fire through his veins. For a
moment he gave himself up to the delicious consciousness that their
souls were floating together upon that tide of melody. As the song died
away and closed with a few muffled chords, he was on the point of
throwing himself at her feet, and getting the prize which was waiting
for him. But he suddenly bethought himself that she had sung the song
unwillingly and had taken care to say that the words meant nothing. He
rose and thanked her for the music, complimented her singing warmly,
and bidding both ladies good night, went home, thrilled through and
through with a deeper emotion than he had yet known, but painfully
puzzled and perplexed.

He sat for a long time in his library, trying to bring some order into
his thoughts. He could not help feeling that his presence was an
embarrassment and a care to Alice Belding. It was evident that she had
a great friendship and regard for him, which he had troubled and
disturbed by his ill-timed declaration. She could no longer be easy and
natural with him; he ought not to stay to be an annoyance to her. It
was also clear that he could not be himself in her presence; she
exercised too powerful an influence upon him to make it possible that
he could go in and out of the house as a mere friend of the family. He
was thus driven to the thought which always lay so near to the surface
with him, as with so many of his kind; he would exile himself for a
year or two, and take himself out of her way. The thought gave him no
content. He could not escape a keen pang of jealousy when he thought of
leaving her in her beautiful youth to the society of men who were so
clearly inferior to her.

"I am inferior to her myself," he thought with genuine humility; "but I
feel sure I can appreciate her better than any one else she will ever
be likely to meet."

By and by he became aware that something was perplexing him, which was
floating somewhere below the surface of his consciousness. A thousand
thoughts, more or less puzzling, had arisen and been disposed of during
the hour that had elapsed since he left Mrs. Belding's. But still he
began to be sure that there was one groping for recognition which as
yet he had not recognized. The more ho dwelt upon it, the more it
seemed to attach itself to the song Alice had sung, but he could not
give it any definiteness. After he had gone to bed, this undefined
impression of something significant attaching itself to the song
besiege