sources of the Donovan
establishment in Chicago. Lingerie, boudoir costumes,
walking-costumes, riding-costumes, evening-costumes she possessed in
plenty. She had a jewel-bag hidden away about her person containing
all of thirty thousand dollars' worth of jewels. Her shoes, stockings,
hats, and accessories in general were innumerable. Because of all this
Cowperwood was rather proud of her. She had such a capacity for life.
His first wife had been pale and rather anemic, while Aileen was fairly
bursting with sheer physical vitality. She hummed and jested and
primped and posed. There are some souls that just are, without
previous revision or introspection. The earth with all its long past
was a mere suggestion to Aileen, dimly visualized if at all. She may
have heard that there were once dinosaurs and flying reptiles, but if
so it made no deep impression on her. Somebody had said, or was saying,
that we were descended from monkeys, which was quite absurd, though it
might be true enough. On the sea the thrashing hills of green water
suggested a kind of immensity and terror, but not the immensity of the
poet's heart. The ship was safe, the captain at table in brass buttons
and blue uniform, eager to be nice to her--told her so. Her faith
really, was in the captain. And there with her, always, was
Cowperwood, looking at this whole, moving spectacle of life with a
suspicious, not apprehensive, but wary eye, and saying nothing about it.

In London letters given them by Addison brought several invitations to
the opera, to dinner, to Goodwood for a weekend, and so on. Carriages,
tallyhoes, cabs for riding were invoked. A week-end invitation to a
houseboat on the Thames was secured. Their English hosts, looking on
all this as a financial adventure, good financial wisdom, were
courteous and civil, nothing more. Aileen was intensely curious. She
noted servants, manners, forms. Immediately she began to think that
America was not good enough, perhaps; it wanted so many things.

"Now, Aileen, you and I have to live in Chicago for years and years,"
commented Cowperwood. "Don't get wild. These people don't care for
Americans, can't you see that? They wouldn't accept us if we were over
here--not yet, anyhow. We're merely passing strangers, being
courteously entertained." Cowperwood saw it all.

Aileen was being spoiled in a way, but there was no help. She dressed
and dressed. The Englishmen used to look at her in Hy