New-York tribune., 1878-02-05
GAIL HAMILTON ONCE MORE.
THE STORY OF AvIS-A REVIEW IN ". PAR1s.
PART ii.


comicol We do not positively forbid Coy to change
+bn accent of her thoughts as they pursue her'
tbouab xge do not see how she can do 1t but wren
~ orc told that she had the glibness of most unae-
ontrotod natu1es that Avis did not need to accen-
tuae her haste that the cndeTs Of travel On people
ceentuate the emphasis of their lot, and that pine
fronds and moss make the sole change OF accent III
n level horizon, We feel that we are oVer-aceeh'-
mated We are treated to aromatic enjoyment no'
in smelling q rose, but in seeing woman aaopt q
career We have receptive ar, ana piia'V al. "''u
lenient air. and unassertant ar, and papi'""o
sky and lneeling room and pnosphoios''"'
hours and self-articulate hours we nave "o'n'"
NTH foot of poreelain and arms like Madame
Rkcamier and gaunt, insomniae eyes, anu cooi' w
conscious finger-nails and uninslStent V"ces' we
bove unexnlalned organic Joy, and organic divorce
and organic tragedy and vague organic uIe"u'
Rarhora has poised reserve IN the poise Oh her
,laosant figure and Avis 100, has poised reserve
and n poised, reluctant look, and qulVerihgV
poised imagination, and poised and tender temper
in her poised way. She lOnged fCr the polSe whlch
solitude only can give, and the way solitude gave IL
was that distinct effect seemed TO pause ana PoiSo
itself and WOO ber through the dark. In each ex-
perience she waited for her foothod upon ahoinei
totore finding her roise-an action or attitude pre-
sumably less graceful than that when
To Philip when he was as careful not to startIe her'
rs if she had been bird poised, with tender reee's
feet.
Beginninr on another tack we are told that Ma
ture held lack her fine dumb pearls when she made
Avis and gave her a fine and restless color, ana
6lIed her veins with fine fire, and filled her soui
with FINE reserves and gave her fine power Oh
SELECTION in her conversation and in the fine tre1ch
nerfume of her toilet. Avis sat III an apple-tree
in the crisis of that fine fever which comes bat once
in life tbough her mother died of no disease but a
fine fcyerish excitement. Philips popularity ana
mower excited her like fine wine; but as for fhihP
he shrugge his fine shoulders, smiled hs hne snhe'
watched his wifes unconscious lace WIN i''o
snvv while the robins looked on. well they might
with fine, far sarcasm m
Tho hook is a centre of perpetual motion. The
crespipg and crouchirg. and crawling, the stirring
and recedng and rec0iing are altogether porVeh'ous
II is not simply that the people themselves are astH'
Int every separate feature Of their faces seems 10
have a separate action. and TO revolVe on It's own
axis. Avs had sckening recoll rom houseiioi1
care and n phvsica recOil against DEATH sometimes
she had the half-recoilnG look of patience 'en sue
reeoed wholly from her innocent impulses, anu o'
infreauently her nature recoled upon ITSELF " he"
her lover came she felt kind of wide recoi from
outset "You recoil." Presently, her whole nature
crouched as if it wOuld spring upon him, though
after he fell Ill she was conscious OF erouchng like
a tigreSs to save his life.
The wooing seems to have been series OF balanc-
;uq and chassezng through all the movements OF a
Ia;surely minuet Philip crawled along with sup
,rassed ferceness to meet her beautiful fierce
maidenhood standing on the top of the stone wall,
opd II is added that he crawled meekly toward her,
But she seemed to slip aud slide before his still eX-
tended hands like wrath, and he took his hat ana
cravled awav When she saw he was really leaving
her. she crept up to him timid hare but when he
reyerently extended his thin hand, she shrank with
widening fear-striclen eyes, Then it seemed to his
dizzy ewes that her face rcccded as she SPOKE grow
ing larger and DINNER with every word. when he
seemed false her features seemed to grow thln ana
sheer. llko Tho marble medallion OF sphl''
Fortunately Philips habits relieved these re-
markabe phonornai,a from any o'~Pi~ic'o eof'in
and moreover these facial and other changes were
not confined TO time or place. When C0utnre
praised her and promised her future, her magni-
cent rare pallor swept her face the quality OF
her features heightened. Her face and head looked
Iarrer as she looked with widening of the eyes and
parting of the lips similar to that with which she
had received Coy's suggestion of roller-cloths.
When the new girl knocked at the door to take or
ders for breakfast, the young recOihng creature,
aged twenty-seven or 50, started, smVerln9 IKE a
Cremona upon which disc0rd had been struck
The deep circles about her eyes had way of WIDEN
ing ike the circles in the sea, into which blazing
Jewel is sinking Upon occasion rings of biackness
slowly enlarged upon her face like the shadow Of
an advancing storm upon writing lake
When Philip finally declared his love- she took on
the color of white fire. And then the antiqne cast
of her features came on. She looked like great,
dumb, protesting goddess. In the midst Of 1t bee
crawled out of rose, and reeled against her foot.
After awhile, suddenly, III her eyes there dawned
far startled look: she began TO turn her neck little
from side TO side. like deer stirred by the sound,
but not as yet by the sight of pursuit. Then she
thrust out both hands. She began to quiver and
flush. A rebound of dlsmay, at once bIindly in
stinctive and rigidly measured. set in. Then her
startled look broadened and frightened Ike light
coming near and nearer to one through the under
growth Of dense forest. Nothing like it has been
seen since Tommy Traddles announced his engage
ment to Mrs Crewler, when it mounted frc'n her
legs into her chest and then into her head and per-
yaded her whole system III a most alarming manner;
while the one, who had something the matter with
her spine, clenched both her hands, shut her eyes.
turned lead color, became perfectly stlh and took
nothing for two days but toast and water, adminiS-
tered with teaspoon and the other eight were cry
ing and fainting away in every direction.
When the face of Avis subsidized her figure took up
the parable. She slowly receded from her lover,
twisting her unconscious steps in her long dress.
Then she stood still. That, to be sure, might 90
without saying after the suggestion of the twisted
skirt Then she began to stir again. No reason is
given, but infer that the pause had been indus
triously occupied in untwistng her dress though as
in the stir she was still receding wc cannot help
wishing she had turned and walked away from
Philip with the honest directness of that country
woman If ours who, when she was demonstrated
with for her uncourty egress from the presence Of
Majesty, calmly affirmed that she was determined
Al 4 l.fI chniilH fl1n