The Making of a Prig

ventional view of things upon her; but, in reality, it was due to her conviction that he would be the first to give in, and would soon write and ask her to go and see him. And

to cease thinking about him at any cost; and she threw herself into any distraction that offered itself, and tried to think that she was quite getting over her desire to see him. It was in one of these moods that she went to call on the Keeleys, who had written to tell her that they were always

ey elected her favourite county councillor; she canvassed in the slums for the candidate who would vote for woman's suffrage. She had a passion for everything that was modern, irrespective of its value; and she spent the time that was not occupied by her public duties in trying to force her principles upon her only daughter. But Marion Keeley refused to be modern, except in her amusements; she accepted the bicycle and the cigarette with equanimity, but she had no desires to reform anything or anybody; she merely wanted to enjoy herself as much as possible, and

seated on an uncomfortable stool, and introduced to an East-end clergyman and a lady inspector of factories within five minutes of her entry into the room. She glanced rather longingly towards the back drawing-room, where her cousin Marion was looking very pre

in a breathless aside to the lady inspector, as she came back from the opposite s

he smiled quite like an ordinary person. "Do you lecture on hygiene? Because Mr. Hodgson-Pemberton

ary, he took no further interest in her and resumed his conversation with the lady inspector of factories. Katharine was left al

t politics, and she doesn't want to be with the fogies at all, do you, Kitty? And, for all that, she is dreadfu

! you won't know me any longer if you ar

r boy, who had been her favourite last week, and was

n crushingly; "and not very

e would never have supposed her to be clever, if he had not been told so. And when she

not bicycle, and never went in the park because she was too busy, he stared a little without speaking at all, and then contrived to join again in the conversation that was buzzing around Marion

se you are both workers. Miss Martin does gesso work, and ha

er hopelessly, and Katharine re

seem to help the conversation much, does it?" she

hem. "I knew you two would have plenty to say to each other. That's the

women at Queen's Crescent, and her feelings towards them. But Mr

eally do men's work, in spite of everything

o attempt to contradict her,

ted. "They might, perhaps, if they

progress that has been made, even in my time; and in another ten years there will be noth

has to go on living like a woman. There is always home work to be done, or some one to be nursed, or clothes to be mended. A man has nothing to do but his work; but a woma

erved, with her favourite in close attendance. "I was afraid you w

ough she could not bear it another minute, and Katharine tr

you not think that women are happier i

d Katharine. "I think it is because they feel they have sacrificed

vourite admirer; and Marion blushed. B

acquaintance who have the greate

elusive quality in woman that fascinates men; and directly they begin to understand her, they cease to be fascinated by her. And woman is growing l

, Miss Austen, you do, reall

pretend to. But I do know the working gentlewoman very well inde

ve the pleasant impression that her excursion into the fashionable world had left with her. It comforted her wounded feelings to discover th

for her, and the sight of the precise, upright handwriting drove every thought of Polly, and the Keeleys, and her pleasant afternoon out of her head. Even then something kept her from reading it at once, and she took it upstairs into her cubicle, and laid it on t

hild,"

d have tea with me to-morrow afternoo

rs

Wil

of telling him so. But when it came to the point, she found that the cold, dignified letter she had been composing for weeks was not so easy to write; and she spent the rest of the evening in thinking of new ones. First of all, it was to be very short, and very stiff; but that was not obvious enough to gratify her injured feelings, and she set to work on another one that was mainly sarcastic. But sarc

ut even her head did not ache, which it did sometimes; and Nature obstinately refused to come to her assistance. She reached home again about four o'clock, and the aspect of the doorsteps and the area completed her discomfiture. If they had only been a little less squalid, a little more free from the domination of cat

ds. She never remembered seeing him so unreserved in his welcome before; and

n. But she could not hide anything from him; he knew something of w

sked, trying to free her han

stop me, I suppose,"

t know you w

ew you wouldn

ak, and her eye

mind, K

she wh

ang the bell for tea; and for the rest of the afternoon they t

f controlling their friendship. There had been a tacit struggle between their two wills, and his had triumphed. She could never put him out of her lif

people were Paul and herself. Her whole life seemed to be a kind of dream just then, with a vivid incident here and there when she met him or went to see him, and the rest a vague nebula, in which something outside herself made her do what was expected of her. Sometimes she felt impelled to work furiously hard for a day or two, or to take long walks by herself, as though nothing else would tire her restless energy; and then she would relapse into her lethargic mood again, and do nothing but

hen I suddenly find myself in you," she said to

very, but I fail to see where th

together at something, and everything seems so fearfully nice; and then, suddenly, I feel that something has sprung up between

urdly sensitive little

two people could be more unlike than we are. You are so awfully afraid of sh

you, on the contrary, never give yourself away at all. Why, you never tell me anythi

wn character, as well as on yours. I know I am stupidly demonstrative. I have often blushed all over becaus

me might be said of the reflections of an impulsive person, or the impulses of a reflec

," she persisted; "it seems incredible.

that exceedingly fallacious notion," said Paul, la

ever be able to read it," said Katharine, shaking her hea

he never kissed her except on the tips of her fingers. They avoided any demonstration of feeling that might have reve

into Fountain Court, which was as hot and as dusty as ever in s

he asked her, so suddenly that

hat you and I should be friends l

he asked, in the prosaic manner he always ass

mantic person I ever knew. You seem to delight in divesting every lit

ing that there is any romance in

atharine. "I think there is more romance in y

pable of deep feeling at all, or if

xclaimed to him. "How did you learn it? Do you really never f

t. I dare say you are being very brilliant, bu

ver does expect you to fulfil the ordinary requirements of every-day life. You might be a heathen god, who grins heartlessly whi

y reference to m

on't believe you care for anybody or anything, so long as you are left alone. Wh

't you be catechised as well as myself? Where do you keep all your deep feeling, please? I haven't seen much of it,

to talk. But she startled him, as she did sometimes, by a sudd

u know I have any amount of deep feeling. I hide it on purpose, because you don

ly; she was sitting a little away from him, and h

to take you. Another time you would

ch a serious matter. You know it wa

red her; and he brought his hand gently dow

lained; but she bent her head, and kissed his hand softly

she knew by his tone that he was not laug

a horrible dual feeling that tears one to pieces. Is it the badness in me, I won

ons, that inspires both love and hatred," said P

t understand my love for him; or casting off my own child, because it was bored by my affection. I

litely; and they again