【正文】 it and the affirmation which I had heard almost every Sunday of my life. 39。And God created man in His own image. And God decreed that man should have one body, one head, two arms and two legs: that e ach arm should be jointed in two places and end in one hand: that each hand should have four fingers and one thumb: that each finger should bear a flat fingernail. . .39。 And so on until: 39。Then God created woman, also, and in the same image, but with these differences, according to her nature: her voice should be of higher pitch than man39。s: she should grow no beard: she should have two breasts ...39。 And so on again. I knew it all, word for word — and yet the sight of Sophie39。s six toes stirred nothing in my memory. I saw the foot resting in her mother39。s lap. Watched her mother pause to look dow n at it for a still moment, lift it, bend to kiss it gently, and then look up with tears in her eyes. I felt sorry for her distress, and for Sophie, and for the hurt foot — but nothing more. While the bandaging was finished I looked round the room curiously. The house was a great deal smaller than my home, a cottage, in fact, but I liked it better. It felt friendly. And although Sophie39。s mother was anxious and worried she did not give me the feeling that I was the one regrettable and unreliable factor in an otherwise orderly life, the way most people did at home. And the room itself seemed to me the better, too, for not having groups of words hanging on the wall for people to point to in disapproval. Inste ad, this room had several drawings of horses, which I thought very fine. Presently, Sophie, tidied up now, and with the tearmarks washed away, hopped to a chair at the table. Quite restored, but for the foot, she inquired with grave hospitality whether I liked eggs. Afterwards, Mrs Wender told me to wait where I was while she carried her upstairs. She returned in a few minutes, and sat down beside me. She took my hand in hers and looked at me seriously for some moments. I could feel her anxiety strongly 。 though quite why she should be so worried was not, at first, clear to me. I was surprised by her, for there had been no sign before that she could think in that way. I thought back to her, trying to reassure her and show her that she need not be anxious about me, but the thought didn39。t reach her. She went on looking at me with her eyes shining, much as Sophie39。s had when she was trying not to cry. Her own thoughts were all worry and shapelessness as she kept looking at me. I tried again, but still couldn39。t reach them. Then she nodded slowly, and said in words: 39。You39。re a good boy, David. You were very kind to Sophie. I want to thank you for that.39。 I felt awkward, and looked at my shoes. I couldn39。t remember anyone saying before that I was a good boy. I knew no form of response designed to meet such an event. 39。You like Sophie, don39。t you?39。 she went on, still looking at me. 39。Yes,39。 I told her. And I added: 39。I think she39。s awfully brave, too. It must have hurt a lot.39。 39。Will you keep a secret — an important secret — for her sake?39。 she asked. 39。Yes — of course,39。 I agreed, but a little uncertain in my tone for not realizing what the secret was. 39。 You — you saw her foot?39。 she said, looking steadily into my face. 39。 Her — toes?39。 I nodded. 39。Yes,39。 I said again. 39。Well, that is the secret, David. Nobody else must know about that. You are the only person who does, except her father and me. Nobody else must know. Nobody at all — not ever.39。 39。No,39。 I agreed, and nodded seriously again. There was a pause — at least, her voice paused, but her thoughts went on, as if 39。 nobody39。 and 39。 not ever39。 were making desolate, unhappy echoes there. Then that changed, and she became tense and fierce and afraid inside. It was no good thinking back to her, so I tried clumsily to emphasize in words that I had meant what I said. 39。 Never — not anybody at all,39。 I assured her earnestly. 39。 It39。s very, very important,39。 she insisted. 39。 How can I explain to you?39。 But she didn39。t really need to explain. Her urgent, tightstrung feeling of the importance was very plain. Her words were far less FOR months the great pleasure excursion to Europe and the Holy Land was chatted about in the newspapers everywhere in America and discussed at countless firesides. It was a novelty in the way of excursions its like had not been thought of before, and it pelled that interest which attractive novelties always mand. It was to be a piic on a gigantic scale. The participants in it, instead of freighting an ungainly steam ferry boat with youth and beauty and pies and doughnuts, and paddling up some obscure creek to disembark upon a grassy lawn and wear themselves out with a long summer day39。s laborious frolicking under the impression that it was fun, were to sail away in a great steamship with flags flying and cannon pealing, and take a royal holiday beyond the broad ocean in many a strange clime and in many a land renowned in history! They were to sail for months over the breezy Atlantic and the sunny Mediterranean。 they were to scamper about the decks by day, filling the ship with shouts and laughter or read novels and poetry in the shade of the smokestacks, or watch for the jelly fish and the nautilus over the side, and the shark, the whale, and other strange monsters of the deep。 and at night they were to dance in the open air, on the upper deck, in the midst of a ballroom that stretched from horizon to horizon, and was domed by the bending heavens and lighted by no meaner lamps than the stars and the magnificent moondance, and promenade, and smoke, and sing, and make love, and search the skies for constellations that never associate with the Big Dipper they 20