。
　　Iwantedto。"
　　"Butwereyouhereinthe——"
　　"Inthedark？Yes！Waiting？Yes！"
　　Bibbswasradiant;hefeltsuffocatedwithhappiness。Hebegantoscoldher。
　　"Butit'snotsafe,andI'mnotworthit。Youshouldn'thave——Yououghttoknowbetter。Whatdid——"
　　"Ionlywaitedabouttwelveseconds,"shelaughed。"I'djustgothere。"
　　"Buttocomeallthiswayandtothispartoftowninthedark,you——"
　　"Iwasinthispartoftownalready,"shesaid。"Atleast,Iwasonlysevenoreightblocksaway,anditwasdarkwhenIcameout,andI'dhavehadtogohomealone——andIpreferredgoinghomewithyou。"
　　"It'sprettybeautifulforme,"saidBibbs,withadeepbreath。"You'llneverknowwhatitwastohearyourlaughinthedarkness——andthento——toseeyoustandingthere！Oh,itwaskike——itwaslike——HowcanITELLyouwhatitwaslike？"Theyhadpassedbeyondthecrowdnow,andacrossing—lampshoneuponthem,whichrevealedthefactthatagainshewaswithoutherfurs。Herewasapuzzle。WhydidthatadorablelittlevanityofhersbringheroutwithoutthemintheDARK？Butofcourseshehadgoneoutlongbeforedark。Forundefinablereasonsthisexplanationwasnotquitesatisfactory;however,allowingittostand,hissolicitudeforhertookanotherturn。"Ithinkyououghttohaveacar,"hesaid,"especiallywhenyouwanttobeoutafterdark。
　　Youneedoneinwinter,anyhow。Haveyoueveraskedyourfatherforone？"
　　"No,"saidMary。"Idon'tthinkI'dcareforoneparticularly。"
　　"Iwishyouwould。"Bibbs'stonewasearnestandtroubled。"Ithinkinwinteryou——"
　　"No,no,"sheinterrupted,lightly。"Idon'tneed——"
　　"Butmymothertriedtoinsistonsendingoneoverhereeveryafternoonforme。Iwouldn'tlether,becauseIlikethewalk,butagirl——"
　　"Agirllikestowalk,too,"saidMary。"LetmetellyouwhereI'vebeenthisafternoonandhowIhappenedtobenearenoughttomakeyoutakemehome。
　　I'vebeentoseealittleoldmanwhomakespicturesofthesmoke。Hehasasortofwarehouseforastudio,andhelivestherewithhismotherandhiswifeandtheirsevenchildren,andhe'sgloriouslyhappy。I'dseenoneofhispicturesatanexhibition,andIwantedtoseemoreofthem,soheshowedthemtome。Hehasalmosteverthingheeverpainted;Idon'tsupposehe'ssoldmorethanfourorfivepicturesinhislife。Hegivesdrawing—lessonstokeepalive。"
　　"Howdoyoumeanhepaintsthesmoke？"Bibbsasked。
　　"Literally。Hepaintsfromhisstudiowindowandfromthestreet——anywhere。
　　Hejustpaintswhat'saroundhim——andit'sbeautiful。"
　　"Thesmoke？"
　　"Wonderful！Heseestheskythroughit,somehow。Hedoestheuglyroofsofcheaphousesthroughahazeofsmoke,andhedoessmokysunsetsandsmokysunrises,andhehasotherthingswiththeheavy,solid,slowcolumnsofsmokegoingfaroutandgrowingmoreetherealandmixingwiththehazylightinthedistance;andhehasotherswiththebrokensky—lineofdown—town,allmistedwiththesmokeandpuffsandjetsofvaporthathavecolorslikeanorchardinmid—April。I'mgoingtotakeyoutheresomeSundayafternoon,Bibbs。"
　　"You'reshowingmethetown,"hesaid。"Ididn'tknowwhatwasinitatall。"
　　"Thereareworkersinbeautyhere,"shetoldhim,gently。"Thereareotherpaintersmoreprosperousthanmyfriend。Thereareallsortsofthings。"
　　"Ididn'tknow。"
　　"No。Sincethetownbegangrowingsogreatthatitcalleditself'greater,'
　　onecouldlivehereallone'slifeandknowonlythesideofitthatshows。"
　　"Thebeauty—workersseemburiedverydeep,"saidBibbs。"AndIimaginethatyourfriendwhomakesthesmokebeautifulmustbeburieddeepestofall。Myfatherlovesthesmoke,butIcan'timaginehisbuyingoneofyourfriend'spictures。He'dbuythe'BayofNaples,"buthewouldn'tgetoneofthose。
　　He'dthinksmokeinapicturewashorrible——unlesshecoulduseitforanadvertisement。"
　　"Yes,"shesaid,thoughtfully。"Andreallyhe'sthetown。TheyAREburiedprettydeep,itseems,sometimes,Bibbs。"
　　"Andyetit'sallwonderful,"hesaid。"It'swonderfultome。"
　　"Youmeanthetowniswonderfultoyou？"
　　"Yes,becauseeverythingis,sinceyoucalledmeyourfriend。Thecityisonlyarumbleonthehorizonforme。Itcan'tcomeanycloserthanthehorizonsolongasyouletmeseeyoustandingbymyoldzinc—eateralldaylong,helpingme。Mary——"Hestoppedwithagasp。"That'sthefirsttimeI'vecalledyou'Mary'！"
　　"Yes。"Shelaughed,alittletremuously。"ThoughIwantedyouto！"
　　"Isaiditwithoutthinking。Itmustbebecauseyoucametheretowalkhomewithme。Thatmustbeit。""Womenliketohavethingssaid,"Maryinformedhim,hertremulouslaughtercontinuing。"WereyougladIcameforyou？"
　　"No——not'glad。'IfeltasifIwerebeingcarriedstraightupandupandup——overtheclouds。Ifeellikethatstill。IthinkI'mthatwaymostofthetime。IwonderwhatIwaslikebeforeIknewyou。ThepersonIwasthenseemstohavebeensomebodyelse,notBibbsSheridanatall。Itseemslong,longago。Iwasgloomyandsickly——somebodyelse——somebodyIdon'tunderstandnow,acowardafraidofshadows——afraidofthingsthatdidn'texist——afraidofmyoldzinc—eater！AndnowI'monlyafraidofwhatmightchangeanything。"
　　Shewassilentamoment,andthen,"You'rehappy,Bibbs？"sheasked。
　　"Ah,don'tyousee？"hecried。"Iwantittolastforathousand,thousandyears,justasitis！You'vemademesorich,I'mamiser。Iwouldn'thaveonethingdifferent——nothing,nothing！"
　　"DearBibbs！"shesaid,andlaughedhappily。
　　Bibbscontinuedtoliveintheshelterofhisdream。HehadtoldEdith,afterhisineffectiveefforttobeusefulinheraffairs,thathehaddecidedthathewas"amemberofthefamily";butheappearedtohaverelapsedtotheretiredlistafterthatoneattemptatparticipancy——hewasfarenoughdetachedfrommembershipnow。ThesewereturbulentdaysintheNewHouse,butBibbshadnopartwhateverintheturbulence——heseemedanabsent—mindedstranger,presentbyaccidentandnotwhollyawarethathewaspresent。Hewouldsit,faintlysmilingoverpleasantimaginingsanddearreminiscencesofhisown,whilebattleragedbetweenEdithandherfather,orwhileSheridanunloosedjeremiadsuponthesullenRoscoe,whodrankheavilytoendurethem。
　　Thehappydreamerwanderedintostorm—areaslikeasomnambulist,andwanderedoutagainunawakened。HewassorryforhisfatherandforRoscoe,andforEdithandforSibyl,buttheirsufferingsandoutcriesseemedfaraway。
　　SibylwasunderGurney'scare。RoscoehadsentforhimonSundaynight,notlongafterBibbsreturnedtheabandonedwraps;andduringthefirstdaysofSibyl'sillnessthedoctorfounditnecessarytobewithherfrequently,andtoinstallamuscularnurse。Andwhetherhewouldorno,Gurneyreceivedfromhishystericalpatientavarietyofpungentinformationwhichwouldhavestaggeredanybodybutafamilyphysician。AmongotherthingshewasgiventocomprehendthechangeinBibbs,andwhythezinc—eaterwasnotputtingalumpintheoperator'sgizzardasofyore。
　　Sibylwasnotdelirious——shewasathinlittleegowrithingandshriekinginpain。Lifehadhurther,andhaddrivenherintohurtingherself;herconditionwasonlytheadult'sterribleexaggerationofthatofachildafterabadbruise——theremustbescreamingandtellingmotherallaboutthehurtandhowithappened。SibylbabbledherselfhoarsewhenGurneywithheldmorphine。Shewentfromthebeginningtotheendinabreath。Noproteststoppedher;nothingstoppedher。
　　"Yououghttoletmedie！"shewailed。"It'scruelnottoletmedie！WhatharmhaveIeverdonetoanybodythatyouwanttokeepmealive？Justlookatmylife！IonlymarriedRoscoetogetawayfromhome,andlookwhatthatgotmeinto！——lookwhereIamnow！Hebroughtmetothistown,andwhatdidI
　　haveinmylifebuthisFAMILY？Andtheydidn'tevenknowtherightcrowd！
　　Iftheyhad,itmighthavebeenSOMETHING！Ihadnothing——nothing——nothingintheworld！Iwantedtohaveagoodtime——andhowcouldI？Where'sanygoodtimeamongtheseSheridans？Theyneverevenhadwineonthetable！IthoughtIwasmarryingintoarichfamilywhereI'dmeetattractivepeopleI'dreadabout,andtravel,andgotodances——and,oh,myLord！allIgotwastheseSheridans！IdidthebestIcould;Idid,indeed！Oh,IDID！Ijusttriedtolive。Everywoman'sgotarighttolive,sometimeinherlife,Iguess！
　　Thingswerejustbeginningtolookbrighter——we'dmoveduphere,andthatfrozencrowdacrossthestreetwereafterJimfortheirdaughter,andthey'dhavestarteduswiththerightpeople——andthenIsawhowEdithwasgettinghimawayfromme。Shedidit,too！Shegothim！Agirlwithmoneycandothattoamarriedwoman——yes,shecan,everytime！AndwhatcouldIdo？Whatcananywomandoinmyfix？Icouldn'tdoANYTHINGbuttrytostandit——andI
　　couldn'tstandit！Iwenttothaticicle——thatVertreesgirl——andshecouldhavehelpedmealittle,anditwouldn'thavehurther。Itwouldn'thavedoneheranyharmtohelpmeTHATlittle！ShetreatedmeasifI'dbeendirtthatshewouldn'teventakethetroubletosweepoutofherhouse！LetherWAIT！"
　　Sibyl'svoice,hoarsefrombabbling,becamenomorethanahuskywhisper,thoughshestrovetomakeitlouder。Shestruggledhalfupright,andthenurserestrainedher。"I'dgetupoutofthisbedtoshowhershecan'tdosuchthingsotme！Iwasabsolutelyladylike,andshewalkedoutandleftmetherealone！She'llSEE！ShestartedafterBibbsbeforeJim'scasketwasfairlyunderground,andshethinksshe'slandedthatpoorloon——butshe'llsee！She'llsee！IfI'meverabletowalkacrossthestreetagainI'llshowherhowtotreatawomanintroublethatcomestoherforhelp！Itwouldn'thavehurtherany——itwouldn't——itwouldn't。AndEdithneedn'thavetoldwhatshetoldRoscoe——itwouldn'thavehurthertoletmealone。AndHEtoldherI
　　boredhim——telephoninghimIwantedtoseehim。Heneedn'thavedoneit！Heneedn't——needn't——"Hervoicegrewfainter,forthatwhile,withexhaustion,thoughshewouldgooveritallagainassoonasherstrengthreturned。Shelaypanting。Then,seeingherhusbandstandingdisheveledinthedoorway,"Don'tcomein,Roscoe,"shemurmured。"Idon'twanttoseeyou。"Andasheturnedawaysheadded,"I'mkindofsorryforyou,Roscoe。"
　　Herantagonist,Edith,wasnotmorecoherentinherownwailings,andshehadtheadvantageofamotherforlistener。Shehadalsothedisadvantageofamotherforduenna,andMrs。Sheridan,underherhusband'ssharptutelage,provedaneffectiveone。EdithwasreducedtotelephoningLamhornfromshopswhenevershecouldjugglehermotherintoamomentarydistractionoveracounter。
　　EdithwasincomparablymoreinlovethanbeforeLamhorn'sexpulsion。Herwholebeingwasnothingbutthedeterminationtohurdleeverythingthatseparatedherfromhim。Shewasinastatethatcouldbealteredbyonlythelightestandmostdelicatediplomacyofsuggestion,butSheridan,likelegionsofotherparents,intensifiedherpassionandfedithourlyfuelbyopposingtoitanintolerableforce。Hesworesheshouldcool,andthussetheronfire。
　　Edithplannedneatly。Shefoughthard,everyotherevening,withherfather,andkeptherbedbetweentimestolethimseewhathisviolencehaddonetoher。Then,whenthemeresightofhersethimtobreathingfast,shesaidpitiablythatshemightbearhertroublebetterifshewentaway;itwasimpossibletobeinthesametownwithLamhornandnotthinkalwaysofhim。
　　PerhapsinNewYorkshemightforgetalittle。Shehadwrittentoaschoolfriend,establishedquietlywithanauntinapartments——andamonthorsooftheatersandrestaurantsmightbringpeace。Sheridanshoutedwithrelief;hegaveheracopiouscheque,andsheleftuponaMondaymorning,wearingvioletswithhermourningandhavingkissedeverybodygood—byexceptSibylandBibbs。
　　ShemighthavekissedBibbs,buthefailedtorealizethatthedayofherdeparturehadarrived,andwassurprised,onreturningfromhiszinc—eater,thatevening,tofindhergone。"Isupposethey'llbemariedther,"hesaid,casually。
　　Sheridan,seated,warminghisstockingedfeetatthefire,jumpedup,fuming。
　　"Eitheryougoouto'here,orIwill,Bibbs！"hesnorted。"Idon'twanttobeinthesameroomwiththeparticularkindofidiotyouare！She'sthroughwiththatriff—raff;allsheneededwastobekeptawayfromhimafewweeks,andIKEPTheraway,anditdidthebusiness。ForHeaven'ssake,goonouto'
　　here！"
　　Bibbsobeyedthegestureofahandstillbandaged。AndtheblacksilkslingwasstillroundSheridan'sneck,butnotwordofGurney'sandnoexcruciatingtwingeofpaincouldkeepSheridan'shandinthesling。Thewounds,slightenoughoriginally,hadbecomeinfectedthefirsttimehehaddislodgedthebandages,andhealingwaslongdelayed。Sheridanhadthehabitofgesture;hecouldnot"taketimetoremember,"hesaid,thathemustbecareful,andhehadalsoacuriousindignationwithhishurt;herefusedtopayitthecomplimentofadmittingitsexistence。
　　TheSaturdayfollowingEdith'sdepartureGurneycametotheSheridanBuildingtodressthewoundsandtohaveatalkwithSheridanwhichthedoctorfelthadbecomenecessary。Buthewasalittlebeforetheappointedtimeandwasobligedtowaitafewminutesinananteroom——therewasadirectors'meetingofsomesortinSheridan'soffice。Thedoorwasslightlyajar,leakingcigar—smokeandoratory,thelatterallSheridan's,andGurneylistened。
　　"No,sir;no,sir;no,sir！"heheardthebigvoicerumbling,andthen,breakingintothunder,"ItellyouNO！Someo'youmenmakemesick！You'dloseyourconfidenceinAlmightyGodifadoodle—bugflippedhishindlegatyou！Yousaymoney'stightalloverthecountry。Well,whatifitis？
　　There'snoreasonforittobetight,andit'snotgoin'tokeepOURmoneytight！You'realwaysrunnin'tothewoodshedtohideyournickelsinacrackbecausesomefoolnewspapersaysthemarket'salittleskeery！Youlistentoeverystreet—cornercroakerandthencomeandsethereandtrytoscareMEoutofabigthing！We'reINonthis——understand？ItellyouthereneverWAS
　　bettertimes。Thesearegoodtimesandbigtimes,andIwon'tstandforanyotherkindo'talk。Thiscountry'sonitsfeetasitneverwasbefore,andthiscity'sonitsfeetandgoin'tostaythere！"AndGurneyheardaseriesofwhacksandthumpsuponthedesk。"'Badtimes'！"Sheridanvociferated,withaccompanyingthumps。"Rabbittalk！Thesetimesareglorious,Itellyou！
　　We'reinthepromisedland,andwe'regoin'toSTAYthere！That'sall,gentlemen。Theloangoes！"
　　Thedirectorscameforth,flushedandmurmurous,andGurneyhastenedin。Hisguesswascorrect:Sheridanhadbeenthumpingthedeskwithhisrighthand。
　　Thephysicianscoldedwearily,makinggoodthefreshdamageasbesthemight;