The Nest, The White Pagoda, The Suicide, A Forsaken Temple, Miss Jones and The Masterpiece

rations of love. She foresaw all his needs, even his need of silence. Delicately assiduous, she pulled his chair near the lamp for him, lit his cigar

do something, dear?" he asked, a

quietly, and look at yo

ng, only mutely, gently, fiercely watching him. Ho

ly, he turned the pages; he had not underst

ng to sit there for ever, hearing the clock tick, hearing Kitty breathe,

would have broken and revealed him to her; but if she would but speak the nightmare

tered something,-the nightmare, or the repulsion. An hysterical sob and laugh rose in his throat. He dropped

He could do nothing but yield to her arms, feel his head pillowed on her breast, and mingle his

ng-is it because you must leave me?"-and heard h

me-so much

h," he

n: "You are not dying! Not now!" And it was again only the echo he could give her: "Not now," it

his heart. How strong a beat it was; how faint and far any whispers of the old ill. W

he burst out laughing. There, on Kitty's breast, he

ace he saw that hers was ashen, set to meet the tragedy

mself back from her arms. Still laughing the con

m so tired, K

s fallen in her l

-we have been through a lot, haven't we, poor Kitty? Poor Kitty:-do g

happened to you?" she murmured

I can't stand it,-I can't stand it--" And, leaning his arms on the back of the chair, resting his face on

of relief. He had torn his way, with his words, out of the nest; he had fallen to the ground. He was ashamed an

with difficulty, as though she were afraid o

idden. "Yes, do go t

nothing

ing,

re not

feeling in th

d for me-if yo

tty,-of

he knew that the trembling voice came through

-of course

not asked for his good-night kiss

g breath, lif

was ecstasy i

ooked up at the stars as he walked.

ng of death; that was one of the things he was tired of.

delightful facts: he looked at the darkened trees and dim flowers and thought of botany: the earth he trod on was full of scientific in

ad; after the calming walk he came in,

g he was on his way back to Lon

ishment was the good, great doctor's, and it was reiterated with an emphasis that showed something of wounded professional pride beneath it. It was, indeed, humiliating to have made such a complete mistake, to have seen only one significance in symptoms that, to far-sightedness clairvoyant enoug

uch so that I hardly know yet whether I

complicated life that had been given back to him, and of what he should do with it. At mome

and make him dizzy. How could he take up again the burden of far ends and tangled purposes? The dust of co

wholesome languor that had unstrung his will, some deeper wisdom, also, had be

esence was like the coolness and freshness of wings fanning away fevers and nightmare. Somewhere there it hov

ake a false eternity of it, was to arrest something, to stop blood from flowing, thought from growing, was to create a nightmare distortion, a mon

han to see it with walls around it, what more p