Montana oil and mining journal. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1931-1953, 1939-08-26

| why not?" she said. Lets go gack
! to our carriage. You can finish your
| cigar there. / think the restaurant
people are getting rather sick Of us
They went back and the winter aft
ernoon drew on. They were due to
arrive in London at 7:2O. For a time
after reaching their carriage again
they didn't continue their rather cur
ious conversation. They perhaps felt
for the moment that they had express
sed themselves sufficiently And they
fell into quite companionable silence.
He finished smoking his cigar, and
Lady Gleadon once more took up "Pe-
pita" and went on reading.
Harringbridge, however, did not read.
His cigar done with, he leaned back
against the padded back of the car
rage and shut his eyes. He wanted to
deal faithfully with his thoughts which
gathered round the remembrance Of
the conversation with Lady Gleadon
just finished.
They must surely be destined to have
good deal to do with each other in
the future. Otherwise the reason in
which he believed would not exist. And
he was convinced that it did exist. And
then he opened his eyes and without
moving he looked across the carriage
at Lady Gleadon.
Why did her face, and her body even,
meant more to him than those faces,
those bodies, of people whom he knew
well and even called friends? He could
not account for it. 1t was not that he
had fallen IN love with her at first
sight. He was not in the least in love
with her. Yet she had this peculiar
meaning for him which he couldn't
understand and perhaps would never
understand.
Presently he felt that she was going
to lift her eyes from her book, sud-
denly aware of his scrutiny, and the
lids came down over his eyes. He did
not want his thoughts to be broken in
upon, even by speech with her at that
moment. For was 1t not, perhaps, pos
sible that he was mysteriously on the
track of the reason?
But women are very quick and he
had not deceived her. For he heard her
say,
Then he opened his eyes again and
said:
saw what? Why should I pretendP"
you were looking at me and pre-
tended that you were doing. Why?"
II was considering something and I
wanted to go on considering it."
641A0 INV 4 AAc1fC UkOkC1 III OlA NQuI
thoughts. SO you must tell me what
they were"
very well, will"
And then he told her, trying to be
exact. but leaving out of the account
his realization that he was not the
least bit In love with her. He was sure
that she did not suppose he was and
believed that such an idea could not
have occurred to her. For she was no
II vz,@A 14sat
woman cares to be told such a thing
as that by man.
"T thought just possibly the intimacy
Of my feeling might not offend you,
but perhaps be disagreeable to you,
Like the touch OF a strangers hand on
your body"
mo. But there's popularity about
all this which almost troubles me-"
why should it?"
IL don't know. But almost anything,
inexplicahle may be troubling"
It'll it's explained I know. And then
relief comes. And this win surely be
explained"
who knows? But what is it?"
The curious feeling you've described
TO me has its echo IN me. I, too, am
conscious of this inexplicable intimacy
which seems somehow to link US to-
gether. like you, as far as I know
you. But it isn't that am sure that
Il disliked you I could still be Just as
conscious that there was a link Of
some kind between us, that some sort
u intimacy bound us together"
what can 1t possibly be2"
II aln quite In the dark as to that. |
BUT you may be right. The future may
ell us. Perhaps, though It seems uu-
likely, It may open our eyes Possibly |
Ne are destined to be brought together |
again In some quite uncommon way. |
3ut II we are" her dark eyes showed |
! bro0ding expression--@I don't think |
{ wSIl be q happy way"
why should It not7S
II Just feel that Il wont--wouldn't
Tragedy Your instinct points 10
:haks"
'ery absurd