Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-09-09
CHAPTER V.


so violent had ceased like one of Thurso's
headaches; 1t was If a tap had been
turned off, and after the ball he had
dropped no word to indicate that he intend
ed to go north again This quite fell in with
his wife's desires, for she wished him for
many reasons to be in London and with her
for a time and since the night of the ball
an extra reason had been added, namely,
that she knew that people were wonder
ing" about herself and Count Villars. The
memory of the world generally is very
short; the events of one week are quite suf-
ficent to put out of its head those of the
week before, but when it does happen really
to remember thing its memory has the
tiresome tenaciousness Of a child's. You
may change the subject you may point to
bright objects, you may rattle with toys,
but the world, like the child, though 1t may
be distracted for the moment, gets CLASSY
eye again and says, But what about?
The world is doing it now, and she felt
that Thurso's presence gave better chance
of distracting the world again than any
bright objects she might dangle before it.
The ball had been very bright object in
deed; 1t differed somehow in kind from
other functions. Other functions might have
all London assembled in a beautiful house,
with a beautiful band, with everybody in
their crowns and tiaras, but all the world
knew that Lady Thurso had hit the very
top note that time, the top note that is
top note was it was difficult to say, just
as it is difficult to say why the same
ingredients can make two perfectly diff
ferent puddings, except that 1t depends on
the cook. That ball anyhow, though per-
haps the same people had been to twenty
other balls, and that the ingredients were
the same, was the ball of the year, and II
was useless for others to compete That
huge success, the wild-fiower staircase.
might have had something infnitesimal to
do with it: that glorious dining room not
turned upside down and smotnered IN
flowers, might have helped, Tor the cnlc OF
not decorating a room at all, but keeping 1t
as it always was, SO that apparently YOU
could have this sort of entertainment WITH
out fuss or bother of any kind, was unoeni-
able Yet again, nobody could turn their
staircas Sc into a bayfield, without bother so
the upshot was that Lady Thurso alone
knew how to do it, what to keep as II "a
few friends only were coming In, what 10
decorate and how to decorate it, what to
saw how to look, what to wear. She hau
Looked. it may be remarked, magnificent
and wore rubies. The top note haa oeen
sounded as clear as q musical glass.
But much as the ball was talked about,
she knew that Count Villars and she were
talked about more. Wherever people met
together during the week afterward. the
hall OF course had to be mentioned, but
afterward an invariable question came.
us he still devoted to herr! And the
number of comments on that the interpre-
tations the guesses. would have satisfied
any of those myriad women whose ideal of
life is to be talked about in that sort of
way. Unfortunately, Lily Thurso did not
belong to those ranks; it gave her not the
slightest pleasure to know that situa-
ton that concerned her like this, con-
cerned anybody else. Had She when she
had met Count Villars again, said to her.
self, Can it be he? I should never have
known him. she might not have cared in
the smallest degree what anybody chose to
saw But she had not said that; instead.
something within her. Independent of her
own control, it seemed had said Rudolf"
The emotional history which had been In
terrupted twelve years ago on Its very. first
page had gone on just where 1t left of.
That vague girlish excitement and troubled
Joy was hers again But now her twelve
years of womanhood wrote their comment
on the text Passion had not been awake
in her then: the potential fire had not been
supplied with fuel. But now-in this hour
of her life-was the light of dawn. pale and
uncertain then, ready to blaze into mid
day? Already she feared to ask herself
that.
The pretense of playing at being
strangers, when she at the bazaar had
called him your excellency." had broken
down with singular completeness. That
very night he had established footing OF
old friendship to which. to do him justice,
he was perfectly entitled. She could not
defend herself against that. she could not
resent it. Years ago he had loved her. and
had asked her to marry him. and If that