The Forsyte Saga - Complete

or could he expect to hear from June and Holly for three weeks at least. In these days he felt how insufficient were his memories of Jolly, and what an amateur of a father he had been. Ther

aid of committing himself in any direction, for fear of

outh and again during his boy's public school and varsity life-all that sense of not going back on what father and son expected of each other. With Irene was bound up all his delight in beauty and in Nature. And he seemed to know less and less

velope in Jolyon's hand he wheeled off the pat

d Divorce, Forsyte v.

in him, affection for him, and must feel that he would be a refuge. Surely she would not ask him to defend the suit, knowing that he adored her! Thank Heaven she had not that maddening British conscientiousness which refused happiness for the sake of refusing! She must rejoice at this chance of being free after seventeen years of death in life! As to publicity, the fat was in the fire! To defend the suit would not take away the slur. Jolyon had all the proper feeling of a Forsyte whose privacy is threatened: If he was to be hung by the Law, by all means let it be for a sheep! Moreover the notion of standing in a witness box and swearing to the truth that no gesture, not even a word of love had passed between them seemed to him more degra

hardly conscious of the heavy heat. The sky had become overcast, purplish with little streaks of white. A heavy heat-drop plashed a little star pattern in the dust of the road as he entered the Park. 'P

ing welcome distraction to the clerks in every office. Soame

AR

. Forsyte

that we personally served the respondent and co-respondent i

fully

AN AND

nclusive; somehow, he believed less and less that those two had gone all lengths. But this, of course, would drive them to it; and he suffered from the thought. That fellow to have her love, where he had failed! Was it too late? Now that th

e a theatrical ass,' he thought, 'I suppose I should be taking a horse-whip or a pistol or something!' He took instead a bundle of papers in the case of 'Magentie versus Wake,' intending to read them on the way down. He d

ble! Perhaps for the first time in his life Soames thought: 'I could let go if I liked! Nothing could touch me; I could snap my fingers, live as I wished-enjoy myself!' No! One could not live as he had and ju

Wimbledon Common. This interview! Surely a man of fifty-two with grown-up children, and hung on the line, would not be reckless. 'He won't want to disgrace the family,' he thought; 'he was as fond of his father as I am of mine, and they were brothers. That woman brings destruction-what is it in her? I've never known.' The cab branched off, along the side of a wood, and he heard

ave been his own, and the sound of music met

aid to the driver, "or I may be kep

e, so that with complete surprise he saw Irene at the piano, and Jolyon sitting in an armchair listening. They both stood up. Blood surged into Soames' brain, and all his re

retty!"

the fello

m to which he followed them, Irene stood by the open window, and the 'fellow' close to her by a big chair. Soames pulled the door to behind

what have you to s

d the effront

your right to ask. I should imagine you wil

ll divorce her with every circumstance of disgrace to you bo

stammering and his hands twitching. Neither of them ans

e said; "

ut Jolyon laid hi

Soames furiously. "Ire

N

and

ll l

u're guilty

voice, with that unreached air which had maddened

are a

is house, or I'll

es! Did he know how near his

ling trust property! A thief,

u have chosen your part, w

apon Soames might have

e you pay

be very

by the son of him who had nicknamed him 'the man o

meet the case. But he could not, did not know how to turn and go away. His eyes fastened

I hope you'll treat him as

l virtue had gone out of him-life meaningless, mind-striking work. Sunlight streamed in on him, but he felt cold. The scene he had passed through had gone from him already, what was before him would not materialise, he could catch on to nothing; and he felt frightened, as if he had been hanging over the edge of a precipice, as if with another turn of the screw sanity woul

ammam," s

be so comforting! Crossing into the hot room he

are you training for? You'

skin uneasily for the first signs of perspiration, he thought: 'Let them