The Farringdons

you knew m

you ne

I ever th

s

it evidently experiences a difference of opinion as to which is the better course to pursue-an experience not confined to lanes. But in this respect lanes are happier than men and women, in that they are able to pursue both courses, and so learn for themselves which is the wiser one, as is the case with this particular lane. One course leads headlong down another steep hill-so steep that unwary travellers usually descend from their carriages to walk up or down it, and thus are enabled to ensure relief to their horses and a chill to themselves at the same time; for it is hot w

was Coal. There she had slept for a century of centuries, until Prince Iron needed and sought and found her, and awakened her with the noise of his kisses. So now the wood is not asleep any more, but is filled with the tramping of the prince's men. The old people wring their hands and mourn that the former things are pa

eam, which, by means of a dam, was turned into a moat, encircling one of the most ancient houses in England. The Moat House had been vacant for some time, as the owner was a delicate man who preferred to live abroad; and great was

five-and-twenty, who had devoted himself to the cultivation of his intellect and the suppression of his soul. Because his mother had been a religious woman, he reasoned that faith was m

nently at the Osierfield, and was qualifying himself to take his uncle's place as general manager of the works, when that uncle s

have s

like? I am d

oo well-dressed to be a beggar, I have no reason to believe that the direction in which

are! You know

ve formed an opinion as to all the workings of his mind and the meditations of his heart. But my impressions are of

ng character," remarked that

more-the rapidity with which you form op

stupid as

pid; but I am always hoping that the experie

t tell me all you kno

ne, and that he is not what people call orthodox. By the way. I didn't discover his unorthodoxy

siastically. "I wonder how unorthodox he is.

lieve he indulges in the not unfashionable luxury of doubts. You might attend to

eally am too f

the same thing over and over again in different language is not arguing, you know;

anyway, I have taught you a lot

you have taught me everything I know, that is worth knowing, except the things

I tried to

of art is the only soul-satisfying form of faith; that conscience is an exhausted force; that feelings and emotions ought to be la

I taught you

e that the things you have taught me are just t

ldn't have

at is where your

ghtfully; "if I met you for the first time I should know in five minutes that

wonderful penetra

is, it is not particularly clever of me to unde

be distinctly careless

could draw a map of your mind wit

it were drawn with your eyes open, though pos

give me a pencil an

t. The two were walking through the wood at the Willows at that moment, and Elisabeth st

usement. "An extensive outline,"

of mind, such as it is;

irregular, with such a lot of

own opinion. First you think you'll do a thing because it is nice; and then you think you won'

are the mountain-ranges

all other mountain-ranges they hinder commerce, make pleasure difficult, and render life g

n Inquisition,"

sition was a Spanis

was originally invented, I believe, to

h are marked by a few faint lines, are narrow and shallow; they are only found near the

mous blotch right in the middle of the countr

ll also notice that there are no seaports on the coast of my map; that shows that you are self-contained

le castellated things round the

is finished," concluded Elisabeth, half closing her eyes and contemplating he

ertainly

true,

d; "but sign it with your name first. Not there," he added hastily, as Eli

rprise. "Right across the

es

name that it will cov

now

ll spo

; nevertheless, I always

person that I will do what you want," said Elisabeth, writing her na

the whole of the imaginary continent from east to west. Elisabeth naturally did not know that this was the only true image in her allego

this. "Cousin Maria left her card upon him, and he returned her call

you? I kne

hy

ians, you live to see or

do adore interesting people! I hadn't known him five minutes before he began to talk about

hristopher

better than you do after all these years. I wonder

did, with an amount of curios

ng, and you are overgrown with the lichen of old memories and associations. But you are not very interesti

ble I might not always wear it on my sleev

f you tried to hide it I should see through

must be a grea

keep me from making mista

or you. It is a mist

ontinued the girl, "that nothing is so good for keep

if she w

ed that it is not the women with a sense of humour who make fools of themselve

r of calling a thing ridiculous which is r

culous things romantic, or romantic things ridiculous?

. I never tho

kes you so uninteresting to talk to. The fact is you are so wrapped up in that tiresome old business that you never ha

had dreamed his dreams, and prospected wonderful roads to success which his feet were destined never to tread; and at first he had asked something more of life than the Osierfield was capable of offering him. But finally he had submitted contentedly to the inevitable, because-in spite of all his hopes and ambitions-his boyish lov

people to be practical and sensible and commonplace and all that; but for a man as young as you are it is simply disgusting. I can not understand you, becau

silence; but Elisabeth, having once mounted her high horse, dug her spurs into her steed and rode on to vi

have so persistently suppressed your higher self that it is dying of inanition; you'll soon have no higher self left at all. If people don't use their hearts they don't have any, like the Kentucky fish that can't see in the dark because

to see whether her sermon was being "blessed"

the matte

ing.

't notice it; but I expect it is the heat. Do sit down on the grass a

stopher, trying to laugh, and

umbled off the rick-do you remember it?-and you took me into Mrs. Bateson's to have my h

ugh; but I'm all right now,

ause I thought you were going to die, and that everything would be vile without you? And then I had a prayer-meeting about you in Mrs. Bateson's parlour, and I wrote the hymns fo

crime in a woman, but I should hardly call it a capital offence. Still, I shou

so proud when you said that

praise from me. But can'

nning of the opening one," she said; "it was a six-line-eig

sing like

out among

gambol with

e cud amon

pop with al

her has got

a born hymn-writer, Elisabeth. The shades of Charles

hows how anxious I was about you even then when you were ill. I am just the sa

ich was per

e, it is because I am so fond of you that I tell you of your faul

s

a man rarely does it full justice when it is disp

of you I shouldn't

tle fonder of me you wouldn't want to

and if you had only a little more heart you would be adorab

but I sometime

e of you sufficiently; I feel sure the heart is there, but it i

about things that one doesn't understand; I am sure

feelings might help you to u

ght he

d without any assistance. But you are sure you are all right, Chris, and haven't g

very well,

't feel

ad? disti

te well, you

get you are! Apparently you attach as much im

s the infallible signs of a depraved natu

only for a short time. Considering your own

on. "Nice old boy! I am awfully glad you are all right. It would

s much heart-things generally go wrong with the people who have hearts, you know, and not with the people who have not; so we perceive how wise was the poet

. They discussed everything under the sun, and some things over it; they read the same books and compared notes afterward; they went out sketching together, and instructed each other in the ways of art; and they carefully examined the foundations of each other's beliefs, an

sabeth's actions, in no way prevented him from highly disapproving of them; and the fact that he was too proud to express this disapproval in words, in no way prevented him from displaying it in ma

ed ass?" he said to her, when Alan Tremaine had been

ut never is your strong point

when he trotted out his views on the Higher Criticis

did it for my benefit, he certainly succeeded in his

e! What can it matter to you what he disbelieves or why he disbel

r to me. I like to know how old-fashioned truths ac

d enough for me, and I'll stick to them, if you please, in spite of Mr. Trem

eeable." And Elisabeth sighed. "It is so dif

to open your eyes; I shouldn't be your friend if I could." And he actually believed that this was the case. He forgot that it

ught up in such a dreadfully old-fashioned way. It was all very well for the last ge

y n

we are youn

time, and we shall

the sort of religion that did for Cousin Maria and Mr. Smal

, I am sor

no connection with

arts, which I have heard is

ing to understand it," Elisabeth continued, "w

ave imagined that i

to find the kernel of truth in the shell of tradition?" Elisabeth had not talked to Alan Tremaine for over a year without learning his tricks of

ed obstinate. "I

respect for '

est

hed. "You really are

. "I am sorry if I was rude; but it riles me to hear you quoting Trem

outgrown the old faiths, he is a very good man; and he has such lov

ho is too ignorant to accept truth, too blind to appreciate beauty, and t

sterday he was abusing the selfishness of men in general, and saying that a

did he? Then he

you agree with him that a man in love th

imself at all, but only of the woman. It strikes me that Ma

the discovery of the one woman whereof all other women

doesn't merely mean that a man has found a woman who is dearer to him than all

f man who would clothe himself in the rubric, tied on with red tape; but though he may not be a Christian, a

he life of me see that the possession of three or four thousand a year, witho

ghtfully nar

narrow as a plumbing-line than indulge in the sickly lati

ing with you; you are t

ly been quoting Tremaine verbatim; and th

have such a horrid temper. Your religion may be very orthodox, but I can not say much for its improving q

her very angry with himself for having been disagreeable, a