第3章

\"Isforme，\"hesaid。\"Gotdate。\" \"Iknowyouhave，butthere\'splentyoftime。\" Hesmiledinbenevolentpity。\"YOUknow，doyou？Ifyoumadeanycoffee——don\'tbotherifyoudidn\'t。Getsomedown-town。\"Heseemedabouttoriseanddepart；whereuponAlice，bitingherlip，sentapanic-strickenglanceathermother。 ButMrs。Adamsseemednotatalldisturbed；andlaughedagain。 \"Why，whatnonsense，Walter!I\'llbringyourcoffeeinafewminutes，butwe\'regoingtohavedessertfirst。\" \"Whatsort？\" \"Somelovelypeaches。\" \"Doe\'want\'nycannedpeaches，\"saidthefrankWalter，movingbackhischair。\"G\'-night。\" \"Walter!Itdoesn\'tbegintillaboutnineo\'clockattheearliest。\" Hepaused，mystified。\"Whatdoesn\'t？\" \"Thedance。\" \"Whatdance？\" \"Why，MildredPalmer\'sdance，ofcourse。\" Walterlaughedbriefly。\"What\'sthattome？\" \"Why，youhaven\'tforgottenit\'sTO-NIGHT，haveyou？\"Mrs。Adamscried。\"Whataboy!\" \"ItoldyouaweekagoIwasn\'tgoingtothatoledance，\"hereturned，frowning。\"Youheardme。\" \"Walter!\"sheexclaimed。\"OfCOURSEyou\'regoing。Igotyourclothesalloutthisafternoon，andbrushedthemforyou。 They\'lllookverynice，and——\" \"Theywon\'tlookniceonME，\"heinterrupted。\"Gotdatedown-town，Itellyou。\" \"Butofcourseyou\'ll——\" \"Seehere!\"Waltersaid，decisively。\"Don\'tgetanywrongideasinyourhead。I\'mjustasliabletogouptothatoledanceatthePalmers\'asIamtoeatacoupleofbarrelsofbrokenglass。\" \"But，Walter——\" Walterwasbeginningtobeseriouslyannoyed。\"Don\'t\'Walter\' me!I\'mnos\'cietysnake。Iwouldn\'tjazzwiththatPalmercrowdiftheycoaxedmewithdiamonds。\" \"Walter——\" \"Didn\'tItellyouit\'snouseto\'Walter\'me？\"hedemanded。 \"Mydearchild——\" \"Oh，Glory!\" AtthisMrs。Adamsabandonedherairofamusement，lookedhurt，andglancedatthedemureMissPerryacrossthetable。\"I\'mafraidMissPerrywon\'tthinkyouhaveverygoodmanners，Walter。\" \"You\'rerightshewon\'t，\"heagreed，grimly。\"NotifIhaftohearanymoreaboutmegoin\'to——\" Buthismotherinterruptedhimwithsomeasperity:\"ItseemsverystrangethatyoualwaysobjecttogoinganywhereamongOUR friends，Walter。\" \"YOURfriends!\"hesaid，and，risingfromhischair，gaveutterancetoanironicallaughstrictlymonosyllabic。\"Yourfriends!\"herepeated，goingtothedoor。\"Oh，yes!Certainly! Good-NIGHT!\" Andlookingbackoverhisshouldertoofferafinalbriefviewofhisderisiveface，hetookhimselfoutoftheroom。 Alicegasped:\"Mama——\" \"I\'llstophim!\"hermotherresponded，sharply；andhurriedafterthetruant，catchinghimatthefrontdoorwithhishatandraincoaton。 \"Walter——\" \"Toldyouhadadatedown-town，\"hesaid，gruffly，andwouldhaveopenedthedoor，butshecaughthisarmanddetainedhim。 \"Walter，pleasecomebackandfinishyourdinner。WhenItakeallthetroubletocookitforyou，Ithinkyoumightatleast——\" \"Now，now!\"hesaid。\"Thatisn\'twhatyou\'reupto。Youdon\'twanttomakemeeat；youwanttomakemelisten。\" \"Well，youMUSTlisten!\"Sheretainedhergraspuponhisarm，andmadeittighter。\"Walter，please!\"sheentreated，hervoicebecomingtremulous。\"PLEASEdon\'tmakemesomuchtrouble!\" Hedrewbackfromherasfarasherholduponhimpermitted，andlookedathersharply。\"Lookhere!\"hesaid。\"Igetyou，allright!What\'sthematterofAliceGOIN\'tothatpartybyherself？\" \"ShejustCAN\'T!\" \"Whynot？\" \"ItmakesthingstooMEANforher，Walter。Alltheothergirlshavesomebodytodependonaftertheygetthere。\" \"Well，whydoesn\'tshehavesomebody？\"heasked，testily。 \"SomebodybesidesME，Imean!Whyhasn\'tsomebodyaskedhertogo？SheoughttobeTHATpopular，anyhow，Ish\'dthink——sheTRIESenough!\" \"Idon\'tunderstandhowyoucanbesohard，\"hismotherwailed，huskily。\"Youknowwhytheydon\'trunafterherthewaytheydotheothergirlsshegoeswith，Walter。It\'sbecausewe\'repoor，andshehasn\'tgotanybackground。 \"\'Background？\'\"Walterrepeated。\"\'Background？\'Whatkindoftalkisthat？\" \"YouWILLgowithherto-night，Walter？\"hismotherpleaded，notstoppingtoenlightenhim。\"Youdon\'tunderstandhowhardthingsareforherandhowbravesheisaboutthem，oryouCOULDN\'Tbesoselfish!It\'dbemorethanIcanbeartoseeherdisappointedto-night!ShewentclearouttoBelleviewParkthisafternoon，Walter，andspenthoursandhourspickingvioletstowear。YouWILL——\" Walter\'sheartwasnotiron，andtheepisodeofthevioletsmayhavereachedit。\"Oh，BLUB!\"hesaid，andflunghissofthatviolentlyatthewall。 Hismotherbeamedwithdelight。\"THAT\'Sagoodboy，darling! You\'llneverbesorryyou——\" \"Cutitout，\"herequested。\"IfItakeher，willyoupayforataxi？\" \"Oh，Walter!\"AndagainMrs。Adamsshoweddistress。\"Couldn\'tyou？\" \"No，Icouldn\'t；I\'mnotgoin\'tothrowawaymygoodmoneylikethat，andyoucan\'ttellwhattimeo\'nightit\'llbebeforeshe\'swillin\'tocomehome。What\'sthematteryoupayin\'forone？\" \"Ihaven\'tanymoney。\" \"Well，father——\" Sheshookherheaddolefully。\"Igotsomefromhimthismorning，andIcan\'tbotherhimforanymore；itupsetshim。He\'sALWAYS beensoterriblyclosewithmoney——\" \"Iguesshecouldn\'thelpthat，\"Walterobserved。\"We\'reliabletogotothepoorhousethewayitis。Well，what\'sthematterourwalkin\'tothisrottenparty？\" \"Intherain，Walter？\" \"Well，it\'sonlyadrizzleandwecantakeastreetcartowithinablockofthehouse。\" Againhismothershookherhead。\"Itwouldn\'tdo。\" \"Well，darntheluck，allright!\"heconsented，explosively。 \"I\'llgethersomethingtoridein。Itmeansseventy-fivecents。\" \"Why，Walter!\"Mrs。Adamscried，muchpleased。\"Doyouknowhowtogetacabforthatlittle？Howsplendid!\" \"Tain\'tacab，\"Walterinformedhercrossly。\"It\'satinLizzie，butyoudon\'thaf\'totellherwhatitistillIgetherintoit，doyou？\" Mrs。Adamsagreedthatshedidn\'t。 CHAPTERVI Alicewasbusywithherselffortwohoursafterdinner；butalittlebeforenineo\'clockshestoodinfrontofherlongmirror，completed，bright-eyedandsolemn。Herhair，exquisitelyarranged，gaveallsheaskedofit；whatartificialitiesincolourshehaduseduponherfacewereonlybitsofemphasisthatmadeherprettinessthemoredistinct；andthedress，notrumpledbyhermother\'scarefulhoursofwork，wasawhitecloudofloveliness。Finallythereweretwotriumphantbouquetsofviolets，eachwiththestemswrappedintin-foilshroudedbyabowofpurplechiffon；andonebouquetsheworeatherwaistandtheothershecarriedinherhand。 MissPerry，calledinbyarapturousmotherforthefreetreatofalookatthisradiance，insistedthatAlicewasavision。 \"Purelyandsimplyavision!\"shesaid，meaningthatnootherdefinitionwhateverwouldsatisfyher。\"Ineversawanybodylookavisionifshedon\'tlookoneto-night，\"theadmiringnursedeclared。\"Herpapa\'llthinkthesameIdoaboutit。Youseeifhedoesn\'tsayshe\'spurelyandsimplyavision。\" AdamsdidnotfulfilthepredictionquiteliterallywhenAlicepaidabriefvisittohisroomto\"show\"himandbidhimgood-night；buthechuckledfeebly。\"Well，well，well!\"hesaid。 \"Youlookmightyfine——MIGHTYfine!\"Andhewaggledabonyfingerathertwobouquets。\"Why，Alice，who\'syourbeau？\" \"Neveryoumind!\"shelaughed，archlybrushinghisnosewiththevioletsinherhand。\"Hetreatsmeprettywell，doesn\'the？\" \"Mustliketothrowhismoneyaround!Thesevioletssmellmightysweet，andtheyoughtto，ifthey\'regoingtoapartywithYOU。 Haveagoodtime，dearie。\" \"Imeanto!\"shecried；andsherepeatedthisgaily，butwithanemphasisexpressingsharpdeterminationasshelefthim。\"IMEAN to!\" \"Whatwashetalkingabout？\"hermotherinquired，smoothingtheratherwornandoldeveningwrapshehadplacedonAlice\'sbed。 \"Whatwereyoutellinghimyou\'meanto？\'\" Alicewentbacktohertriplemirrorforthelasttime，thenstoodbeforethelongone。\"ThatImeantohaveagoodtimeto-night，\"shesaid；andassheturnedfromherreflectiontothewrapMrs。Adamsheldupforher，\"ItlooksasthoughICOULD，don\'tyouthinkso？\" \"You\'lljustbeaqueento-night，\"hermotherwhisperedinfondemotion。\"Youmustn\'tdoubtyourself。\" \"Well，there\'sonething，\"saidAlice。\"IthinkIdolookniceenoughtogetalongwithouthavingtodancewiththatFrankDowling!AllIaskisforittohappenjustonce；andifhecomesnearmeto-nightI\'mgoingtotreathimthewaytheothergirlsdo。DoyousupposeWalter\'sgotthetaxioutinfront？\" \"He——he\'swaitingdowninthehall，\"Mrs。Adamsanswered，nervously；andsheheldupanothergarmenttogooverthewrap。 Alicefrownedatit。\"What\'sthat，mama？\" \"It\'s——it\'syourfather\'sraincoat。Ithoughtyou\'dputitonover——\" \"ButIwon\'tneeditinataxicab。\" \"Youwilltogetinandout，andyouneedn\'ttakeitintothePalmers\'。Youcanleaveitinthe——inthe——It\'sdrizzling，andyou\'llneedit。\" \"Oh，well，\"Aliceconsented；andafewminuteslater，aswithWalter\'sassistancesheclimbedintothevehiclehehadprovided，shebetterunderstoodhermother\'ssolicitude。 \"WhatonearthISthis，Walter？\"sheasked。 \"Nevermind；it\'llkeepyoudryenoughwiththetopup，\"hereturned，takinghisseatbesideher。Thenforatime，astheywentratherjerkilyupthestreet，shewassilent；butfinallysherepeatedherquestion:\"WhatISit，Walter？\" \"What\'swhat？\" \"This——thisCAR？\" \"It\'saottomobile。\" \"Imean——whatkindisit？\" \"Haven\'tyougoteyes？\" \"It\'stoodark。\" \"It\'sasecond-handtinLizzie，\"saidWalter。\"D\'youknowwhatthatmeans？Itmeansaflivver。\" \"Yes，Walter。\" \"Got\'ny\'bjections？\" \"Why，no，dear，\"shesaid，placatively。\"Isityours，Walter？ Haveyouboughtit？\" \"Me？\"helaughed。\"_I_couldn\'tbuyausedwheelbarrow。IrentthissometimeswhenI\'mgoin\'outamong\'em。Costsmeseventy-fivecentsandthepriceo\'thegas。\" \"Thatseemsverymoderate。\" \"Iguessitis!Thefellerowesmesomemoney，andthisistheonlywayI\'devergetitoffhim。\" \"Isheagarage-keeper？\" \"Notexactly!\"Walterutteredhuskysoundsofamusement。\"You\'llbejustashappy，Iguess，ifyoudon\'tknowwhoheis，\"hesaid。 Histonemisgaveher；andshesaidtruthfullythatshewascontentnottoknowwhoownedthecar。\"Ijokesometimesabouthowyoukeepthingstoyourself，\"sheadded，\"butIreallyneverdopryinyouraffairs，Walter。\" \"Oh，no，youdon\'t!\" \"Indeed，Idon\'t。\" \"Yes，you\'remightyniceandcooingwhenyougotmewhereyouwantme，\"hejeered。\"Well，_I_justassoontellyouwhereI getthiscar。\" \"I\'djustassoonyouwouldn\'t，Walter，\"shesaid，hurriedly。 \"Pleasedon\'t。\" ButWaltermeanttotellher。\"Why，there\'snothin\'exactlyCRIMINALaboutit，\"hesaid。\"ItbelongstooldJ。A。Lambhimself。Hekeepsitfortheircoonchauffeur。Irentitfromhim。\" \"FromMr。LAMB？\" \"No；fromthecoonchauffeur。\" \"Walter!\"shegasped。 \"SureIdo!Icangetitanynightwhenthecoonisn\'tgoin\'touseithimself。He\'sdrivin\'theirlimousineto-night——thatlittleHenriettaLamb\'sgoin\'totheparty，nomatterifherfatherHASonlybeendeadless\'nayear!\"Hepaused，theninquired:\"Well，howd\'youlikeit？\" Shedidnotspeak，andhebegantoberemorsefulforhavingimpartedsomuchinformation，thoughhiswayofexpressingregretwashisown。\"Well，youWILLmakethefolksmakemetakeyoutoparties!\"hesaid。\"IgottodoitthebestwayICAN，don\'tI？\" Thenasshemadenoresponse，\"Oh，thecar\'sCLEANenough，\"hesaid。\"Thiscoon，he\'sasparticularasanywhiteman；youneedn\'tworryaboutthat。\"Andasshestillsaidnothing，headdedgruffly，\"I\'dofhadabettercarifIcouldaffordedit。 Youneedn\'tgetsoupsetaboutit。\" \"Idon\'tunderstand——\"shesaidinalowvoice——\"Idon\'tunderstandhowyouknowsuchpeople。\" \"Suchpeopleaswho？\" \"As——colouredchauffeurs。\" \"Oh，lookhere，now!\"heprotested，loudly。\"Don\'tyouknowthisisademocraticcountry？\" \"Notquitethatdemocratic，isit，Walter？\" \"Thetroublewithyou，\"heretorted，\"youdon\'tknowthere\'sanybodyintownexceptjustthissilk-shirtcrowd。\"Hepaused，seemingtoawaitarefutation；butasnonecame，heexpressedhimselfdefinitely:\"Theymakemesick。\" Theywerecomingneartheirdestination，andtheglowofthebig，brightlylightedhousewasseenbeforetheminthewetnight。 Othercars，notliketheirs，wereapproachingthiscenterofbrilliance；longtrianglesoflightnearthegroundsweptthroughthefinedrizzle；smallredtail-lightsgleamedagainfromthemoistpavementofthestreet；and，throughthemyriadsoflittleglisteningleavesalongthecurvingdriveway，glimpseswerecaughtoflivelycoloursmovinginawhiteglareasthelimousinesreleasedtheiroccupantsundertheshelteroftheporte-cochere。 AliceclutchedWalter\'sarminapanic；theywerejustatthedrivewayentrance。\"Walter，wemustn\'tgointhere。\" \"What\'sthematter？\" \"Leavethisawfulcaroutside。\" \"Why，I——\" \"Stop!\"sheinsisted，vehemently。\"You\'vegotto!Goback!\" \"Oh，Glory!\" Thelittlecarwasbetweentheentranceposts；butWalterbackeditout，avoidingacollisionwithanimpressivemachinewhichswervedawayfromthemandpassedontowardtheporte-cochere，showingaman\'sfacegrinningatthewindowasitwentby。 \"Flivverrunaboutgotthewrongnumber!\"hesaid。 \"DidheSEEus？\"Alicecried。 \"Didwhoseeus？\" \"HarveyMalone——inthatforeigncoupe。\" \"No；hecouldn\'ttellwhowewereunderthistop，\"Walterassuredherashebroughtthelittlecartoastandstillbesidethecurbstone，outinthestreet。\"What\'sitmatterifhedid，thebigfish？\" Alicerespondedwithaloudsigh，andsatstill。 \"Well，wanttogoonback？\"Walterinquired。\"YoubetI\'mwilling!\" \"No。\" \"Well，then，what\'sthematterourdrivin\'onuptotheporte-cochere？There\'sroomformetoparkjusttheothersideofit。\" \"No，NO!\" \"Whatyouexpecttodo？SitHEREallnight？\" \"No，leavethecarhere。\" \"_I_don\'tcarewhereweleaveit，\"hesaid。\"SitstilltillI lockher，sononeo\'thesemillionairesaroundhere\'llrunoffwithher。\"Hegotoutwithapadlockandchain；and，havingputtheseinplace，offeredAlicehishand。\"Comeon，ifyou\'reready。\" \"Wait，\"shesaid，and，divestingherselfoftheraincoat，handedittoWalter。\"Pleaseleavethiswithyourthingsinthemen\'sdressing-room，asifitwereanextraoneofyourown，Walter。\" Henodded；shejumpedout；andtheyscurriedthroughthedrizzle。 Astheyreachedtheporte-cochereshebegantolaughairily，andspoketotheimpassivemaninliverywhostoodthere。\"Jokeonus!\"shesaid，hurryingbyhimtowardthedoorofthehouse。 \"Ourcarbrokedownoutsidethegate。\" Themanremainedimpassive，thoughherespondedwithafaintgleamasWalter，lookingbackathim，producedforhisbenefitacynicaldistortionofcountenancewhichofferedlittleconfirmationofAlice\'saccountofthings。Thenthedoorwasswiftlyopenedtothebrotherandsister；andtheycameintoamarble-flooredhall，whereadozensleekedyoungmenlounged，smokedcigarettesandfastenedtheirgloves，astheywaitedfortheirladies。Alicenoddedtooneoranotherofthese，andwentquicklyon，herfaceupliftedandsmiling；butWalterdetainedheratthedoortowhichshehastened。 \"Listenhere，\"hesaid。\"Isupposeyouwantmetodancethefirstdancewithyou——\" \"Ifyouplease，Walter，\"shesaid，meekly。 \"Howlongyougoin\'tohangaroundfixin\'upinthatdressin\'-room？\" \"I\'llbeoutbeforeyou\'rereadyyourself，\"shepromisedhim；andkeptherword，shewassoeagerforhergoodtimetobegin。Whenhecameforher，theywentdownthehalltoacorridoropeninguponthreegreatroomswhichhadbeenthrownopentogether，withthefurnitureremovedandthebroadfloorswaxed。Atoneendofthecorridormusicianssatinagreengrove，andWalter，withsomeinterest，turnedtowardthese；buthissister，pressinghisarm，impelledhimintheoppositedirection。 \"What\'sthematternow？\"heasked。\"That\'sJazzLouieandhishalf-breedbunch——threewhiteandfourmulatto。Let\'s——？\" \"No，no，\"shewhispered。\"WemustspeaktoMildredandMr。andMrs。Palmer。\" \"\'Speak\'to\'em？Ihaven\'tgotathingtosaytoTHOSEberries!\" \"Walter，won\'tyouPLEASEbehave？\" Heseemedtoconsent，forthemoment，atleast，andsufferedhertotakehimdownthecorridortowardafloralbowerwherethehostessstoodwithherfatherandmother。Othercouplesandgroupsweremovinginthesamedirection，carryingwiththemahubbuboflaughterandfragmentarychatterings；andAlice，smilingallthetime，greetedpeopleoneverysideofhereagerly——alittlemoreeagerlythanmostofthemresponded——whileWalternoddedinanoncommittalmannertooneortwo，saidnothing，andyawnedaudibly，thelastresourceofapersonwhofindshimselfnervousinafalsesituation。Herepeatedhisyawnandwasbeginninganotherwhenaconvulsivepressureuponhisarmmadehimunderstandthathemustabandonthismethodofreassuringhimself。Theywerecloseuponthefloralbower。 Mildredwasgivingherhandtooneandanotherofherguestsasrapidlyasshecould，passingthemontoherfatherandmother，andatthesametimeresistingtheeffortsofthreeorfourdetachedbachelorswhobesoughthertogiveoverherdutyinfavourofthedance-musicjustbeginningtoblare。 Shewasalarge，fairgirl，withakindnessofeyesomewhatwithheldbyanexpressionoffastidiousness；atfirstsightofheritwasclearthatshewouldneverinherlifedoanything\"incorrect，\"orwearanything\"incorrect。\"Buthercorrectnesswasofthefinersort，andhadnoairofbeingstudiedorachieved；conductwouldneverofferheraproblemtobesettledfromabookofrules，fortherulesweresodeepwithinherthatshewasunconsciousofthem。AndbehindthisperfectiontherewasanevenamplerperfectionofwhatMrs。Adamscalled\"background。\"Thebig，rich，simplehousewaspartofit，andMildred\'sfatherandmotherwerepartofit。Theystoodbesideher，large，serenepeople，murmuringgraciouslyandgentlyincliningtheirhandsomeheadsastheygavetheirhandstotheguests；andeventheyoungestandmostebullientofthesetookonahushedmannerlinesswithacloserapproachtothebower。 WhentheopportunitycameforAliceandWaltertopasswithinthisprecinct，Alice，goingfirst，leanedforwardandwhisperedinMildred\'sear。\"YouDIDN\'Twearthemaizegeorgette!That\'swhatIthoughtyouweregoingto。ButyoulooksimplyDARLING! Andthosepearls——\" Otherswerecrowdingdecorouslyforward，anxioustobedonewithceremonyandgettothedancing；andMildreddidnotprolongtheintimacyofAlice\'senthusiasticwhispering。Withafaintaccessionofcolourandasmiletendingsomewhatinthedirectionofrigidity，shecarriedAlice\'shandimmediatelyonwardtoMrs。 Palmer\'s。Alice\'sowncolourshowedalittleheighteningassheacceptedthesuggestionthusimplied；norwasthatemotionaltintinanywisedecreased，amomentlater，byanimpressionthatWalter，inconcludingthebriefexchangeofcourtesiesbetweenhimselfandthestatelyMr。Palmer，hadagainreassuredhimselfwithayawn。 ButshedidnotspeakofittoWalter；shepreferrednottoconfirmtheimpressionandtoleaveinhermindapossibledoubtthathehaddoneit。Hefollowedheroutuponthewaxedfloor，saidresignedly:\"Well，comeon，\"puthisarmabouther，andtheybegantodance。 Alicedancedgracefullyandwell，butnotsowellasWalter。Ofallthestepsandruns，ofallthewhimsicalturnsandtwirlings，ofalltherhythmicswayingsanddipscommandedthatseasonbysuchblaringsaswerethebarbaricproduct，loudandwild，oftheJazzLouiesandtheirhalf-breedbunches，thethinandsallowyouthwasamaster。Uponhisfacecouldbeseencontemptoftheeasymarvelsheperformedashemovedinswiftprecisionfromonesmoothagilitytoanother；andifsometoo-daintyorjealouscavaliercomplainedthattobesomuchastylistindancingwas\"notquitelikeagentleman，\"atleastWalter\'sstylewaswhatthemusiccalledfor。Nootherdancerintheroomcouldbethoughtcomparabletohim。Alicetoldhimso。 \"It\'swonderful!\"shesaid。\"Andthemysteryis，whereyoueverlearnedtoDOit!Youneverwenttodancing-school，butthereisn\'tamanintheroomwhocandancehalfsowell。Idon\'tseewhy，whenyoudancelikethis，youalwaysmakesuchafussaboutcomingtoparties。\" Hesoundedhisbrieflaugh，ajeeringbarkoutofonesideofthemouth，andswunghermiraculouslythroughaclosingspacebetweentwoothercouples。\"Youknowalotaboutwhatgoeson，don\'tyou？Youprob\'lythinkthere\'snootherplacetodanceinthistownexceptthesefrozen-facejoints。\" \"\'Frozenface？\'\"sheechoed，laughing。\"Why，everybody\'shavingasplendidtime。Lookatthem。\" \"Oh，theyhollerloudenough，\"hesaid。\"Theydoittomakeeachotherthinkthey\'rehavin\'agoodtime。Youdon\'tcallthatPalmerfamilyfrozen-faceberries，Is\'pose。No？\" \"Certainlynot。They\'rejustdignifiedand——\" \"Yeuh!\"saidWalter。\"They\'redignified，\'speciallywhenyoutriedtowhispertoMildredtoshowhowINwithheryouwere，andshemovedyouonthatway。SHE\'Sahotfriend，isn\'tshe!\" \"Shedidn\'tmeananythingbyit。She——\" \"OlePalmer\'sahearty，slapyou-on-the-backoleberry，\"Walterinterrupted；addinginacasualtone，\"AllI\'dlike，I\'dliketohithim。\" \"Walter!Bytheway，youmustn\'tforgettoaskMildredforadancebeforetheeveningisover。\" \"Me？\"Heproducedthelop-sidedappearanceofhislaugh，butwithoutmakingitvocal。\"Youwatchmedoit!\" \"Sheprobablywon\'thaveoneleft，butyoumustaskher，anyway。\" \"WhymustI？\" \"Because，inthefirstplace，you\'resupposedto，and，inthesecondplace，she\'smymostintimatefriend。\" \"Yeuh？Isshe？I\'veheardyoupullthat\'most-intimate-friend\' stuffoftenenoughabouther。What\'sSHEeverdotoshowsheis？\" \"Nevermind。Youreallymustaskher，Walter。Iwantyouto； andIwantyoutoaskseveralothergirlsafterwhile；I\'lltellyouwho。\" \"Keeponwanting；it\'lldoyougood。\" \"Oh，butyoureally——\" \"Listen!\"hesaid。\"I\'mjustasliabletodancewithanyofthesefairiesasIamtobuyabucketo\'rustytacksandeat\'em。 Forgetit!SoonasIgetridofyouI\'mgoin\'backtothatroomwhereIleftmyhatandovercoatandsmokemyselftodeath。\" \"Well，\"shesaid，alittleruefully，asthefrenzyofJazzLouieandhishalf-breedswassuddenlyabatedtosilence，\"youmustn\'t——youmustn\'tgetridofmeTOOsoon，Walter。\" Theystoodnearoneofthewidedoorways，remainingwheretheyhadstopped。Othercouples，everywhere，joinedoneanother，formingvivaciousclusters，butnoneofthesegroupsadoptedthebrotherandsister，nordidanyoneappeartobehurryinginAlice\'sdirectiontoaskherforthenextdance。Shelookedabouther，stillmaintainingthatjubilanceoflookandmannershefeltsonecessary——foritistothegirlswhoare\"havingagoodtime\"thatpartnersareattracted——and，inordertolendgreatercolourtoherimpersonationofalivelybelle，shebegantochatterloudly，bringingintoplayanaccompanimentoffrolicsomegesture。ShebrushedWalter\'snosesaucilywiththebunchofvioletsinherhand，tappedhimontheshoulder，shookherprettyforefingerinhisface，flourishedherarms，kepthershouldersmoving，andlaughedcontinuouslyasshespoke。 \"YouNAUGHTYoldWalter!\"shecried。\"AREN\'Tyouashamedtobesuchawonderfuldancerandthenonlydancewithyourownlittlesister!Youcoulddanceonthestageifyouwantedto。Why，youcouldmadeyourFORTUNEthatway!Whydon\'tyou？Wouldn\'titbejustlovelytohavealltherowsandrowsofpeopleclappingtheirhandsandshouting，\'Hurrah!Hurrah，forWalterAdams! Hurrah!Hurrah!Hurrah!\" Hestoodlookingatherinstolidpity。 \"Cutitout，\"hesaid。\"Youbetterbegivin\'someoftheseberriestheeyesothey\'llaskyoutodance。\" Shewasnottobesoeasilychecked，andlaughedloudly，flourishinghervioletsinhisfaceagain。\"YouWOULDlikeit； youknowyouwould；youneedn\'tpretend!Justthink!Awholebigaudienceshouting，\'Hurrah!HURRAH!HUR——\'\" \"Theplace\'llbepulledifyougetanynoisier，\"heinterrupted，notungently。\"Besides，I\'mnomuleycow。\" \"A\'COW？\'\"shelaughed。\"Whatonearth——\" \"Ican\'teatdeadviolets，\"heexplained。\"Sodon\'tkeeptryin\' tomakemedoit。\" Thishadtheeffecthedesired，andsubduedher；sheabandonedherunsisterlycoquetries，andlookedbeaminglyabouther，buthersmilewasmoremechanicalthanithadbeenatfirst。 Athomeshehadseemedbeautiful；buthere，wheretheothergirlscompeted，thingswerenotastheyhadbeenthere，withonlyhermotherandMissPerrytogivecontrast。Thesecrowdsofothergirlshadalldonetheirbest，also，tolookbeautiful，thoughnotoneofthemhadworkedsohardforsuchaconsummationasAlicehad。Theydidnotneedto；theydidnotneedtogettheirmotherstomakeolddressesover；theydidnotneedtohuntvioletsintherain。