,,the ,,inside ,,of ,,the ,,cup  ,by    
,winston ,churchill     ,volume #b4 ,v4 
,,the ,,rector ,,has ,,more ,,food ,,for
 ,,thought4 ,,vi4    ,,watchman1 ,,what 
,,of ,,the ,,night ,,vii4   ,,the       
,,kingdoms ,,of ,,the ,,world ,,viii4   
,,the ,,line of ,,least ,,resistance4   
,,chapter ,v  ,,the ,,rector ,,has      
,,more ,,food ,,for ,,thought   ,i      
,sunday after ,sunday ,hodder looked    
upon the same picture1 the winter light 
filtering through emblazoned windows1   
falling athwart stone pillars1 and      
staining with rich colours the marble of
 the centre aisle4 ,the organ rolled out
 hymns and anthems1 the voices of the   
white robed choir echoed among the      
arches4 ,and ,hodder's eye1 sweeping    
over the decorous congregation1 grew to 
recognize certain landmarks3 ,eldon     
,parr1 rigid at one end of his empty    
pew2 little ,everett ,constable1        
comfortably1 but always pompously       
settled at one end of his1 his          
white-haired and distinguished-looking  

wife at the other4 ,the space between   
them had once been filled by their      
children4 ,there was ,mr4 ,ferguson1 who
 occasionally stroked his black whiskers
 with a prodigious solemnity2 ,mrs4     
,ferguson1 resplendent and always a     
little warm1 and their daughter ,nan1   
dainty and appealing1 her eyes uplifted 
and questioning4  ,the ,plimptons1 with 
their rubicund and aggressively healthy 
offspring1 were always in evidence4 ,and
 there was ,mrs4 ,larrabbee4 ,what      
between wealth and youth1 independence  
and initiative1 a widowhood now emerged 
from a mourning unexceptionable1 an     
elegance so unobtrusive as to border on 
mystery1 she never failed to agitate any
 atmosphere she entered1 even that of   
prayer4 ,from time to time1 ,hodder     
himself was uncomfortably aware of her  
presence1 and he read in her upturned   
face an interest which1 by a little     
stretch of the imagination1 might have  
been deemed personal 4 4 4 4  ,another  
was ,gordon ,atterbury1 still known as  

young ,gordon1 though his father was    
dead1 and he was in the vestry4 ,he was 
unmarried and forty-five1 and ,mrs4     
,larrabbee had said he reminded her of a
 shrivelling seed set aside from a once 
fruitful crop4 ,he wore1 invariably1    
checked trousers and a black cutaway    
coat1 eyeglasses that fell off when he  
squinted1 and were saved from           
destruction by a gold chain4 ,no wedding
 or funeral was complete without him4   
,and one morning1 as he joined ,mr4     
,parr and the other gentlemen who       
responded to the appeal1 ,let your light
 so shine before men1 a strange1        
ironical question entered the rector's  
mind--was ,gordon ,atterbury the logical
 product of those doctrines which he1   
,hodder1 preached with such feeling and 
conviction8  ,none1 at least1 was so    
fervent a defender of the faith1 so     
punctilious in all observances1 so      
constant at the altar rail2 none so     
versed in rubrics1 ritual1 and canon    
law2 none had such a knowledge of the   

,church fathers4 ,mr4 ,atterbury        
delighted to discuss them with the      
rector at the dinner parties where they 
met2 none was more zealous for foreign  
missions4 ,he was the treasurer of ,st4 
,john's4  ,it should undoubtedly have   
been a consolation to any rector to     
possess ,mr4 ,atterbury's unqualified   
approval1 to listen to his somewhat     
delphic compliments1--heralded by a     
clearing of the throat4 ,he represented 
the faith as delivered to the saints1   
and he spoke for those in the           
congregation to whom it was precious4   
,why was it that1 to ,hodder1 he should 
gradually have assumed something of the 
aspect of a ,cerberus8 ,why was it that 
he incited a perverse desire to utter   
heresies8  ,hodder invariably turned    
from his contemplation of ,gordon       
,atterbury to the double blaring pew1   
which went from aisle to aisle4 ,in his 
heart1 he would have preferred the      
approval of ,eleanor ,goodrich and her  
husband1 and of ,asa ,waring4 ,instinct 

spoke to him here2 he seemed to read in 
their faces that he failed to strike in 
them responsive chords4 ,he was drawn to
 them3 the conviction grew upon him that
 he did not reach them1 and it troubled 
him1 as he thought1 disproportionately4 
,he could not expect to reach all4 ,but 
they were the type to which he most     
wished to appeal2 of all of his flock1  
this family seemed best to preserve the 
vitality and ideals of the city and     
nation4 ,asa ,waring was a splendid1    
uncompromising survival2 his piercing   
eyes sometimes met ,hodder's across the 
church1 and they held for him a question
 and a riddle4 ,eleanor ,goodrich bore  
on her features the stamp of true       
nobility of character1 and her husband1 
,hodder knew1 was a man among men4 ,in  
addition to a respected lineage1 he     
possessed an unusual blending of        
aggressiveness and personal charm that  
men found irresistible4  ,the rector's  
office in the parish house was a        
businesslike room on the first floor1   

fitted up with a desk1 a table1         
straight-backed chairs1 and a revolving 
bookcase4 ,and to it1 one windy morning 
in ,march1 came ,eleanor ,goodrich4     
,hodder rose to greet her with an       
eagerness which1 from his kindly yet    
penetrating glance1 she did not suspect4
  ,am ,i interrupting you1 ,mr4 ,hodder8
 she asked1 a little breathlessly4  ,not
 at all1 he said1 drawing up a chair4   
,won't you sit down8  ,she obeyed4      
,there was an awkward pause during which
 the colour slowly rose to her face4  ,i
 wanted to ask you one or two things1   
she began1 not very steadily4 ,as       
perhaps you may know1 ,i was brought up 
in this church1 baptized and confirmed  
in it4 ,i've come to fear that1 when ,i 
was confirmed1 ,i wasn't old enough to  
know what ,i was doing4  ,she took a    
deep breath1 amazed at her boldness1 for
 this wasn't in the least how she had   
meant to begin4 ,and she gazed at the   
rector anxiously4 ,to her surprise1 he  
did not appear to be inordinately       

shocked4  ,do you know any better now8  
he asked4  ,perhaps not1 she admitted4  
,but the things of which ,i was sure at 
that time ,i am not sure of now4 ,my    
faith is--is not as complete4  ,faith   
may be likened to an egg1 ,mrs4         
,goodrich1 he said4 ,it must be kept    
whole4 ,if the shell is chipped1 it is  
spoiled4  ,eleanor plucked up her       
courage4 ,eggs1 she declared1 had been  
used as illustrations by conservatives  
before now4  ,hodder relieved her by    
smiling in ready appreciation4          
,columbus had reference to this world1  
he said4 ,i was thinking of a more      
perfect cue4  ,oh6 she cried1 ,i dare   
say there is a more perfect one4 ,i     
should hate to think there wasn't--but  
,i can't imagine it4 ,there's nothing in
 the ,bible in the way of description of
 it to make me really wish to go there4 
,the ,new ,jerusalem is too insipid1 too
 material4 ,i'm sure ,i'm shocking you1 
but ,i must be honest1 and say what ,i  
feel4  ,if some others were as honest1  

said the rector1 the problems of        
clergymen would be much easier4 ,and it 
is precisely because people will not    
tell us what they feel that we are left 
in the dark and cannot help them4 ,of   
course1 the language of ,st4 ,john about
 the future is figurative4              
,figurative1--yes1 she consented1 but   
not figurative in a way that helps me1 a
 modern ,american woman4 ,the figures1  
to be of any use1 ought to appeal to my 
imagination--oughtn't they8 ,but they   
don't4 ,i can't see any utility in such 
a heaven--it seems powerless to enter as
 a factor into my life4  ,it is probable
 that we are not meant to know anything 
about the future4  ,then ,i wish it     
hadn't been made so explicit4 ,its very 
definiteness is somehow--stultifying4   
,and1 ,mr4 ,hodder1 if we were not meant
 to know its details1 it seems to me    
that if the hereafter is to have any    
real value and influence over our lives 
here1 we should know something of its   
conditions1 because it must be in some  

sense a continuation of this4 ,i'm not  
sure that ,i make myself clear4         
,admirably clear4 ,but we have our      
,lord's example of how to live here4    
,if we could be sure1 said ,eleanor1    
just what that example meant4  ,hodder  
was silent a moment4  ,you mean that you
 cannot accept what the ,church teaches 
about his life8 he asked4  ,no1 ,i      
can't1 she faltered4 ,you have helped me
 to say it4 ,i want to have the         
,church's side better explained1--that's
 why ,i'm here4 ,she glanced up at him1 
hesitatingly1 with a puzzled wonder1    
such a positive1 dynamic representative 
of that teaching did he appear4 ,and my 
husband can't1--so many people ,i know  
can't1 ,mr4 ,hodder4 ,only1 some of them
 don't mention the fact4 ,they accept   
it4 ,and you say things with such a     
certainty-- she paused4  ,i know1 he    
replied1 ,i know4 ,i have felt it since 
,i have come here more than ever before4
 ,he did not add that he had felt it    
particularly about her1 about her       

husband3 nor did he give voice to his   
instinctive conviction that he respected
 and admired these two more than a      
hundred others whose professed orthodoxy
 was without a flaw4 ,what is it in     
particular1 he asked1 troubled1 that you
 cannot accept8 ,i will do my best to   
help you4  ,well-- she hesitated again4 
,please continue to be frank1 he begged4
  ,i can't believe in the doctrine of   
the virgin birth1 she responded in a low
 voice2 it seems to me so--so material4 
,and ,i feel ,i am stating a difficulty 
that many have1 ,mr4 ,hodder4 ,why      
should it have been thought necessary   
for ,god to have departed from what is  
really a sacred and sublime fact in     
nature1 to resort to a material proof in
 order to convince a doubting humanity  
that ,jesus was his ,son8 ,oughtn't the 
proof of ,christ's essential ,god-ship  
to lie in his life1 to be discerned by  
the spiritual2 and wasn't he continually
 rebuking those who demanded material   
proof8 ,the very acceptance of a        

material proof1 it seems to me1 is a    
denial of faith1 since faith ceases to  
have any worth whatever the moment the  
demand for such proof is gratified4     
,knowledge puts faith out of the        
question1 for faith to me means a       
trusting on spiritual grounds4 ,and     
surely the acceptance of scriptural     
statements like that of the miraculous  
birth without investigation is not      
faith--it is mere credulity4 ,if ,jesus 
had been born in a miraculous way1 the  
disciples must have known it4 ,joseph   
must have known it when he heard the    
answer ',i must be about my father's    
business1' and their doubts are         
unexplained4  ,i see you have been      
investigating1 said the rector4  ,yes1  
replied ,eleanor1 with an unconscious   
shade of defiance1 people want to know1 
,mr4 ,dodder1--they want to know the    
truth4 ,and if you consider the         
preponderance of the evidence of the    
,gospels themselves--my brother-in-law  
says--you will find that the miraculous 

birth has very little to stand on4 ,take
 out the first two chapters of ,matthew 
and ,luke1 and the rest of the four     
,gospels practically contradict it4 ,the
 genealogies differ1 and they both trace
 through ,joseph4  ,i think people      
suffer in these days from giving too    
much weight to the critics of           
,christianity1 said the rector1 from not
 pondering more deeply on its underlying
 truths4 ,do not think that ,i am       
accusing you of superficiality1 ,mrs4   
,goodrich2 ,i am sure you wish to go to 
the bottom1 or else you would be        
satisfied with what you have already    
read and heard4  ,i do1 she murmured4   
,and the more one reflects on the life  
of our ,lord1 the more one is convinced 
that the doctrine of the virgin birth is
 a vital essential2 without it          
,christianity falls to pieces4 ,let us  
go at the matter the other way round4   
,if we attribute to our ,lord a natural 
birth1 we come at once to the dilemma of
 having to admit that he was merely an  

individual human person1--in an         
unsurpassed relationship with ,god1 it  
is true1 but still a human person4 ,that
 doctrine makes ,christ historical1 some
 one to go back to1 instead of the      
ever-present1 preexistent ,son of ,god  
and mankind4 ,i will go as far as to    
assert that if the virgin birth had     
never been mentioned in the ,gospels1 it
 would nevertheless inevitably have     
become a fundamental doctrine of the    
,christian faith4 ,such a truth is too  
vast1 too far-reaching to have been     
neglected1 and it has a much higher     
significance than the mere record of a  
fact4 ,in spite of the contradictions of
 science1 it explains as nothing else   
can the mystery of the divinity as well 
as the humanity of the ,saviour4        
,eleanor was unconvinced4 ,she felt1 as 
she listened1 the pressure of his       
sincerity and force1 and had to strive  
to prevent her thoughts from becoming   
confused4  ,no1 ,mr4 ,hodder1 ,i simply 
can't see any reason for resorting to a 

physical miracle in order to explain a  
spiritual mystery4 ,i can see why the   
ancients demanded a sign of divinity as 
it were4 ,but for us it has ceased even 
to be that4 ,it can't be proved4 ,you   
ask me1 in the face of overwhelming     
evidence against it1 to teach my        
children that the ,incarnation depends  
on it1 but when they grow up and go to  
college and find it discredited they run
 the risk of losing everything else with
 it4 ,and for my part1 ,i fail utterly  
to see why1 if with ,god all things are 
possible1 it isn't quite as believable1 
as we gather from ,st4 ,mark's ,gospel1 
that he incarnated himself in one       
naturally born4 ,if you reach the       
conclusion that ,jesus was not a mere   
individual human person1 you reach it   
through the contemplation of his life   
and death4  ,then it isn't the physical 
miracle you object to1 especially8 he   
asked4  ,it's the uselessness of it1 for
 this age1 she exclaimed4 ,i think      
clergymen don't understand the harm it  

is doing in concentrating the attention 
on such a vulnerable and non-essential  
point4 ,those of us who are striving to 
reorganize our beliefs and make them    
tenable1 do not bother our heads about  
miracles4 ,they may be true1 or may not1
 or some of them may be4 ,we are        
beginning to see that the virgin birth  
does not add anything to ,christ4 ,we   
are beginning to see that perfection and
 individuality are not                  
incompatible1--one is divine1 and the   
other human4 ,and isn't it by his very  
individuality that we are able to       
recognize ,jesus to-day8  ,you have     
evidently thought and read a great deal1
 ,dodder said1 genuinely surprised4 ,why
 didn't you come to me earlier8         
,eleanor bit her lip4 ,he smiled a      
little4  ,i think ,i can answer that for
 you1 he went on2 you believe we are    
prejudiced1--,i've no doubt many of us  
are4 ,you think we are bound to stand up
 for certain dogmas1 or go down1 and    
that our minds are consequently closed4 

,i am not blaming you1 he added quickly1
 as she gave a sign of protest1 but ,i  
assure you that most of us1 so far as my
 observation has gone1 are honestly     
trying to proclaim the truth as we see  
it4  ,insincerity is the last thing ,i  
should have accused you of1 ,mr4        
,hodder1 she said flushing4 ,as ,i told 
you1 you seem so sure4  ,i don't pretend
 to infallibility1 except so far as ,i  
maintain that the ,church is the        
guardian of certain truths which human  
experience has verified4 ,let me ask you
 if you have thought out the difference 
your conception of the                  
,incarnation2--the lack of a patently   
divine commission1 as it were1--makes in
 the doctrine of grace8  ,yes1 ,i have1 
she answered1 a little4 ,it gives me    
more hope4 ,i cannot think ,i am totally
 depraved4 ,i do not believe that ,god  
wishes me to think so4 ,and while ,i am 
still aware of the distance between     
,christ's perfection and my own         
imperfection1 ,i feel that the          

possibility is greater of lessening that
 distance4 ,it gives me more            
self-respect1 more self-reliance4       
,george ,bridges says that the logical  
conclusion of that old doctrine is what 
philosophers call                       
determinism--,calvinistic               
predestination4 ,i can't believe in     
that4 ,the kind of grace ,god gives me  
is the grace to help myself by drawing  
force from the element of him in my     
soul4 ,he gives me the satisfaction of  
developing4  ,of one thing ,i am        
assured1 ,mrs4 ,goodrich1 ,hodder       
replied1 that the logical result of     
independent thinking is anarchy4 ,under 
this modern tendency toward individual  
creeds1 the ,church has split and split 
again until1 if it keeps on1 we shall   
have no ,church at all to carry on the  
work of our ,lord on earth4 ,history    
proves that to take anything away from  
the faith is to atrophy1 to destroy it4 
,the answer to your arguments is to be  
seen on every side1 atheism1 hypocrisy1 

vice1 misery1 insane and cruel grasping 
after wealth4 ,there is only one remedy 
,i can see1 he added1 inflexibly1 yet   
with a touch of sadness1 believe4  ,what
 if we can't believe8 she asked4  ,you  
can4 ,he spoke with unshaken conviction4
  ,you can if you make the effort1 and  
,i am sure you will4 ,my experience is  
that in the early stages of spiritual   
development we are impervious to certain
 truths4 ,will you permit me to         
recommend to you certain books dealing  
with these questions in a modern way8   
,i will read them gladly1 she said1 and 
rose4  ,and then1 perhaps1 we may have  
another talk1 he added1 looking down at 
her4 ,give my regards to your husband4  
,yet1 as he stood in the window looking 
after her retreating figure1 there      
gradually grew upon him a vague and     
uncomfortable feeling that he had not   
been satisfactory1 and this was         
curiously coupled with the realization  
that the visit had added a considerable 
increment to his already pronounced     

liking for ,eleanor ,goodrich4 ,she was1
 paradoxically1 his kind of a           
person--such was the form the puzzle    
took4 ,and so ably had she presented her
 difficulties that1 at one point of the 
discussion1 it had ironically occurred  
to him to refer her to ,gordon          
,atterbury4 ,mr4 ,atterbury's faith was 
like an egg1 and he took precious care  
not to have it broken or chipped4       
,hodder found himself smiling4 ,it was  
perhaps inevitable that he began at once
 to contrast ,mrs4 ,goodrich with other 
feminine parishioners who had sought him
 out1 and who had surrendered           
unconditionally4 ,they had evinced an   
equally disturbing tendency1--a         
willingness to be overborne4 ,for had he
 not1 indeed1 overborne them8 ,he could 
not help suspecting these other ladies  
of a craving for the luxury of the      
confessional4 ,one thing was            
certain1--he had much less respect for  
them than for ,eleanor ,goodrich 4 4 4 4
  ,that afternoon he sent her the list  

of books4 ,but the weeks passed1 and she
 did not come back4 ,once1 when he met  
her at a dinner of ,mrs4 ,preston's1    
both avoided the subject of her visit1  
both were conscious of a constraint4    
,she did not know how often1 unseen by  
her1 his eyes had sought her out from   
the chancel4 ,for she continued to come 
to church as frequently as before1 and  
often brought her husband4    ,,ii  ,one
 bright and boisterous afternoon in     
,march1 ,hodder alighted from an        
electric car amid a swirl of dust and   
stood gazing for a moment at the stone  
gate-houses of that 'rus in urbe'1      
,waverley ,place1 and at the gold       
block-letters written thereon1 ,no      
,thoroughfare4 ,against those gates and 
their contiguous grill the rude onward  
rush of the city had beaten in vain1    
and1 baffled1 had swept around their    
serene enclosure1 westward4  ,within1 a 
silvery sunlight lit up the grass of the
 island running down the middle1 and in 
the beds the softening earth had already

 been broken by the crocus sheaves4 ,the
 bare branches of the trees swayed in   
the gusts4 ,as ,hodder penetrated this  
hallowed precinct he recognized1 on     
either hand1 the residences of several  
of his parishioners1 each in its ample  
allotted space3 ,mrs4 ,larrabbee's2 the 
,laureston ,greys'2 ,thurston ,gore's1  
of which ,mr4 ,wallis ,plimpton was now 
the master1--,mr4 ,plimpton1 before     
whose pertinacity the walls of ,jericho 
had fallen2 and finally the queer1      
twisted ,richardson mansion of the      
,everett ,constables1 whither he was    
bound1 with its recessed doorway and    
tiny windows peeping out from under     
mediaeval penthouses4  ,he was ushered  
into a library where the shades were    
already drawn1 where a-white-clothed    
tea-table was set before the fire1 the  
red rays dancing on the silver          
tea-kettle4 ,on the centre-table he was 
always sure to find1 neatly set in a    
rack1 the books about which the world   
was talking1 or rather would soon begin 

to talk2 and beside them were ranged    
magazines2 ,french1 ,english1 and       
,american1 ,punch1 the ,spectator1 the  
,nation1 the ',revue des deux ,mondes'4 
,like the able general she was1 ,mrs4   
,constable kept her communications open1
 and her acquaintance was by no means   
confined to the city of her nativity4   
,and if a celebrity were passing        
through1 it were pretty safe1 if in     
doubt1 to address him in her care4      
,hodder liked and admired her1 but      
somehow she gave him the impression of  
having attained her ascendancy at a     
price1 an ascendancy which had          
apparently been gained by impressing    
upon her environment a new note         
--literary1 aesthetic1 cosmopolitan4    
,she held herself1 and those she carried
 with her1 abreast of the times1 and he 
was at a loss to see how so congenial an
 effort could have left despite her     
sweetness--the little mark of hardness  
he discerned1 of worldliness4 ,for she  
was as well born as any woman in the    

city1 and her husband was a ,constable4 
,he had inherited1 so the rector had    
been informed1 one of those modest      
fortunes that were deemed affluence in  
the eighties4 ,his keeping abreast of   
the times was the enigma1 and ,hodder   
had often wondered how financial genius 
had contrived to house itself in the    
well-dressed1 gently pompous little man 
whose lack of force seemed at times so  
painfully evident4 ,and yet he was rated
 one of the rich men of the city1 and   
his name ,hodder had read on many boards
 with ,mr4 ,parr's6  ,a person more     
versed in the modern world of affairs   
than the late rector of ,bremerton would
 not have been so long in arriving at   
the answer to this riddle4 ,hodder was  
astute1 he saw into people more than    
they suspected1 but he was not          
sophisticated4  ,he stood picturing1    
now1 the woman in answer to whose       
summons he had come4 ,with her finely   
chiselled features1 her abundant white  
hair1 her slim figure and erect carriage

 she reminded him always of a ,vigee    
,lebrun portrait4 ,he turned at the     
sound of her voice behind him4  ,how    
good of you to come1 ,mr4 ,hodder1 when 
you were so busy1 she said1 taking his  
hand as she seated herself behind the   
tea-kettle4 ,i wanted the chance to talk
 to you1 and it seemed the best way4    
,what is that you have1 ,soter's book8  
,i pinked it up on the table1 he        
explained4  ,then you haven't read it8  
,you ought to4 ,as a clergyman1 it would
 interest you4 ,religion treated from   
the economic side1 you know1 the effect 
of lack of nutrition on character4 ,very
 unorthodox1 of course4  ,i find that ,i
 have very little time to read1 he said4
 ,i sometimes take a book along in the  
cars4  ,your profession is not so       
leisurely as it once was1 ,i often think
 it such a pity4 ,but you1 too1 are     
paying the penalty of complexity4 ,she  
smiled at him sympathetically4 ,how is  
,mr4 ,parr8 ,i haven't seen him for     
several weeks4  ,he seemed well when ,i 

saw him last1 replied ,hodder4  ,he's a 
wonderful man2 the amount of work he    
accomplishes without apparent effort is 
stupendous4 ,mrs4 ,constable cast what  
seemed a tentative glance at the        
powerful head1 and handed him his tea4  
,i wanted to talk to you about          
,gertrude1 she said4  ,he looked        
unenlightened4  ,about my daughter1     
,mrs4 ,warren4 ,she lives in ,new ,york1
 you know --on ,long ,island4  ,then he 
had remembered something he had heard4  
,yes1 he said4  ,she met you1 at the    
,fergusons'1 just for a moment1 when she
 was out here last autumn4 ,what really 
nice and simple people the ,fergusons   
are1 with all their money6  ,very nice  
indeed1 he agreed1 puzzled4  ,i have    
been sorry for them in the past1 she    
went on evenly4 ,they had rather a hard 
time--perhaps you may have heard4       
,nobody appreciated them4 ,they were    
entombed1 so to speak1 in a hideous big 
house over on the ,south ,side1 which   
fortunately burned down1 and then they  

bought in ,park ,street1 and took a pew 
in ,st4 ,john's4 ,i suppose the idea of 
that huge department store was rather   
difficult to get used to4 ,but ,i made  
up my mind it was nonsense to draw the  
line at department stores1 especially   
since ,mr4 ,ferguson's was such a useful
 and remarkable one1 so ,i went across  
and called4 ,mrs4 ,ferguson was so      
grateful1 it was almost pathetic4 ,and  
she's a very good friend--she came here 
everyday when ,genevieve had            
appendicitis4  ,she's a good woman1 the 
rector said4  ,and ,nan1--,i adore ,nan1
 everybody adores ,nan4 ,she reminds me 
of one of those exquisite1 blue-eyed    
dolls her father imports4 ,now if ,i    
were a bachelor1 ,mr4 ,hodder--6 ,mrs4  
,constable left the rest to his         
imagination4  ,he smiled4  ,i'm afraid  
,miss ,ferguson has her own ideas4      
,running through ,hodder's mind1 a      
troubled current1 were certain memories 
connected with ,mrs4 ,warren4 ,was she  
the divorced daughter1 or was she not8  

,but ,i was going to speak to you about 
,gertrude4 ,she's had such a hard time1 
poor dear1 my heart has bled for her4   
,there was a barely perceptible tremor  
in ,mrs4 ,constable's voice4 ,all that  
publicity1 and the inevitable suffering 
connected with it6 ,and no one can know 
the misery she went through1 she is so  
sensitive4 ,but now1 at last1 she has a 
chance for happiness--the real thing has
 come4  ,the real thing6 he echoed4     
,yes4 ,she's going to marry a splendid  
man1 ,eldridge ,sumner4 ,i know the     
family well4 ,they have always stood for
 public spirit1 and this ,mr4 ,summer1  
although he is little over thirty1 was  
chairman of that ,vice ,commission which
 made such a stir in ,new ,york a year  
ago4 ,he's a lawyer1 with a fine future1
 and they're madly in love4 ,and        
,gertrude realizes now1 after her       
experience1 the true values in life4    
,she was only a child when she married  
,victor ,warren4  ,but ,mr4 ,warren1    
,hodder managed to say1 is still living4

  ,i sometimes wonder1 ,mr4 ,hodder1 she
 went on hurriedly1 whether we can      
realize how different the world is today
 from what it was twenty years ago1     
until something of this kind is actually
 brought home to us4 ,i shall never     
forget how distressed1 how overwhelmed  
,mr4 ,constable and ,i were when        
,gertrude got her divorce4 ,i know that 
they are regarding such things          
differently in the ,east1 but out       
here6--,we never dreamed that such a    
thing could happen to us1 and we        
regarded it as a disgrace4 ,but         
gradually-- she hesitated1 and looked at
 the motionless clergyman --gradually ,i
 began to see ,gertrude's point of view1
 to understand that she had made a      
mistake1 that she had been too young to 
comprehend what she was doing4 ,victor  
,warren had been ruined by money1 he    
wasn't faithful to her1 but an          
extraordinary thing has happened in his 
case4 ,he's married again1 and ,gertrude
 tells me he's absurdly happy1 and has  

two children4  ,as he listened1         
,hodder's dominating feeling was        
amazement that such a course as her     
daughter had taken should be condoned by
 this middle-aged lady1 a prominent     
member of his congregation and the wife 
of a vestryman1 who had been nurtured   
and steeped in ,christianity4 ,and not  
only that3 ,mrs4 ,constable was plainly 
defending a further step1 which in his  
opinion involved a breach of the        
,seventh ,commandment6 ,to have invaded 
these precincts1 the muddy1 turbulent   
river of individualism had risen higher 
than he would have thought possible 4 4 
4 4  ,wait6 she implored1 checking his  
speech1--she had been watching him with 
what was plainly anxiety1 don't say     
anything yet4 ,i have a letter here     
which she wrote me--at the time4 ,i kept
 it4 ,let me read a part of it to you1  
that you may understand more fully the  
tragedy of it4  ,mrs4 ,constable thrust 
her hand into her lap and drew forth a  
thickly covered sheet4  ,it was written 

just after she left him--it is an answer
 to my protest1 she explained1 and began
 to read3  ,i know ,i promised to love  
,victor1 mother1 but how can one promise
 to do a thing over which one has no    
control8 ,i loved him after he stopped  
loving me4 ,he wasn't a bit suited to   
me--,i see that now--he was attracted by
 the outside of me1 and ,i never knew   
what he was like until ,i married him4  
,his character seemed to change         
completely2 he grew morose and          
quick-tempered and secretive1 and       
nothing ,i did pleased him4 ,we led a   
cat-and-dog life4 ,i never let you      
know--and yet ,i see now we might have  
got along in any other relationship4 ,we
 were very friendly when we parted1 and 
,i'm not a bit jealous because he cares 
for another woman who ,i can see is much
 better suited to him4  ',i can't       
honestly regret leaving him1 and ,i'm   
not conscious of having done anything   
wrong4 ,i don't want to shock you1 and  
,i know how terribly you and father must

 feel1 but ,i can see now1 somehow1 that
 ,i had to go through this experience1  
terrible as it was1 to find myself4 ,if 
it were thirty years ago1 before people 
began to be liberal in such matters1 ,i 
shudder to think what might have become 
of me4 ,i should now be one of those    
terrible women between fifty and sixty  
who have tried one frivolity and excess 
after another--but ,i'm not coming to   
that6 ,and my friends have really been  
awfully kind1 and supported me--even    
,victor's family4 ,don't1 don't think   
that ,i'm not respectable6 ,i know how  
you look at such things4' ,mrs4         
,constable closed the letter abruptly4  
,i did look at such things in that way1 
she added1 but ,i've changed4 ,that     
letter helped to change me1 and the fact
 that it was ,gertrude who had been     
through this4 ,if you only knew         
,gertrude1 ,mr4 ,hodder1 you couldn't   
possibly think of her as anything but   
sweet and pure4  ,although the extent of
 ,hodder's acquaintance with ,mrs4      

,warren had been but five minutes1 the  
letter had surprisingly retouched to    
something like brilliancy her faded     
portrait1 the glow in her cheeks1 the   
iris blue in her eyes4 ,he recalled the 
little shock he had experienced when    
told that she was divorced1 for her     
appeal had lain in her very freshness1  
her frank and confiding manner4 ,she was
 one of those women who seem to say1    
,here ,i am1 you can't but like me3 ,and
 he had responded--he remembered        
that--he had liked her4 ,and now her    
letter1 despite his resistance1 had made
 its appeal1 so genuinely human was it1 
so honest1 although it expressed a      
philosophy he abhorred4  ,mrs4          
,constable was watching him mutely1     
striving to read in his grave eyes the  
effect of her pleadings4  ,you are      
telling me this1 ,mrs4 ,constable--why8 
he asked4  ,because ,i wished you to    
know the exact situation before ,i asked
 you1 as a great favour to me1 to ,mr4  
,constable1 to--to marry her in ,st4    

,john's4 ,of course1 she went on1       
controlling her rising agitation1 and   
anticipating a sign of protest1 we      
shouldn't expect to have any people1    
---and ,gertrude wasn't married in ,st4 
,john's before2 that wedding was at     
,passumset our seashore place4 ,oh1 ,mr4
 ,hodder1 before you answer1 think of   
our feelings1 ,mr4 ,constable's and     
mine6 ,if you could see ,mr4 ,constable1
 you would know how he suffers--this    
thing has upset him more than the       
divorce4 ,his family have such pride4 ,i
 am so worried about him1 and he doesn't
 eat anything and looks so haggard4 ,i  
told him ,i would see you and explain   
and that seemed to comfort him a little4
 ,she is1 after all1 our child1 and we  
don't want to feel1 so far as our church
 is concerned1 that she is an           
,ishmaelite2 we don't want to have the  
spectacle of her having to go around1   
outside1 to find a clergyman--that would
 be too dreadful6 ,i know how strict1   
how unflinching you are1 and ,i admire  

you for it4 ,but this is a special case4
  ,she paused1 breathing deeply1 and    
,hodder gazed at her with pity4 ,what he
 felt was more than pity2 he was        
experiencing1 indeed1 but with a deeper 
emotion1 something of that same         
confusion of values into which ,eleanor 
,goodrich's visit had thrown him4 ,at   
the same time it had not escaped his    
logical mind that ,mrs4 ,constable had  
made her final plea on the score of     
respectability4  ,it gives me great pain
 to have to refuse you1 he said gently4 
,oh1 don't1 she said sharply1 don't say 
that6 ,i can't have made the case clear4
 ,you are too big1 too comprehending1   
,mr4 ,hodder1 to have a hard-and-fast   
rule4 ,there must be times--extenuating 
circumstances--and ,i believe the canons
 make it optional for a clergyman to    
marry the innocent person4  ,yes1 it is 
optional1 but ,i do1 not believe it     
should be4 ,the question is left to the 
clergyman's' conscience4 ,according to  
my view1 ,mrs4 ,constable1 the ,church1 

as the agent of ,god1 effects an        
indissoluble bond4 ,and much as ,i      
should like to do anything in my power  
for you and ,mr4 ,constable1 you have   
asked the impossible1--believing as ,i  
do1 there can be no special case1 no    
extenuating circumstance4 ,and it is my 
duty to tell you it is because people   
to-day are losing their beliefs that we 
have this lenient attitude toward the   
sacred things4 ,if they still held the  
conviction that marriage is of ,god1    
they would labour to make it a success1 
instead of flying apart at the first    
sign of what they choose to call        
incompatibility4  ,but surely1 she said1
 we ought not to be punished for our    
mistakes6 ,i cannot believe that ,christ
 himself intended that his religion     
should be so inelastic1 so hard and     
fast1 so cruel as you imply4 ,surely    
there is enough unhappiness without     
making more4 ,you speak of              
incompatibility --but is it in all cases
 such an insignificant matter8 ,we are  

beginning to realize in these days      
something of the effects of character on
 character1--deteriorating effects1 in  
many instances4 ,with certain persons we
 are lifted up1 inspired to face the    
battle of life and overcome its         
difficulties4 ,i have known fine men and
 women whose lives have been stultified 
or ruined because they were badly mated4
 ,and ,i cannot see that the character  
of my own daughter has deteriorated     
because she has got a divorce from a man
 with whom she was profoundly out of    
sympathy--of harmony4 ,on the contrary1 
she seems more of a person than she was2
 she has clearer1 saner views of life2  
she has made her mistake and profited by
 it4 ,her views changed--,victor        
,warren's did not4 ,she began to realize
 that some other woman might have an    
influence over his life--she had none1  
simply because he did not love her4 ,and
 love is not a thing we can compel4     
,you are making it very hard for me1    
,mrs4 ,constable1 he said4 ,you are now 

advocating an individualism with which  
the ,church can have no sympathy4       
,christianity teaches us that life is   
probationary1 and if we seek to avoid   
the trials sent us1 instead of          
overcoming them1 we find ourselves      
farther than ever from any solution4 ,we
 have to stand by our mistakes4 ,if     
marriage is to be a mere trial of       
compatibility1 why go through a ceremony
 than which there is none more binding  
in human and divine institutions8 ,one  
either believes in it1 or one does not4 
,and1 if belief be lacking1 the state   
provides for the legalization of        
marriages4  ,oh6 she exclaimed4  ,if    
persons wish to be married in church in 
these days merely because it is         
respectable1 if such be their only      
reason1 they are committing a great     
wrong4 ,they are taking an oath before  
,god with reservations1 knowing that    
public opinion will release them if the 
marriage does not fulfil their          
expectations4  ,for a moment she gazed  

at him with parted lips1 and pressing   
her handkerchief to her eyes began      
silently to cry4 ,the sudden spectacle1 
in this condition1 of a self-controlled 
woman of the world was infinitely       
distressing to ,hodder1 whose sympathies
 were even more sensitive than 7in her  
attempt to play upon them7 she had      
suspected4 4 4 ,she was aware that he   
had got to his feet1 and was standing   
beside her1 speaking with an oddly      
penetrating tenderness4  ,i did not mean
 to be harsh1 he said1 and it is not    
that ,i do not understand how you feel4 
,you have made my duty peculiarly       
difficult4  ,she raised up to him a face
 from which the mask had fallen1 from   
which the illusory look of youth had    
fled4 ,he turned away4 4 4 ,and         
presently she began to speak again2 in  
disconnected sentences4  ,i so want her 
to be happy--,i cannot think1 ,i will   
not think that she has wrecked her      
life--it would be too unjust1 too cruel4
 ,you cannot know what it is to be a    

woman6  ,before this cry he was silent4 
,i don't ask anything of ,god except    
that she shall have a chance1 and it    
seems to me that he is making the world 
better--less harsh for women4  ,he did  
not reply4 ,and presently she looked up 
at him again1 steadfastly now1          
searchingly4 ,the barriers of the       
conventions were down1 she had cast her 
pride to the winds4 ,he seemed to read  
in her a certain relief4  ,i am going to
 tell you something1 ,mr4 ,hodder1 which
 you may think strange1 but ,i have a   
reason for saying it4 ,you are still a  
young man1 and ,i feel instinctively    
that you have an unusual career before  
you4 ,you interested me the first time  
you stepped into the pulpit of ,st4     
,john's --and it will do me good to talk
 to you1 this once1 frankly4 ,you have  
reiterated to-day1 in no uncertain      
terms1 doctrines which ,i once believed1
 which ,i was brought up to think       
infallible4 ,but ,i have lived since    
then1 and life itself has made me doubt 

them4  ,i recognize in you a humanity1 a
 sympathy and breadth which you are     
yourself probably not aware of1 all of  
which is greater than the rule which you
 so confidently apply to fit all cases4 
,it seems to me that ,christ did not    
intend us to have such rules4 ,he went  
beyond them1 into the spirit4  ,under   
the conditions of society--of           
civilization to-day1 most marriages are 
merely a matter of chance4 ,even        
judgment cannot foresee the development 
of character brought about by           
circumstances1 by environment4 ,and in  
many marriages ,i have known about      
intimately both the man and the woman   
have missed the most precious thing that
 life can give something ,i cannot but  
think--,god intends us to have4 ,you    
see1--she smiled at him sadly--,i am    
still a little of an idealist4  ,i      
missed--the thing ,i am talking about1  
and it has been the great sorrow of my  
life--not only on my account1 but on my 
husband's4 ,and so far as ,i am         

concerned1 ,i am telling you the truth  
when ,i say ,i should have been content 
to have lived in a log cabin if--if the 
gift had been mine4 ,not all the money  
in the world1 nor the intellect1 nor the
 philanthropy--the so-called interests  
of life1 will satisfy me for its denial4
 ,i am a disappointed woman1 ,i         
sometimes think a bitter woman4 ,i can't
 believe that life is meant to be so4   
,those energies have gone into ambition 
which should have been absorbed by--by  
something more worth while4  ,and ,i can
 see so plainly now that my husband     
would have been far1 far happier with   
another kind of woman4 ,i drew him away 
from the only work he ever enjoyed--his 
painting4 ,i do not say he ever could   
have been a great artist1 but he had a  
little of the divine spark1 in his      
enthusiasm at least--in his assiduity4  
,i shall never forget our first trip    
abroad1 after we were married--he was   
like a boy in the galleries1 in the     
studios4 ,i could not understand it     

then4 ,i had no real sympathy with art1 
but ,i tried to make sacrifices1 what ,i
 thought were ,christian sacrifices4    
,the motive power was lacking1 and no   
matter how hard ,i tried1 ,i was only   
half-hearted1 and he realized it        
instinctively--no amount of feigning    
could deceive him4 ,something deep in   
me1 which was a part of my nature1 was  
antagonistic1 stultifying to the        
essentials of his own being4 ,of course 
neither of us saw that then1 but the    
results were not long in developing4 ,to
 him1 art was a sacred thing1 and it was
 impossible for me to regard it with    
equal seriousness4 ,he drew into        
himself1--closed up1 as it were1--no    
longer discussed it4 ,i was hurt4 ,and  
when we came home he kept on in         
business--he still had his father's     
affairs to look after--but he had a     
little workroom at the top of the house 
where he used to go in the afternoon 4 4
 4 4  ,it was a question which one of us
 should be warped1--which personality   

should be annihilated1 so to speak1 and 
,i was the stronger4 ,and as ,i look    
back1 ,mr4 ,hodder1 what occurred seems 
to me absolutely inevitable1 given the  
ingredients1 as inevitable as a chemical
 process4 ,we were both striving against
 each other1 and ,i won--at a tremendous
 cost4 ,the conflict1 one might say1 was
 subconscious1 instinctive rather than  
deliberate4 ,my attitude forced him back
 into business1 although we had enough  
to live on very comfortably1 and then   
the scale of life began to increase1    
luxuries formerly unthought of seemed to
 become necessities4 ,and while it was  
still afar off ,i saw a great wave      
rolling toward us1 the wave of that new 
prosperity which threatened to submerge 
us1 and ,i seized the buoy fate had     
placed in our hands1--or rather1 by     
suggestion1 ,i induced my husband to    
seize it--his name4  ,i recognized the  
genius1 the future of ,eldon ,parr at a 
time when he was not yet independent and
 supreme1 when association with a       

,constable meant much to him4 ,mr4 ,parr
 made us1 as the saying goes4 ,needless 
to say2 money has not brought happiness1
 but a host of hard1 false ambitions    
which culminated in ,gertrude's marriage
 with ,victor ,warren4 ,i set my heart  
on the match1 helped it in every1 way1  
and until now nothing but sorrow has    
come of it4 ,but my point--is this1--,i 
see so clearly1 now that it is too late1
 that two excellent persons may         
demoralize each other if they are       
ill-mated4 ,it may be possible that ,i  
had the germs of false ambition in me   
when ,i was a girl1 yet ,i was conscious
 only of the ideal which is in most     
women's hearts 4 4 4 4  ,you must not   
think that ,i have laid my soul bare in 
the hope of changing your mind in regard
 to ,gertrude4 ,i recognize clearly1    
now1 that that is impossible4 ,oh1 ,i   
know you do not so misjudge me1 she     
added1 reading his quick protest in his 
face4  ,indeed1 ,i cannot analyze my    
reasons for telling you something of    

which ,i have never spoken to any one   
else4  ,mrs4 ,constable regarded him    
fixedly4 ,you are the strongest reason4 
,you have somehow drawn it out of me 4 4
 4 4 ,and ,i suppose ,i wish some one to
 profit by it4 ,you can1 ,mr4           
,hodder1--,i feel sure of that4 ,you may
 insist now that my argument against    
your present conviction of the          
indissolubility of marriage is mere     
individualism1 but ,i want you to think 
of what ,i have told you1 not to answer 
me now4 ,i know your argument by heart1 
that ,christian character develops by   
submission1 by suffering1 that it is the
 woman's place to submit1 to efface     
herself4 ,but the root of the matter    
goes deeper than that4 ,i am far from   
deploring sacrifice1 yet common-sense   
tells us that our sacrifice should be   
guided by judgment1 that foolish        
sacrifices are worse than useless4 ,and 
there are times when the very           
limitations of our individuality        
--necessary limitation's for us--prevent

 our sacrifices from counting4  ,i was  
wrong1 ,i grant you1 grievously wrong in
 the course ,i took1 even though it were
 not consciously deliberate4 ,but if my 
husband had been an artist ,i should    
always have remained separated from his 
real life by a limitation ,i had no     
power to remove4 ,the more ,i tried1 the
 more apparent my lack of insight became
 to him1 the more irritated he grew4 ,i 
studied his sketches1 ,i studied        
masterpieces1 but it was all hopeless4  
,the thing wasn't in me1 and he knew it 
wasn't4 ,every remark made him quiver4  
,the ,church1 ,i think1 will grow more  
liberal1 must grow more liberal1 if it  
wishes to keep in touch with people in  
an age when they are thinking out these 
questions for themselves4 ,the law      
cannot fit all cases1 ,i am sure the    
,gospel can4 ,and sometimes women have  
an instinct1 a kind of second sight into
 persons1 ,mr4 ,hodder4 ,i cannot       
explain why ,i feel that you have in you
 elements of growth which will          

eventually bring you more into sympathy 
with the point of view ,i have set      
forth1 but ,i do feel it4  ,hodder did  
not attempt to refute her--she had1     
indeed1 made discussion impossible4 ,she
 knew his arguments1 as she had         
declared1 and he had the intelligence to
 realize that a repetition of them1 on  
his part1 would be useless4 ,she brought
 home to him1 as never before1 a sense  
of the anomalistic position of the      
,church in these modern days1 of its    
appallingly lessened weight even with   
its own members4 ,as a successor of the 
,apostles1 he had no power over this    
woman1 or very little2 he could neither 
rebuke her1 nor sentence her to penance4
 ,she recognized his authority to marry 
her daughter1 to baptize her daughter's 
children1 but not to interfere in any   
way with her spiritual life4 ,it was as 
a personality he had moved her--a       
personality apparently not in harmony   
with his doctrine4 ,women had hinted at 
this before4 ,and while ,mrs4 ,constable

 had not1 as she perceived1 shaken his  
conviction1 the very vividness and      
unexpectedness of a confession from     
her--had stirred him to the marrow1 had 
opened doors1 perforce1 which he1       
himself had marked forbidden1 and given 
him a glimpse beyond before he could    
lower his eyes4 ,was there1 after all1  
something in him that responded in spite
 of himself8  ,he sat gazing at her1 his
 head bent1 his strong hands on the arms
 of the chair4  ,we never can foresee   
how we may change1 he answered1 a light 
in his eyes that was like a smile1 yet  
having no suggestion of levity4 ,and his
 voice--despite his                     
disagreement--maintained the quality of 
his sympathy4 ,neither felt the oddity1 
then1 of the absence of a jarring note4 
,you may be sure1 at least1 of my       
confidence1 and of my gratitude for what
 you have told me4  ,his tone belied the
 formality of his speech4 ,mrs4         
,constable returned his gaze in silence1
 and before words came again to either1 

a step sounded on the threshold and ,mr4
 ,constable entered4  ,hodder looked at 
him with a new vision4 ,his face was    
indeed lined and worn1 and dark circles 
here under his eyes4 ,but at ,mrs4      
,constable's ,here's ,mr4 ,hodder1 dear1
 he came forward briskly to welcome the 
clergyman4  ,how do you do8 he said     
cordially4 ,we don't see you very often4
  ,i have been telling ,mr4 ,hodder that
 modern rectors of big parishes have far
 too many duties1 said his wife4  ,and  
after a few minutes of desultory        
conversation1 the rector left4          
,,chapter ,,vi  ,,watchman1 ,,what ,,of 
,,the ,,night8  ,it was one of those    
moist nights of spring when the air is  
pungent with the odour of the softened  
earth1 and the gentle breaths that      
stirred the curtains in ,mr4 ,parr's big
 dining-room wafted1 from the garden1   
the perfumes of a revived               
creation1--delicious1 hothouse smells4  
,at intervals1 showers might be heard   
pattering on the walk outside4 ,the     

rector of ,st4 ,john's was dining with  
his great parishioner4  ,here indeed    
were a subject for some modern master1 a
 chance to picture for generations to   
come an aspect of a mighty age1 an age  
that may some day be deemed but a       
grotesque and anomalistic survival of a 
more ancient logic2 a gargoyle carved   
out of chaos1 that bears on its features
 a resemblance to the past and the      
future4  ,our scene might almost be     
mediaeval with its encircling gloom1    
through which the heavy tapestries and  
shadowy corners of the huge apartment   
may be dimly made out4 ,in the center1  
the soft red glow of the candles1 the   
gleaming silver1 the shining cloth1 the 
,church on one side--and what on the    
other8 ,no name given it now1 no royal  
name1 but still ,power4 ,the two are    
still in apposition1 not yet in         
opposition1 but the discerning may      
perchance read a prophecy in the salient
 features of the priest4  ,the ,man of  
,power of the beginning of the twentieth

 century demands a subtler analysis1    
presents an enigma to which the immortal
 portraits of forgotten ,medicis and    
,capets give no clew4 ,imagine1 if you  
can1 a ,lorenzo or a ,grand ,louis in a 
tightly-buttoned frock coat6 ,there must
 be some logical connection between the 
habit and the age1 since crimson velvet 
and gold brocade would have made ,eldon 
,parr merely ridiculous4  ,he is by no  
means ridiculous1 yet take him out of   
the setting and put him in the street1  
and you might pass him a dozen times    
without noticing him4 ,nature1 and      
perhaps unconscious art1 have provided  
him with a protective exterior2 he is   
the colour of his jungle4 ,after he has 
crippled you --if you survive--you will 
never forget him4 ,you will remember his
 eye1 which can be unsheathed like a    
rapier2 you will recall his lips as the 
expression of a relentless negative4    
,the significance of the slight bridge  
on the narrow nose is less easy to      
define4 ,he is neither tall nor short2  

his face is clean-shaven1 save for      
scanty1 unobtrusive reddish tufts high  
on the cheeks2 his hair is thin4  ,it   
must be borne in mind1 however1 that our
 rector did not see him in his jungle1  
and perhaps in the traditional nobility 
of the lion there is a certain truth4   
,an interesting biography of some of the
 powerful of this earth might be written
 from the point of view of the confessor
 or the physician1 who find something to
 love1 something to pity1 and nothing to
 fear--thus reversing the sentiments of 
the public4  ,yet the friendship between
 ,john ,hodder and ,eldon ,parr defied  
any definite analysis on the rector's   
part1 and was perhaps the strangest--and
 most disquieting element that had as   
yet come into ,hodder's life4 ,the      
nature of his intimacy with the banker1 
if intimacy it might be called1 might   
have surprised his other parishioners if
 they could have been hidden spectators 
of one of these dinners4 ,there were    
long silences when the medium of        

communication1 tenuous at best1 seemed  
to snap1 and the two sat gazing at each 
other as from mountain peaks across     
impassable valleys4 ,with all the will  
in the world1 their souls lost touch1   
though the sense in the clergyman of the
 other's vague yearning for human       
companionship was never absent4 ,it was 
this yearning that attracted ,hodder1   
who found in it a deep pathos4  ,after  
one of these intervals of silence1      
,eldon ,parr looked up from his claret4 
,i congratulate you1 ,hodder1 on the    
stand you took in regard to ,constable's
 daughter1 he said4  ,i didn't suppose  
it was known1 answered the rector1 in   
surprise4  ,constable told me4 ,i have  
reason to believe that he doesn't       
sympathize with his wife in her attitude
 on this matter4 ,it's pulled him down1 
--you've noticed that he looks badly8   
,yes1 said the rector4 ,he did not care 
to discuss the affair2 he had hoped it  
would not become known2 and he shunned  
the congratulations of ,gordon          

,atterbury1 which in such case would be 
inevitable4 ,and in spite of the        
conviction that he had done his duty1   
the memory of his talk with ,mrs4       
,constable never failed to make him1    
uncomfortable4  ,exasperation crept into
 ,mr4 ,pares voice4  ,i can't think     
what's got into women in these times--at
 ,mrs4 ,constable's age they ought to   
know better4 ,nothing restrains them4   
,they have reached a point where they   
don't even respect the ,church4 ,and    
when that happens1 it is serious indeed4
 ,the ,church is the governor on our    
social engine1 and it is supposed to    
impose a restraint upon the lawless4    
,hodder could not refrain from smiling a
 little at the banker's conception4     
,doesn't that reduce the ,church        
somewhere to the level of the police    
force8 he asked4  ,not at all1 said     
,eldon ,parr1 whose feelings seemed to  
be rising4 ,i am sorry for ,constable4  
,he feels the shame of this thing       
keenly1 and he ought to go away for a   

while to one of these quiet resorts4 ,i 
offered him my car4 ,sometimes ,i think 
that women have no morals4 ,at any rate1
 this modern notion of giving them their
 liberty is sheer folly4 ,look what they
 have done with it6 ,instead of         
remaining at home1 where they belong1   
they are going out into the world and   
turning it topsy-turvy4 ,and if a man   
doesn't let them have a free hand1 they 
get a divorce and marry some idiot who  
will4  ,mr4 ,parr pushed back his chair 
and rose abruptly1 starting for the     
door4 ,the rector followed him1 forcibly
 struck by the unusual bitterness in his
 tone4  ,if ,i have spoken strongly1 it 
is because ,i feel strongly1 he said in 
a strange1 thickened voice4 ,hodder1 how
 would you like to live in this         
house--alone8  ,the rector looked down  
upon him with keen1 comprehending eyes1 
and saw ,eldon ,parr as he only1 of all 
men1 had seen him4 ,for he himself did  
not understand his own strange power of 
drawing forth the spirit from its shell1

 of compelling the inner1 suffering     
thing to reveal itself4  ,this poison1  
,eldon ,parr went on unevenly1 has eaten
 into my own family4 ,my daughter1 who  
might have been a comfort and a         
companion1 since she chose not to marry1
 was carried away by it1 and thought it 
incumbent upon her to have a career of  
her own4 ,and now ,i have a choice of   
thirty rooms1 and not a soul to share   
them with4 ,sometimes1 at night1 ,i make
 up my mind to sell this house4 ,but ,i 
can't do it--something holds me back1   
hope1 superstition1 or whatever you've a
 mind to call it4 ,you've never seen all
 of the house1 have you8 he asked4  ,the
 rector slowly shook his head1 and the  
movement might have been one that he    
would have used in acquiescence to the  
odd whim of a child4 ,mr4 ,parr led the 
way up the wide staircase to the        
corridor above1 traversing chamber after
 chamber1 turning on the lights4  ,these
 were my wife's rooms1 he said1 they are
 just as she left them4 ,and these my   

daughter ,alison's1 when she chooses to 
pay me a visit4 ,i didn't realize that  
,i should have to spend the last years  
of my life alone4 ,and ,i meant1 when ,i
 gave my wife a house1 to have it the   
best in the city4 ,i spared nothing on  
it1 as you see1 neither care nor money4 
,i had the best architect ,i could find1
 and used the best material4 ,and what  
good is it to me8 ,only a reminder--of  
what might have been4 ,but ,i've got a  
boy1 ,hodder1--,i don't know whether    
,i've ever spoken of him to             
you--,preston4 ,he's gone away1 too4    
,but ,i've always had the hope that he  
might come back and get decently        
married1 and live1 here4 ,that's why ,i 
stay4 ,i'll show you his picture4  ,they
 climbed to the third floor1 and while  
,mr4 ,parr way searching for the        
electric switch1 a lightning flash broke
 over the forests of the park1          
prematurely revealing the room4 ,it was 
a boy's room1 hung with photographs of  
school and college crews and teams and  

groups of intimates1 with deep window   
seats1 and draped pennons of ,harvard   
,university over the fireplace4 ,eldon  
,parr turned to one of the groups on the
 will1 the earliest taken at school4    
,there he is1 he said1 pointing out a   
sunny little face at the bottom1 a boy  
of twelve1 bareheaded1 with short1      
crisping yellow hair1 smiling lips and  
laughing eyes4 ,and here he is again1   
indicating another group4 ,thus he      
traced him through succeeding years     
until they came to those of college4    
,there he is1 said the rector4 ,i think 
,i can pick him out now4  ,yes2 that's  
,preston1 said his father1 staring hard 
at the picture4 ,the face had developed1
 the body had grown almost to man's     
estate1 but the hint of crispness was   
still in the hair1 the mischievous      
laughter in the eyes4 ,the rector gazed 
earnestly at the face1 remembering his  
own boyhood1 his own youth1 his mind    
dwelling1 too1 on what he had heard of  
the original of the portrait4 ,what had 

happened to the boy1 to bring to naught 
the fair promise of this earlier        
presentment8  ,he was aroused by the    
voice of ,eldon ,parr1 who had sunk into
 one of the leather chairs4  ,i can see 
him now1 he was saying1 as he used to   
come running down that long flight of   
stone steps in ,ransome ,street to meet 
me when ,i came home4 ,such laughter6   
,and once1 in his eagerness1 he fell and
 cut his forehead4 ,i shall never forget
 how ,i felt4 ,and when ,i picked him up
 he tried to laugh still1 with the tears
 rolling down his face4 ,you know the   
way a child's breath catches1 ,hodder8  
,he was always laughing4 ,and how he    
used to cling to me1 and beg me to take 
him out1 and show such an interest in   
everything6 ,he was a bright boy1 a     
remarkable child1 ,i thought1 but ,i    
suppose it was my foolishness4 ,he      
analyzed all he saw1 and when he used to
 go off in my car1 ,brennan1 the        
engineer1 would always beg to have him  
in the cab4 ,and such sympathy6 ,he knew

 in an instant when ,i was worried4 ,i  
had dreams of what that boy would       
become1 but ,i was too sure of it4 ,i   
went on doing other things--there were  
so many things1 and ,i was a slave to   
them4 ,and before ,i knew it1 he'd gone 
off to school4 ,that was the year ,i    
moved up here1 and my wife died4 ,and   
after that1 all seemed to go wrong4     
,perhaps ,i was too severe2 perhaps they
 didn't understand him at               
boarding-school2 perhaps ,i didn't pay  
enough attention to him4 ,at any rate1  
the first thing ,i knew his whole nature
 seemed to have changed4 ,he got into   
scrape after scrape at ,harvard1 and    
later he came within an ace of marrying 
a woman4  ,he's my weakness to-day4 ,i  
can say no to everybody in the world but
 to him1 and when ,i try to remember him
 as he used to come down those steps on 
,ransome ,street 4 4 4 4  ,he never knew
 how much ,i cared--that what ,i was    
doing was all for him1 building for him1
 that he might carry on my work4 ,i had 

dreams of developing this city1 the     
great ,southwest1 and after ,i had gone 
,preston was to bring them to fruition4 
,for some reason ,i never was able to   
tell him all this--as ,i am telling you4
 ,the words would not come4 ,we had     
grown apart4 ,and he seemed to          
think--,god knows why6--he seemed to    
think ,i disliked him4 ,i had ,langmaid 
talk to him1 and other men ,i           
trusted--tell him what an unparalleled  
opportunity he had to be of use in the  
world4 ,once ,i thought ,i had him      
started straight and then a woman came  
along--off the streets1 or little       
better4 ,he insisted on marrying her and
 wrecking his life1 and when ,i got her 
out of the way1 as any father would have
 done1 he left me4 ,he has never        
forgiven me4 ,most of the time ,i       
haven't even the satisfaction of knowing
 were he is--,london1 ,paris1 or ,new   
,york4 ,i try not to think of what he   
does4 ,i ought to cut him off1--,i can't
 do it--,i can't do it1 ,hodder--he's my

 one weakness still4 ,i'm afraid--he'd  
sink out of sight entirely1 and it's the
 one hold ,i have left on him4  ,eldon  
,parr paused1 with a groan that         
betokened not only a poignant sorrow1   
but also something of relief--for the   
tortures of not being able to unburden  
himself had plainly become intolerable4 
,he glanced up and met the compassionate
 eyes of the rector1 who stood leaning  
against the mantel4  ,with ,alison it   
was different1 he said4 ,i never        
understood her--even when she was a     
child--and ,i used to look at her and   
wonder that she could be my daughter4   
,she was moody1 intense1 with a yearning
 for affection ,i've since sometimes    
thought--she could not express4 ,i did  
not feel the need of affection in those 
days1 so absorbed was ,i in building up1
 --so absorbed and driven1 you might    
say4 ,i suppose ,i must accept my       
punishment as just4 ,but the child was  
always distant with me1 and ,i always   
remember her in rebellion2 a dark little

 thing with a quivering lip1 hair awry1 
and eyes that flashed through her tears4
 ,she would take any amount of          
punishment rather than admit she had    
been in the wrong4 ,i recall she had    
once a fox terrier that never left her1 
that fought all the dogs in the         
neighbourhood and destroyed the rugs and
 cushions in the house4 ,i got rid of it
 one summer when she was at the sea1 and
 ,i think she never forgave me4 ,the    
first question she asked when she came  
home was for that dog--,mischief1 his   
name was--for ,mischief4 ,i told her    
what ,i had done4 ,it took more courage 
than ,i had thought4 ,she went to her   
room1 locked herself in1 and stayed     
there1 and we couldn't get her to come  
out for two days2 she wouldn't even eat4
  ,perhaps she was jealous of ,preston1 
but she never acknowledged it4 ,when she
 was little she used once in a while to 
come shyly and sit on my lap1 and look  
at me without saying anything4 ,i hadn't
 the slightest notion what was in the   

child's mind1 and her reserve increased 
as she grew older4 ,she seemed to have  
developed a sort of philosophy of her   
own even before she went away to school1
 and to have certain strongly defined   
tastes4 ,she liked1 for instance1 to    
listen to music1 and for that very      
reason would never learn to play4 ,we   
couldn't make her1 as a child4  ,bad    
music1 she said1 offended her4 ,she     
painted1 she was passionately fond of   
flowers1 and her room was always filled 
with them4 ,when she came back from     
school to live with me1 she built a     
studio upstairs4 ,after the first       
winter1 she didn't care to go out much4 
,by so pronounced a character1 young men
 in general were not attracted1 but     
there were a few who fell under a sort  
of spell4 ,i can think of no other words
 strong enough1 and ,i used to watch    
them when they came here with a curious 
interest4 ,i didn't approve of all of   
them4 ,alison would dismiss them or     
ignore them or be kind to them as she   

happened to feel1 yet it didn't seem to 
make any difference4 ,one ,i suspect she
 was in love with --a fellow without a  
cent4  ,then there was ,bedloe ,hubbell4
 ,i have reason enough to be thankful   
now that she didn't care for him4       
,they've made him president1 you know1  
of this idiotic ,municipal ,league1 as  
they call it4 ,but in those days he     
hadn't developed any nonsense1 he was   
making a good start at the bar1 and was 
well off4 ,his father was ,elias        
,hubbell1 who gave the ,botanical       
,garden to the city4 ,i wanted her to   
marry ,gordon ,atterbury4 ,he hung on   
longer than any of them--five or six    
years2 but she wouldn't hear of it4     
,that was how the real difference       
developed between us1 although the      
trouble was deep rooted1 for we never   
really understood each other4 ,i had set
 my heart on it1 and perhaps ,i was too 
dictatorial and insistent4 ,i don't     
know4 ,i meant the best for her1 ,god   
knows 4 4 4 4 ,gordon never got over it4

 ,it dried him up4 4 4 4 4 ,irritation  
was creeping back into the banker's     
voice4  ,then it came into ,alison's    
head that she wanted to 'make something 
of her life1'--as she expressed it4 ,she
 said she was wasting herself1 and began
 going to lectures with a lot of faddish
 women1 became saturated with these     
nonsensical ideas about her sex that are
 doing so much harm nowadays4 ,i suppose
 ,i was wrong in my treatment from the  
first4 ,i never knew how to handle her1 
but we grew like flint and steel4 ,i'll 
say this for her1 she kept quiet enough1
 but she used to sit opposite me at the 
table1 and ,i knew all the time what she
 was thinking of1 and then ,i'd break   
out4 ,of course she'd defend herself1   
but she had her temper under better     
control than ,i4 ,she wanted to go away 
for a year or two and study landscape   
gardening1 and then come back and       
establish herself in an office here4 ,i 
wouldn't listen to it4 ,and one morning1
 when she was late to breakfast1 ,i     

delivered an ultimatum4 ,i gave her a   
lecture on a woman's place and a woman's
 duty1 and told her that if she didn't  
marry she'd have to stay here and live  
quietly with me1 or ,i'd disinherit her4
  ,hodder had become absorbed in this   
portrait of ,alison ,parr1 drawn by her 
father with such unconscious vividness4 
,and then8 he asked4  ,in spite of the  
tone of bitterness in which he had      
spoken1 ,eldon ,parr smiled4 ,it was a  
reluctant tribute to his daughter4  ,i  
got an ultimatum in return1 he said4    
,alison should have been a man4 ,his    
anger mounted quickly as he recalled the
 scene4 ,she said she had thought it all
 out3 that our relationship had become  
impossible2 that she had no doubt it was
 largely her fault1 but that was the way
 she was made1 and she couldn't change4 
,she had1 naturally1 an affection for me
 as her father1 but it was very plain we
 couldn't get along together3 she was   
convinced that she had a right to       
individual freedom1--as she spoke of    

it1--to develop herself4 ,she knew1 if  
she continued to live with me on the    
terms ,i demanded1 that her character   
would deteriorate4 ,certain kinds of    
sacrifice she was capable of1 she       
thought1 but what ,i asked would be a   
useless one4 ,perhaps ,i didn't realize 
it1 but it was slavery4 ,slavery6 he    
repeated1 the kind of slavery her mother
 had lived 4 4 4 4  ,he took a turn     
around the room4  ,so far as money was  
concerned1 she was indifferent to it4   
,she had enough from her mother to last 
until she began to make more4 ,she      
wouldn't take any from me in any case4  
,i laughed1 yet ,i have never been so   
angry in my life4 ,nor was it wholly    
anger1 ,hodder1 but a queer tangle of   
feelings ,i can't describe4 ,there was  
affection mixed up in it--,i realized   
afterward--but ,i longed to take her and
 shake her and lock her up until she    
should come to her senses3 ,i couldn't4 
,i didn't dare4 ,i was helpless4 ,i told
 her to go4 ,she didn't say anything    

more1 but there was a determined look in
 her eyes when she kissed me as ,i left 
for the office4 ,i spent a miserable    
day4 ,more than once ,i made up my mind 
to go home1 but pride stopped me4 ,i    
really didn't think she meant what she  
said4 ,when ,i got back to the house in 
the afternoon she had left for ,new     
,york4  ,then ,i began to look forward  
to the time when her money would give   
out4 ,she went to ,paris with another   
young woman1 and studied there1 and then
 to ,england4 ,she came back to ,new    
,york1 hired an apartment and a studio1 
and has made a success4  ,the rector    
seemed to detect an unwilling note of   
pride at the magic word4  ,it isn't the 
kind of success ,i think much of1 but   
it's what she started out to do4 ,she   
comes out to see me1 once in a while1   
and she designed that garden4  ,he      
halted in front of the clergyman4  ,i   
suppose you think it's strange1 my      
telling you this1 he said4 ,it has come 
to the point1 he declared vehemently1   

where it relieves me to tell somebody1  
and you seem to be a man of discretion  
and common-sense4  ,hodder looked down  
into ,mr4 ,parr's face1 and was silent4 
,perhaps he recognized1 as never before1
 the futility of the traditional words  
of comfort1 of rebuke4 ,he beheld a soul
 in torture1 and realized with sudden   
sharpness how limited was his knowledge 
of the conditions of existence of his   
own time4 ,everywhere individualism     
reared its ugly head1 everywhere it     
seemed plausible to plead justification2
 and once more he encountered that      
incompatibility of which ,mrs4          
,constable had spoken6 ,he might blame  
the son1 blame the daughter1 yet he     
could not condemn them utterly 4 4 4 4  
,one thing he saw clearly1 that ,eldon  
,parr had slipped into what was still1  
for him1 a meaningless hell4  ,the      
banker's manner suddenly changed1       
reverted to what it had been4 ,he arose4
  ,i've tried to do my duty as ,i saw   
it1 and it comes to this--that we who   

have spent the best years of our lives  
in striving to develop this country have
 no thanks from our children or from any
 one else4  ,with his hand on the       
electric switch1 he faced ,hodder almost
 defiantly as he spoke these words1 and 
suddenly snapped off the light1 as      
though the matter admitted of no        
discussion4 ,in semi-darkness they      
groped down the upper flight of stairs 4
 4 4 4     ,,chapter ,,vii  ,,the       
,,kingdoms ,,of ,,the ,,world   ,i      
,when summer arrived1 the birds of      
brilliant plumage of ,mr4 ,hodder's     
flock arose and flew lightly away1 thus 
reversing the seasons4 ,only the soberer
 ones came fluttering into the cool     
church out of the blinding heat1 and    
settled here and there throughout the   
nave4 ,the ample ,mr4 ,bradley1         
perspiring in an alpaca coat1 took up   
the meagre collection on the right of   
the centre aisle2 for ,mr4 ,parr1       
properly heralded1 had gone abroad on   
one of those periodical1 though lonely  

tours that sent anticipatory shivers of 
delight down the spines of foreign      
picture-dealers4 ,the faithful ,gordon  
,atterbury was worshipping at the sea1  
and even ,mr4 ,constable and ,mr4       
,plimpton1 when recalled to the city by 
financial cares1 succumbed to the pagan 
influence of the sun1 and were usually  
to be found on ,sunday mornings on the  
wide veranda of the country club1 with  
glasses containing liquid and ice beside
 them1 and surrounded by heaps of       
newspapers4  ,to judge by ,st4 ,john's1 
the city was empty4 ,but on occasions1  
before he himself somewhat tardily      
departed1--drawn thither by a morbid    
though impelling attraction1 ,hodder    
occasionally walked through ,dalton     
,street of an evening4 ,if not in ,st4  
,john's1 summer was the season in       
,dalton ,street4 ,it flung open its     
doors and windows and moved out on the  
steps and the pavements1 and even on the
 asphalt2 and the music of its cafes and
 dance-halls throbbed feverishly through

 the hot nights4 ,dalton ,street        
resorted neither to country club nor    
church4  ,mr4 ,mc,crae1 ,hodder's       
assistant1 seemed to regard these annual
 phenomena with a grim philosophy1--a   
relic1 perhaps1 of the ,calvinistic     
determinism of his ancestors4 ,he       
preached the same indefinite sermons1   
with the same imperturbability1 to the  
dwindled congregations in summer and the
 enlarged ones in winter4 ,but ,hodder  
was capable of no such resignation --if 
resignation it were1 for the            
self-contained assistant continued to be
 an enigma2 and it was not without      
compunction that he left1 about the     
middle of ,july1 on his own vacation4   
,he was tired1 and yet he seemed to have
 accomplished nothing in this first year
 of the city parish whereof he had      
dreamed4 ,and it was1 no doubt1 for that
 very reason that he was conscious of a 
depressing exhaustion as his train      
rolled eastward over that same high     
bridge that spanned the hot and muddy   

waters of the river4 ,he felt a         
fugitive4 ,in no months since he had    
left the theological seminary1 had he   
seemingly accomplished so little2 in no 
months had he had so magnificent an     
opportunity4  ,after he had reached the 
peaceful hills at ,bremerton--where he  
had gone on ,mrs4 ,whitely's            
invitation--he began to look back upon  
the spring and winter as a kind of mad  
nightmare1 a period of ceaseless1       
distracted1 and dissipated activity1 of 
rushing hither and thither with no      
results4 ,he had been aware of invisible
 barriers1 restricting1 hemming him in  
on all sides4 ,there had been no time   
for reflection2 and now that he had a   
breathing space1 he was unable to see   
how he might reorganize his work in     
order to make it more efficient4  ,there
 were other perplexities1 brought about 
by the glimpses he had had into the     
lives and beliefs--or rather            
unbeliefs--of his new parishioners4 ,and
 sometimes1 in an unwonted moment of    

pessimism1 he asked himself why they    
thought it necessary to keep all that   
machinery going when it had so little   
apparent effect on their lives8 ,he sat 
wistfully in the chancel of the little  
,bremerton church and looked into the   
familiar faces of those he had found in 
it when he came to it1 and of those he  
had brought into it1 wondering why he   
had been foolish enough to think himself
 endowed for the larger work4 ,here1 he 
had been a factor1 a force in the       
community1 had entered into its life and
 affections4 ,what was he there8  ,nor  
did it tend to ease his mind that he was
 treated as one who has passed on to    
higher things4  ,i was afraid you'd work
 too hard1 said ,mrs4 ,whitely1 in her  
motherly way4 ,i warned you against it1 
,mr4 ,hodder4 ,you never spared         
yourself1 but in a big city parish it's 
different4 ,but you've made such a      
success1 ,nelson tells me1 and everybody
 likes you there4 ,i knew they would1 of
 course4 ,that is our only comfort in   

losing you1 that you have gone to the   
greater work4 ,but we do miss you4      
,,ii  ,the air of ,bremerton1 and later 
the air of ,bar ,harbor had a certain   
reviving effect4 ,and ,john ,hodder1    
although he might be cast down1 had     
never once entertained the notion of    
surrender4 ,he was inclined to attribute
 the depression through which he had    
passed1 the disappointment he had       
undergone as a just punishment for an   
overabundance of ego1--only ,hodder used
 the theological term for the same sin4 
,had he not1 after all1 laboured largely
 for his own glory1 and not ,gods8 ,had 
he ever forgotten himself8 ,had the idea
 ever been far from his thoughts that it
 was he1 ,john ,hodder1 who would build 
up the parish of ,st4 ,john's into a    
living organization of faith and works8 
,the curious thing was that he had the  
power1 and save in moments of weariness 
he felt it in him4 ,he must try to      
remember always that this power was from
 ,god4 ,but why had he been unable to   

apply it8  ,and there remained          
disturbingly in his memory certain      
phrases of ,mrs4 ,constable's1 such as  
elements of growth4  ,he would change1  
she had said2 and he had appeared to her
 as one with depths4 ,unsuspected       
depths--pockets that held the steam1    
which was increasing in pressure4 ,at   
,bremerton1 it had not gathered in the  
pockets1 he had used it all--all had    
counted2 but in the feverish1 ceaseless 
activity of the city parish he had never
 once felt that intense satisfaction of 
emptying himself1 nor1 the sweet        
weariness that follows it4 ,his seemed  
the weariness of futility4 ,and         
introspection was revealing a           
crack--after so many years--in that self
 that he had believed to be so strongly 
welded4 ,such was the strain of the     
pent-up force4 ,he recognized the       
danger-signal4 ,the same phenomenon had 
driven him into the ,church1 where the  
steam had found an outlet--until now4   
,and yet1 so far as his examination     

went1 he had not lost his beliefs1 but  
the power of communicating them to      
others4  ,bremerton1 and the sight of   
another carrying on the work in which he
 had been happy1 weighed upon him1 and  
,bar ,harbor offered distraction4 ,mrs4 
,larrabbee had not hesitated to remind  
him of his promise to visit her4 ,if the
 gallery of portraits of the            
congregation of ,st4 ,john's were to be 
painted1 this lady's1 at the age of     
thirty1 would not be the least          
interesting4 ,it would have been out of 
place in no ancestral hall1 and many of 
her friends were surprised1 after her   
husband's death1 that she did not choose
 one wherein to hang it4 ,she might     
have4 ,for she was the quintessence of  
that feminine product of our country at 
which ,europe has never ceased to       
wonder1 and to give her history would no
 more account for her than the process  
of manufacture explains the most        
delicate of scents4 ,her poise1 her     
quick detection of sham in others not so

 fortunate1 her absolute conviction that
 all things were as they ought to be2   
her charity1 her interest in its        
recipients2 her smile1 which was        
kindness itself2 her delicate features1 
her white skin with its natural bloom2  
the grace of her movements1 and her     
hair1 which had a different color in    
changing lights--such an ensemble is not
 to be depicted save by a skilled hand4 
,the late ,mr4 ,larrabbee's name was    
still printed on millions of bright     
labels encircling cubes of tobacco1 now 
manufactured by a ,trust4 ,however1     
since the kind that entered ,mrs4       
,larrabbee's house1 or houses1 was all  
imported from ,egypt or ,cuba1 what     
might have been in the nature of an     
unpleasant reminder was remote from her 
sight1 and she never drove into the     
northern part of the city1 where some   
hundreds of young women bent all day    
over the cutting-machines4 ,to enter too
 definitely into ,mrs4 ,larrabbee's     
history1 therefore1 were merely to be   

crude1 for she is not a lady to         
caricature4 ,her father had been a      
steamboat captain--once an honoured     
calling in the city of her nativity--a  
devout ,presbyterian who believed in the
 most rigid simplicity4 ,few who        
remembered the gaucheries of ,captain   
,corington's daughter on her first      
presentation to his family's friends    
could recognize her in the cosmopolitan 
,mrs4 ,larrabbee4 ,why1 with ,new ,york 
and ,london at her disposal1 she elected
 to remain in the ,middle ,west1 puzzled
 them1 though they found her answer1    
that she belonged there1 satisfying     
,grace ,larrabbee's cosmopolitanism was 
of that apperception that knows the     
value of roots1 and during her widowhood
 she had been thrusting them out4 ,mrs4 
,larrabbee followed by of was much more 
important than just ,mrs4 ,larrabbee4   
,and she was1 moreover1 genuinely       
attached to her roots4  ,her girlhood   
shyness--rudeness1 some called it1      
mistaking the effect for the cause--had 

refined into a manner that might be     
characterized as 'difficile'1 though    
,hodder had never found her so4 ,she    
liked direct men2 to discover no guile  
on first acquaintance went a long way   
with her1 and not the least of the new  
rector's social triumphs had been his   
simple conquest4  ,enveloped in white   
flannel1 she met his early train at the 
,ferry2 an unusual compliment to a      
guest1 had he but known it1 but he      
accepted it as a tribute to the ,church4
  ,i was so afraid you wouldn't come1   
she said1 in a voice that conveyed      
indeed more than a perfunctory          
expression4 ,she glanced at him as he   
sat beside her on the cushions of the   
flying motor boat1 his strange eyes     
fixed upon the blue mountains of the    
island whither they were bound1 his     
unruly hair fanned by the wind4  ,why8  
he asked1 smiling at the face beneath   
the flying veil4  ,you need the rest4 ,i
 believe in men taking their work       
seriously1 but not so seriously as you  

do4  ,she was so undisguisedly glad to  
see him that he could scarcely have been
 human if he had not responded4 ,and she
 gave him1 in that fortnight1 a glimpse 
of a life that was new and distracting3 
at times made him forget --and he was   
willing to forget--the lower forms of   
which it was the quintessence1--the     
factories that hummed1 the forges that  
flung their fires into the night in     
order that it might exist2 the ,dalton  
,streets that went without4 ,the        
effluvia from hot asphalt bore no       
resemblance to the salt-laden air that  
rattled the ,venetian blinds of the big 
bedroom to which he was assigned4 ,her  
villa was set high above the curving    
shore1 facing a sheltered terrace-garden
 resplendent in its ,august glory2 to   
seaward1 islands danced in the haze2 and
 behind the house1 in the sunlight1 were
 massed spruces of a brilliant arsenic  
green with purple cones4 ,the fluttering
 awnings were striped cardinal and      
white4  ,nature and man seemed to have  

conspired to make this place vividly    
unreal1 as a toy village comes painted  
from the shop4 ,there were no           
half-tones1 no poverty--in sight1 at    
least2 no litter4 ,on the streets and   
roads1 at the casino attached to the    
swimming-pool and at the golf club were 
to be seen bewildering arrays of        
well-dressed1 well-fed women intent upon
 pleasure and exercise4 ,some of them   
gave him glances that seemed to say1    
,you belong to us1 and almost succeeded 
in establishing the delusion4 ,the whole
 effect upon ,hodder1 in the state of   
mind in which he found himself1 was     
reacting1 stimulating1 disquieting4 ,at 
luncheons and dinners1 he was what is   
known as a success--always that magic   
word4  ,he resisted1 and none so quick  
as women to scent resistance4 ,his very 
unbending attitude aroused their        
inherent craving for rigidity in his    
profession2 he was neither plastic1     
unctuous1 nor subservient2 his very     
homeliness1 redeemed by the eyes and    

mouth1 compelled their attention4 ,one  
of them told ,mrs4 ,larrabbee that that 
rector of hers would do something4  ,but
 what1 he asked himself1 was he         
resisting8 ,he was by no means a        
,puritan2 and while he looked upon a    
reasonable asceticism as having its     
place in the faith that he professed1 it
 was no asceticism that prevented a more
 complete acquiescence on his part in   
the mad carnival that surrounded him4   
,i'm afraid you don't wholly approve of 
,bar ,harbor1 his hostess remarked2 one 
morning4  ,at first sight1 it is        
somewhat staggering to the provincial   
mind1 he replied4  ,she smiled at him1  
yet with knitted brows4  ,you are always
 putting me off--,i never can tell what 
you think4 ,and yet ,i'm sure you have  
opinions4 ,you think these people       
frivolous1 of course4  ,most of them are
 so1 he answered1 but that is a very    
superficial criticism4 ,the question is1
 why are they so8 ,the sight of ,bar    
,harbor leads a stranger to the         

reflection that the carnival mood has   
become permanent with our countrymen1   
and especially our countrywomen4  ,the  
carnival mood1 she repeated             
thoughtfully1 yes1 that expresses it4   
,we are light1 we are always trying to  
get away from ourselves1 and sometimes  
,i wonder whether there are any selves  
to get away from4 ,you ought to atop us1
 she added1 almost accusingly1 to bring 
us to our senses4  ,that's just it1 he  
agreed1 why don't we8 ,why can't we8    
,if more clergymen were like you1 ,i    
think perhaps you might4  ,his tone1 his
 expression1 were revelations4  ,i--6 he
 exclaimed sharply1 and controlled      
himself4 ,but in that moment ,grace     
,larrabbee had a glimpse of the man who 
had come to arouse in her an intense    
curiosity4 ,for an instant a tongue of  
the fires of ,vulcan had shot forth1    
fires that she had suspected4  ,aren't  
you too ambitious8 she asked gently4    
,and again1 although she did not often  
blunder1 she saw him wince4 ,i don't    

mean ambitious for yourself4 ,but surely
 you have made a remarkable beginning at
 ,st4 ,john's4 ,everybody admires and   
respects you1 has confidence in you4    
,you are so sure of yourself1 she       
hesitated a moment1 for she had never   
ventured to discuss religion with him1  
of your faith4 ,clergymen ought not to  
be apologetic1 and your conviction      
cannot fail1 in the long run1 to have   
its effect4  ,its effect1--on what8 he  
asked4  ,mrs4 ,larrabbee was suddenly1  
at sea4 ,and she prided herself on a    
lack of that vagueness generally        
attributed to her sex4  ,on--on         
everything4 ,on what we were talking    
about1--the carnival feeling1 the       
levity1 on the unbelief of the age4     
,isn't it because the control has been  
taken off8  ,he saw an opportunity to   
slip into smoother waters4  ,the engine 
has lost its governor8  ,exactly6 cried 
,mrs4 ,larrabbee4 ,what a clever simile6
  ,it is ,mr4 ,pares1 said ,hodder4     
,only he was speaking of other symptoms1

 ,socialism1 and its opposite1          
individualism1--not carnivalism4  ,poor 
man1 said ,mrs4 ,larrabbee1 accepting   
the new ground as safer1 yet with a     
baffled feeling that ,hodder had evaded 
her once more1 he has had his share of  
individualism and carnivalism4 ,his son 
,preston was here last month1 and was   
taken out to the yacht every night in an
 unspeakable state4 ,and ,alison hasn't 
been what might be called a blessing4   
,she must be unusual1 said the rector1  
musingly4  ,oh1 ,alison is a ,person4   
,she has become quite the fashion1 and  
has more work than she can possibly     
attend to4 ,very few women with her good
 looks could have done what she has     
without severe criticism1 and something 
worse1 perhaps4 ,the most extraordinary 
thing about her is her contempt for what
 her father has gained1 and for         
conventionalities4 ,it always amuses me 
when ,i think that she might have been  
the wife of ,gordon ,atterbury4 ,the    
,goddess of ,liberty linked to--what8   

,hodder thought instinctively of the    
,church4 ,but he remained silent4  ,as a
 rule1 men are such fools about the     
women they wish to marry1 she continued4
 ,she would have led him a dance for a  
year or two1 and then calmly and        
inexorably left him4 ,and there was her 
father1 with all his ability and genius1
 couldn't see it either1 but fondly     
imagined that ,alison as ,gordon        
,atterbury's wife1 would magically      
become an ,atterbury and a bourgeoise1  
see that the corners were dusted in the 
big house1 sew underwear for the poor1  
and fast in ,lent4  ,and she is         
happy--where she is8 he inquired        
somewhat naively4  ,she is              
self-sufficient1 said ,mrs4 ,larrabbee1 
with unusual feeling1 and that is just  
what most women are not1 in these days4 
,oh1 why has life become such a problem8
 ,sometimes ,i think1 with all that ,i  
have1 ,i'm not1 so well off as one of   
those salesgirls in ,ferguson's1 at     
home4 ,i'm always searching for things  

to do--nothing is thrust on me4 ,there  
are the charities--,galt ,house1 and all
 that1 but ,i never seem to get at      
anything1 at the people ,i'd like to    
help4 ,it's like sending money to       
,china4 ,there is no direct touch any   
more4 ,it's like seeing one's           
opportunities through an iron grating4  
,hodder started at the phrase1 so       
exactly had she expressed his own case4 
,ah1 he said1 the iron grating bars the 
path of the ,church1 too4  ,and just    
what was the iron grating8  ,they had   
many moments of intimacy during that    
fort night1 though none in which the    
plumb of their conversation descended to
 such a depth4 ,for he was1 as she had  
said1 always putting her off4 ,was it   
because he couldn't satisfy her craving8
 give her the solution for which--he    
began to see--she thirsted8 ,why didn't 
that religion that she seemed outwardly 
to profess and accept without           
qualification--the religion he taught   
set her at rest8 show her the path8     

,down in his heart he knew that he      
feared to ask4    ,that ,mrs4 ,larrabbee
 was still another revelation1 that she 
was not at rest1 was gradually revealed 
to him as the days passed4 ,her spirit1 
too1 like his own1 like ',mrs           
,constable's1 like ,eldon ,parr's1 like 
,eleanor ,goodrich's1 was divided       
against itself2 and this phenomenon in  
,mrs4 ,larrabbee was perhaps a greater  
shock to him1 since he had always       
regarded her as essentially in          
equilibrium4 ,one of his reasons1       
indeed1 --in addition to the friendship 
that had grown up between them1--for    
coming to visit her had been to gain the
 effect of her poise on his own4 ,poise 
in a modern woman1 leading a modern     
life4 ,it was thus she attracted him4   
,it was not that he ignored her         
frivolous side2 it was nicely balanced  
by the other1 and that other seemed     
growing4 ,the social1 she accepted at   
what appeared to be its own worth4      
,unlike ,mrs4 ,plimpton1 for instance1  

she was so innately a lady that she had 
met with no resistance in the ,eastern  
watering places1 and her sense of values
 had remained the truer for it4  ,he did
 not admire her the less now he had     
discovered that the poise was not so    
adjusted as he had thought it1 but his  
feeling about her changed1 grew more    
personal1 more complicated4 ,she was    
showing an alarming tendency to lean on 
him at a time when he was examining with
 some concern his own supports4 ,she    
possessed intelligence and fascination1 
she was a woman whose attentions would  
have flattered and disturbed any man    
with a spark of virility1 and ,hodder   
had constantly before his eyes the      
spectacle of others paying her court4   
,here were danger-signals again6  ,mrs4 
,plaice1 a middle-aged ,english lady    
staying in the house1 never appeared    
until noon4 ,breakfast was set out in   
the tiled and sheltered loggia1 where   
they were fanned by the cool airs of a  
softly breathing ocean4 ,the world1 on  

these mornings1 had a sparkling         
unreality1 the cold1 cobalt sea         
stretching to sun-lit isles1 and beyond1
 the vividly painted shore1--the setting
 of luxury had never been so complete4  
,and the woman who sat opposite him     
seemed1 like one of her own nectarines1 
to be the fruit that crowned it all4    
,why not yield to the enchantment8 ,why 
rebel1 when nobody else complained8     
,were it not more simple to accept what 
life sent in its orderly course instead 
of striving for an impossible and       
shadowy ideal8 ,very shadowy indeed6    
,and to what end were his labours in    
that smoky1 western city1 with its      
heedless ,dalton ,streets1 which went   
their inevitable ways8 ,for he had the  
choice4  ,to do him justice1 he was slow
 in arriving at a realization that      
seemed to him so incredible1 so         
preposterous4 ,he was her rector6 ,and  
he had accepted1 all unconsciously1 the 
worldly point of view as to ,mrs4       
,larrabbee1--that she was reserved for a

 worldly match4 ,a clergyman's wife6    
,what would become of the clergyman8    
,and yet other clergymen had married    
rich women1 despite the warning of the  
needle's eye4  ,she drove him in her    
buckboard to ,jordan's ,pond1 set1 like 
a jewel in the hills1 and even to the   
deep1 cliff bordered inlet beyond ,north
 ,east1 which reminded her1 she said1 of
 a ,norway fiord4 ,and sometimes they   
walked together through wooded paths    
that led them to beetling shores1 and   
sat listening to the waves crashing far 
below4 ,silences and commonplaces became
 the rule instead of the eager          
discussions with which they had         
begun1--on such safer topics as the     
problem of the social work of modern    
churches4 ,her aromatic presence1 and in
 this setting1 continually disturbed    
him3 nature's perfumes1 more definable1 
--exhalations of the sea and            
spruce1--mingled with hers1 anaesthetics
 compelling lethargy4 ,he felt himself  
drowning1 even wished to drown1 --and   

yet strangely resisted4  ,i must go     
to-morrow1 he said4  ,to-morrow--why8   
,there is a dinner1 you know1 and ,mrs4 
,waterman wished so particularly to meet
 you4  ,he did not look at her4 ,the    
undisguised note of pain found an echo  
within him4 ,and this was ,mrs4         
,larrabbee6  ,i am sorry1 but ,i must1  
he told her1 and she may not have       
suspected the extent to which the       
firmness was feigned4  ,you have        
promised to make other visits8 ,the     
,fergusons1--they said they expected    
you4  ,i'm going west--home1 he said1   
and the word sounded odd4  ,at this     
season6 ,but there is nobody in church1 
at least only a few1 and ,mr4 ,mc,crae  
can take care of those--he always does4 
,he likes it4  ,hodder smiled in spite  
of himself4 ,he might have told her that
 those outside the church were troubling
 him4 ,but he did not1 since he had     
small confidence in being able to bring 
them in4  ,i have been away too long1 ,i
 am getting spoiled1 he replied1 with an

 attempt at lightness4 ,he forced his   
eyes to meet hers1 and she read in them 
an unalterable resolution4  ,it is my   
opinion you are too conscientious1 even 
for a clergyman1 she said1 and now it   
was her lightness that hurt4 ,she       
protested no more4 ,and as she led the  
way homeward through the narrow forest  
path1 her head erect1 still maintaining 
this lighter tone1 he wondered how      
deeply she had read him2 how far her    
intuition had carried her below the     
surface2 whether she guessed the        
presence of that stifled thing in him   
which was crying feebly for life2       
whether it was that she had discovered1 
or something else8 ,he must give it the 
chance it craved4 ,he must get away--he 
must think4 ,to surrender now would mean
 destruction4 4 4  ,early the next      
morning1 as he left the pier in the     
motor boat1 he saw a pink scarf waving  
high above him from the loggia4 ,and he 
flung up his hand in return4 ,mingled   
with a faint sense of freedom was       

intense sadness4     ,,chapter ,,viii   
,,the ,,line ,,of ,,least ,,resistance  
,from the vantage point of his rooms in 
the parish house1 ,hodder reviewed the  
situation4 ,and despite the desires     
thronging after him in his flight he had
 the feeling of once who1 in the dark1  
has been very near to annihilation4     
,what had shaken him most was the       
revelation of an old enemy which1       
watching its chance1 had beset him at   
the first opportunity2 and at a time    
when the scheme of life1 which he       
flattered himself to have solved        
forever1 was threatening once more to   
resolve itself into fragments4 ,he had1 
as if by a miracle1 escaped destruction 
in some insidious form4  ,he shrank     
instinctively from an analysis of the   
woman in regard to whom his feelings    
were1 so complicated1 and yet by no     
means lacking in tenderness4 ,but as    
time went on1 he recognized more and    
more that she had come into his life at 
a moment when he was peculiarly         

vulnerable4 ,she had taken him off his  
guard4 ,that the brilliant ,mrs4        
,larrabbee should have desired him--or  
what she believed was him--was food     
enough for thought1 was an indication of
 an idealism in her nature that he would
 not have suspected4 ,from a worldly    
point of view1 the marriage would have  
commended itself to none of her friends4
 ,yet ,hodder perceived clearly that he 
could not have given her what she       
desired1 since the marriage would have  
killed it in him4 ,she offered him the  
other thing4 ,once again he had managed 
somehow to cling to his dream of what   
the relationship between man and woman  
should be1 and he saw more and more     
distinctly that he had coveted not only 
the jewel1 but its setting4 ,he could   
not see her out of it--she faded4 ,nor  
could he see himself in it4             
,luxury1--of course1--that was what he  
had spurned4 ,luxury in contrast to     
,dalton ,street1 to the whirring        
factories near the church which         

discharged1 at nightfall1 their quotas  
of wan women and stunted children4 ,and 
yet here he was catering to luxury1     
providing religion for it6 ,religion6   
,early in ,november he heard that ,mrs4 
,larrabbee had suddenly decided to go   
abroad without returning home4 4 4 4    
,that winter ,hodder might have been    
likened to a ,niagara for energy2 an    
unharnessed ,niagara--such would have   
been his own comment4 ,he seemed to turn
 no wheels1 or only a few at least1 and 
feebly4 ,and while the spectacle of     
their rector's zeal was no doubt an     
edifying one to his parishioners1 they  
gave him to understand that they would  
have been satisfied with less4 ,they    
admired1 but chided him gently2 and in  
,february ,mr4 ,parr offered to take him
 to ,florida4 ,he was tired1 and it was 
largely because he dreaded the          
reflection inevitable in a period of    
rest1 that he refused4 4 4 4 ,and       
throughout these months1 the feeling    
recurred1 with increased strength1 that 

,mc,crae was still watching him1 --the  
notion persisted that his assistant held
 to a theory of his own1 if he could but
 be induced to reveal it4 ,hodder       
refrained from making the appeal4       
,sometimes he was on the point of losing
 patience with this enigmatic person4   
,congratulations on the fact that his   
congregation was increasing brought him 
little comfort1 since a cold analysis of
 the newcomers who were renting pews was
 in itself an indication of the lack of 
that thing he so vainly sought4 ,the    
decorous families who were now allying  
themselves with ,st4 ,john's did so at  
the expense of other churches either    
more radical or less fashionable4 ,what 
was it he sought8 ,what did he wish8 ,to
 fill the church to overflowing with the
 poor and needy as well as the rich1 and
 to enter into the lives of all4 ,yet at
 a certain point he met a resistance    
that was no less firm because it was    
baffling4 ,the ,word1 on his lips at    
least1 seemed to have lost it efficacy4 

,the poor heeded it not1 and he preached
 to the rich as from behind a glass4    
,they went on with their carnival4 ,why 
this insatiate ambition on his part in  
an age of unbelief8 ,other clergymen1   
not half so fortunate1 were apparently  
satisfied2 or else--from his            
conversation with them--either oddly    
optimistic or resigned4 ,why not he8    
,it was strange1 in spite of everything1
 that hope sprang up within him1 a      
recurrent geyser4  ,gradually1 almost   
imperceptibly1 he found himself turning 
more and more towards that line of least
 resistance which other churches were   
following1 as the one ,modern           
,solution1--institutional work4 ,after  
all1 in the rescuing of bodies some     
method might yet be discovered to revive
 the souls4 ,and there were the         
children6 ,hodder might have been       
likened to an explorer1 seeking a direct
 path when there was none--a royal road4
 ,and if this were oblique it offered1  
at least1 a definite outlet for his     

energy4  ,such was1 approximately1 the  
state of his mind early in ,march when  
,gordon ,atterbury came back from a     
conference in ,new ,york on             
institutional work1 and filled with     
enthusiasm4 ,st4 ,john's was incredibly 
behind the times1 so he told ,hodder1   
and later the vestry4 ,now that they    
had1 in ,mr4 ,hodder1 a man of action   
and ability--ahem6 there was no excuse  
for a parish as wealthy as ,st4 ,john's1
 a parish with their opportunities1     
considering the proximity of ,dalton    
,street neighbourhood1 not enlarging and
 modernizing the parish house1 not      
building a settlement house with        
kindergartens1 schools1 workshops1      
libraries1 a dispensary and day         
nurseries4 ,it would undoubtedly be an  
expense--and ,mr4 ,atterbury looked at  
,mr4 ,parr1 who drummed on the vestry   
table4 ,they would need extra           
assistants1 deaconesses1 trained nurses1
 and all that4 ,but there were other    
churches in the city that were ahead of 

,st4 ,john's--a reproach --ahem6  ,mr4  
,parr replied that he had told the      
rector that he stood ready to contribute
 to such a scheme when he1 the rector2  
should be ready to approve it4 ,and he  
looked at ,mr4 ,hodder4  ,mr4 ,hodder   
said he had been considering the matter 
ever since his arrival4 ,he had only one
 criticism of institutional work1 that  
in his observation it did not bring the 
people whom it reached into the ,church 
in any great numbers4 ,perhaps that were
 too much to ask1 in these days4 ,for   
his part he would willingly assume the  
extra burden1 and he was far from       
denying the positive good such work     
accomplished through association and by 
the raising of standards4  ,mr4         
,ferguson declared his readiness to     
help4 ,many of his salesgirls1 he said1 
lived in this part of the city1 and he  
would be glad to do anything in his     
power towards keeping them out of the   
dance-halls and such places4  ,a        
committee was finally appointed         

consisting of ,mr4 ,parr1 ,mr4          
,atterbury1 and the rector1 to consult  
architects and to decide upon a site4   
,hodder began a correspondence with     
experts in other cities1 collected      
plans1 pamphlets1 statistics2 spent     
hours with the great child-specialist1  
,dr4 ,jarvis1 and with certain clergymen
 who believed in institutionalism as the
 hope of the future4  ,but ,mc,crae was 
provokingly non-committal4  ,oh1 they   
may try it1 he assented somewhat        
grudgingly1 one day when the rector had 
laid out for his inspection the         
architects' sketch for the settlement   
house4 ,no doubt it will help many poor 
bodies along4  ,is there anything else8 
the rector asked1 looking searchingly at
 his assistant4  ,it may as well be     
that1 replied ,mc,crae4  ,the suspicion 
began to dawn on ,hodder that the       
,scotch man's ideals were as high as his
 own4 ,both of them1 secretly1 regarded 
the new scheme as a compromise1 a       
yielding to the inevitable 4 4 4 4  ,mr4

 ,ferguson's remark that an enlarged    
parish house and a new settlement house 
might help to keep some of the young    
women employed in his department store  
out of the dance-halls interested       
,hodder1 who conceived the idea of a    
dance-hall of their own4 ,for the       
rector1 in the course of his bachelor   
shopping1 often resorted to the emporium
 of his vestryman1 to stand on the      
stairway which carried him upward       
without lifting his feet1 to roam1      
fascinated1 through the mazes of its    
aisles1 where he invariably got lost1   
and was rescued by suave floor-walkers  
or pert young women in black gowns and  
white collars and cuffs4 ,but they were 
not all pert--there were many           
characters1 many types4 ,and he often   
wondered whether they did not get tired 
standing on their feet all day long1    
hesitating to ask them2 speculated on   
their lives--flung as most of them were 
on a heedless city1 and left to shift   
for themselves4 ,why was it that the    

,church which cared for ,mr4 ,ferguson's
 soul was unable to get in touch with1  
or make an appeal to1 those of his      
thousand employees8  ,it might indeed   
have been said that ,francis ,ferguson  
cared for his own soul1 as he cared for 
the rest of his property1 and kept it   
carefully insured1--somewhat1 perhaps1  
on the principle of ,pascal's wager4    
,that he had been a benefactor to his   
city no one would deny who had seen the 
facade that covered a whole block in the
 business district from ,tower to ,vine1
 surmounted by a red standard with the  
familiar motto1 ,when in doubt1 go to   
,ferguson's4 ,at ,ferguson's you could  
buy anything from a pen-wiper to a piano
 or a ,paris gown2 sit in a cool        
restaurant in summer or in a palm garden
 in winter2 leave your baby--if you had 
one--in charge of the most capable      
trained nurses2 if your taste were      
literary1 mull over the novels in the   
,book ,department2 if you were stout1   
you might be reduced in the ,hygiene    

,department1 unknown to your husband and
 intimate friends4 ,in short1 if there  
were any virtuous human wish in the     
power of genius to gratify1 ,ferguson's 
was the place4 ,they1 even taught you   
how to cook4 ,it was a modern ,aladdin's
 palace3 and1 like everything else      
modern1 much more wonderful than the    
original4 ,and the soda might be likened
 to the waters of ,trevi1--to partake of
 which is to return4  ,when in doubt1 go
 to ,ferguson6 ,thus ,mrs4 ,larrabbee   
and other ladies interested in good     
works had altered his motto4 ,he was one
 of the supporters of ,galt ,house1 into
 which some of his own young saleswomen 
had occasionally strayed2 and none1 save
 ,mr4 ,parr alone1 had been so liberal  
in his gifts4 ,holder invariably found  
it difficult to reconcile the unassuming
 man1 whose conversation was so         
commonplace1 with the titanic genius who
 had created ,ferguson's2 nor indeed    
with the owner of the imposing marble   
mansion at ,number #e1 ,park ,street4   

,the rector occasionally dined there4   
,he had acquired a real affection for   
,mrs4 ,ferguson1 who resembled a        
burgomaster's wife in her evening gowns 
and jewels1 and whose simple social     
ambitions had been gratified beyond her 
dreams4 ,her heart had not shrunken in  
the process1 nor had she forgotten her  
somewhat heterogeneous acquaintances in 
the southern part of the city4 ,and it  
was true that when ,gertrude ,constable 
had nearly died of appendicitis1 it was 
on this lady's broad bosom that ,mrs4   
,constable had wept4 ,mrs4 ,ferguson had
 haunted the house1 regardless of       
criticism1 and actually quivering with  
sympathy4 ,her more important dinner    
parties might have been likened to      
ill-matched fours-in-hand1 and ,holder  
had sometimes felt more of pity than of 
amusement as she sat with an expression 
of terror on her face1 helplessly       
watching certain unruly individuals     
taking their bits in their teeth and    
galloping madly downhill4 ,on one       

occasion1 when he sat beside her1 a     
young man1 who shall be nameless1 was   
suddenly heard to remark in the midst of
 an accidental lull3  ,i never go to    
church4 ,what's the use8 ,i'm afraid    
most of us don't believe in hell any    
more4  ,a silence followed3 of the sort 
that chills4 ,and the young man1        
glancing down the long board at the     
clergyman1 became as red as the         
carnation in his buttonhole1 and in his 
extremity gulped down more champagne4   
,things are in a dreadful state         
nowadays6 ,mrs4 ,ferguson gasped to a   
paralyzed company1 and turned an        
agonized face to ,holder4 ,i'm so sorry1
 she said1 ,i don't know why ,i asked   
him to-night1 except that ,i have to    
have a young man for ,nan1 and he's just
 come to the city1 and ,i was sorry for 
him4 ,he's very promising in a business 
way2 he's in ,mr4 ,plimpton's trust     
company4  ,please don't let it trouble  
you4 ,holder turned and smiled a little1
 and added whimsically3 ,we may as well 

face the truth4  ,oh1 ,i should expect  
you to be good about it1 but it was     
unpardonable1 she cried 4 4 4 4  ,in the
 intervals when he gained her attention 
he strove1 by talking lightly of other  
things1 to take her mind off the        
incident1 but somehow it had left him   
strangely and--he                       
felt--disproportionately depressed1     
--although he had believed himself      
capable of facing more or less          
philosophically that condition which the
 speaker had so frankly expressed4 ,yet 
the remark1 somehow1 had had an         
illuminating effect like a flashlight1  
revealing to him the isolation of the   
,church as never before4 ,and after     
dinner1 as they were going to the       
smoking-room1 the offender accosted him 
shamefacedly4  ,i'm awfully sorry1 ,mr4 
,holder1 he stammered4  ,that the tall  
rector's regard was kindly did not      
relieve his discomfort4 ,hodder laid a  
hand on his shoulder4  ,don't worry     
about it1 he answered1 ,i have only one 

regret as to what you said--that it is  
true4  ,the other looked at him         
curiously4  ,it's mighty decent of you  
to take it this way1 he laid4 ,further  
speech failed him4  ,he was a           
nice-looking young man1 with firm white 
teeth1 and honesty was written all over 
his boyish face4 ,and the palpable fact 
that his regret was more on the         
clergyman's account than for the social 
faux pas drew ,holder the more1 since it
 bespoke a genuineness of character4    
,he did not see the yearning in the     
rector's eyes as he turned away4 4 4    
,why was it they could not be standing  
side by side1 fighting the same fight8  
,the ,church had lost him1 and thousands
 like him1 and she needed them2 could   
not1 indeed1 do without them4  ,where1  
indeed1 were the young men8 ,they did   
not bother their heads about spiritual  
matters any more4 ,but were they not1 he
 asked himself1 franker than many of    
these others1 the so-called pillars of  
the spiritual structure8  ,mr4 ,plimpton

 accosted him4 ,i congratulate you upon 
the new plans1 ,mr4 ,hodder1--they're   
great1 he said4 ,mr4 ,parr and our host 
are coming down handsomely1 eh8 ,when we
 get the new settlement house we'll have
 a plant as up-to-date as any church in 
the country4 ,when do you break ground8 
,not until autumn1 ,i believe1 ,hodder  
replied4 ,there are a good many details 
to decide upon yet4  ,well1 ,i          
congratulate you4  ,mr4 ,plimpton was   
forever congratulating4                 
,up-to-date--plant6 ,more illuminating  
words1 eloquent of ,mr4 ,plimpton's     
ideals4 ,st4 ,john's down at the heels1 
to be brought up to the state of        
efficiency of ,mr4 ,plimpton's trust    
company6 ,it was by no means the first  
time he had heard modern attributes on  
,mr4 ,plimpton's lips applied to a      
sacred institution1 but to-night they   
had a profoundly disquieting effect4    
,to-night1 a certain clairvoyance had   
been vouchsafed him1 and he beheld these
 men1 his associates and supporters1    

with a detachment never before achieved4
  ,they settled in groups about the     
room1 which was square and high1 and    
panelled in ,italian walnut1 with fluted
 pilasters1--the capitals of which were 
elaborately carved4 ,and ,hodder found  
himself on a deep leather sofa in a     
corner engaged in a desultory and       
automatic conversation with ,everett    
,constable4 ,mr4 ,plimpton1 with a large
 cigar between his lips1 was the        
radiating centre of one of the liveliest
 groups1 and of him the rector had      
fallen into a consideration1 piecing    
together bits of information that       
hitherto had floated meaninglessly in   
his mind4 ,it was ,mrs4 ,larrabbee who  
had given character to the career of the
 still comparatively youthful and       
unquestionably energetic president of   
the ,chamber of ,commerce by likening it
 to a great spiral1 starting somewhere  
in outer regions of twilight1 and       
gradually drawing nearer to the centre1 
from which he had never taken his eyes4 

,at the centre were ,eldon ,parr and    
,charlotte ,gore4 ,wallis ,plimpton had 
made himself indispensable to both4     
,his campaign for the daughter of       
,thurston ,gore had been comparable to  
one of the great sieges of history1 for 
,mr4 ,plimpton was a laughing-stock when
 he sat down before that fortress4 ,at  
the end of ten years1 ,charlotte had    
capitulated1 with a sigh of relief1     
realizing at last her destiny4 ,she had 
become slightly stout1 revealing1 as    
time went on1 no wrinkles--a proof that 
the union was founded on something more 
enduring than poetry3                   
,statesmanship--that was the secret6    
,step by step1 slowly but surely1 the   
memoranda in that matrimonial portfolio 
were growing into accomplished facts2   
all events1 such as displacements of    
power1 were foreseen2 and the           
,plimptons1 like ,bismarck1 had only to 
indicate1 in case of sudden news1 the   
pigeonhole where the plan of any        
particular campaign was filed4  ,mrs4   

,larrabbee's temptation to be witty at  
the expense of those for whom she had no
 liking had led ,hodder to discount the 
sketch4 ,he had not disliked ,mr4       
,plimpton1 who had done him many little 
kindnesses4 ,he was good-natured1 never 
ruffled1 widely tolerant1               
hail-fellow-well-met with everybody1 and
 he had enlivened many a vestry meeting 
with his stories4 ,it were hypercritical
 to accuse him of a lack of originality4
 ,and if by taking thought1 he had      
arrived1 from nowhere1 at his present   
position of ease and eminence1 success  
had not turned to ashes in his mouth4   
,he fairly exhaled well-being1          
happiness1 and good cheer4 ,life had    
gone well with him1 he wished the same  
to others4  ,but to-night1 from his     
corner1 ,hodder seemed to see ,mr4      
,plimpton with new eyes4 ,not that he   
stood revealed a villain1 which he was  
far from being2 it was the air of       
sophistication1 of good-natured if      
cynical acceptance of things as they    

were--and plenty good enough1 too6--that
 jarred upon the rector in his new mood1
 and it was made manifest to him as     
never before why his appeals from the   
pulpit had lacked efficacy4 ,mr4        
,plimpton didn't want the world changed6
 ,and in this desire he represented the 
men in that room1 and the majority of   
the congregation of ,st4 ,john's4 ,the  
rector had felt something of this       
before1 and it seemed to him astonishing
 that the revelation had not come to him
 sooner4 ,did any one of them1 in his   
heart1 care anything for the ideals and 
aspirations of the ,church8  ,as he     
gazed at them through the gathering     
smoke they had become strangers1 receded
 all at once to a great distance4 4 4 4 
,across the room he caught the name1    
,bedloe ,hubbell1 pronounced with       
peculiar bitterness by ,mr4 ,ferguson4  
,at his side ,everett ,constable was    
alert1 listening4  ,ten years ago1 said 
a stout ,mr4 ,varnum1 the ,president of 
the ,third ,national ,bank1 if you'd    

told me that that man was to become a   
demagogue and a reformer1 ,i wouldn't   
have believed you4 ,why1 his company    
used to take rebates from the ,l4  ,g41 
and the ,southern--,i know it4 ,he      
emphasized the statement with a blow on 
the table that made the liqueur glasses 
dance4 ,and now1 with his ,municipal    
,league1 he's going to clean up the     
city1 is he8 ,put in a reform mayor4    
,show up what he calls the ,consolidated
 ,tractions ,company scandal4 ,pooh6    
,you got out all right1 ,varnum4 ,you   
won't be locked up1 said ,mr4 ,plimpton1
 banteringly4  ,so did you1 retorted    
,varnum4  ,so did ,ferguson1 so did     
,constable4  ,so did ,eldon ,parr1      
remarked another man1 amidst a climax of
 laughter4  ,langmaid handled that      
pretty well4  ,hodder felt ,everett     
,constable fidget4  ,bedloe's all right1
 but he's a dreamer1 ,mr4 ,plimpton     
volunteered4  ,then ,i wish he'd stop   
dreaming1 said ,mr4 ,ferguson1 and there
 was more laughter1 although he had     

spoken savagely4  ,that's what he is1 a 
dreamer1 ,varnum ejaculated4 ,say1 he   
told ,george ,carter the other day that 
prostitution wasn't necessary1 that in  
fifty years we'd have largely done away 
with it4 ,think of that1 and it's as old
 as ,sodom and ,gomorrah6  ,if ,hubbell 
had his way1 he'd make this town look   
like a ,connecticut hill village--he'd  
drive all the prosperity out of it4 ,all
 the railroads would have to abandon    
their terminals--there'd be no more     
traffic1 and you'd have to walk across  
the bridge to get a drink4  ,well1 said 
,mr4 ,plimpton1 ,tom ,beatty's good     
enough for me1 for a while4  ,beatty1   
,hodder knew1 was the boss1 of the city1
 with headquarters in a downtown saloon4
  ,beatty's been maligned1 ,mr4 ,varnum 
declared4 ,i don't say he's a saint1 but
 he's run the town pretty well1 on the  
whole1 and kept the vice where it       
belongs1 out of sight4 ,he's made his   
pile1 but he's entitled to something we 
all are4 ,you always know where you     

stand with ,beatty4 ,but say1 if        
,hubbell and his crowd--  ,don't worry  
about ,bedloe1--he'll get called in1    
he'll come home to roost like the rest  
of them1 said ,mr4 ,plimpton1           
cheerfully4 ,the people can't govern    
themselves1--only ,bedloe doesn't know  
it4 ,some day he'll find it out4 4 4 4  
,the ,french window beside him was open1
 and ,hodder slipped out1 unnoticed1    
into the warm night and stood staring at
 the darkness4 ,his one desire had been 
to get away1 out of hearing1 and he     
pressed forward over the tiled pavement 
until he stumbled against a stone       
balustrade that guarded a drop of five  
feet or so to the lawn below4 ,at the   
same time he heard his name called4  ,is
 that you1 ,mr4 ,hodder8  ,he started4  
,the voice had a wistful tremulousness1 
and might almost have been the echo of  
the leaves stirring in the night air4   
,then he perceived1 in a shaft of light 
from one of the drawing-room windows    
near by1 a girl standing beside the     

balustrade2 and as she came towards him1
 with tentative steps1 the light played 
conjurer1 catching the silvery gauze of 
her dress and striking an aura through  
the film of her hair4  ,it's ,nan       
,ferguson1 she said4  ,of course1 he    
exclaimed1 collecting himself4 ,how     
stupid of me not to have recognized you6
  ,i'm so glad you came out1 she went on
 impulsively1 yet shyly1 ,i wanted to   
tell you how sorry ,i was that that     
thing happened at the table4  ,i like   
that young man1 he said4  ,do you8 she  
exclaimed1 with unexpected gratitude4   
,so do ,i4 ,he really isn't--so bad as  
he must seem4  ,i'm sure of it1 said the
 rector1 laughing4  ,i was afraid you'd 
think him wicked1 said ,nan4 ,he works  
awfully hard1 and he's sending a brother
 through college4 ,he isn't a bit       
like--some others ,i know4 ,he wants to 
make something of himself4 ,and ,i feel 
responsible1 because ,i had mother ask  
him to-night4  ,he read her secret4 ,no 
doubt she meant him to do so4  ,you know

 we're going away next week1 for the    
summer--that is1 mother and ,i1 she     
continued4 ,father comes later4 ,and ,i 
do hope you'll make us a visit1 ,mr4    
,hodder--we were disappointed you       
couldn't come last year4 ,nan hesitated1
 and thrusting her hand into her gown   
drew forth an envelope and held it out  
to him4 ,i intended to give you this    
to-night1 to use--for anything you      
thought best4  ,he took it gravely4 ,she
 looked up at him4  ,it seems so        
little--such a selfish way of           
discharging one's obligations1 just to  
write out a cheque1 when there is so    
much trouble in the world that demands  
human kindness as well as material help4
 ,i drove up ,dalton ,street yesterday1 
from downtown4 ,you know how hot it was6
 ,and ,i couldn't help thinking how     
terrible it is that we who have         
everything are so heedless of all that  
misery4 ,the thought of it took away all
 my pleasure4  ,i'd do something more1  
something personal1 if ,i could4        

,perhaps ,i shall be able to1 next      
winter4 ,why is it so difficult for all 
of us to know what to do8  ,we have     
taken a step forward1 at any rate1 when 
we know that it is difficult1 he said4  
,she gazed up at him fixedly1 her       
attention caught by an indefinable      
something in his voice1 in his smile1   
that thrilled and vaguely disturbed her4
 ,she remembered it long afterwards4 ,it
 suddenly made her shy again2 as if1 in 
faring forth into the darkness1 she had 
come to the threshold of a mystery1 of a
 revelation withheld2 and it brought    
back the sense of adventure1 of the     
palpitating fear and daring with which  
she had come to meet him4  ,it is       
something to know1 she repeated1 half   
comprehending4 ,the scraping of chairs  
within alarmed her1 and she stood ready 
to fly4  ,but ,i haven't thanked you for
 this1 he said1 holding up the envelope4
 ,it may be that ,i shall find some one 
in ,dalton ,street--  ,oh1 ,i hope so1  
she faltered1 breathlessly1 hesitating a

 moment4 ,and then she was gone1 into   
the house4