第19章

"Itoldhimthattherewereprobablycardsonboardsomewhere——Jorgensonwouldknow。ThenIaskedhimwhetherhelookedonmeasagaoler。Hewasquitestartledandsorryforwhathesaid。"

"Itwasn’tverykindofyou，CaptainLingard。"

"Itslippedoutawkwardlyandwemadeitupwithalaugh。"

Mrs。Traversleanedherelbowsontherailandputherheadintoherhands。EveryattitudeofthatwomansurprisedLingardbyitsenchantingeffectuponhimself。Hesighed，andthesilencelastedforalongwhile。

"IwishIhadunderstoodeverywordthatwassaidthatmorning。"

"Thatmorning，"repeatedLingard。"Whatmorningdoyoumean？"

"ImeanthemorningwhenIwalkedoutofBelarab’sstockadeonyourarm，CaptainLingard，attheheadoftheprocession。ItseemedtomethatIwaswalkingonasplendidstageinascenefromanopera，inagorgeousshowfittomakeanaudienceholditsbreath。Youcan’tpossiblyguesshowunrealallthisseemed，andhowartificialIfeltmyself。Anopera，youknow……"

"Iknow。Iwasagolddiggeratonetime。SomeofususedtocomedowntoMelbournewithourpocketsfullofmoney。Idaresayitwaspoorenoughtowhatyoumusthaveseen，butonceIwenttoashowlikethat。Itwasastoryactedtomusic。Allthepeoplewentsingingthroughitrighttotheveryend。"

"Howitmusthavejarredonyoursenseofreality，"saidMrs。

Travers，stillnotlookingathim。"Youdon’trememberthenameoftheopera？"

"No。Inevertroubledmyheadaboutit。We——ourlotneverdid。"

"Iwon’taskyouwhatthestorywaslike。Itmusthaveappearedtoyouliketheverydefianceofalltruth。Wouldrealpeoplegosingingthroughtheirlifeanywhereexceptinafairytale？"

"Thesepeopledidn’talwayssingforjoy，"saidLingard，simply。

"Idon’tknowmuchaboutfairytales。"

"Theyaremostlyaboutprincesses，"murmuredMrs。Travers。

Lingarddidn’tquitehear。Hebenthisearforamomentbutshewasn’tlookingathimandhedidn’taskhertorepeatherremark。

"Fairytalesareforchildren，Ibelieve，"hesaid。"ButthatstorywithmusicIamtellingyouof，Mrs。Travers，wasnotataleforchildren。IassureyouthatofthefewshowsIhaveseenthatonewasthemostrealtome。Morerealthananythinginlife。"

Mrs。Travers，rememberingthefatalinanityofmostoperalibrettos，wastouchedbythesewordsasiftherehadbeensomethingpatheticinthisreadinessofresponse；asifshehadheardastarvedmantalkingofthedelightofacrustofdrybread。"Isupposeyouforgotyourselfinthatstory，whateveritwas，"sheremarkedinadetachedtone。

"Yes，itcarriedmeaway。ButIsupposeyouknowthefeeling。"

"No。Ineverknewanythingofthekind，notevenwhenIwasachitofagirl。"Lingardseemedtoacceptthisstatementasanassertionofsuperiority。Heinclinedhisheadslightly。

Moreover，shemighthavesaidwhatsheliked。Whatpleasedhimmostwashernotlookingathim；foritenabledhimtocontemplatewithperfectfreedomthecurveofhercheek，hersmallearhalfhiddenbytheclearmeshoffinehair，thefascinationofheruncoveredneck。Andherwholepersonwasanimpossible，anamazingandsolidmarvelwhichsomehowwasnotsomuchconvincingtotheeyeastosomethingwithinhimthatwasapparentlyindependentofhissenses。Notevenforamomentdidhethinkofherasremote。Untouchable——possibly！Butremote——no。

Whetherconsciouslyorunconsciouslyhetookherspirituallyforgranted。Itwasmateriallythatshewasawonderofthesortthatisatthesametimefamiliarandsacred。

"No，"Mrs。Traversbeganagain，abruptly。"Ineverforgotmyselfinastory。Itwasnotinme。Ihavenotevenbeenabletoforgetmyselfonthatmorningonshorewhichwaspartofmyownstory。"

"Youcarriedyourselffirstrate，"saidLingard，smilingatthenapeofherneck，herear，thefilmofescapedhair，themodellingofthecornerofhereye。Hecouldseetheflutterofthedarkeyelashes：andthedelicateflushonhercheekhadrathertheeffectofscentthanofcolour。

"Youapprovedofmybehaviour。"

"Justright，Itellyou。Myword，weren’ttheyallstruckofaheapwhentheymadeoutwhatyouwere。"

"Ioughttofeelflattered。IwillconfesstoyouthatIfeltonlyhalfdisguisedandwashalfangryandwhollyuncomfortable。

Whathelpedme，Isuppose，wasthatIwantedtoplease……"

"Idon’tmeantosaythattheywereexactlypleased，"brokeinLingard，conscientiously。"Theywerestartledmore。"

"Iwantedtopleaseyou，"droppedMrs。Travers，negligently。A

faint，hoarse，andimpatientcallofabirdwasheardfromthewoodsasifcallingtotheoncomingnight。Lingard’sfacegrewhotinthedeepeningdusk。Thedelicatelemonyellowandetherealgreentintshadvanishedfromtheskyandtheredglowdarkenedmenacingly。Thesunhadsetbehindtheblackpalloftheforest，nolongeredgedwithalineofgold。

Yes，Iwasabsurdlyself—conscious，"continuedMrs。Traversinaconversationaltone。"AnditwastheeffectoftheseclothesthatyoumademeputonoversomeofmyEuropean——Ialmostsaiddisguise；becauseyouknowinthepresentmoreperfectcostumeI

feelcuriouslyathome；andyetIcan’tsaythatthesethingsreallyfitme。Thesleevesofthissilkunder—jacketarerathertight。Myshouldersfeelbound，too，andastothesarongitisscandalouslyshort。Accordingtoruleitshouldhavebeenlongenoughtofallovermyfeet。ButIlikefreedomofmovement。I

havehadverylittleofwhatIlikedinlife。"

"Icanhardlybelievethat，"saidLingard。"Ifitwasn’tforyoursayingso……"

"Iwouldn’tsaysotoeverybody，"shesaid，turningherheadforamomenttoLingardandturningitawayagaintotheduskwhichseemedtocomefloatingovertheblacklagoon。Farawayinitsdepthacoupleoffeeblelightstwinkled；itwasimpossibletosaywhetherontheshoreorontheedgeofthemoredistantforest。Overheadthestarswerebeginningtocomeout，butfaintyet，asiftooremotetobereflectedinthelagoon。Onlytothewestasettingplanetshonethroughtheredfogofthesunsetglow。"Itwassupposednottobegoodformetohavemuchfreedomofaction。SoatleastIwastold。ButIhaveasuspicionthatitwasonlyunpleasingtootherpeople。"

"Ishouldhavethought，"beganLingard，thenhesitatedandstopped。Itseemedtohiminconceivablethateverybodyshouldnothavelovedtomakethatwomanhappy。Andhewasimpressedbythebitternessofhertone。Mrs。Traversdidnotseemcurioustoknowwhathewantedtosayandafteratimesheadded，"Idon’tmeanonlywhenIwasachild。Idon’trememberthatverywell。I

daresayIwasveryobjectionableasachild。"

Lingardtriedtoimagineherasachild。Theideawasnoveltohim。Herperfectionseemedtohavecomeintotheworldcomplete，mature，andwithoutanyhesitationorweakness。Hehadnothinginhisexperiencethatcouldhelphimtoimagineachildofthatclass。Thechildrenheknewplayedaboutthevillagestreetandranonthebeach。Hehadbeenoneofthem。Hehadseenotherchildren，ofcourse，since，buthehadnotbeenintouchwiththemexceptvisuallyandtheyhadnotbeenEnglishchildren。Herchildhood，likehisown，hadbeenpassedinEngland，andthatveryfactmadeitalmostimpossibleforhimtoimagineit。Hecouldnoteventellwhetheritwasintownorinthecountry，orwhetherasachildshehadevenseenthesea。Andhowcouldachildofthatkindbeobjectionable？Butherememberedthatachilddisapprovedofcouldbeveryunhappy，andhesaid：

"Iamsorry。"

Mrs。Traverslaughedalittle。Withinthemuslincageformshadturnedtoblurredshadows。Amongstthemtheformofd’Alcaceraroseandmoved。ThesystematicorelsethemorbiddumbnessofMr。Traversboredandexasperatedhim，though，asamatteroffact，thatgentleman’sspeecheshadneverhadthepowereithertoentertainortosoothehismind。

"It’sveryniceofyou。Youhaveagreatcapacityforsympathy，butafterallIamnotcertainonwhichsideyoursympathieslie。

Withme，orthosemuch—triedpeople，"saidMrs。Travers。

"Withthechild，"saidLingard，disregardingthebanteringtone。

"Achildcanhaveaverybadtimeofitalltoitself。"

"Whatcanyouknowofit？"sheasked。

"Ihavemyownfeelings，"heansweredinsomesurprise。

Mrs。Travers，withherbacktohim，wascoveredwithconfusion。

Neithercouldshedepicttoherselfhischildhoodasifhe，too，hadcomeintotheworldinthefullnessofhisstrengthandhispurpose。Shediscoveredacertainnaivenessinherselfandlaughedalittle。Hemadenosound。

"Don’tbeangry，"shesaid。"Iwouldn’tdreamoflaughingatyourfeelings。Indeedyourfeelingsarethemostseriousthingthatevercameinmyway。Icouldn’thelplaughingatmyself——atafunnydiscoveryImade。"

"Inthedaysofyourchildhood？"sheheardLingard’sdeepvoiceaskingafterapause。

"Oh，no。Agesafterward。Nochildcouldhavemadethatdiscovery。

Doyouknowthegreatestdifferencethereisbetweenus？Itisthis：ThatIhavebeenlivingsincemychildhoodinfrontofashowandthatIneverhavebeentakeninforamomentbyitstinselanditsnoiseorbyanythingthatwentononthestage。DoyouunderstandwhatImean，CaptainLingard？"

Therewasamomentofsilence。"Whatdoesitmatter？Wearenochildrennow。"TherewasaninfinitegentlenessinLingard’sdeeptones。"Butifyouhavebeenunhappythendon’ttellmethatithasnotbeenmadeuptoyousince。Surelyyouhaveonlytomakeasign。Awomanlikeyou。"

"YouthinkIcouldfrightenthewholeworldontoitsknees？"

"No，notfrighten。"Thesuggestionofalaughinthedeadenedvoicepassedoffinacatchofthebreath。Thenhewasheardbeginningsoberly："Yourhusband……"Hehesitatedalittleandshetooktheopportunitytosaycoldly：

"HisnameisMr。Travers。"

Lingarddidn’tknowhowtotakeit。Heimaginedhimselftohavebeenguiltyofsomesortofpresumption。Buthowonearthwashetocalltheman？Afterallhewasherhusband。Thatideawasdisagreeabletohimbecausethemanwasalsoinimicalinaparticularlyunreasonableandgallingmanner。Atthesametimehewasawarethathedidn’tcareabitforhisenmityandhadanideathathewouldnothavecaredforhisfriendshipeither。Andsuddenlyhefeltverymuchannoyed。

"Yes。That’sthemanImean，"hesaidinacontemptuoustone。"I

don’tparticularlylikethenameandIamsureIdon’twanttotalkabouthimmorethanIcanhelp。Ifhehadn’tbeenyourhusbandIwouldn’thaveputupwithhismannersforanhour。Doyouknowwhatwouldhavehappenedtohimifhehadn’tbeenyourhusband？"

"No，"saidMrs。Travers。"Doyou，CaptainLingard？"

"Notexactly，"headmitted。"Somethinghewouldn’thaveliked，youmaybesure。"

"Whileofcoursehelikesthisverymuch，"sheobserved。Lingardgaveanabruptlaugh。

"Idon’tthinkit’sinmypowertodoanythingthathewouldlike，"hesaidinaserioustone。"Forgivememyfrankness，Mrs。

Travers，buthemakesitverydifficultsometimesformetokeepcivil。WhateverIhavehadtoputupwithinlifeIhaveneverhadtoputupwithcontempt。"

"Iquitebelievethat，"saidMrs。Travers。"Don’tyourfriendscallyouKingTom？"

"NobodythatIcarefor。Ihavenofriends。Oh，yes，theycallmethat……"

"Youhavenofriends？"

"NotI，"hesaidwithdecision。"Amanlikemehasnochums。"

"It’squitepossible，"murmuredMrs。Traverstoherself。

"No，notevenJorgenson。OldcrazyJorgenson。HecallsmeKingTom，too。Youseewhatthat’sworth。"

"Yes，Isee。OrratherIhaveheard。Thatpoormanhasnotone，andsomuchdependsonthat。NowsupposeIweretocallyouKingTomnowandthenbetweenourselves，"Mrs。Travers’voiceproposed，distantlytentativeinthenightthatinvestedherpersonwithacolourlessvaguenessofform。

Shewaitedinthestillness，herelbowsontherailandherfaceinherhandsasifshehadalreadyforgottenwhatshehadsaid。

Sheheardatherelbowthedeepmurmurof：

"Let’shearyousayit。"

Shenevermovedtheleastbit。Thesombrelagoonsparkledfaintlywiththereflectionofthestars。

"Oh，yes，Iwillletyouhearit，"shesaidintothestarlitspaceinavoiceofunaccentedgentlenesswhichchangedsubtlyasshewenton。"Ihopeyouwillneverregretthatyoucameoutofyourfriendlessmysterytospeaktome，KingTom。Howmanydaysagoitwas！Andhereisanotherdaygone。Tellmehowmanymoreofthemtheremustbe？Oftheseblindingdaysandnightswithoutasound。"

"Bepatient，"hemurmured。"Don’taskmefortheimpossible。"

"HowdoyouorIknowwhatispossible？"shewhisperedwithastrangescorn。"Youwouldn’tdareguess。ButItellyouthateverydaythatpassesismoreimpossibletomethanthedaybefore。"

Thepassionofthatwhisperwentlikeastabintohisbreast。

"WhatamItotellyou？"hemurmured，asifwithdespair。

"Rememberthateverysunsetmakesitadayless。DoyouthinkI

wantyouhere？"

Abitterlittlelaughfloatedoutintothestarlight。Mrs。

TraversheardLingardmovesuddenlyawayfromherside。Shedidn’tchangeherposebyahair’sbreadth。Presentlysheheardd’AlcacercomingoutoftheCage。Hiscultivatedvoiceaskedhalfplayfully：

"Haveyouhadasatisfactoryconversation？MayIbetoldsomethingofit？"

"Mr。d’Alcacer，youarecurious。"

"Well，inourposition，Iconfess……Youareouronlyrefuge，remember。"

"Youwanttoknowwhatweweretalkingabout，"saidMrs。Travers，alteringslowlyherpositionsoastoconfrontd’Alcacerwhosefacewasalmostundistinguishable。"Oh，well，then，wetalkedaboutopera，therealitiesandillusionsofthestage，ofdresses，ofpeople’snames，andthingsofthatsort。"

"Nothingofimportance，"hesaidcourteously。Mrs。Traversmovedforwardandhesteppedtooneside。InsidetheCagetwoMalayhandswerehangingroundlanterns，thelightofwhichfellonMr。

Travers’bowedheadashesatinhischair。

WhentheywereallassembledfortheeveningmealJorgensonstrolledupfromnowhereinparticularashishabitwas，andspeakingthroughthemuslinannouncedthatCaptainLingardbeggedtobeexcusedfromjoiningthecompanythatevening。Thenhestrolledaway。Fromthatmomenttilltheygotupfromthetableandthecampbedsteadswerebroughtinnottwentywordspassedbetweenthemembersofthepartywithinthenet。Thestrangenessoftheirsituationmadeallattemptstoexchangeideasveryarduous；andapartfromthateachhadthoughtswhichitwasdistinctlyuselesstocommunicatetotheothers。Mr。Travershadabandonedhimselftohissenseofinjury。Hedidnotsomuchbroodasrageinwardlyinadull，dispiritedway。Theimpossibilityofassertinghimselfinanymannergalledhisverysoul。D’Alcacerwasextremelypuzzled。DetachedinasensefromthelifeofmenperhapsasmuchevenasJorgensonhimself，hetookyetareasonableinterestinthecourseofeventsandhadnotlostallhissenseofself—preservation。Withoutbeingabletoappreciatetheexactvaluesofthesituationhewasnotoneofthosemenwhoareevercompletelyinthedarkinanygivensetofcircumstances。Withoutbeinghumoroushewasagood—humouredman。

Hishabitual，gentlesmilewasatrueexpression。MoreofaEuropeanthanofaSpaniardhehadthattrulyaristocraticnaturewhichisinclinedtocrediteveryhonestmanwithsomethingofitsownnobilityandinitsjudgmentisaltogetherindependentofclassfeeling。HebelievedLingardtobeanhonestmanandhenevertroubledhisheadtoclassifyhim，exceptinthesensethathefoundhimaninterestingcharacter。Hehadasortofesteemfortheoutwardpersonalityandthebearingofthatseaman。Hefoundinhimalsothedistinctionofbeingnothingofatype。Hewasaspecimentobejudgedonlybyitsownworth。Withhisnaturalgiftofinsightd’Alcacertoldhimselfthatmanyoverseasadventurersofhistorywereprobablylessworthybecauseobviouslytheymusthavebeenlesssimple。Hedidn’t，however，impartthosethoughtsformallytoMrs。Travers。InfactheavoideddiscussingLingardwithMrs。Traverswho，hethought，wasquiteintelligentenoughtoappreciatetheexactshadeofhisattitude。Ifthatshadewasfine，Mrs。Traverswasfine，too；andtherewasnoneedtodiscussthecoloursofthisadventure。

Moreover，sheherselfseemedtoavoidalldirectdiscussionoftheLingardelementintheirfate。D’Alcacerwasfineenoughtobeawarethatthosetwoseemedtounderstandeachotherinawaythatwasnotobviouseventothemselves。Wheneverhesawthemtogetherhewasalwaysmuchtemptedtoobservethem。Andheyieldedtothetemptation。Thefactofone’slifedependingonthephasesofanobscureactionauthorizesacertainlatitudeofbehaviour。Hehadseenthemtogetherrepeatedly，communingopenlyorapart，andtherewasintheirwayofjoiningeachother，intheirposesandtheirwaysofseparating，somethingspecialandcharacteristicandpertainingtothemselvesonly，asiftheyhadbeenmadeforeachother。

Whathecouldn’tunderstandwaswhyMrs。TraversshouldhaveputoffhisnaturalcuriosityastoherlatestconferencewiththeManofFatebyanincrediblestatementastothenatureoftheconversation。Talkaboutdresses，opera，people’snames。Hecouldn’ttakethisseriously。Shemighthaveinvented，hethought，somethingmoreplausible；orsimplyhavetoldhimthatthiswasnotforhimtoknow。Sheoughttohaveknownthathewouldnothavebeenoffended。Couldn’tshehaveseenalreadythatheacceptedthecomplexionofmysteryinherrelationtothatmancompletely，unquestionably；asthoughithadbeensomethingpreordainedfromtheverybeginningofthings？ButhewasnotannoyedwithMrs。Travers。Afterallitmighthavebeentrue。Shewouldtalkexactlyassheliked，andevenincredibly，ifitsopleasedher，andmakethemanhangonherlips。Andlikewiseshewascapableofmakingthemantalkaboutanythingbyapowerofinspirationforreasonssimpleorperverse。Opera！Dresses！

Yes——aboutShakespeareandthemusicalglasses！Foramerewhimorforthedeepestpurpose。Womenworthyofthenamewerelikethat。Theywereverywonderful。Theyrosetotheoccasionandsometimesabovetheoccasionwhenthingswereboundtooccurthatwouldbecomicortragic（asithappened）butgenerallychargedwithtroubleeventoinnocentbeholders。D’Alcacerthoughtthesethoughtswithoutbitternessandevenwithoutirony。Withhishalf—secretsocialreputationasamanofonegreatpassioninaworldofmereintrigueshelikedallwomen。Helikedthemintheirsentimentandintheirhardness，inthetragiccharacteroftheirfoolishorcleverimpulses，atwhichhelookedwithasortoftenderseriousness。

Hedidn’ttakeafavourableviewofthepositionbutheconsideredMrs。Travers’statementaboutoperasanddressesasawarningtokeepoffthesubject。Forthisreasonheremainedsilentthroughthemeal。

WhenthebustleofclearingawaythetablewasoverhestrolledtowardMrs。Traversandremarkedveryquietly：

"IthinkthatinkeepingawayfromusthiseveningtheManofFatewaswellinspired。WedinedlikealotofCarthusianmonks。"

"Youalludetooursilence？"

"Itwasmostscrupulous。Ifwehadtakenaneternalvowwecouldn’thavekeptitbetter。"

"Didyoufeelbored？"

"Pasdutout，"d’Alcacerassuredherwithwhimsicalgravity。"I

feltnothing。Isatinastateofblessedvacuity。IbelieveI

wasthehappiestofusthree。Unlessyou，too，Mrs。Travers……"

"It’sabsolutelynouseyourfishingformythoughts，Mr。

d’Alcacer。IfIweretoletyouseethemyouwouldbeappalled。"

"Thoughtsreallyarebutashapeoffeelings。Letmecongratulateyouontheimpassivemaskyoucanputonthosehorrorsyousayyounurseinyourbreast。Itwasimpossibletotellanythingbyyourface。"

"Youwillalwayssayflatteringthings。"

"Madame，myflatteriescomefromtheverybottomofmyheart。I

havegivenuplongagoalldesiretoplease。AndIwasnottryingtogetatyourthoughts。Whateverelseyoumayexpectfrommeyoumaycountonmyabsoluterespectforyourprivacy。ButIsupposewithamasksuchasyoucanmakeforyourselfyoureallydon’tcare。TheManofFate，Inoticed，isnotnearlyasgoodatitasyouare。"

"Whatapretentiousname。Doyoucallhimbyittohisface，Mr。

d’Alcacer？"

"No，Ihaven’tthecheek，"confessedd’Alcacer，equably。"And，besides，it’stoomomentousfordailyuse。Andheissosimplethathemightmistakeitforajokeandnothingcouldbefurtherfrommythoughts。Mrs。Travers，IwillconfesstoyouthatI

don’tfeeljocularintheleast。Butwhatcanheknowaboutpeopleofoursort？AndwhenIreflecthowlittlepeopleofoursortcanknowofsuchamanIamquitecontenttoaddresshimasCaptainLingard。It’scommonandsoothingandmostrespectableandsatisfactory；forCaptainisthemostemptyofalltitles。

WhatisaCaptain？AnybodycanbeaCaptain；andforLingardit’sanamelikeanyother。Whereaswhathedeservesissomethingspecial，significant，andexpressive，thatwouldmatchhisperson，hissimpleandromanticperson。"

HeperceivedthatMrs。Traverswaslookingathimintently。Theyhastenedtoturntheireyesawayfromeachother。

"Hewouldlikeyourappreciation，"Mrs。Traversletdropnegligently。

"Iamafraidhewoulddespiseit。"

"Despiseit！Why，thatsortofthingistheverybreathofhisnostrils。"

"Youseemtounderstandhim，Mrs。Travers。Womenhaveasingularcapacityforunderstanding。Imeansubjectsthatinterestthem；

becausewhentheirimaginationisstimulatedtheyarenotafraidoflettingitgo。Amanismoremistrustfulofhimself，butwomenarebornmuchmorereckless。Theypushonandonundertheprotectionofsecrecyandsilence，andthegreatertheobscurityofwhattheywishtoexplorethegreatertheircourage。"

"Doyoumeanseriouslytotellmethatyouconsidermeacreatureofdarkness？"

"Ispokeingeneral，"remonstratedd’Alcacer。"Anythingelsewouldhavebeenanimpertinence。Yes，obscurityiswomen’sbestfriend。Theirdaringlovesit；butasuddenflashoflightdisconcertsthem。Generallyspeaking，iftheydon’tgetexactlyatthetruththeyalwaysmanagetocomeprettyneartoit。"

Mrs。Travershadlistenedwithsilentattentionandsheallowedthesilencetocontinueforsometimeafterd’Alcacerhadceased。

Whenshespokeitwastosayinanunconcernedtonethatastothissubjectshehadhadspecialopportunities。Herself—possessedinterlocutormanagedtorepressamovementofrealcuriosityunderanassumptionofconventionalinterest。"Indeed，"

heexclaimed，politely。"Aspecialopportunity。Howdidyoumanagetocreateit？"

ThiswastoomuchforMrs。Travers。"I！Createit！"sheexclaimed，indignantly，butunderherbreath。"HowonearthdoyouthinkIcouldhavedoneit？"

Mr。d’Alcacer，asifcommuningwithhimself，washeardtomurmurunrepentantlythatindeedwomenseldomknewhowtheyhad"doneit，"towhichMrs。Traversinawearytonereturnedtheremarkthatnotwomenweredenseinthesameway。TothisMr。d’Alcacerassentedwithoutdifficulty。"Yes，ourbrandpresentsmorevarieties。This，fromacertainpointofview，isobviouslytoouradvantage。Weinterest……NotthatIimaginemyselfinterestingtoyou，Mrs。Travers。ButwhatabouttheManofFate？"

"Oh，yes，"breathedoutMrs。Travers。

"Isee！Immensely！"saidd’Alcacerinatoneofmysteriousunderstanding。"Washisstupiditysocolossal？"

"Itwasindistinguishablefromgreatvisionsthatwereinnosensemeanandmadeupforhimaworldofhisown。"

"Iguessedthatmuch，"mutteredd’Alcacertohimself。"Butthat，youknow，Mrs。Travers，thatisn’tgoodnewsatalltome。Worldofdreams，eh？That’sverybad，verydangerous。It’salmostfatal，Mrs。Travers。"

"Whyallthisdismay？Whydoyouobjecttoaworldofdreams？"

"BecauseIdisliketheprospectofbeingmadeasacrificeofbythoseMoors。Iamnotanoptimistlikeourfriendthere，"hecontinuedinalowtonenoddingtowardthedismalfigureofMr。

Travershuddledupinthechair。"Idon’tregardallthisasafarceandIhavediscoveredinmyselfastrongobjectiontohavingmythroatcutbythosegorgeousbarbariansafteralotoffatuoustalk。Don’taskmewhy，Mrs。Travers。Putitdowntoanabsurdweakness。"

Mrs。Traversmadeaslightmovementinherchair，raisingherhandstoherhead，andinthedimlightofthelanternsd’Alcacersawthemassofhercleargleaminghairfalldownandspreaditselfoverhershoulders。Sheseizedhalfofitinherhandswhichlookedverywhite，andwithherheadinclinedalittleononesideshebegantomakeaplait。

"Youareterrifying，"hesaidafterwatchingthemovementofherfingersforawhile。