cknowledged, with a graceful, silent inclination of her shining
blonde head, the presence of the two strangers whom Marise presented to
her. What an inscrutable fascination Nelly's silence gave to her! You
never knew what strange thoughts were going on behind that proud
taciturnity. She showed the guests to chairs, of which a great many,
mostly already filled, stood about the center table, on which sprawled
the great, spiny, unlovely plant. Marise sat down, taking little Mark on
her knees. Elly leaned against her. Paul sat close beside old Mr.
Welles. Their eyes were on the big pink bud enthroned in the
uncomeliness of the shapeless leafpads.

"Oh!" said Elly, under her breath, "it's not open yet! We're going to
_see_ it open, this time!" She stared at it, her lips parted. Her mother
looked at her, tenderly aware that the child was storing away an
impression to last her life long. Dear, strangely compounded little
Elly, with her mysticism, and her greediness and her love of beauty all
jumbled together! A neighbor leaned from her chair to say to Mrs.
Crittenden, "Warm for this time of year, ain't it?" And another
remarked, looking at Mark's little trousers, "That material come out
real good, didn't it? I made up what I got of it, into a dress for
Pearl." They both spoke in low tones, but constrained or sepulchral, for
they smiled and nodded as though they had meant something else and
deeper than what they had said. They looked with a kindly expression for
moment at the Crittenden children and then turned back to their gaze on
the flower-bud.

Nelly Powers, walking with a singular lightness for so tall a woman,
ushered in another group of visitors--a tall, unshaven farmer, his wife,
three little children clumping in on shapeless cow-hide boots, and a
baby, fast asleep, its round bonneted head tucked in the hollow of its
mother's gingham-clad shoulder. They sat down, nodding silent greetings
to the other neighbors. In turning to salute them, Marise caught a
glimpse of Mr. Marsh, fixing his brilliant scrutiny first on one and
then on another of the company. At that moment he was gazing at Nelly
Powers, "taking her in" thought Marise, from her beautiful hair to those
preposterously high-heeled shoes she always would wear on her shapely
feet. His face was impassive. When he looked neutral like that, the
curious irregularity of his features came out strongly. He looked like
that bust of Julius Caesar, the bumpy, big-nosed, st