a of
such a course had become incongruous to him. He passed beneath that
architectural effort and walked into the Park till he got upon the
spreading grass. Here he continued to walk; he took his way across the
elastic turf and came out by the Serpentine. He watched with a friendly
eye the diversions of the London people, he bent a glance almost
encouraging on the young ladies paddling their sweethearts about the lake
and the guardsmen tickling tenderly with their bearskins the artificial
flowers in the Sunday hats of their partners. He prolonged his
meditative walk; he went into Kensington Gardens, he sat upon the penny
chairs, he looked at the little sail-boats launched upon the round pond
and was glad he had no engagement to dine. He repaired for this purpose,
very late, to his club, where he found himself unable to order a repast
and told the waiter to bring whatever there was. He didn't even observe
what he was served with, and he spent the evening in the library of the
establishment, pretending to read an article in an American magazine. He
failed to discover what it was about; it appeared in a dim way to be
about Marian Fancourt.

Quite late in the week she wrote to him that she was not to go into the
country--it had only just been settled. Her father, she added, would
never settle anything, but put it all on her. She felt her
responsibility--she had to--and since she was forced this was the way she
had decided. She mentioned no reasons, which gave our friend all the
clearer field for bold conjecture about them. In Manchester Square on
this second Sunday he esteemed his fortune less good, for she had three
or four other visitors. But there were three or four compensations;
perhaps the greatest of which was that, learning how her father had after
all, at the last hour, gone out of town alone, the bold conjecture I just
now spoke of found itself becoming a shade more bold. And then her
presence was her presence, and the personal red room was there and was
full of it, whatever phantoms passed and vanished, emitting
incomprehensible sounds. Lastly, he had the resource of staying till
every one had come and gone and of believing this grateful to her, though
she gave no particular sign. When they were alone together he came to
his point. "But St. George did come--last Sunday. I saw him as I looked
back."

"Yes; but it was the last time."

"The last time?"

"He said he would never come again."

P