Widdershins

she scarcely lifted her eyes to it. But then she had always been more or less like that-a little indifferent to the graces of life, careless of ap

ovements and moist and explosive utterances. She "pulled a better living out of the pool" (as she expressed it) than Oleron did; and by cunningly disguised puffs of drapers and haber

ck at his door when he had been a month in his new abode. Her garments brought

ed her hat and veil. "I didn't know whether you were straight yet, so I've brought some s

I'll clear these things

to be interrupte

of water into the kettle. He joined her, and ten minutes later followed her back to the sitting-room

the new place?" Oleron ask

ink you were going t

lau

improvement on som

liked the last place, in spite of the bla

humbed h

, I've not got on very well with it. But it will

tu

er st

you care to r

nd practical, sometimes directly useful, sometimes indirectly suggestive. She, in return for his confidence, always kept all ment

The fact is, Elsie, I've not written-not actually written-very much more of it-any more of it, in fact. But, of course, that doesn'

gave a gasp. "

ve begun to feel that I'm not getting the most out of her. As

gh protested, "you had

ul

that she liked Romilly as she at present existed; she would. Whether she realised it or not, there wa

aul?" Miss Bengough asked pres

e ser

ng to scrap those

exactly

e, rich l

antly, and for the sake of

eau_tiful description o

ily be wasted," he sa

large and windy gesture,

like!... Why, it would be a wicked, criminal waste of your powers to destroy those fifteen chapters! Look at it reasonably, now. You've been working for nearly twenty years; you've now got what you've been working for almost within your grasp; your affairs are at a most critical stage (oh, don't

we stand alone. Elsie Bengough sometimes said that had she had one-tenth part of Oleron's genius there were few things she could not have done-thus making that genius a quantitatively divisible thing, a sort of ingredient, to be added

haven't a word to say. If I could only turn Romilly over to you you'd make an enormous success of her. But th

mean?" she dem

s it mean when you're convinced a thing i

the ceiling for assistance

ou were turning her off at the rate of four chapters a week; if you hadn't moved you'd have had her thre

ad twenty years of it-twenty years of garrets and roof-chambers and dingy flats and shabby lodgings, and he was tired of dinginess and shabbiness. The reward was as far off as ever-or if it was not, he no longer cared as

er here than I've been for a long time

rk," said Miss B

ce that had been gathering

at I simply long to be rid of. Once in many weeks it has a moment, one moment, of glow and thrill for me; I remember the days when it was all glow and thrill; and now I'm forty-four, and it's b

comely pink fa

y years ago, Paul-and still you c

old so. My heart, if you like, told me so, and I thought I knew. Youth al

-four,

t behind. Yes, I knew and chose, if that's knowing and choosing ...

re on the floor. Withou

regretting

y word, I've lately thought I am! W

at you get,"

w, but could not tell him, that he could have done no better thing for himself. Had he, any time these ten ye

"Without you we jackals couldn't exist. You and a

hat this was common vulgar grumbling. It was not his habit. Su

, with a little laugh.... "No, I'll take them

She made few comments. In the kitchen she asked what an old faded square of

it is," Oleron replied as he unfolded the bag and

Bengough. "It's been used to wrap up

t it was," said Oleron. "I could m

of the flat, and return

e rest of the house?

eeps in the cellar occ

ll you what I think a

ould

never wo

leron quickl

omilly here. Why, I do

to leave before you g

a moment, a

little-preju

leg to stand on. But there it is," she replied, he

g down his hat and

he said, "for I shall be in a serious m