第7章

"Wasshethegreatestsingeryoueverheard？"

Wunschnoddedgravely。"Quiteso。Shewasthemost——"hehuntedforanEnglishword，liftedhishandoverhisheadandsnappedhisfingersnoiselesslyintheair，enunciatingfiercely，"KUNST—LER—ISCH！"Thewordseemedtoglitterinhisupliftedhand，hisvoicewassofullofemotion。

Wunschrosefromthestoolandbegantobuttonhiswaddedjacket，preparingtoreturntohishalf—heatedroomintheloft。Thearegretfullyputonhercloakandhoodandsetoutforhome。

WhenWunschlookedforhisscorelatethatafternoon，hefoundthatTheahadnotforgottentotakeitwithher。

Hesmiledhisloose，sarcasticsmile，andthoughtfullyrubbedhisstubblychinwithhisredfingers。WhenFritzcamehomeintheearlybluetwilightthesnowwasflyingfaster，Mrs。KohlerwascookingHASENPFEFFERinthekitchen，andtheprofessorwasseatedatthepiano，playingtheGluck，whichheknewbyheart。OldFritztookoffhisshoesquietlybehindthestoveandlaydownontheloungebeforehismasterpiece，wherethefirelightwasplayingoverthewallsofMoscow。Helistened，whiletheroomgrewdarkerandthewindowsduller。Wunschalwayscamebacktothesamething：——

"ACH，ICHHABESIEVERLOREN，

EURIDICE，EURIDICE！"

FromtimetotimeFritzsighedsoftly。He，too，hadlostaEuridice。

XI

OneSaturday，lateinJune，Theaarrivedearlyforherlesson。Assheperchedherselfuponthepianostool，——awobbly，old—fashionedthingthatworkedonacreakyscrew，——shegaveWunschasideglance，smiling。"Youmustnotbecrosstometo—day。Thisismybirthday。"

"So？"hepointedtothekeyboard。

AfterthelessontheywentouttojoinMrs。Kohler，whohadaskedTheatocomeearly，sothatshecouldstayandsmellthelindenbloom。Itwasoneofthosestilldaysofintenselight，wheneveryparticleofmicainthesoilflashedlikealittlemirror，andtheglarefromtheplainbelowseemedmoreintensethantheraysfromabove。Thesandridgesranglitteringgoldouttowherethemiragelickedthemup，shiningandsteaminglikealakeinthetropics。

Theskylookedlikebluelava，foreverincapableofclouds，——aturquoisebowlthatwasthelidofthedesert。AndyetwithinMrs。Kohler’sgreenpatchthewaterdripped，thebedshadallbeenhosed，andtheairwasfreshwithrapidlyevaporatingmoisture。

Thetwosymmetricallindentreesweretheproudestthingsinthegarden。Theirsweetnessembalmedalltheair。Ateveryturnofthepaths，——whetheronewenttoseethehollyhocksorthebleedingheart，ortolookatthepur—

plemorning—gloriesthatranoverthebean—poles，——wher—

everonewent，thesweetnessofthelindensstruckoneafreshandonealwayscamebacktothem。Undertheroundleaves，wherethewaxenyellowblossomshung，beviesofwildbeeswerebuzzing。Thetamariskswerestillpink，andtheflower—bedsweredoingtheirbestinhonorofthelindenfestival。Thewhitedove—housewasshiningwithafreshcoatofpaint，andthepigeonswerecrooningcontentedly，

flyingdownoftentodrinkatthedripfromthewatertank。

Mrs。Kohler，whowastransplantingpansies，cameupwithhertrowelandtoldTheaitwasluckytohaveyourbirthdaywhenthelindenswereinbloom，andthatshemustgoandlookatthesweetpeas。Wunschaccompaniedher，andastheywalkedbetweentheflower—bedshetookThea’shand。

"ESFLUSTERNUNDSPRECHENDIEBLUMEN，"——

hemuttered。"YouknowthatvonHeine？IMLEUCHTENDEN

SOMMERMORGEN？"HelookeddownatTheaandsoftlypressedherhand。

"No，Idon’tknowit。WhatdoesFLUSTERNmean？"

"FLUSTERN？——towhisper。Youmustbeginnowtoknowsuchthings。Thatisnecessary。Howmanybirthdays？"

"Thirteen。I’minmy’teensnow。ButhowcanIknowwordslikethat？Ionlyknowwhatyousayatmylessons。

Theydon’tteachGermanatschool。HowcanIlearn？"

"Itisalwayspossibletolearnwhenonelikes，"saidWunsch。Hiswordswereperemptory，asusual，buthistonewasmild，evenconfidential。"Thereisalwaysaway。

Andifsomedayyouaregoingtosing，itisnecessarytoknowwelltheGermanlanguage。"

Theastoopedovertopickaleafofrosemary。HowdidWunschknowthat，whentheveryrosesonherwall—paperhadneverheardit？"ButamIgoingto？"sheasked，stillstooping。

"Thatisforyoutosay，"returnedWunschcoldly。"YouwouldbettermarrysomeJACOBhereandkeepthehouseforhim，may—be？Thatisasonedesires。"

Theaflashedupathimaclear，laughinglook。"No，I

don’twanttodothat。Youknow，"shebrushedhiscoat—

sleevequicklywithheryellowhead。"OnlyhowcanI

learnanythinghere？It’ssofarfromDenver。"

Wunsch’slooselowerlipcurledinamusement。Then，asifhesuddenlyrememberedsomething，hespokeseriously。

"Nothingisfarandnothingisnear，ifonedesires。The

worldislittle，peoplearelittle，humanlifeislittle。Thereisonlyonebigthing——desire。Andbeforeit，whenitisbig，allislittle。ItbroughtColumbusacrosstheseainalittleboat，UNDSOWEITER。"Wunschmadeagrimace，tookhispupil’shandanddrewhertowardthegrapearbor。"Here—

afterIwillmorespeaktoyouinGerman。Now，sitdownandIwillteachyouforyourbirthdaythatlittlesong。Askmethewordsyoudonotknowalready。Now：IMLEUCH—

TENDENSOMMERMORGEN。"

Theamemorizedquicklybecauseshehadthepoweroflisteningintently。Inafewmomentsshecouldrepeattheeightlinesforhim。Wunschnoddedencouraginglyandtheywentoutofthearborintothesunlightagain。Astheywentupanddownthegravelpathsbetweentheflower—

beds，thewhiteandyellowbutterflieskeptdartingbeforethem，andthepigeonswerewashingtheirpinkfeetatthedripandcrooningintheirhuskybass。OverandoveragainWunschmadehersaythelinestohim。"Youseeitisnothing。IfyoulearnagreatmanyoftheLIEDER，youwillknowtheGermanlanguagealready。WEITER，NUN。"Hewouldinclinehisheadgravelyandlisten。

"IMLEUCHTENDENSOMMERMORGEN

GEH’ICHIMGARTENHERUM；

ESFLUSTERNUNDSPRECHENDIEBLUMEN，ICHABER，ICHWANDTESTUMM。

"ESFLUSTERNUNDSPRECHENDIEBLUMEN

UNDSCHAU’NMITLEIDIGMICHAN：

`SEIUNSERERSCHWESTERNICHTBOSE，DUTRAURIGER，BLASSERMANN！’"

（Inthesoft—shiningsummermorningIwanderedthegardenwithin。

Theflowerstheywhisperedandmurmured，ButI，Iwandereddumb。

Theflowerstheywhisperandmurmur，Andmewithcompassiontheyscan：

"Oh，benotharshtooursister，Thousorrowful，death—paleman！"）

Wunschhadnoticedbeforethatwhenhispupilreadanythinginversethecharacterofhervoicechangedalto—

gether；itwasnolongerthevoicewhichspokethespeechofMoonstone。Itwasasoft，richcontralto，andshereadquietly；thefeelingwasinthevoiceitself，notindicatedbyemphasisorchangeofpitch。Sherepeatedthelittleversesmusically，likeasong，andtheentreatyoftheflowerswasevensofterthantherest，astheshyspeechofflowersmightbe，andsheendedwiththevoicesuspended，almostwitharisinginflection。Itwasanature—voice，Wunschtoldhim—

self，breathedfromthecreatureandapartfromlanguage，likethesoundofthewindinthetrees，orthemurmurofwater。

"Whatisittheflowersmeanwhentheyaskhimnottobeharshtotheirsister，eh？"heasked，lookingdownathercuriouslyandwrinklinghisdullredforehead。

Theaglancedathiminsurprise。"Isupposehethinkstheyareaskinghimnottobeharshtohissweetheart——orsomegirltheyremindhimof。"

"AndwhyTRAURIGER，BLASSERMANN？"

Theyhadcomebacktothegrapearbor，andTheapickedoutasunnyplaceonthebench，whereatortoise—shellcatwasstretchedatfulllength。Shesatdown，bendingoverthecatandteasinghiswhiskers。"Becausehehadbeenawakeallnight，thinkingabouther，wasn’tit？Maybethatwaswhyhewasupsoearly。"

Wunschshruggedhisshoulders。"Ifhethinkaboutherallnightalready，whydoyousaytheflowersremindhim？"

Thealookedupathiminperplexity。Aflashofcompre—

hensionlitherfaceandshesmiledeagerly。"Oh，Ididn’tmean`remind’inthatway！Ididn’tmeantheybroughthertohismind！Imeantitwasonlywhenhecameoutinthemorning，thatsheseemedtohimlikethat，——likeoneoftheflowers。"

"Andbeforehecameout，howdidsheseem？"

ThistimeitwasTheawhoshruggedhershoulders。The

warmsmileleftherface。Sheliftedhereyebrowsinannoy—

anceandlookedoffatthesandhills。

Wunschpersisted。"Whyyounotanswerme？"

"Becauseitwouldbesilly。Youarejusttryingtomakemesaythings。Itspoilsthingstoaskquestions。"

Wunschbowedmockingly；hissmilewasdisagreeable。

Suddenlyhisfacegrewgrave，grewfierce，indeed。Hepulledhimselfupfromhisclumsystoopandfoldedhisarms。"Butitisnecessarytoknowifyouknowsomethings。Some—

thingscannotbetaught。Ifyounotknowinthebeginning，younotknowintheend。Forasingertheremustbesome—

thingintheinsidefromthebeginning。Ishallnotbelonginthisplace，may—be，andIliketoknow。Yes，"——hegroundhisheelinthegravel，——"yes，whenyouarebarelysix，youmustknowthatalready。Thatisthebeginningofallthings；DERGEIST，DIEPHANTASIE。Itmustbeinthebaby，whenitmakesitsfirstcry，likeDERRHYTHMUS，oritisnottobe。Youhavesomevoicealready，andifinthebeginning，whenyouarewiththings—to—play，youknowthatwhatyouwillnottellme，thenyoucanlearntosing，may—be。"

Wunschbegantopacethearbor，rubbinghishandsto—

gether。Thedarkflushofhisfacehadspreadupundertheiron—graybristlesonhishead。Hewastalkingtohimself，nottoThea。Insidiouspowerofthelindenbloom！"Oh，muchyoucanlearn！ABERNICHTDIEAMERICANISCHENFRAU—

LEIN。Theyhavenothinginsidethem，"strikinghischestwithbothfists。"TheyareliketheonesintheMAR—

CHEN，agrinningfaceandhollowintheinsides。Some—

thingtheycanlearn，oh，yes，may—be！Butthesecret——

whatmaketherosetored，theskytoblue，themantolove——INDERBRUST，INDERBRUSTitis，UNDOHNEDIESESGIEBTES

KEINEKUNST，GIEBTESKEINEKUNST！"Hethrewuphissquarehandandshookit，allthefingersapartandwagging。Purpleandbreathlesshewentoutofthearborandintothehouse，withoutsayinggood—bye。TheseoutburstsfrightenedWunsch。Theywerealwaysharbingersofill。

Theagothermusic—bookandstolequietlyoutofthegarden。Shedidnotgohome，butwanderedoffintothesanddunes，wherethepricklypearwasinblossomandthegreenlizardswereracingeachotherintheglitteringlight。

Shewasshakenbyapassionateexcitement。ShedidnotaltogetherunderstandwhatWunschwastalkingabout；

andyet，inawaysheknew。Sheknew，ofcourse，thattherewassomethingaboutherthatwasdifferent。Butitwasmorelikeafriendlyspiritthanlikeanythingthatwasapartofherself。Shethoughteverythingtoit，anditan—

sweredher；happinessconsistedofthatbackwardandfor—

wardmovementofherself。Thesomethingcameandwent，sheneverknewhow。Sometimesshehuntedforitandcouldnotfindit；again，sheliftedhereyesfromabook，orsteppedoutofdoors，orwakenedinthemorning，anditwasthere，——

underhercheek，itusuallyseemedtobe，oroverherbreast，——akindofwarmsureness。Andwhenitwasthere，everythingwasmoreinterestingandbeautiful，evenpeople。

Whenthiscompanionwaswithher，shecouldgetthemostwonderfulthingsoutofSpanishJohnny，orWunsch，orDr。Archie。

Onherthirteenthbirthdayshewanderedforalongwhileaboutthesandridges，pickingupcrystalsandlookingintotheyellowprickly—pearblossomswiththeirthousandsta—

mens。ShelookedatthesandhillsuntilshewishedsheWEREasandhill。Andyetsheknewthatshewasgoingtoleavethemallbehindsomeday。Theywouldbechangingalldaylong，yellowandpurpleandlavender，andshewouldnotbethere。Fromthatdayon，shefelttherewasasecretbetweenherandWunsch。Togethertheyhadliftedalid，pulledoutadrawer，andlookedatsomething。Theyhiditawayandneverspokeofwhattheyhadseen；butneitherofthemforgotit。

XII

OneJulynight，whenthemoonwasfull，Dr。Archiewascomingupfromthedepot，restlessanddiscon—

tented，wishingthereweresomethingtodo。Hecarriedhisstrawhatinhishand，andkeptbrushinghishairbackfromhisforeheadwithapurposeless，unsatisfiedgesture。

AfterhepassedUncleBillyBeemer’scottonwoodgrove，thesidewalkranoutoftheshadowintothewhitemoon—

lightandcrossedthesandgullyonhighposts，likeabridge。

Asthedoctorapproachedthistrestle，hesawawhitefigure，andrecognizedTheaKronborg。Hequickenedhispaceandshecametomeethim。

"Whatareyoudoingoutsolate，mygirl？"heaskedashetookherhand。

"Oh，Idon’tknow。Whatdopeoplegotobedsoearlyfor？I’dliketorunalongbeforethehousesandscreechatthem。Isn’titgloriousouthere？"

Theyoungdoctorgaveamelancholylaughandpressedherhand。

"Thinkofit，"Theasnortedimpatiently。"Nobodyupbutusandtherabbits！I’vestarteduphalfadozenof’em。

Lookatthatlittleonedowntherenow，"——shestoopedandpointed。Inthegullybelowthemtherewas，indeed，alittlerabbitwithawhitespotofatail，crouchingdownonthesand，quitemotionless。Itseemedtobelappingupthemoonlightlikecream。Ontheothersideofthewalk，downintheditch，therewasapatchoftall，ranksunflowers，theirshaggyleaveswhitewithdust。Themoonstoodoverthecottonwoodgrove。Therewasnowind，andnosoundbutthewheezingofanenginedownonthetracks。

"Well，wemayaswellwatchtherabbits。"Dr。Archiesatdownonthesidewalkandlethisfeethangoverthe

edge。HepulledoutasmoothlinenhandkerchiefthatsmelledofGermancolognewater。"Well，howgoesit？

Workinghard？YoumustknowaboutallWunschcanteachyoubythistime。"

Theashookherhead。"Oh，no，Idon’t，Dr。Archie。

He’shardtogetat，buthe’sbeenarealmusicianinhistime。Mothersaysshebelieveshe’sforgottenmorethanthemusic—teachersdowninDenvereverknew。"

"I’mafraidhewon’tbearoundheremuchlonger，"saidDr。Archie。"He’sbeenmakingatankofhimselflately。

He’llbepullinghisfreightoneofthesedays。That’sthewaytheydo，youknow。I’llbesorryonyouraccount。"

Hepausedandranhisfreshhandkerchiefoverhisface。

"Whatthedeuceareweallhereforanyway，Thea？"hesaidabruptly。

"Onearth，youmean？"Theaaskedinalowvoice。

"Well，primarily，yes。Butsecondarily，whyareweinMoonstone？Itisn’tasifwe’dbeenbornhere。Youwere，butWunschwasn’t，andIwasn’t。IsupposeI’mherebecauseImarriedassoonasIgotoutofmedicalschoolandhadtogetapracticequick。Ifyouhurrythings，youalwaysgetleftintheend。Idon’tlearnanythinghere，andasforthepeople——InmyowntowninMichigan，now，therewerepeoplewholikedmeonmyfather’saccount，whohadevenknownmygrandfather。Thatmeantsomething。Buthereit’salllikethesand：blowsnorthonedayandsouththenext。We’reallalotofgamblerswithoutmuchnerve，playingforsmallstakes。Therailroadistheonerealfactinthiscountry。Thathastobe；theworldhastobegotbackandforth。Buttherestofusareherejustbecauseit’stheendofarunandtheenginehastohaveadrink。

SomedayI’llgetupandfindmyhairturninggray，andI’llhavenothingtoshowforit。"

Theaslidclosertohimandcaughthisarm。"No，no。

Iwon’tletyougetgray。You’vegottostayyoungforme。

I’mgettingyoungnow，too。"

Archielaughed。"Getting？"

"Yes。Peoplearen’tyoungwhenthey’rechildren。LookatThor，now；he’sjustalittleoldman。ButGushasasweetheart，andhe’syoung！"

"Somethinginthat！"Dr。Archiepattedherhead，andthenfelttheshapeofherskullgently，withthetipsofhisfingers。"Whenyouwerelittle，Thea，Iusedalwaystobecuriousabouttheshapeofyourhead。Youseemedtohavemoreinsideitthanmostyoungsters。Ihaven’texamineditforalongtime。Seemstobetheusualshape，butuncom—

monlyhard，somehow。Whatareyougoingtodowithyourself，anyway？"

"Idon’tknow。"

"Honest，now？"Heliftedherchinandlookedintohereyes。

Thealaughedandedgedawayfromhim。

"You’vegotsomethingupyoursleeve，haven’tyou？

Anythingyoulike；onlydon’tmarryandsettledownherewithoutgivingyourselfachance，willyou？"

"Notmuch。See，there’sanotherrabbit！"

"That’sallrightabouttherabbits，butIdon’twantyoutogettiedup。Rememberthat。"

Theanodded。"BenicetoWunsch，then。Idon’tknowwhatI’ddoifhewentaway。"

"You’vegotolderfriendsthanWunschhere，Thea。"

"Iknow。"Theaspokeseriouslyandlookedupatthemoon，proppingherchinonherhand。"ButWunschistheonlyonethatcanteachmewhatIwanttoknow。I’vegottolearntodosomethingwell，andthat’sthethingIcandobest。"

"Doyouwanttobeamusic—teacher？"

"Maybe，butIwanttobeagoodone。I’dliketogotoGermanytostudy，someday。Wunschsaysthat’sthebestplace，——theonlyplaceyoucanreallylearn。"Theahesi—

tatedandthenwentonnervously，"I’vegotabookthatsaysso，too。It’scalled`MyMusicalMemories。’Itmademe

wanttogotoGermanyevenbeforeWunschsaidanything。

Ofcourseit’sasecret。You’rethefirstoneI’vetold。"

Dr。Archiesmiledindulgently。"That’salongwayoff。

Isthatwhatyou’vegotinyourhardnoddle？"Heputhishandonherhair，butthistimesheshookhimoff。

"No，Idon’tthinkmuchaboutit。Butyoutalkaboutgoing，andabodyhastohavesomethingtogoTO！"

"That’sso。"Dr。Archiesighed。"You’reluckyifyouhave。PoorWunsch，now，hehasn’t。Whatdosuchfellowscomeoutherefor？He’sbeenaskingmeaboutmyminingstock，andaboutminingtowns。Whatwouldhedoinaminingtown？Hewouldn’tknowapieceoforeifhesawone。He’sgotnothingtosellthataminingtownwantstobuy。Whydon’tthoseoldfellowsstayathome？Wewon’tneedthemforanotherhundredyears。Anenginewipercangetajob，butapianoplayer！Suchpeoplecan’tmakegood。"

"MygrandfatherAlstromwasamusician，andhemadegood。"

Dr。Archiechuckled。"Oh，aSwedecanmakegoodany—

where，atanything！You’vegotthatinyourfavor，miss。

Come，youmustbegettinghome。"

Thearose。"Yes，IusedtobeashamedofbeingaSwede，butI’mnotanymore。Swedesarekindofcommon，butI

thinkit’sbettertobeSOMETHING。"

"Itsurelyis！Howtallyouaregetting。Youcomeabovemyshouldernow。"

"I’llkeepongrowing，don’tyouthink？Iparticularlywanttobetall。Yes，IguessImustgohome。Iwishthere’dbeafire。"

"Afire？"

"Yes，sothefire—bellwouldringandtheroundhousewhistlewouldblow，andeverybodywouldcomerunningout。SometimeI’mgoingtoringthefire—bellmyselfandstirthemallup。"

"You’dbearrested。"

"Well，thatwouldbebetterthangoingtobed。"

"I’llhavetolendyousomemorebooks。"

Theashookherselfimpatiently。"Ican’treadeverynight。"

Dr。Archiegaveoneofhislow，sympatheticchucklesasheopenedthegateforher。"You’rebeginningtogrowup，that’swhat’sthematterwithyou。I’llhavetokeepaneyeonyou。Nowyou’llhavetosaygood—nighttothemoon。"

"No，Iwon’t。Isleeponthefloornow，rightinthemoon—

light。Mywindowcomesdowntothefloor，andIcanlookattheskyallnight。"

Sheshotroundthehousetothekitchendoor，andDr。

Archiewatchedherdisappearwithasigh。Hethoughtofthehard，mean，frizzylittlewomanwhokepthishouseforhim；oncethebelleofaMichigantown，nowdryandwitheredupatthirty。"IfIhadadaughterlikeTheatowatch，"hereflected，"Iwouldn’tmindanything。Iwon—

derifallofmylife’sgoingtobeamistakejustbecauseI

madeabigonethen？Hardlyseemsfair。"

HowardArchiewas"respected"ratherthanpopularinMoonstone。Everyonerecognizedthathewasagoodphysician，andaprogressiveWesterntownlikestobeabletopointtoahandsome，well—set—up，well—dressedmanamongitscitizens。ButagreatmanypeoplethoughtArchie"distant，"andtheywereright。Hehadtheuneasymannerofamanwhoisnotamonghisownkind，andwhohasnotseenenoughoftheworldtofeelthatallpeopleareinsomesensehisownkind。Heknewthateveryonewascuriousabouthiswife，thatsheplayedasortofcharacterpartinMoonstone，andthatpeoplemadefunofher，notverydelicately。Herownfriends——mostofthemwomenwhoweredistastefultoArchie——likedtoaskhertocon—

tributetochurchcharities，justtoseehowmeanshecouldbe。Thelittle，lop—sidedcakeatthechurchsupper，thecheapestpincushion，theskimpiestapronatthebazaar，werealwaysMrs。Archie’scontribution。

Allthishurtthedoctor’spride。Butiftherewasonethinghehadlearned，itwasthattherewasnochangingBelle’snature。Hehadmarriedameanwoman；andhemustaccepttheconsequences。EveninColoradohewouldhavehadnopretextfordivorce，and，todohimjus—

tice，hehadneverthoughtofsuchathing。ThetenetsofthePresbyterianChurchinwhichhehadgrownup，thoughhehadlongceasedtobelieveinthem，stillinfluencedhisconductandhisconceptionofpropriety。Tohimtherewassomethingvulgaraboutdivorce。Adivorcedmanwasadisgracedman；atleast，hehadexhibitedhishurt，andmadeitamatterforcommongossip。RespectabilitywassonecessarytoArchiethathewaswillingtopayahighpriceforit。Aslongashecouldkeepupadecentexterior，hecouldmanagetogeton；andifhecouldhaveconcealedhiswife’slittlenessfromallhisfriends，hewouldscarcelyhavecomplained。Hewasmoreafraidofpitythanhewasofanyunhappiness。Hadtherebeenanotherwomanforwhomhecaredgreatly，hemighthavehadplentyofcour—

age；buthewasnotlikelytomeetsuchawomaninMoon—

stone。

TherewasapuzzlingtimidityinArchie’smake—up。Thethingthatheldhisshouldersstiff，thatmadehimresorttoamirthlesslittlelaughwhenhewastalkingtodullpeople，thatmadehimsometimesstumbleoverrugsandcarpets，haditscounterpartinhismind。Hehadnotthecouragetobeanhonestthinker。Hecouldcomforthimselfbyeva—

sionsandcompromises。Heconsoledhimselfforhisownmarriagebytellinghimselfthatotherpeople’swerenotmuchbetter。InhisworkhesawprettydeeplyintomaritalrelationsinMoonstone，andhecouldhonestlysaythattherewerenotmanyofhisfriendswhomheenvied。Theirwivesseemedtosuitthemwellenough，buttheywouldneverhavesuitedhim。

AlthoughDr。Archiecouldnotbringhimselftoregardmarriagemerelyasasocialcontract，butlookeduponitas

somehowmadesacredbyachurchinwhichhedidnotbe—

lieve，——asaphysicianheknewthatayoungmanwhosemarriageismerelynominalmustyetgoonlivinghislife。