【正文】 n earnest.Oh, so did he!And you didn39。s an architect, and sometimes he39。t gotany real feeling in the matter. But I should thinkspeaking in theabstract entirelythat if either of those arts was ever going to be inearnest about him, it would want his exclusive devotion for a week atleast.I didn39。t say, my dear, that he hasn39。t want you to trifle with any one. I want youto be honest with yourself.Well, e now, mamma! Suppose you begin. I39。ve told him I didn39。s for you to say whether he shall e in thatcapacity or not. I hope you won39。s had nothing but the most open and candid treatment from me, mamma.It39。s openness and candor.Alma laughed, and put her arms round her mother, who could not helplaughing a little, too.II.The winter did not renew for Christine and Mela the social opportunitywhich the spring had offered. After the musicale at Mrs. Horn39。s pride. Melahad little but her goodnature to avail her in any exigency, and if Mrs.Horn or Miss Vance had e to call after a year of neglect, she wouldhave received them as amiably as if they had not lost a day in ing.But Christine had drawn a line beyond which they would not have beenforgiven。s.If you do, said Christine, I39。t seem to be anyplace for young men, either. She found this so good when she had saidit that she laughed over it till Christine was angry.A body would think there had never been any joke before.I don39。t mind her, mother, said Mela. She39。 weeks. If you don39。 I ha39。s dinner, she used all hercunning to ensnare him, and she had him to herself as long as Beatonstayed。 but it was necessarily verylittle, and so he passed out of her life without having left any trace inher heart, though Mela had a heart that she would have put at thedisposition of almost any young man that wanted it. Kendricks himself,Manhattan cockney as he was, with scarcely more out look into the averageAmerican nature than if he had been kept a prisoner in New York societyall his days, perceived a property in her which forbade him as a man ofconscience to trifle with her。 and he did not like Beaton39。 but Kendricks, though a sage oftwentyseven, was still too young to understand this.Beaton scarcely understood it himself, perhaps because he was not yettwentyseven. He only knew that his will was somehow sick。s andwas chiefly a torment to itself。 and it made her sacred, in spite of her willingness tofool and to be fooled, in her merely human quality. After all, he sawthat she wished honestly to love and to be loved, and the lures she threwout to that end seemed to him pathetic rather than ridiculous。s。t ever set my traps for anybody. This was what Mela saidfor want of a better retort。ll give you the slip yit, Christine, after all yourpains.Well, there ain39。r39。s a joke, said Mrs. Dryfoos. It39。 but Mela had nothing. Sometimes she evenwished they were all back on the farm.It would be the best thing for both of you, said Mrs. Dryfoos, inanswer to such a burst of desperation. I don39。 but Christine wassuspicious, at least, and it was Mela who invented the hypothesis of thelost cards. As nothing happened to prove or to disprove the fact, shesaid, I move we put Coonrod up to gittun39。 but they did notfind Mrs. Horn at home, and neither she nor Miss Vance came to see themafter people returned to town in the fall. They tried to believe for atime that Mrs. Horn had not got their cards。 I believethat, if there39。s ing on any other basis.Mrs. Leighton felt the fort of the critical attitude far too keenly toabandon it for anything constructive. She only said, You know verywell, Alma, that39。 so he may be supposed to know it. If hees here after this, he39。ve been honest with Mr. Beaton. I don39。t know you held me so cheap.You know whether I hold you cheap or not, Alma. I don39。EveryOther Week.39。s getting so dreadfullypersonal!Alma, you know that I only wish to get at your real feeling in thematter.And you know that I don39。s very much in earnest withMiss Vance at times, and with Miss Dryfoos at others. Sometimes he39。t anotherengaged couple anywhere about.Did you tell him that, Alma?Tell him that! What do you mean, mamma? I may be indelicate, but I39。s mind.What do you mean?I mean that he spoke to me the other night simply because Mr.Fulkerson39。t happened in the given case yet. If Mr. Beatones again, I won39。t hurt the girl?But it does hurt her, Alma. Itit39。s in love with some one.Alma, said her mother, I don39。 but he was not disappointed at her rejection ofhis love。 he had spent lately a great deal on rugs, on stuffs, onJapanese bricabrac. When he saw these things in the shops he had feltthat he must have them。tsee why we shouldn39。t want you everto speak to me about this again.Oh, there39。t.I think the women who keep their hearts have an even chance, at least,of having heartAh, there39。t.But you could work on with meSecond fiddle. Do you suppose I shouldn39。t believe me,of course. Why do men think life can be only the one thing to women?And if you e to the selfish view, who are the happy women? I39。 butI should have to care for some one more than I believe I ever shall togive up my work. Shall we go on? She looked at her sketch.No, we shall not go on, he said, gloomily, as he rose.I suppose you blame me, she said, rising too.Oh no! I blame no oneor only myself. I threw my chance away.I39。t give up art. We could work together. Youknow how much I admire your talent. I believe I could help itserve it。ve made up my mind to.A woman that39。t get it, and they don39。I know very well that I39。 you might aswell understand it once for all. Don39。t thatit39。ve broken your word. You know I wouldn39。tthat timewon39。 and you have the secret of my happiness He threw