atask
and
a
duty
in
the
world
of
to-morrow
,
I
did
not
understand
him
to
be
encouraging
caprice
,
or
unbridled
desires
,
or
wandering
fancies
.
I
have
seen
many
households
in
travelling
over
Europe
with
him
;
and
when
they
were
unhappy
,
the
reason
,
as
he
pointed
out
,
was
that
women
are
only
half-women
,
not
so
just
or
truthful
as
men
because
their
foreheads
have
been
flattened
and
their
minds
kept
childish
.
The
balance
will
never
hang
equal
between
the
sexes
till
their
union
is
free
and
rational
.
'
'
How
come
you
to
have
thought
so
much
at
nineteen
on
a
matter
like
this
?
'
inquired
Lady
May
.
'
Because
my
father
believes
that
knowledge
is
better
than
ignorance
.
He
pointed
out
the
books
I
was
to
read
;
and
my
mother
,
who
understood
him
and
was
of
a
singularly
apt
mind
,
instructed
me
according
to
his
wishes
.
'
'
Then
you
do
not
approve
of
marriage
,
after
all
?
'
said
the
Countess
.
'
You
think
it
is
a
wicked
custom
.
I
see
that
you
do
agree
with
the
French
romances
,
although
you
have
not
read
much
of
Jean
Jacques
.
How
my
uncle
would
open
his
eyes
if
he
heard
you
!
'
'
I
did
not
say
all
marriages
were
wicked
,
'
answered
Hippolyta
;
'
only
that
the
true
marriage
is
the
union
of
heart
with
heart
,
of
human
beings
who
are
free
to
give
themselves
and
worthy
of
one
another
.
Custom
is
nothing
,
pledging
the
hand
is
nothing
;
and
passion
,
they
say
in
the
stories
,
will
not
last
.
In
my
father
's
creed
marriage
is
the
ideal
of
human
life
.
It
will
be
realised
as
it
ought
to
be
with
other
good
things
that
are
waiting
.
'
'
But
oh
,
my
dear
,
'
sighed
the
Countess
,
'
we
cannot
wait
.
We
get
old
so
soon
—
ten
years
sooner
than
the
men
,
for
they
have
the
best
of
everything
.
Look
at
my
Cousin
Tom
,
for
example
.
He
is
just
about
my
own
age
;
and
if
we
were
equal
,
as
you
said
in
your
very
pretty
sketch
—
and
I
am
sure
I
wish
we
were
—
but
he
looks
ever
so
much
younger
than
I
do
.
'
Hippolyta
was
inwardly
amused
.
The
Countess
's
tender
idyll
was
no
secret
to
her
;
but
whether
she
thought
it
should
be
realised
in
the
golden
age
she
would
not
say
.
A
long
pause
followed
.
Glanville
,
his
mind
filled
with
conflicting
thoughts
,
irritated
,
yet
more
in
love
than
ever
,
was
hardly
conscious
that
he
might
be
discovered
at
any
moment
,
and
that
the
consequences
would
be
dreadful
.
During
the
conversation
,
which
had
absorbed
all
their
attention
,
the
ladies
had
neglected
to
tend
the
fire
,
and
it
was
dying
down
into
dull
white
ashes
,
with
a
spark
here
and
there
glowing
out
of
them
.
The
sensitive
Karina
,
usually
wrapt
in
furs
,
began
to
shiver
and
look
round
for
the
explanation
.
'
Why
,
May
,
'
she
cried
,
'
the
fire
is
gone
out
;
we
have
forgotten
to
drink
our
tea
,
and
it
is
quite
dark
and
dismal
.
I
am
half-dead
with
cold
.
Do
ring
for
lights
.
'
'
We
had
better
adjourn
altogether
,
'
replied
her
cousin
,
to
which
Rupert
mentally
added
an
amen
.
'
I
dont't
know
what
has
come
over
us
to
be
sitting
here
like
the
witches
in
Macbeth
.
Now
,
my
dear
,
'
she
continued
,
taking
Hippolyta
by
the
hand
,
'
since
it
is
the
first
time
you
are
dining
here
,
you
had
better
come
to
my
room
and
put
yourself
in
the
hands
of
my
maid
.
You
would
only
get
nervous
if
I
were
not
there
to
see
after
you
.
'
Rupert
strained
his
eyes
through
the
curtains
,
and
held
his
breath
while
the
ladies
were
moving
towards
the
door
.
They
were
very
slow
,
for
they
had
shawls
and
wrappers
to
collect
in
the
semi-darkness
;
and
it
was
not
until
the
open
door
allowed
a
gleam
of
light
to
come
in
from
the
hall
that
they
could
see
what
they
were
doing
.
At
last
,
at
long
last
,
they
went
.
Glanville
gave
a
sigh
of
relief
;
he
waited
a
moment
till
the
coast
was
clear
,
and
then
pulling
the
curtains
aside
,
rose
and
stretched
himself
.
He
felt
extremely
tired
and
not
a
little
excited
.
It
was
about
time
he
said
,
that
this
strange
conversation
had
ended
,
for
he
could
not
have
endured
either
his
cramped
position
or
the
thought
of
eavesdropping
much
longer
.
And
with
these
words
he
grasped
the
handle
of
the
door
.
At
the
same
moment
he
felt
some
one
turning
it
from
the
outside
.
Aghast
,
he
staggered
back
,
the
door
opened
,
and
Hippolyta
came
running
in
.
As
the
light
fell
full
upon
Rupert
,
standing
like
a
lost
man
in
front
of
her
,
she
stopped
and
put
her
hands
to
her
breast
.
A
nervous
woman
would
have
screamed
,
a
silly
one
would
have
fainted
;
but
Hippolyta
,
possessed
of
the
rare
courage
which
answers
at
call
,
did
neither
.
Her
eyes
met
those
of
the
artist
,
steadily
,
inquiringly
.
He
was
dead
silent
.
'
You
did
not
come
in
just
now
?
'
she
said
.
He
replied
in
a
faint
voice
,
'
No
;
it
was
—
I
do
n't
remember
how
long
ago
.
'
She
blenched
,
but
kept
looking
at
him
still
.
'
And
you
heard
what
I
have
been
saying
?
'
—
'
I
heard
all
,
'
was
the
low
answer
.
'
Then
,
'
she
said
,
with
the
greatest
agitation
in
voice
and
manner
,
'
oh
,
then
,
you
despise
me
;
'
and
as
she
spoke
she
turned
from
him
.
He
caught
her
by
the
sleeve
.
'
Despise
you
!
'
he
cried
in
a
tone
of
the
deepest
love
;
'
Hippolyta
,
I
adore
you
.
'
She
plucked
her
sleeve
from
him
and
was
gone
.
He
heard
her
step
on
the
stairs
,
but
he
dared
not
follow
.
He
was
so
overcome
that
he
leaned
against
the
wall
to
recover
himself
.
Was
he
ashamed
or
exultant
,
struck
with
remorse
or
full
of
hope
and
courage
?
He
was
all
these
at
once
.
For
the
notions
that
Hippolyta
had
learned
from
her
father
he
cared
not
a
jot
.
Hers
was
a
soul
that
turned
them
all
to
favour
and
to
prettiness
;
she
believed
them
because
they
seemed
noble
in
her
eyes
and
came
with
authority
from
the
being
she
most
revered
.
That
she
had
laid
bare
her
very
innermost
heart
in
speaking
with
Lady
May
and
the
Countess
he
was
certain
.
She
could
never
have
been
so
frank
with
him
,
even
though
he
stood
in
the
place
of
a
declared
lover
.
He
despise
Hippolyta
!
Good
heavens
,
why
could
he
not
this
instant
follow
her
and
fall
at
her
feet
?
But
the
die
was
cast
.
She
had
no
choice
now
but
to
understand
.
He
would
speak
that
evening
,
if
it
were
possible
;
to-morrow
,
at
any
rate
.
He
had
meant
to
wait
a
little
for
fear
of
alarming
the
bird
ere
it
was
caught
in
the
snare
;
but
events
had
proved
too
much
for
him
.
He
must
venture
all
,
and
,
if
necessary
,
venture
again
and
again
.
While
he
stood
absorbed
in
meditation
the
first
dinner-bell
sounded
,
and
awoke
him
to
the
things
of
earth
.
He
ran
upstairs
with
a
quicker
step
than
usual
,
wishing
that
for
the
next
four
and
twenty
hours
society
and
all
that
it
inherit
could
be
dissolved
,
leaving
him
and
Hippolyta
to
be
their
own
universe
.
At
the
bottom
of
his
heart
he
doubted
her
love
as
little
as
he
doubted
his
own
.
'
Free
love
,
free
marriage
,
'
he
repeated
mechanically
;
'
yes
,
Hippolyta
,
it
is
love
that
makes
us
free
.
'
He
hardly
knew
what
he
was
doing
,
and
made
sad
havoc
among
his
dressing
things
during
the
next
half-hour
.
The
fingers
were
hot
and
trembling
with
which
he
fumbled
at
his
neckcloth
;
he
took
up
this
and
that
which
were
nothing
to
his
purpose
,
looked
about
the
room
for
what
he
held
in
his
hand
,
had
just
sense
enough
not
to
attempt
shaving
—
which
,
had
he
begun
,
this
chronicle
might
speedily
have
been
ended
—
and
was
not
in
any
way
ready
when
the
second
bell
resounded
in
his
ears
.
He
came
in
as
the
rest
were
seated
round
the
dinner-table
,
and
took
his
place
,
which
the
fates
had
willed
should
be
next
to
Hippolyta
.
He
seemed
distraught
,
but
I
regret
to
say
that
his
distraction
did
not
originate
in
a
feeling
of
shame
for
what
had
happened
.
This
honourable
man
,
who
for
a
long
hour
had
listened
behind
a
curtain
to
conversation
which
was
not
intended
for
any
man
's
ears
,
could
be
scarcely
said
to
remember
where
he
had
passed
the
afternoon
.
Some
remnant
of
grace
hindered
him
from
directing
his
eyes
towards
Hippolyta
.
He
knew
very
well
,
notwithstanding
,
both
how
she
looked
and
what
flowers
she
wore
in
her
beautiful
golden
hair
.
He
knew
that
she
felt
as
uncomfortable
and
as
happy
as
he
did
;
that
the
slight
quiver
in
her
voice
when
she
spoke
—
and
she
said
but
little
—
had
infinite
meanings
;
that
her
shyness
equalled
his
,
although
it
was
better
concealed
;
and
when
dinner
was
drawing
to
an
end
he
absolutely
looked
up
and
met
the
tremulous
smile
on
her
lips
with
the
shadow
of
an
answering
smile
upon
his
own
.
The
Earl
,
unconsciously
,
was
very
good
to
them
.
Knowing
Hippolyta
's
unwillingness
to
say
much
in
the
presence
of
strangers
,
he
had
invited
her
on
a
day
when
the
family
were
alone
;
and
as
she
appeared
to
be
still
in
terror
he
acted
like
a
considerate
host
,
and
spoke
of
things
indifferent
which
required
no
answering
,
or
narrated
incidents
out
of
his
own
past
,
and
had
the
gratification
of
seeing
the
young
lady
's
eyes
bent
on
him
while
he
discoursed
.
For
no
reward
in
the
world
would
she
have
ventured
to
address
Rupert
except
in
monosyllables
.
Once
,
I
say
,
she
met
his
gaze
,
and
her
lips
fashioned
themselves
unwillingly
into
a
smile
.
But
that
over
,
she
was
glad
to
escape
;
and
when
the
gentlemen
entered
the
drawing-room
Glanville
learned
that
Miss
Valence
had
been
too
much
fatigued
to
stay
up
,
and
was
departed
to
her
slumbers
.
His
apology
,
his
declaration
of
love
or
war
,
must
wait
until
the
moon
came
out
of
the
clouds
again
.
But
Hippolyta
had
not
gone
home
;
that
was
his
comfort
.
He
should
see
her
in
the
morning
.
She
appeared
at
breakfast
;
was
tongue-tied
as
on
the
previous
evening
,
and
exceedingly
careful
not
to
address
the
young
man
,
whose
courage
,
dashed
for
a
moment
by
her
silence
,
revived
when
he
looked
upon
her
calm
and
beautiful
face
.
She
was
agitated
by
no
inward
trouble
,
only
absorbed
and
mastered
.
Could
it
be
that
she
thought
he
would
not
speak
?
He
waited
to
hear
of
the
arrangements
for
the
day
.
Hippolyta
,
still
pleading
fatigue
,
asked
that
the
expedition
they
had
planned
might
be
put
off
till
the
afternoon
,
or
till
her
next
visit
.
Rupert
was
exultant
.
If
she
stayed
in
the
house
or
in
the
Park
he
would
find
his
opportunity
.
And
so
it
came
to
pass
.
The
other
ladies
went
out
riding
.
Miss
Valence
sat
in
the
morning-room
,
where
the
lights
were
pleasant
until
mid-day
,
and
a
cheerful
fire
was
burning
.
She
had
drawn
her
chair
to
the
window
,
and
was
writing
at
a
small
desk
,
bending
over
which
her
figure
was
visible
to
any
one
that
came
that
way
along
the
terrace
.
Glanville
walked
about
in
the
air
,
trying
to
collect
his
thoughts
and
cool
the
fever
which
ran
in
his
veins
;
but
,
crisp
as
was
the
morning
,
and
cold
and
clear
in
the
stinted
sunshine
the
aspect
of
the
distant
waters
,
he
could
not
bring
down
his
high-beating
pulse
.
And
when
he
had
passed
by
the
window
where
Hippolyta
sat
more
times
than
he
could
reckon
,
he
summoned
up
heart
of
grace
,
and
walked
boldly
into
the
hall
.
In
another
moment
he
was
by
her
side
.
Hippolyta
,
in
her
extreme
agitation
on
seeing
him
there
,
stood
up
and
had
not
a
word
to
say
.
They
both
coloured
violently
.
'
Miss
Valence
,
'
he
began
;
he
could
get
no
further
.
She
did
not
know
how
to
rebuke
or
to
encourage
him
,
or
which
of
the
two
she
meant
.
He
waited
until
she
resumed
her
seat
,
then
began
once
more
.
'
May
I
speak
to
you
?
'
he
said
,
in
the
lowest
tones
of
a
passion-stirred
voice
.
'
I
have
an
apology
to
make
which
ought
not
to
be
delayed
.
I
have
a
mind
to
unburden
of
its
load
.
It
seems
as
though
I
were
always
doomed
to
offend
you
,
and
yet
,
—
oh
Hippolyta
,
'
he
said
,
bursting
out
,
'
you
must
,
you
do
understand
that
since
I
saw
you
at
the
Hermitage
I
have
had
no
other
thought
,
day
or
night
—
'
'
Than
to
offend
me
?
'
she
asked
,
with
her
quick
sense
of
the
entanglement
into
which
this
eloquent
lover
had
got
himself
.
'
I
am
sure
I
ought
to
be
very
much
obliged
.
'
But
the
taunt
would
not
serve
.
Rupert
was
in
too
serious
a
mood
to
be
laughed
out
of
his
passion
.
'
Do
n't
,
'
he
cried
;
'
you
are
cruel
.
I
hardly
know
what
I
am
saying
;
but
I
do
know
,
and
I
must
try
to
make
you
know
,
what
I
mean
.
Hippolyta
,
if
you
can
return
the
love
I
have
felt
ever
since
that
day
you
will
make
me
the
happiest
man
alive
.
Can
you
,
Hippolyta
?
'
Her
face
was
burning
.
She
grasped
the
edge
of
the
writing-table
to
steady
herself
.
Which
way
to
turn
she
did
not
know
,
but
it
seemed
to
her
that
unless
she
made
a
resolute
effort
she
should
fall
off
the
chair
fainting
.
Rupert
stood
looking
down
on
the
ground
,
motionless
and
silent
.
The
murmur
of
the
waves
came
,
like
the
sound
of
bells
in
the
air
,
faint
and
musical
,
athwart
the
stillness
;
and
neither
of
them
spoke
.
Slowly
,
however
,
Hippolyta
gathered
up
her
strength
as
if
for
a
supreme
effort
.
She
said
to
Rupert
in
a
steady
voice
where
no
vibration
betrayed
her
feeling
,
'
Mr
.
Glanville
,
let
me
ask
you
one
thing
.
'
He
raised
his
eyes
.
She
seemed
perfectly
mistress
of
herself
as
she
went
on
,
'
Do
you
mean
that
you
respect
or
despise
me
?
'
'
Oh
heavens
,
'
he
exclaimed
,
'
is
it
possible
you
can
doubt
?
Hippolyta
,
I
worship
the
ground
you
walk
on
.
I
never
saw
any
one
to
compare
with
you
.
'
'
And
yet
you
listened
yesterday
afternoon
to
a
conversation
in
which
,
if
aught
was
said
that
as
a
matter
of
principle
could
shock
you
,
—
and
I
suppose
many
things
shocked
you
,
—
I
was
the
offender
.
I
am
well
aware
of
the
views
men
commonly
take
,
what
they
expect
of
a
woman
,
and
what
virtues
they
prize
.
'
'
But
I
am
not
such
a
man
,
'
returned
Glanville
with
eagerness
.
'
Why
do
you
not
blame
me
rather
for
hearkening
where
I
had
no
right
,
than
yourself
for
uttering
sentiments
which
you
learned
in
infancy
?
'
'
Blame
you
?
'
she
answered
,
as
if
the
notion
had
not
occurred
to
her
,
'
because
I
did
not
think
of
it
.
I
supposed
you
an
honourable
man
.
If
you
overheard
me
and
made
no
sign
,
I
daresay
there
was
some
explanation
.
Oh
no
,
I
did
not
blame
you
.
'
'
God
bless
you
,
Hippolyta
,
'
he
cried
;
'
you
are
the
most
admirable
woman
in
the
world
.
Was
I
to
blame
?
I
should
have
been
perhaps
,
I
confess
,
but
for
the
feeling
of
intense
and
ardent
love
which
made
it
impossible
I
should
hear
and
not
love
you
still
more
.
It
was
that
,
and
only
that
,
which
hindered
me
from
at
once
coming
forward
when
you
began
the
story
of
your
life
.
'
And
then
,
in
few
words
,
he
told
her
how
he
had
fallen
asleep
and
what
happened
afterwards
.
She
listened
to
him
gravely
,
and
as
though
waiting
for
the
conclusion
he
would
draw
from
her
yesterday
's
avowal
.
It
was
not
long
in
coming
.
'
I
am
not
given
to
philosophy
or
revolution
myself
,
'
were
his
words
,
'
nor
can
I
pretend
to
feel
enthusiasm
about
anything
except
art
.
But
what
does
it
matter
?
If
you
will
stoop
to
love
me
,
Hippolyta
,
I
shall
be
happy
.
And
if
you
will
not
?
Oh
,
I
cannot
bear
to
think
it
.
You
see
how
impossible
it
is
that
I
should
live
without
you
.
'
He
drew
nearer
as
he
spoke
,
and
the
great
flame
of
his
affection
seemed
to
be
rushing
about
her
and
hiding
the
whole
world
in
its
divine
radiance
.
In
her
own
mind
she
had
surrendered
already
;
what
was
there
to
oppose
to
Rupert
's
vehemence
and
sincerity
?
But
still
,
she
would
have
a
clear
understanding
.
'
You
know
how
I
have
been
brought
up
,
you
have
heard
what
I
think
,
and
in
spite
of
all
that
you
profess
to
care
for
me
?
'
'
Profess
to
care
?
Are
you
not
the
very
breath
of
my
existence
?
I
am
talking
,
perhaps
,
like
a
fool
,
like
a
boy
.
But
,
Hippolyta
,
lay
upon
me
any
task
,
put
my
sincerity
to
the
test
,
do
as
you
please
with
me
now
and
henceforth
,
and
you
will
see
whether
my
love
is
honest
and
true
.
'
His
vehemence
made
him
gasp
for
breath
.
Hippolyta
rose
and
put
her
hand
in
his
.
The
maiden
's
eyes
were
glowing
with
soft
light
;
the
flush
on
her
countenance
was
beautiful
to
see
.
'
Rupert
,
'
she
said
.
Then
she
too
paused
an
instant
.
How
he
waited
for
the
next
word
!
'
Rupert
,
I
believe
in
you
.
Such
as
I
am
,
since
you
—
why
should
I
not
say
it
?
—
since
you
think
of
me
in
this
way
I
will
be
yours
.
'
He
took
her
other
hand
in
his
with
a
convulsive
grasp
.
But
she
drew
herself
away
,
and
continued
,
'
Only
you
must
not
come
between
my
father
and
me
.
I
have
promised
to
do
his
bidding
in
many
ways
that
for
the
present
I
cannot
explain
.
Free
I
am
not
.
And
,
therefore
,
if
you
will
not
consent
to
wait
until
these
things
are
over
and
done
with
,
say
the
word
.
Let
all
this
be
as
though
it
had
never
been
.
You
could
not
guess
what
a
strange
and
difficult
course
is
mine
.
'
'
Ah
no
,
'
said
Glanville
,
'
it
shall
never
be
spoken
,
the
word
that
would
separate
us
.
I
am
willing
to
wait
.
How
long
,
Hippolyta
?
I
can
be
patient
if
you
love
me
.
'
'
It
may
not
be
long
,
'
was
her
answer
:
'
a
few
months
;
at
the
outside
a
year
or
two
.
My
father
has
lately
shown
more
reserve
in
speaking
to
me
than
he
was
wont
.
But
I
know
the
time
is
running
out
,
and
that
a
crisis
is
approaching
.
Can
you
trust
me
to
do
you
no
injustice
,
to
do
myself
none
?
'
'
I
trust
you
altogether
,
my
darling
,
'
he
said
;
and
there
his
great
joy
overcame
him
.
The
strong
man
broke
down
.
Hippolyta
was
much
affected
.
With
a
charming
mixture
of
affection
and
timidity
she
laid
her
hand
on
his
arm
and
said
bashfully
,
'
Why
do
you
cry
?
Are
you
displeased
at
anything
I
have
said
?
No
,
I
see
you
are
not
.
I
thought
Englishmen
never
showed
their
feelings
.
'
She
laughed
very
softly
,
with
the
tenderest
playfulness
in
her
accents
.
Rupert
caught
her
in
his
arms
and
for
a
single
moment
held
her
there
.
But
she
slipped
away
from
him
,
and
,
leaving
her
unfinished
letter
on
the
desk
,
fled
out
of
the
room
.
Such
was
Rupert
Glanville
's
engagement
with
Hippolyta
Valence
.
When
they
met
again
in
private
,
which
by
favour
of
the
gods
happened
that
very
afternoon
,
it
was
decided
that
they
should
keep
their
promises
secret
until
Hippolyta
gave
permission
to
make
them
known
.
This
was
not
Rupert
's
proposal
,
or
entirely
his
wish
;
for
he
felt
,
with
reason
,
that
he
could
not
have
a
better
defence
against
Lady
May
,
nor
put
forward
a
more
intelligible
excuse
for
his
change
of
conduct
towards
her
,
than
to
announce
the
engagement
.
But
Hippolyta
,
to
whom
he
did
not
speak
of
the
Earl
's
daughter
,
was
apprehensive
that
a
premature
disclosure
of
what
had
taken
place
would
thwart
her
efforts
to
bring
about
a
reconciliation
between
the
families
.
She
knew
how
great
was
Lady
May
's
influence
over
Lord
Trelingham
;
neither
had
she
waited
until
now
to
discover
that
something
in
the
nature
of
an
enthusiastic
friendship
,
perhaps
of
love
,
existed
on
her
side
which
had
not
been
returned
by
Rupert
.
She
would
be
a
rival
,
sooner
or
later
,
—
unsuccessfully
,
no
doubt
,
but
a
rival
still
,
—
for
the
hand
of
the
artist
.
That
need
not
signify
once
Hippolyta
had
brought
the
Earl
and
her
father
into
some
sort
of
agreement
.
But
meanwhile
,
secrecy
appeared
to
her
an
absolute
part
of
discretion
.
She
was
not
afraid
of
losing
Rupert
,
his
love
would
protect
him
,
and
she
had
been
too
well
used
to
deny
herself
pleasant
things
,
and
therefore
knew
how
to
be
patient
.
The
gentleman
,
in
that
submissive
state
which
lasts
till
he
reaches
the
altar
,
and
ceases
as
if
by
magic
when
he
is
returning
down
the
church
after
certain
words
have
been
spoken
,
yielded
uncomplainingly
.
He
was
glad
enough
to
have
an
assurance
of
possessing
Hippolyta
at
whatever
time
and
under
such
circumstances
as
she
,
in
her
wisdom
,
might
determine
.
You
never
saw
a
mountain-pard
so
tamed
by
kindness
,
so
subdued
and
willing
to
follow
the
hand
that
led
him
along
,
as
this
fiery
,
clear-eyed
,
tender-hearted
Rupert
.
His
best
friends
,
always
excepting
Ivor
Mardol
,
would
not
have
known
him
as
he
stood
humbly
attendant
on
the
behest
of
his
newly-found
mistress
.
Might
he
tell
Ivor
?
he
inquired
.
Hippolyta
reflected
for
a
while
,
and
answered
between
a
smile
and
a
sigh
that
she
did
not
doubt
his
friend
,
but
it
would
be
as
well
to
let
nobody
hear
of
it
besides
her
father
.
To
him
she
was
writing
by
the
next
post
.
CHAPTER
XVIII
THE
CELTIC
KING
ARTHUR
So
these
two
,
opening
the
gates
of
Elysium
,
went
down
into
its
heathery
dells
and
fresh
green
woodlands
side
by
side
.
They
had
found
one
another
amid
the
wastes
of
the
world
,
and
might
ramble
where
it
pleased
them
in
a
golden
dream
.
They
loved
with
the
ardour
of
youth
and
the
intensity
of
exceptional
natures
.
Hippolyta
's
strange
education
had
kept
her
innocent
of
the
thousand
artificialities
which
too
often
spoil
the
best
of
women
,
making
them
helpless
,
sentimental
,
or
false
,
when
they
desire
to
be
brave
and
true
.
She
was
the
most
loyal
of
human
beings
;
her
temperament
was
steeped
in
poetry
,
and
the
sweet
impulses
of
the
heart
gave
her
slightest
words
a
fascination
.
But
where
she
loved
she
could
not
be
sentimental
;
and
Glanville
,
who
had
sometimes
felt
wearied
with
Lady
May
's
—
how
shall
I
call
it
?
—
too
great
effusiveness
,
was
delighted
with
a
companion
at
once
so
charming
and
so
sensible
.
She
told
him
much
of
her
earlier
life
and
her
father
's
character
and
principles
.
To
Rupert
Colonel
Valence
seemed
an
enigma
.
He
did
not
comprehend
how
a
man
who
had
professed
such
a
hopeless
creed
as
he
had
gathered
from
the
Colonel
's
lips
in
the
churchyard
at
their
first
and
only
meeting
could
spend
his
life
in
forwarding
Utopian
schemes
.
But
Hippolyta
,
when
this
difficulty
was
urged
,
had
much
to
say
in
explanation
.
'
My
father
,
'
she
remarked
,
'
does
take
a
sad
view
of
existence
.
He
thinks
the
forces
of
Nature
are
terrible
and
often
malignant
.
To
struggle
against
them
,
he
says
,
would
be
as
foolish
as
attempting
to
sweep
the
stars
out
of
the
sky
.
They
are
high
above
us
,
and
we
cannot
reach
them
,
though
their
influence
shapes
our
destinies
.
But
he
will
not
allow
that
human
misgovernment
,
or
the
ignorance
of
an
oppressed
multitude
,
or
the
distinctions
of
ranks
and
birth
,
are
among
the
forces
of
Nature
.
When
we
come
to
that
Utopia
which
you
wise
men
of
the
world
scorn
'
—
she
laughed
and
looked
at
Glanville
,
who
was
delighted
to
be
so
mocked
—
'
we
shall
still
be
face
to
face
with
the
terrible
unknown
powers
that
we
can
neither
control
nor
appease
.
So
my
father
says
.
But
is
that
any
reason
,
he
asks
,
why
we
should
tolerate
kings
and
kaisers
?
Thus
he
combines
the
deep
melancholy
,
which
seems
to
grow
upon
him
every
year
,
with
a
burning
zeal
and
such
incessant
activity
as
will
not
suffer
him
to
stay
at
home
.
I
feel
it
,
but
I
would
not
hinder
him
from
being
noble
.
My
husband
,
when
I
have
one
,
must
be
father
and
mother
too
.
Will
he
,
Rupert
,
think
you
?
'
I
need
not
chronicle
Rupert
's
answer
.
He
was
willing
that
the
Colonel
should
be
always
absent
if
they
might
be
together
.
And
they
were
,
sometimes
with
no
third
to
lessen
their
happiness
,
but
oftenest
in
the
company
of
their
friends
at
Trelingham
.
One
day
,
in
particular
,
about
a
month
after
their
engagement
,
Rupert
,
who
spent
many
hours
in
the
chalet
working
at
his
designs
,
begged
Lady
May
and
the
rest
of
them
to
pay
him
a
visit
and
see
what
he
had
done
.
The
'
rest
of
them
'
included
Hippolyta
,
who
now
often
dined
at
Trelingham
,
and
occupied
the
room
which
her
kind
host
insisted
on
calling
hers
,
and
which
was
kept
for
her
use
whether
she
came
or
no.
It
was
a
morning
in
March
,
but
that
mild
climate
turns
March
to
April
,
and
the
promise
of
spring
was
in
the
air
,
filling
it
with
dewy
freshness
.
The
party
was
larger
than
usual
,
and
included
not
only
the
three
ladies
,
but
the
Earl
himself
,
Tom
Davenant
,
and
the
learned
Mr.
Truscombe
,
clergyman
of
the
parish
,
whose
devotion
to
King
Arthur
had
nearly
sent
Glanville
home
at
the
beginning
of
our
story
.
The
naval
expedition
which
crossed
the
mere
consisted
of
two
comfortable
skiffs
and
an
outrigger
for
Tom
Davenant
;
and
luncheon
was
to
be
served
in
the
chalet
at
the
close
of
the
exhibition
.
Glanville
had
expressly
invited
Mr.
Truscombe
.
They
were
very
good
friends
,
and
,
though
wide
as
the
poles
asunder
on
all
other
subjects
,
had
,
as
we
know
,
various
thoughts
in
common
regarding
their
hero
.
'
I
must
confess
,
'
said
Mr.
Truscombe
,
as
they
stood
before
the
drawings
,
'
that
I
have
never
had
patience
with
the
ultra-sceptics
who
look
upon
King
Arthur
as
a
myth
:
'
"
That
gray
king
,
whose
name
,
a
ghost
,
Streams
like
a
cloud
,
man-shaped
,
from
mountain-peak
,
"
as
one
of
their
poets
describes
him
.
In
my
two
volumes
may
be
seen
documents
which
prove
not
merely
that
he
lived
,
but
when
he
was
born
,
how
long
he
reigned
over
Britain
,
and
the
approximate
dates
of
his
twelve
great
battles
with
the
heathen
from
over
sea
,
together
with
fragments
of
the
laws
he
enacted
at
Camelot
,
London
,
and
York
.
As
well
,
on
the
strength
of
poetical
confusion
in
the
Song
of
Roland
,
deny
that
Charles
the
Great
existed
as
,
on
a
like
ground
in
the
Morte
d'Arthur
and
similar
epic
treatments
of
our
subject
,
refuse
to
believe
that
Arthur
was
one
of
our
most
valiant
monarchs
.
'
Glanville
listened
to
the
worthy
man
in
respectful
silence
;
and
when
he
had
concluded
took
up
his
parable
.
'
You
and
I
,
dear
sir
,
'
he
said
,
'
are
of
one
mind
as
to
the
essential
point
,
which
is
that
a
medieval
writer
,
like
Sir
Thomas
Malory
,
could
understand
,
and
therefore
could
truly
represent
,
no
age
but
his
own
.
The
art
of
seeing
through
the
eyes
of
a
dead
or
distant
generation
was
born
,
one
may
say
,
yesterday
.
It
is
only
the
modern
artist
or
historian
that
can
picture
King
Arthur
in
his
habit
as
he
lived
and
the
world
which
he
dwelt
in
.
Suppose
him
to
be
a
real
personage
of
the
fifth
or
sixth
century
—
'
'
No
need
to
suppose
,
my
good
sir
,
'
interrupted
Mr.
Truscombe
;
'
I
have
proved
abundantly
that
he
cannot
have
been
born
later
than
—
'
'
Quite
so
,
'
said
Glanville
;
'
I
accept
your
data
and
do
not
discuss
them
.
For
me
,
as
an
artist
,
the
question
is
how
,
if
such
a
man
existed
,
did
he
appear
to
the
eye
,
what
type
of
race
did
he
belong
to
,
of
what
species
was
his
military
apparel
,
his
camp
,
his
court
?
On
such
points
,
I
contend
,
the
writers
upon
chivalry
are
unsafe
,
or
rather
impossible
,
guides
.
They
knew
nothing
of
the
ages
that
went
before
them
.
Fancy
one
of
Arthur
's
knights
being
described
as
a
near
relation
,
cousin
in
some
degree
—
I
forget
which
—
of
Joseph
of
Arimathea
!
'
The
company
was
disposed
to
laugh
,
but
not
so
Mr.
Truscombe
.
'
Ah
,
there
,
'
he
said
,
'
they
may
well
have
been
in
the
right
.
For
Joseph
of
Arimathea
came
to
Glastonbury
about
twenty
years
,
as
I
calculate
,
after
the
Ascension
;
and
as
he
may
have
married
in
Britain
—
'
Glanville
,
who
saw
that
he
was
on
the
very
edge
of
an
abyss
into
which
next
moment
the
erudite
but
fantastic
Mr.
Truscombe
would
drag
him
down
,
hastened
to
save
himself
by
timely
admissions
.
'
Yes
,
'
he
said
,
'
yes
.
I
am
sure
you
have
made
your
calculations
with
admirable
care
,
and
I
have
not
a
word
to
say
against
Joseph
of
Arimathea
or
Glastonbury
.
All
I
meant
was
that
the
elements
,
the
necessary
ingredients
of
a
sixth
century
epic
must
be
of
quite
a
different
cast
from
those
which
were
taken
after
the
Crusades
to
construct
the
legend
—
I
would
say
the
cycle
—
of
Arthur
.
'
'
And
what
do
you
suppose
the
true
elements
to
be
?
'
inquired
Hippolyta
,
who
was
interested
and
forgot
her
timidity
while
she
was
speaking
.
But
she
knew
her
face
was
burning
when
she
had
got
the
words
out
of
her
mouth
.
'
Look
at
these
drawings
,
'
replied
Glanville
;
'
I
think
you
will
perceive
in
them
a
glimmering
of
my
idea
.
I
do
not
pretend
,
however
,
to
minute
learning
;
and
I
am
willing
to
go
one
mile
even
with
Sir
Thomas
Malory
,
if
I
am
not
compelled
to
go
twain
.
I
agree
,
for
instance
,
that
historical
reproduction
is
not
the
same
thing
as
archæology
.
But
there
is
a
middle
way
between
the
realism
we
cannot
hope
to
achieve
and
a
caricature
,
if
I
may
term
it
so
,
borrowed
chiefly
from
what
we
see
around
us
—
from
the
stark
,
staring
present
—
and
given
out
as
an
image
of
the
past
.
Nor
,
again
,
do
I
say
that
you
may
not
,
if
you
have
genius
like
Mr.
Tennyson
,
array
these
old-world
stories
in
the
garb
of
our
century
;
but
then
they
cease
to
be
epic
or
historical
,
and
become
fables
with
a
moral
running
through
them
.
One
kind
of
reality
or
inspiration
they
lose
to
assume
another
,
and
I
have
no
quarrel
with
such
a
transformation
.
'
'
But
I
have
,
'
said
Mr.
Truscombe
in
his
deep
voice
;
'
it
is
tampering
with
holy
things
.
The
man
who
moralises
King
Arthur
into
a
fable
will
perhaps
have
as
little
respect
for
King
David
.
'
'
Anyhow
,
'
Glanville
went
on
,
'
if
the
House
of
Trelingham
is
to
be
represented
as
descending
from
Uther
Pendragon
,
it
will
never
serve
to
paint
on
these
walls
the
fancies
of
the
late
middle
age
.
Now
,
I
conceive
that
the
older
epic
is
the
more
truly
poetical
.
It
has
less
monotony
;
it
does
not
give
you
ever-recurring
adventures
of
a
similar
type
,
castles
all
built
on
one
plan
,
enamelled
meadows
with
a
fountain
in
the
middle
of
them
,
tournaments
so
much
alike
that
to
describe
one
is
to
know
all
,
and
a
small
company
of
actors
which
may
be
reduced
to
a
knight
,
a
damsel
in
distress
,
a
villainous
dwarf
,
and
Merlin
the
Enchanter
.
I
feel
the
exquisite
pathos
of
certain
incidents
and
the
grandeur
of
certain
quests
.
But
none
of
these
things
need
be
discarded
,
and
much
may
be
gained
for
poetry
,
if
we
fill
them
with
the
rude
,
tumultuous
warrior
life
,
and
light
this
up
again
with
the
gleam
of
a
declining
or
a
nascent
civilisation
such
as
did
,
in
fact
,
shed
a
terror
and
a
glory
over
the
Arthurian
period
.
But
,
really
,
I
am
making
a
speech
.
It
will
be
pleasanter
,
perhaps
,
to
see
what
I
have
endeavoured
to
design
.
'
'
Yes
,
but
you
can
go
on
talking
,
'
said
the
Countess
.
'
I
know
a
little
of
the
older
poetry
,
which
I
began
to
read
during
those
terrible
long
nights
in
Russia
when
we
sat
as
still
as
mice
,
not
having
a
word
to
say
or
anything
to
amuse
ourselves
with
except
cards
,
which
I
hated
.
And
I
do
like
the
ballads
and
those
strange
old
German
stories
,
much
better
than
the
Idylls
of
the
King
.
They
are
so
wild
,
they
make
the
blood
freeze
in
your
veins
with
horror
and
then
hot
with
a
kind
of
war-dance
.
You
know
the
tales
I
mean
,
'
she
said
,
speaking
to
Lady
May
;
'
the
Nibelung
stories
and
those
gruesome
ballads
about
swan
's
wings
dropping
blood
.
'
'
Upon
my
word
,
'
answered
Lady
May
,
'
you
will
give
your
friends
a
delightful
idea
of
your
character
if
these
are
the
things
that
please
you
.
'
'
I
understand
Madame
de
Lutenieff
,
'
said
the
artist
,
'
and
I
am
glad
to
see
that
she
understands
me
.
The
battle
for
Britain
between
Saxon
and
Cymri
cannot
have
been
child
's
play
.
It
was
"
sword-play
"
rather
,
and
"
shield
lightnings
,
"
to
quote
a
metaphor
of
the
latest
singers
.
There
ought
to
be
the
feeling
of
an
everlasting
struggle
in
pictures
of
the
time
.
Again
,
there
is
the
extraordinary
combination
of
Roman
customs
inherited
during
their
stay
in
Britain
with
the
ancient
habits
and
traditions
which
existed
before
their
arrival
and
lasted
when
they
were
gone
.
The
Romans
,
the
Cymri
,
the
Saxons
—
add
to
these
the
Celts
who
brought
over
sea
other
legends
,
other
manners
,
—
allied
to
those
of
their
British
cousins
,
yet
not
the
same
,
—
and
arts
,
like
that
of
working
in
fine
gold
and
colours
,
which
have
never
been
indigenous
within
the
four
corners
of
this
island
.
I
daresay
I
am
using
terms
rather
loosely
,
and
Mr.
Truscombe
will
set
me
right
.
But
such
has
been
my
notion
,
—
the
cycle
of
Arthur
is
of
a
more
elemental
period
than
that
in
which
it
became
famous
,
and
the
colours
in
which
it
is
usually
painted
are
not
its
own
.
The
legends
of
Ossian
and
Cuchullain
have
more
to
say
to
it
than
Boiardo
;
it
is
partly
Roman
,
but
more
than
all
it
is
Celtic
,
in
its
dim
enchantments
,
its
fury
of
hopeless
battle
,
its
almost
feminine
tenderness
of
friendship
,
its
fainting
passion
,
its
religious
ardours
,
all
at
length
vanishing
in
defeat
,
and
being
found
no
more
.
'
Mr.
Truscombe
was
somewhat
too
literal
to
follow
the
artist
,
and
would
now
have
been
glad
to
ask
whether
he
believed
in
a
real
King
Arthur
or
held
him
to
be
a
coinage
of
the
brain
.
But
,
somehow
,
Glanville
's
eloquence
daunted
the
antiquarian
.
He
was
fain
,
therefore
,
to
take
up
the
nearest
of
the
drawings
,
which
represented
a
pirate
ship
disembarking
its
mailed
hordes
,
and
to
put
a
few
searching
questions
on
the
subject
of
chain
armour
,
regarding
which
he
was
the
first
authority
in
Europe
.
Glanville
replied
;
and
the
others
looked
at
his
designs
.
On
so
genial
a
day
,
when
the
sun
was
bright
and
warm
,
indoors
and
out
seemed
equally
alluring
.
The
party
scattered
,
—
some
remaining
in
the
study
to
discuss
the
drawings
point
by
point
,
others
lingering
about
the
verandah
,
or
going
down
to
the
boats
and
paddling
round
the
chalet
,
which
on
every
side
presented
a
different
but
agreeable
aspect
.
While
they
were
thus
occupied
Rupert
invited
Hippolyta
to
ascend
the
watch-tower
.
She
looked
round
for
a
companion
,
but
every
one
was
busy
,
and
she
ran
gaily
up
the
stairs
with
him
.
The
watch-tower
was
empty
,
and
the
great
window
gave
a
delightful
view
of
the
long
gorge
with
its
waving
woods
,
the
meandering
silver
thread
which
marked
the
course
of
the
Yale
,
and
the
clear-shining
waters
with
a
circle
of
clouds
above
them
which
closed
in
the
scene
.
Side
by
side
Rupert
and
Hippolyta
stood
,
without
uttering
a
word
,
in
that
most
intimate
of
companionships
which
would
be
lessened
,
not
added
to
,
by
speaking
.
Their
cup
was
full
,
was
brimming
over
.
Happiness
had
come
to
them
and
seemed
willing
to
stay
.
The
breeze
which
fanned
their
cheeks
,
the
light
which
rested
lovingly
upon
their
heads
and
appeared
to
caress
them
,
was
intoxication
enough
.
They
could
have
remained
silent
thus
and
lost
in
a
delicious
sense
of
their
nearness
to
one
another
had
not
some
movement
on
the
waters
below
them
broken
the
spell
.
It
was
only
Tom
Davenant
mooring
his
outrigger
at
the
steps
.
Glanville
smiled
,
and
,
as
if
remembering
the
purpose
that
had
brought
him
,
went
to
a
chest
of
drawers
in
the
room
,
and
taking
thence
a
square
sheet
of
paper
,
as
it
would
seem
,
returned
to
Hippolyta
and
held
it
before
her
.
The
young
lady
looked
,
drew
back
a
little
to
see
the
object
more
clearly
,
and
took
it
in
her
hand
with
an
exclamation
of
delight
.
'
Oh
Rupert
,
'
she
cried
,
'
when
did
you
paint
this
?
'
He
laughed
mischievously
.
'
If
you
speak
so
loud
what
will
become
of
your
precious
secret
,
Hippolyta
?
'
'
True
,
'
she
said
in
a
lower
tone
;
'
but
I
am
so
astonished
.
How
could
you
recollect
me
in
my
riding-habit
,
and
paint
it
all
from
memory
.
For
you
never
saw
me
in
this
attitude
but
once
.
'
'
How
could
I
recollect
?
Ask
rather
how
I
could
forget
.
I
saw
you
day
and
night
as
you
stood
in
the
room
downstairs
,
your
head
turned
expectantly
towards
the
door
and
a
book
in
your
hand
.
You
pretended
to
be
afraid
,
but
your
eyes
did
not
look
it
.
Oh
,
it
was
easy
enough
to
paint
,
I
can
assure
you
,
Hippolyta
.
'
'
Hush
,
you
must
n't
say
Hippolyta
,
'
she
whispered
,
'
and
keep
your
distance
,
sir
.
Yes
,
it
is
beautifully
done
.
But
where
are
my
riding-gloves
?
I
do
n't
look
complete
without
them
.
'
'
They
were
lying
on
a
chair
when
I
came
in
and
disturbed
you
.
Then
you
took
them
up
,
intending
to
go
.
But
you
left
one
of
them
behind
,
all
the
same
.
'
'
Did
I
,
indeed
?
'
she
said
,
with
great
calmness
.
'
And
I
suppose
you
found
it
.
You
must
restore
it
,
please
.
'
She
was
laughing
to
herself
slightly
.
'
I
wish
I
had
found
it
,
'
said
Glanville
pettishly
,
'
but
it
fell
to
the
lot
of
Ivor
Mardol
to
do
that
;
and
the
wretch
threw
it
into
the
mere
.
'
Hippolyta
became
interested
.
'
How
do
you
know
he
found
it
?
'
she
asked
.
'
Because
he
showed
it
me
.
I
held
it
for
two
or
three
minutes
.
Then
he
took
it
away
again
,
and
said
it
ought
to
be
destroyed
.
'
'
Did
he
say
anything
else
?
'
'
I
do
n't
think
he
said
,
but
he
implied
that
a
message
had
come
with
the
glove
.
'
When
Hippolyta
heard
these
words
she
became
very
quiet
.
She
was
thinking
whether
to
leave
matters
as
they
stood
,
or
explain
them
to
Rupert
.
When
she
had
made
up
her
mind
she
said
,
with
her
eyes
fixed
on
her
own
portrait
,
'
And
you
told
him
who
had
brought
the
message
?
'
'
I
told
him
nothing
,
'
answered
Rupert
.
'
I
had
not
your
permission
.
Moreover
,
it
was
no
concern
of
mine
.
There
are
subjects
on
which
Ivor
and
I
have
agreed
that
confidence
between
us
would
be
impossible
,
and
we
are
the
best
of
friends
notwithstanding
.
'
'
Well
,
'
she
said
,
'
that
is
right
,
and
only
what
I
should
expect
from
both
of
you
.
I
do
not
know
Mr.
Mardol
except
by
your
report
,
though
of
course
I
knew
his
name
when
I
came
here
that
morning
.
I
have
never
seen
him
.
But
I
may
,
without
breach
of
orders
,
tell
you
what
concerns
myself
.
I
remember
saying
that
my
visit
was
due
to
curiosity
—
and
,
in
fact
,
it
was
.
I
had
a
message
to
give
your
friend
of
great
,
though
to
me
unknown
,
import
.
Nor
could
I
entrust
it
to
another
,
or
present
myself
at
Trelingham
.
In
this
difficulty
I
forget
who
told
me
that
Mr.
Mardol
had
taken
up
his
abode
in
the
chalet
,
which
I
had
often
seen
from
the
heights
over
there
,
but
had
never
entered
.
The
thought
occurred
to
me
that
I
had
better
make
an
attempt
to
see
him
here
.
I
was
curious
about
the
place
,
for
,
as
perhaps
I
told
you
,
my
father
used
to
be
its
regular
tenant
when
he
was
a
young
man
.
Whether
I
saw
Mr.
Mardol
was
of
no
consequence
.
I
could
make
pretty
sure
that
he
would
receive
my
message
once
I
was
able
to
get
into
his
study
.
I
came
to
the
water
's
edge
,
examined
the
state
of
the
rooms
by
means
of
a
pocket
telescope
I
carried
with
me
,
and
arrived
at
the
conclusion
that
there
was
no
one
at
home
.
I
determined
to
hazard
it
,
and
rowed
across
,
being
afraid
only
that
somebody
might
come
from
the
other
side
and
catch
me
before
I
disembarked
.
However
,
nothing
of
the
sort
happened
.
I
ventured
in
,
left
my
message
in
such
a
way
that
it
could
not
be
overlooked
,
and
went
,
somewhat
timidly
I
confess
,
into
the
remaining
rooms
,
like
Bluebeard
's
wife
when
her
husband
was
gone
out
.
I
little
expected
that
Bluebeard
would
return
from
my
side
of
the
water
;
and
I
was
more
alarmed
than
you
think
when
I
saw
you
.
Did
you
notice
any
gesture
I
made
as
you
opened
the
door
?
'
'
No
,
'
said
Glanville
;
'
I
was
too
much
taken
aback
to
notice
anything
,
except
that
you
were
the
most
lovely
woman
I
had
ever
set
eyes
on
.
'
'
Quiet
,
quiet
,
'
she
answered
.
'
No
,
I
soon
perceived
you
could
not
be
the
person
of
whom
I
was
in
quest
,
or
you
would
have
given
me
the
countersign
.
Dear
me
,
'
she
went
on
meditatively
,
'
when
my
father
joined
the
movement
if
any
one
had
talked
to
a
stranger
,
—
and
you
are
a
stranger
,
you
know
—
.
'
He
held
up
his
hand
,
as
if
to
threaten
her
,
but
she
motioned
him
to
keep
still
,
and
continued
,
'
Talked
,
I
say
,
of
signs
and
countersigns
,
he
would
have
been
judged
a
traitor
and
punished
as
he
deserved
.
But
now
we
are
coming
more
and
more
into
the
open
;
there
will
soon
be
little
secrecy
left
.
'
They
heard
Tom
Davenant
calling
Rupert
.
'
The
Earl
wants
you
,
'
he
said
,
as
they
came
downstairs
.
'
I
think
there
is
some
plan
afoot
about
your
drawings
and
my
birthday
,
though
the
two
things
have
n't
much
connection
,
one
would
think
.
It
is
all
the
Countess
's
doing
.
I
wish
she
would
let
it
alone
.
She
is
too
clever
by
half
.
'
On
entering
the
studio
they
found
the
party
collected
round
Rupert
's
drawings
,
and
Madame
de
Lutenieff
in
earnest
conversation
with
her
cousin
.
She
at
once
came
to
the
artist
,
and
with
enthusiasm
in
her
accents
said
to
him
,
'
Oh
,
Mr.
Glanville
,
I
do
so
hope
you
will
take
my
side
.
I
am
sure
as
a
painter
you
ought
.
'
'
I
shall
have
the
greatest
pleasure
in
doing
so
,
'
he
answered
gallantly
,
'
as
soon
as
I
know
what
the
discussion
is
about
.
But
Mr.
Davenant
has
left
that
for
you
to
tell
.
'
'
Mr
.
Davenant
never
comes
to
my
help
in
anything
,
'
she
said
,
with
a
reproachful
look
at
that
young
man
,
who
instead
of
attending
to
her
was
considering
the
signs
of
the
times
,
so
far
as
they
could
be
studied
from
the
window
in
front
of
him
.
'
I
do
n't
see
the
good
of
a
dress
ball
,
'
said
Tom
,
without
looking
round
.
'
Why
cannot
people
dance
in
their
ordinary
clothes
and
not
make
themselves
into
a
museum
of
curiosities
?
Fancy
me
got
up
like
your
Launcelots
and
your
Percivals
,
or
whatever
you
call
them
!
They
look
absurd
enough
on
a
stage
,
but
in
a
ballroom
where
you
know
who
the
fellows
are
they
look
twenty
times
more
ridiculous
.
'
'
But
then
,
'
said
Lady
May
,
'
you
profess
to
hate
dancing
altogether
and
you
do
n't
want
to
keep
your
birthday
,
so
you
are
out
of
court
.
This
is
the
case
,
'
she
continued
,
addressing
Glanville
:
'
my
Cousin
Karina
was
struck
with
the
ensemble
,
to
use
her
own
term
,
of
your
designs
,
and
thought
they
would
fall
into
admirable
groups
if
we
could
get
people
to
dress
up
to
them
.
She
is
very
fond
of
dancing
,
—
are
you
not
,
Karina
?
'
The
Countess
made
a
gesture
of
delight
,
but
would
not
interrupt
Lady
May
,
who
went
on
to
explain
that
among
the
festivities
to
celebrate
Mr.
Davenant
's
majority
—
she
looked
at
Tom
as
she
spoke
—
a
dress
ball
would
do
much
to
enhance
the
general
pleasure
,
and
there
was
the
Great
Hall
,
with
its
frescoes
begun
,
inviting
them
to
illustrate
the
floor
from
the
walls
,
so
to
speak
,
and
to
make
a
grand
tableau
vivant
of
the
Arthurian
legends
.
It
would
be
an
original
and
quaint
device
,
but
without
Glanville
's
aid
in
designing
dresses
and
sketching
the
groups
it
could
not
be
carried
out
.
How
did
it
strike
him
?
Instead
of
answering
like
a
sensible
young
man
,
Rupert
turned
demurely
to
Miss
Valence
and
inquired
what
she
thought
.
She
laughed
,
and
blushed
,
but
would
not
reply
beyond
saying
that
in
these
matters
she
had
no
opinion
to
give
.
'
But
Mr.
Glanville
is
quite
right
,
'
said
the
Countess
;
'
you
ought
to
have
an
opinion
,
my
dear
.
For
you
would
of
course
shine
in
our
galaxy
that
evening
.
'
'
I
shine
in
a
galaxy
?
'
said
Hippolyta
,
laughing
;
'
you
forget
,
Countess
,
that
I
have
never
been
introduced
to
society
,
and
should
most
likely
not
be
admitted
if
I
wished
for
such
a
thing
.
'
'
Oh
,
nonsense
,
'
replied
Karina
;
'
you
have
the
most
old-fashioned
ideas
.
In
the
first
place
,
there
is
no
such
thing
as
society
,
in
that
exclusive
sense
of
the
word
,
now
;
and
in
the
second
,
it
would
not
matter
if
there
were
.
Make
your
début
at
Trelingham
,
my
dear
,
and
rely
upon
it
you
will
find
no
doors
locked
afterwards
.
'
Hippolyta
smiled
.
'
Now
that
your
door
is
unlocked
to
me
,
'
she
said
,
addressing
Lord
Trelingham
,
'
I
do
not
think
I
mind
whether
the
rest
are
shut
or
open
.
'
'
My
dear
young
lady
,
'
said
he
,
taking
her
hand
,
'
you
will
be
most
welcome
if
you
come
to
this
house
,
either
on
the
occasion
my
niece
has
mentioned
,
or
any
other
.
Colonel
Valence
may
have
renounced
society
,
but
that
should
be
no
injury
to
his
daughter
,
and
only
those
would
raise
a
question
who
do
not
know
you
.
'
'
Well
,
and
of
course
you
will
come
,
'
said
Karina
;
'
that
is
all
settled
.
I
will
be
your
chaperon
and
—
but
have
you
learned
dancing
?
'
she
asked
with
comic
anxiety
.
Hippolyta
answered
,
'
I
am
more
of
a
Spanish
than
an
English
girl
,
remember
.
Did
you
ever
hear
of
one
who
could
not
dance
,
or
was
not
fond
of
dancing
?
It
is
the
most
exquisite
enjoyment
I
know
.
But
,
indeed
,
I
have
not
danced
in
such
fine
company
as
this
would
be
.
'
'
Never
mind
,
'
said
the
Countess
;
'
you
will
probably
put
us
all
to
shame
.
However
,
is
it
decided
,
and
does
Mr.
Glanville
promise
his
services
?
'
'
Mr
.
Glanville
will
promise
anything
,
'
replied
the
infatuated
artist
.
He
had
never
till
then
thought
of
dancing
with
Hippolyta
.
What
a
heaven
of
happiness
was
in
store
!
How
admirable
of
the
Countess
to
propose
it
and
of
Tom
Davenant
to
come
of
age
just
at
that
time
!
To
get
any
further
conversation
of
a
sensible
kind
from
Rupert
was
for
the
rest
of
the
day
impossible
.
The
Countess
made
her
observations
;
Lady
May
,
whose
suspicions
had
been
lulled
to
sleep
,
was
not
blind
,
and
began
once
more
to
feel
the
gnawing
pangs
of
jealousy
;
while
Mr.
Davenant
wondered
that
people
should
care
so
much
about
tiring
themselves
to
death
in
a
hot
and
crowded
assembly
,
and
would
have
given
all
the
balls
between
now
and
next
year
for
a
good
day
's
fishing
.
But
the
dress
ball
was
decided
on
,
and
there
were
to
be
tableaux
representing
King
Arthur
and
his
Table
Round
.
CHAPTER
XIX
TABLEAUX
VIVANTS
In
proposing
,
out
of
her
own
head
,
a
dress
ball
at
which
Miss
Valence
should
be
present
,
the
Countess
Lutenieff
was
carrying
out
one
of
those
schemes
,
so
dear
to
the
impish
character
she
affected
,
through
which
accidents
of
a
perverse
kind
are
wont
to
happen
.
She
was
not
very
learned
or
large-minded
;
and
,
like
most
ignorant
persons
of
a
quick-witted
turn
,
she
was
subtle
,
preferring
always
the
crooked
path
to
the
straight
,
and
delighted
when
she
could
imagine
that
she
made
the
puppets
dance
to
her
playing
.
Since
she
had
recovered
from
the
shock
of
her
husband
's
death
—
it
had
taken
her
about
six
months
,
for
she
was
of
an
affectionate
disposition
—
her
one
aim
had
been
to
marry
Tom
Davenant
,
whom
from
a
child
she
had
worshipped
.
This
alone
reconciled
her
to
the
English
sky
with
its
everlasting
gray
tones
,
and
the
English
manners
at
once
so
selfsatisfied
and
so
chilling
.
But
Mr.
Davenant
was
a
shy
bird
,
and
would
not
stoop
at
her
call
.
Nor
had
she
a
falconer
's
voice
to
lure
him
back
again
from
his
pursuit
of
more
interesting
prey
.
He
,
like
the
rest
of
the
Davenants
,
was
guided
by
a
fine
sense
of
honour
,
—
too
fine
thought
the
Russian
lady
,
since
it
appeared
to
be
driving
him
on
a
marriage
with
his
cousin
.
And
its
recompense
might
possibly
be
the
hand
of
Lady
May
in
spite
of
the
six
years
which
divided
their
ages
.
Nothing
,
said
Karina
to
herself
,
will
make
me
secure
on
that
side
but
a
violent
passion
on
the
part
of
Lady
May
for
some
one
who
is
not
Tom
Davenant
.
Might
not
Glanville
be
the
man
?
She
had
hoped
and
prayed
so
while
the
painting
went
on
in
the
picture-gallery
;
but
that
was
now
at
an
end
.
The
artist
seemed
to
be
dominated
by
a
fresh
sentiment
in
which
Lady
May
had
no
part
,
and
as
Tom
's
birthday
drew
near
,
bringing
with
it
apprehensions
of
calamity
,
the
Countess
sat
down
to
consider
what
could
be
done
.
If
Glanville
was
not
desperately
in
love
elsewhere
he
would
fall
a
sure
victim
to
her
cousin
,
provided
that
May
Davenant
cared
to
subdue
him
.
And
how
make
her
care
?
A
great
passion
,
Karina
had
read
in
her
French
authors
,
is
only
a
slight
one
thwarted
by
a
great
difficulty
.
Add
jealousy
to
liking
and
the
thing
might
be
done
.
Whatever
else
was
uncertain
,
it
could
not
be
doubted
that
May
cared
for
Glanville
more
than
she
did
for
Tom
Davenant
.
If
she
married
her
cousin
,
it
would
be
from
devotion
to
the
name
and
ancient
descent
she
had
been
taught
to
revere
.
Let
her
be
infatuated
about
the
artist
,
and
her
refusal
of
the
cousinly
hand
would
follow
as
a
matter
of
course
.
Miss
Valence
had
entered
from
the
side-scene
,
therefore
,
just
when
she
was
wanted
,
and
her
cue
,
in
the
language
of
the
drama
,
was
'
green-eyed
jealousy
.
'
To
promote
that
feeling
in
the
breast
of
Lady
May
was
now
her
cousin
's
dearest
wish
,
her
hourly
and
daily
thought
.
The
dress
ball
seemed
to
her
an
inspiration
of
some
good
genius
.
There
would
be
much
preparation
,
and
at
Trelingham
a
great
deal
of
rehearsing
—
so
to
call
it
—
with
these
original
costumes
,
which
would
need
to
be
carefully
designed
.
And
when
the
intimacy
of
the
preparations
had
stung
Lady
May
like
a
gadfly
,
the
ball
itself
was
to
do
the
rest
.
She
would
see
Rupert
with
Hippolyta
.
She
would
be
