Fleurhavingdeclaredthatitwas\"simplytoowonderfultostayindoors,\"theyallwentout。Moonlightwasfrostingthedew,andanoldsundialthrewalongshadow。Twoboxhedgesatrightangles,darkandsquare,barredofftheorchard。Fleurturnedthroughthatangledopening。
\"Comeon!\"shecalled。Jonglancedattheothers,andfollowed。Shewasrunningamongthetreeslikeaghost。Allwaslovelyandfoamlikeaboveher,andtherewasascentofoldtrunks,andofnettles。Shevanished。Hethoughthehadlosther,thenalmostranintoherstandingquitestill。
\"Isn’titjolly?\"shecried,andJonanswered:
\"Rather!\"
Shereachedup,twistedoffablossomand,twirlingitinherfingers,said:
\"IsupposeIcancallyouJon?\"
\"Ishouldthinksojust。\"
\"Allright!Butyouknowthere’safeudbetweenourfamilies?\"
Jonstammered:\"Feud?Why?\"
\"It’seversoromanticandsilly。That’swhyIpretendedwehadn’tmet。Shallwegetupearlyto—morrowmorningandgoforawalkbeforebreakfastandhaveitout?Ihatebeingslowaboutthings,don’tyou?\"
Jonmurmuredarapturousassent。
\"Sixo’clock,then。Ithinkyourmother’sbeautiful\"
Jonsaidfervently:\"Yes,sheis。\"
\"Iloveallkindsofbeauty,\"wentonFleur,\"whenit’sexciting。I
don’tlikeGreekthingsabit。\"
\"What!NotEuripides?\"
\"Euripides?Oh!no,Ican’tbearGreekplays;they’resolong。I
thinkbeauty’salwaysswift。Iliketolookatonepicture,forinstance,andthenrunoff。Ican’tbearalotofthingstogether。
Look!\"Sheheldupherblossominthemoonlight。\"That’sbetterthanalltheorchard,Ithink。\"
And,suddenly,withherotherhandshecaughtJon’s。
\"Ofallthingsintheworld,don’tyouthinkcaution’sthemostawful?Smellthemoonlight!\"
Shethrusttheblossomagainsthisface;Jonagreedgiddilythatofallthingsintheworldcautionwastheworst,andbendingover,kissedthehandwhichheldhis。
\"That’sniceandold—fashioned,\"saidFleurcalmly。\"You’refrightfullysilent,Jon。StillIlikesilencewhenit’sswift。\"Sheletgohishand。\"DidyouthinkIdroppedmyhandkerchiefonpurpose?\"
\"No!\"criedJon,intenselyshocked。
\"Well,Idid,ofcourse。Let’sgetback,orthey’llthinkwe’redoingthisonpurposetoo。\"Andagainsheranlikeaghostamongthetrees。Jonfollowed,withloveinhisheart,Springinhisheart,andoverallthemoonlitwhiteunearthlyblossom。Theycameoutwheretheyhadgonein,Fleurwalkingdemurely。
\"It’squitewonderfulinthere,\"shesaiddreamilytoHolly。
Jonpreservedsilence,hopingagainsthopethatshemightbethinkingitswift。
Shebadehimacasualanddemuregood—night,whichmadehimthinkhehadbeendreaming……
InherbedroomFleurhadflungoffhergown,and,wrappedinashapelessgarment,withthewhiteflowerstillinherhair,shelookedlikeamousme,sittingcross—leggedonherbed,writingbycandlelight。
\"DEARESTCHERRY,\"IbelieveI’minlove。I’vegotitintheneck,onlythefeelingisreallylowerdown。He’sasecondcousin—suchachild,aboutsixmonthsolderandtenyearsyoungerthanIam。Boysalwaysfallinlovewiththeirseniors,andgirlswiththeirjuniorsorwitholdmenofforty。Don’tlaugh,buthiseyesarethetruestthingsIeversaw;andhe’squitedivinelysilent!WehadamostromanticfirstmeetinginLondonundertheVospovitchJuno。Andnowhe’ssleepinginthenextroomandthemoonlight’sontheblossom;andto—morrowmorning,beforeanybody’sawake,we’regoingtowalkoffintoDownfairyland。There’safeudbetweenourfamilies,whichmakesitreallyexciting。Yes!andImayhavetousesubterfugeandcomeonyouforinvitations——ifso,you’llknowwhy!Myfatherdoesn’twantustoknoweachother,butIcan’thelpthat。Life’stooshort。
He’sgotthemostbeautifulmother,withlovelysilveryhairandayoungfacewithdarkeyes。I’mstayingwithhissister——whomarriedmycousin;it’sallmixedup,butImeantopumpherto—morrow。
We’veoftentalkedaboutlovebeingaspoil—sport;well,that’salltosh,it’sthebeginningofsport,andthesooneryoufeelit,mydear,thebetterforyou。
\"Jon(notsimplifiedspelling,butshortforJolyon,whichisanameinmyfamily,theysay)isthesortthatlightsupandgoesout;
aboutfivefeetten,stillgrowing,andIbelievehe’sgoingtobeapoet。IfyoulaughatmeI’vedonewithyouforever。Iperceiveallsortsofdifficulties,butyouknowwhenIreallywantathingIgetit。Oneofthechiefeffectsofloveisthatyouseetheairsortofinhabited,likeseeingafaceinthemoon;andyoufeel——youfeeldanceyandsoftatthesametime,withafunnysensation——likeacontinualfirstsniffoforange——blossom——Justaboveyourstays。
Thisismyfirst,andIfeelasifitweregoingtobemylast,whichisabsurd,ofcourse,byallthelawsofNatureandmorality。IfyoumockmeIwillsmiteyou,andifyoutellanybodyIwillneverforgiveyou。Somuchso,thatIalmostdon’tthinkI’llsendthisletter。Anyway,I’llsleepoverit。Sogood—night,myCherry——oh!
\"Your,\"FLEUR。\"
VIII
IDYLLONGRASS
WhenthosetwoyoungForsytesemergedfromthechinelane,andsettheirfaceseasttowardthesun,therewasnotacloudinheaven,andtheDownsweredewy。Theyhadcomeatagoodbatuptheslopeandwerealittleoutofbreath;iftheyhadanythingtosaytheydidnotsayit,butmarchedintheearlyawkwardnessofunbreakfastedmorningunderthesongsofthelarks。Thestealingouthadbeenfun,butwiththefreedomofthetopsthesenseofconspiracyceased,andgaveplacetodumbness。
\"We’vemadeonebloomingerror,\"saidFleur,whentheyhadgonehalfamile。\"I’mhungry。\"
Jonproducedastickofchocolate。Theyshareditandtheirtongueswereloosened。Theydiscussedthenatureoftheirhomesandpreviousexistences,whichhadakindoffascinatingunrealityuponthatlonelyheight。ThereremainedbutonethingsolidinJon’spast——hismother;butonethingsolidinFleur’s——herfather;andofthesefigures,asthoughseeninthedistancewithdisapprovingfaces,theyspokelittle。
TheDowndippedandroseagaintowardChanctonburyRing;asparkleoffarseacameintoview,asparrow—hawkhoveredinthesun’seyesothattheblood—nourishedbrownofhiswingsgleamednearlyred。Jonhadapassionforbirds,andanaptitudeforsittingverystilltowatchthem;keen—sighted,andwithamemoryforwhatinterestedhim,onbirdshewasalmostworthlisteningto。ButinChanctonburyRingtherewerenone——itsgreatbeechtemplewasemptyoflife,andalmostchillyatthisearlyhour;theycameoutwillinglyagainintothesunonthefarside。ItwasFleur’sturnnow。Shespokeofdogs,andthewaypeopletreatedthem。Itwaswickedtokeepthemonchains!
Shewouldliketoflogpeoplewhodidthat。Jonwasastonishedtofindhersohumanitarian。Sheknewadog,itseemed,whichsomefarmernearherhomekeptchainedupattheendofhischickenrun,inallweathers,tillithadalmostlostitsvoicefrombarking!
\"Andthemiseryis,\"shesaidvehemently,\"thatifthepoorthingdidn’tbarkateveryonewhopassesitwouldn’tbekeptthere。Idothinkmenarecunningbrutes。I’veletitgotwice,onthesly;it’snearlybittenmebothtimes,andthenitgoessimplymadwithjoy;
butitalwaysrunsbackhomeatlast,andtheychainitupagain。IfIhadmyway,I’dchainthatmanup。\"Jonsawherteethandhereyesgleam。\"I’dbrandhimonhisforeheadwiththeword’Brute’;thatwouldteachhim!\"
Jonagreedthatitwouldbeagoodremedy。
\"It’stheirsenseofproperty,\"hesaid,\"whichmakespeoplechainthings。Thelastgenerationthoughtofnothingbutproperty;andthat’swhytherewastheWar。\"
\"Oh!\"saidFleur,\"Ineverthoughtofthat。Yourpeopleandminequarrelledaboutproperty。Andanywaywe’veallgotit——atleast,I
supposeyourpeoplehave。\"
\"Oh!yes,luckily;Idon’tsupposeIshallbeanygoodatmakingmoney。\"
\"Ifyouwere,Idon’tbelieveIshouldlikeyou。
Jonslippedhishandtremulouslyunderherarm。Fleurlookedstraightbeforeherandchanted:
\"Jon,Jon,thefarmer’sson,Stoleapig,andawayherun!\"
Jon’sarmcreptroundherwaist。
\"Thisisrathersudden,\"saidFleurcalmly;\"doyouoftendoit?\"
Jondroppedhisarm。Butwhenshelaughedhisarmstolebackagain;
andFleurbegantosing:
\"Owhowilloerthedownssofree,Owhowillwithmeride?
Owhowillupandfollowme———\"
Sing,Jon!\"
Jonsang。Thelarksjoinedin,sheep—bells,andanearlymorningchurchfarawayoverinSteyning。Theywentonfromtunetotune,tillFleursaid:
\"MyGod!Iamhungrynow!\"
\"Oh!Iamsorry!\"
Shelookedroundintohisface。
\"Jon,you’reratheradarling。\"
Andshepressedhishandagainstherwaist。Jonalmostreeledfromhappiness。Ayellow—and—whitedogcoursingaharestartledthemapart。Theywatchedthetwovanishdowntheslope,tillFleursaidwithasigh:\"He’llnevercatchit,thankgoodness!What’sthetime?
Mine’sstopped。Ineverwoundit。\"
Jonlookedathiswatch。\"ByJove!\"hesaid,\"mine’sstopped;too。\"
Theywalkedonagain,butonlyhandinhand。
\"Ifthegrassisdry,\"saidFleur,\"let’ssitdownforhalfaminute。\"
Jontookoffhiscoat,andtheysharedit。
\"Smell!Actuallywildthyme!\"
Withhisarmroundherwaistagain,theysatsomeminutesinsilence。
\"Wearegoats!\"criedFleur,jumpingup;\"weshallbemostfearfullylate,andlooksosilly,andputthemontheirguard。Lookhere,JonWeonlycameouttogetanappetiteforbreakfast,andlostourway。
See?\"
\"Yes,\"saidJon。
\"It’sserious;there’llbeastopperputonus。Areyouagoodliar?\"
\"Ibelievenotvery;butIcantry。\"
Fleurfrowned。
\"Youknow,\"shesaid,\"Irealizethattheydon’tmeanustobefriends。\"
\"Whynot?\"
\"Itoldyouwhy。\"
\"Butthat’ssilly。\"
\"Yes;butyoudon’tknowmyfather!\"
\"Isupposehe’sfearfullyfondofyou。\"
\"Yousee,I’manonlychild。Andsoareyou——ofyourmother。Isn’titabore?There’ssomuchexpectedofone。Bythetimethey’vedoneexpecting,one’sasgoodasdead。\"
\"Yes,\"mutteredJon,\"life’sbeastlyshort。Onewantstoliveforever,andknoweverything。\"
\"Andloveeverybody?\"
\"No,\"criedJon;\"Ionlywanttoloveonce——you。\"
\"Indeed!You’recomingon!Oh!Look!There’sthechalk—pit;wecan’tbeveryfarnow。Let’srun。\"
Jonfollowed,wonderingfearfullyifhehadoffendedher。
Thechalk—pitwasfullofsunshineandthemurmurationofbees。
Fleurflungbackherhair。
\"Well,\"shesaid,\"incaseofaccidents,youmaygivemeonekiss,Jon,\"andshepushedhercheekforward。Withecstasyhekissedthathotsoftcheek。
\"Now,remember!Welostourway;andleaveittomeasmuchasyoucan。I’mgoingtoberatherbeastlytoyou;it’ssafer;tryandbebeastlytome!\"
Jonshookhishead。\"That’simpossible。\"
\"Justtopleaseme;tillfiveo’clock,atallevents。\"
\"Anybodywillbeabletoseethroughit,\"saidJongloomily。
\"Well,doyourbest。Look!Theretheyare!Waveyourhat!Oh!youhaven’tgotone。Well,I’llcooee!Getalittleawayfromme,andlooksulky。\"
Fiveminuteslater,enteringthehouseanddoinghisutmosttolooksulky,Jonheardherclearvoiceinthedining—room:
\"Oh!I’msimplyravenous!He’sgoingtobeafarmer——andheloseshisway!Theboy’sanidiot!\"
IX
GOYA
LunchwasoverandSoamesmountedtothepicture—galleryinhishousenearMapleduram。HehadwhatAnnettecalled\"agrief。\"Fleurwasnotyethome。ShehadbeenexpectedonWednesday;hadwiredthatitwouldbeFriday;andagainonFridaythatitwouldbeSundayafternoon;andherewereheraunt,andhercousinstheCardigans,andthisfellowProfond,andeverythingflatasapancakeforthewantofher。HestoodbeforehisGauguin——sorestpointofhiscollection。
HehadboughttheuglygreatthingwithtwoearlyMatissesbeforetheWar,becausetherewassuchafussaboutthosePost—Impressionistchaps。HewaswonderingwhetherProfondwouldtakethemoffhishands——thefellowseemednottoknowwhattodowithhismoney——whenheheardhissister’svoicesay:\"Ithinkthat’sahorridthing,Soames,\"andsawthatWinifredhadfollowedhimup。
\"Oh!youdo?\"hesaiddryly;\"Igavefivehundredforit。\"
\"Fancy!Womenaren’tmadelikethateveniftheyareblack。\"
Soamesutteredaglumlaugh。\"Youdidn’tcomeuptotellmethat。\"
\"No。DoyouknowthatJolyon’sboyisstayingwithValandhiswife?\"
Soamesspunround。
\"What?\"
\"Yes,\"drawledWinifred;\"he’sgonetolivewiththemtherewhilehelearnsfarming。\"
Soameshadturnedaway,buthervoicepursuedhimashewalkedupanddown。\"IwarnedValthatneitherofthemwastobespokentoaboutoldmatters。\"
\"Whydidn’tyoutellmebefore?\"
Winifredshruggedhersubstantialshoulders。
\"Fleurdoeswhatshelikes。You’vealwaysspoiledher。Besides,mydearboy,what’stheharm?\"
\"Theharm!\"mutteredSoames。\"Why,she——\"hecheckedhimself。TheJuno,thehandkerchief,Fleur’seyes,herquestions,andnowthisdelayinherreturn——thesymptomsseemedtohimsosinisterthat,faithfultohisnature,hecouldnotpartwiththem。
\"Ithinkyoutaketoomuchcare,\"saidWinifred。\"IfIwereyou,I
shouldtellherofthatoldmatter。It’snogoodthinkingthatgirlsinthesedaysareastheyusedtobe。WheretheypickuptheirknowledgeIcan’ttell,buttheyseemtoknoweverything。\"
OverSoames’face,closelycomposed,passedasortofspasm,andWinifredaddedhastily:
\"Ifyoudon’tliketospeakofit,Icouldforyou。\"
Soamesshookhishead。Unlesstherewasabsolutenecessitythethoughtthathisadoreddaughtershouldlearnofthatoldscandalhurthispridetoomuch。
\"No,\"hesaid,\"notyet。NeverifIcanhelpit。
\"Nonsense,mydear。Thinkwhatpeopleare!\"
\"Twentyyearsisalongtime,\"mutteredSoames。\"Outsideourfamily,who’slikelytoremember?\"
Winifredwassilenced。SheinclinedmoreandmoretothatpeaceandquietnessofwhichMontagueDartiehaddeprivedherinheryouth。
And,sincepicturesalwaysdepressedher,shesoonwentdownagain。
Soamespassedintothecornerwhere,sidebyside,hunghisrealGoyaandthecopyofthefresco\"LaVendimia。\"HisacquisitionoftherealGoyaratherbeautifullyillustratedthecobwebofvestedinterestsandpassionswhichmeshthebright—wingedflyofhumanlife。TherealGoya’snobleowner’sancestorhadcomeintopossessionofitduringsomeSpanishwar——itwasinawordloot。ThenobleownerhadremainedinignoranceofitsvalueuntilintheninetiesanenterprisingcriticdiscoveredthataSpanishpainternamedGoyawasagenius。ItwasonlyafairGoya,butalmostuniqueinEngland,andthenobleownerbecameamarkedman。Havingmanypossessionsandthataristocraticculturewhich,independentofmeresensuousenjoyment,isfoundedonthesounderprinciplethatonemustknoweverythingandbefearfullyinterestedinlife,hehadfullyintendedtokeepanarticlewhichcontributedtohisreputationwhilehewasalive,andtoleaveittothenationafterhewasdead。
FortunatelyforSoames,theHouseofLordswasviolentlyattackedin1909,andthenobleownerbecamealarmedandangry。’If,’hesaidtohimself,’theythinktheycanhaveitbothwaystheyareverymuchmistaken。Solongastheyleavemeinquietenjoymentthenationcanhavesomeofmypicturesatmydeath。Butifthenationisgoingtobaitme,androbmelikethis,I’mdamnedifIwon’tsellthelot。
Theycan’thavemyprivatepropertyandmypublicspirit—both。’Hebroodedinthisfashionforseveralmonthstillonemorning,afterreadingthespeechofacertainstatesman,hetelegraphedtohisagenttocomedownandbringBodkin。OngoingoverthecollectionBodkin,thanwhoseopiniononmarketvaluesnonewasmoresought,pronouncedthatwithafreehandtoselltoAmerica,Germany,andotherplaceswheretherewasaninterestinart,alotmoremoneycouldbemadethanbysellinginEngland。Thenobleowner’spublicspirit——hesaid——waswellknownbutthepictureswereunique。Thenobleownerputthisopinioninhispipeandsmokeditforayear。
Attheendofthattimehereadanotherspeechbythesamestatesman,andtelegraphedtohisagents:\"GiveBodkinafreehand。\"ItwasatthisjuncturethatBodkinconceivedtheideawhichsalvedtheGoyaandtwootheruniquepicturesforthenativecountryofthenobleowner。WithonehandBodkinprofferedthepicturestotheforeignmarket,withtheotherheformedalistofprivateBritishcollectors。Havingobtainedwhatheconsideredthehighestpossiblebidsfromacrosstheseas,hesubmittedpicturesandbidstotheprivateBritishcollectors,andinvitedthem,oftheirpublicspirit,tooutbid。Inthreeinstances(includingtheGoya)outoftwenty—onehewassuccessful。Andwhy?Oneoftheprivatecollectorsmadebuttons——hehadmadesomanythathedesiredthathiswifeshouldbecalledLady\"Buttons。\"Hethereforeboughtauniquepictureatgreatcost,andgaveittothenation。Itwas\"part,\"hisfriendssaid,\"ofhisgeneralgame。\"ThesecondoftheprivatecollectorswasanAmericophobe,andboughtanuniquepictureto\"spitethedamnedYanks。\"ThethirdoftheprivatecollectorswasSoames,who——moresoberthaneitherofthe,others——boughtafteravisittoMadrid,becausehewascertainthatGoyawasstillontheupgrade。Goyawasnotboomingatthemoment,buthewouldcomeagain;and,lookingatthatportrait,Hogarthian,Manetesqueinitsdirectness,butwithitsownqueersharpbeautyofpaint,hewasperfectlysatisfiedstillthathehadmadenoerror,heavythoughthepricehadbeen——heaviesthehadeverpaid。Andnexttoitwashangingthecopyof\"LaVendimia。\"Thereshewas——thelittlewretch—lookingbackathiminherdreamymood,themoodhelovedbestbecausehefeltsomuchsaferwhenshelookedlikethat。
Hewasstillgazingwhenthescentofacigarimpingedonhisnostrils,andavoicesaid:
\"Well,Mr。Forsyde,whatyougoin’todowiththissmalllot?\"
ThatBelgianchap,whosemother—asifFlemishbloodwerenotenough——
hadbeenArmenian!Subduinganaturalirritation,hesaid:
\"Areyouajudgeofpictures?\"
\"Well,I’vegotafewmyself。\"
\"AnyPost—Impressionists?\"
\"Ye—es,Iratherlikethem。\"
\"Whatdoyouthinkofthis?\"saidSoames,pointingtotheGauguin。
MonsieurProfondprotrudedhislowerlipandshortpointedbeard。
\"Ratherfine,Ithink,\"hesaid;\"doyouwanttosellit?\"
Soamescheckedhisinstinctive\"Notparticularly\"——hewouldnotchafferwiththisalien。
\"Yes,\"hesaid。
\"Whatdoyouwantforit?\"
\"WhatIgave。\"
\"Allright,\"saidMonsieurProfond。\"I’llbegladtotakethatsmallpicture。Post—Impressionists——they’reawfuldead,butthey’reamusin’。Idon’careforpicturesmuch,butI’vegotsome,justasmalllot。\"
\"Whatdoyoucarefor?\"
MonsieurProfondshruggedhisshoulders。
\"Life’sawfullikealotofmonkeysscramblin’foremptynuts。\"
\"You’reyoung,\"saidSoames。Ifthefellowmustmakeageneralization,heneedn’tsuggestthattheformsofpropertylackedsolidity!
\"Idon’worry,\"repliedMonsieurProfondsmiling;\"we’reborn,andwedie。Halftheworld’sstarvin’。Ifeedasmalllotofbabiesoutinmymother’scountry;butwhat’stheuse?Mightaswellthrowmymoneyintheriver。\"
Soameslookedathim,andturnedbacktowardhisGoya。Hedidn’tknowwhatthefellowwanted。
\"WhatshallImakemychequefor?\"pursuedMonsieurProfond。
\"Fivehundred,\"saidSoamesshortly;\"butIdon’twantyoutotakeitifyoudon’tcareforitmorethanthat。\"
\"That’sallright,\"saidMonsieurProfond;\"I’llbe’appyto’avethatpicture。\"
Hewroteachequewithafountain—penheavilychasedwithgold。
Soameswatchedtheprocessuneasily。Howonearthhadthefellowknownthathewantedtosellthatpicture?MonsieurProfondheldoutthecheque。
\"TheEnglishareawfulfunnyaboutpictures,\"hesaid。\"SoaretheFrench,soaremypeople。They’reallawfulfunny。\"
\"Idon’tunderstandyou,\"saidSoamesstiffly。
\"It’slikehats,\"saidMonsieurProfondenigmatically,\"smallorlarge,turnin’upordown—justthefashion。Awfulfunny。\"And,smiling,hedriftedoutofthegalleryagain,blueandsolidlikethesmokeofhisexcellentcigar。
Soameshadtakenthecheque,feelingasiftheintrinsicvalueofownershiphadbeencalledinquestion。’He’sacosmopolitan,’hethought,watchingProfondemergefromundertheverandahwithAnnette,andsaunterdownthelawntowardtheriver。Whathiswifesawinthefellowhedidn’tknow,unlessitwasthathecouldspeakherlanguage;andtherepassedinSoameswhatMonsieurProfondwouldhavecalleda\"smalldoubt\"whetherAnnettewasnottoohandsometobewalkingwithanyoneso\"cosmopolitan。\"EvenatthatdistancehecouldseethebluefumesfromProfond’scigarwreathoutinthequietsunlight;andhisgreybuckskinshoes,andhisgreyhat——thefellowwasadandy!Andhecouldseethequickturnofhiswife’shead,soverystraightonherdesirableneckandshoulders。Thatturnofherneckalwaysseemedtohimalittletooshowy,andinthe\"QueenofallIsurvey\"manner——notquitedistinguished。Hewatchedthemwalkalongthepathatthebottomofthegarden。Ayoungmaninflannelsjoinedthemdownthere——aSundaycallernodoubt,fromuptheriver。
HewentbacktohisGoya。HewasstillstaringatthatreplicaofFleur,andworryingoverWinifred’snews,whenhiswife’svoicesaid:
\"Mr。MichaelMont,Soames。Youinvitedhimtoseeyourpictures。\"
TherewasthecheerfulyoungmanoftheGalleryoffCorkStreet!
\"Turnedup,yousee,sir;IliveonlyfourmilesfromPangbourne。
Jollyday,isn’tit?\"
Confrontedwiththeresultsofhisexpansiveness,Soamesscrutinizedhisvisitor。Theyoungman’smouthwasexcessivelylargeandcurly——
heseemedalwaysgrinning。Whydidn’thegrowtherestofthoseidioticlittlemoustaches,whichmadehimlooklikeamusic—hallbuffoon?Whatonearthwereyoungmenabout,deliberatelyloweringtheirclasswiththesetooth—brushes,orlittleslugwhiskers?Ugh!
Affectedyoungidiots!Inotherrespectshewaspresentable,andhisflannelsveryclean。