第4章

类别:其他 作者:William Dean Howells字数:9515更新时间:19/01/07 14:46:13
Penelopetooktheword。\"Igoinforit。Idon’tseeanyuseinnotenjoyingmoney,ifyou’vegotittoenjoy。 That’swhatit’sfor,Isuppose;thoughyoumightn’talwaysthinkso。\"Shehadaslow,quaintwayoftalking,thatseemedapleasantpersonalmodificationofsomeancestralYankeedrawl,andhervoicewaslowandcozy,andsofarfrombeingnasalthatitwasalittlehoarse。 \"Iguesstheayeshasit,Pen,\"saidherfather。 \"HowwoulditdotoletIreneandyourmotherstickintheoldplacehere,andusgointothenewhouse?\" AttimestheColonel’sgrammarfailedhim。 Thematterdropped,andtheLaphamslivedonasbefore,withjokingrecurrencestothehouseonthewatersideofBeacon。TheColonelseemedlessinearnestthananyofthemaboutit;butthatwashisway,hisgirlssaid; younevercouldtellwhenhereallymeantathing。 III。 TOWARDtheendofthewintertherecameanewspaper,addressedtoMissIreneLapham;itprovedtobeaTexasnewspaper,withacomplimentaryaccountoftheranchoftheHon。LoringG。Stanton,whichtherepresentativeofthejournalhadvisited。 \"Itmustbehisfriend,\"saidMrs。Lapham,towhomherdaughterbroughtthepaper;\"theonehe’sstayingwith。\" Thegirldidnotsayanything,butshecarriedthepapertoherroom,whereshescannedeverylineofitforanothername。Shedidnotfindit,butshecutthenoticeoutandstuckitintothesideofhermirror,whereshecouldreaditeverymorningwhenshebrushedherhair,andthelastthingatnightwhenshelookedatherselfintheglassjustbeforeturningoffthegas。 Hersisteroftenreaditaloud,standingbehindherandrenderingitwithelocutionaryeffects。 \"ThefirsttimeIeverheardofalove—letterintheformofapufftoacattle—ranch。Butperhapsthat’sthestyleontheHill。\" Mrs。Laphamtoldherhusbandofthearrivalofthepaper,treatingthefactwithanimportancethatherefusedtoseeinit。 \"Howdoyouknowthefellowsentit,anyway?\"hedemanded。 \"Oh,Iknowhedid。\" \"Idon’tseewhyhecouldn’twriteto’Rene,ifhereallymeantanything。\" \"Well,Iguessthatwouldn’tbetheirway,\"saidMrs。Lapham; shedidnotatallknowwhattheirwaywouldbe。 WhenthespringopenedColonelLaphamshowedthathehadbeeninearnestaboutbuildingontheNewLand。Hisideaofahousewasabrown—stonefront,fourstorieshigh,andaFrenchroofwithanair—chamberabove。Inside,therewastobeareception—roomonthestreetandadining—roomback。Theparloursweretobeonthesecondfloor,andfinishedinblackwalnutorparty—colouredpaint。 Thechambersweretobeonthethreefloorsabove,frontandrear,withside—roomsoverthefrontdoor。 Blackwalnutwastobeusedeverywhereexceptintheattic,whichwastobepaintedandgrainedtolooklikeblackwalnut。Thewholewastobeveryhigh—studded,andthereweretobehandsomecornicesandelaboratecentre—piecesthroughout,except,again,intheattic。 Theseideashehadformedfromtheinspectionofmanynewbuildingswhichhehadseengoingup,andwhichhehadapassionforlookinginto。HewasconfirmedinhisideasbyamasterbuilderwhohadputupagreatmanyhousesontheBackBayasaspeculation,andwhotoldhimthatifhewantedtohaveahouseinthestyle,thatwasthewaytohaveit。 ThebeginningsoftheprocessbywhichLaphamescapedfromthemasterbuilderandendedinthehandsofanarchitectaresoobscurethatitwouldbealmostimpossibletotracethem。Butitallhappened,andLaphampromptlydevelopedhisideasofblackwalnutfinish,highstudding,andcornices。Thearchitectwasabletoconcealtheshudderwhichtheymusthavesentthroughhim。Hewasskilful,asnearlyallarchitectsare,inplayinguponthatsimpleinstrumentMan。HebegantotouchColonelLapham’sstops。 \"Oh,certainly,havetheparlourshigh—studded。Butyou’veseensomeofthoseprettyold—fashionedcountry—houses,haven’tyou,wheretheentrance—storyisverylow—studded?\" \"Yes,\"Laphamassented。 \"Well,don’tyouthinksomethingofthatkindwouldhaveaveryniceeffect?Havetheentrance—storylow—studded,andyourparloursonthenextfloorashighasyouplease。 Putyourlittlereception—roomherebesidethedoor,andgetthewholewidthofyourhousefrontageforasquarehall,andaneasylow—treadstaircaserunningupthreesidesofit。 I’msureMrs。Laphamwouldfinditmuchpleasanter。\" Thearchitectcaughttowardhimascrapofpaperlyingonthetableatwhichtheyweresittingandsketchedhisidea。 \"Thenhaveyourdining—roombehindthehall,lookingonthewater。\" HeglancedatMrs。Lapham,whosaid,\"Ofcourse,\" andthearchitectwenton—— \"Thatgetsyouridofoneofthoselong,straight,uglystaircases,\"——untilthatmomentLaphamhadthoughtalong,straightstaircasethechiefornamentofahouse,——\"andgivesyouaneffectofamplitudeandspace。\" \"That’sso!\"saidMrs。Lapham。Herhusbandmerelymadeanoiseinhisthroat。 \"Then,wereyouthinkingofhavingyourparlourstogether,connectedbyfoldingdoors?\"askedthearchitectdeferentially。 \"Yes,ofcourse,\"saidLapham。\"They’realwaysso,ain’tthey?\" \"Well,nearly,\"saidthearchitect。\"Iwaswonderinghowwoulditdotomakeonelargesquareroomatthefront,takingthewholebreadthofthehouse,and,withthishall—spacebetween,haveamusic—roombackfortheyoungladies?\" Laphamlookedhelplesslyathiswife,whosequickerapprehensionhadfollowedthearchitect’spencilwithinstantsympathy。\"First—rate!\"shecried。 TheColonelgaveway。\"Iguessthatwoulddo。 It’llbekindofodd,won’tit?\" \"Well,Idon’tknow,\"saidthearchitect。\"Notsoodd,Ihope,astheotherthingwillbeafewyearsfromnow。\" Hewentontoplantherestofthehouse,andheshowedhimselfsuchamasterinregardtoallthepracticaldetailsthatMrs。Laphambegantofeelamotherlyaffectionfortheyoungman,andherhusbandcouldnotdenyinhisheartthatthefellowseemedtounderstandhisbusiness。 Hestoppedwalkingabouttheroom,ashehadbeguntodowhenthearchitectandMrs。Laphamenteredintotheparticularsofclosets,drainage,kitchenarrangements,andallthat,andcamebacktothetable。\"Ipresume,\" hesaid,\"you’llhavethedrawing—roomfinishedinblackwalnut?\" \"Well,yes,\"repliedthearchitect,\"ifyoulike。 Butsomelessexpensivewoodcanbemadejustaseffectivewithpaint。Ofcourseyoucanpaintblackwalnuttoo。\" \"Paintit?\"gaspedtheColonel。 \"Yes,\"saidthearchitectquietly。\"White,oralittleoffwhite。\" Laphamdroppedtheplanhehadpickedupfromthetable。 Hiswifemadealittlemovetowardhimofconsolationorsupport。 \"Ofcourse,\"resumedthearchitect,Iknowtherehasbeenagreatcrazeforblackwalnut。Butit’sanuglywood; andforadrawing—roomthereisreallynothinglikewhitepaint。Weshouldwanttointroducealittlegoldhereandthere。Perhapswemightrunapaintedfriezeroundunderthecornice——garlandsofrosesonagoldground; itwouldtellwonderfullyinawhiteroom。\" TheColonelreturnedlesscourageouslytothecharge。 \"Ipresumeyou’llwantEastlakemantel—shelvesandtiles?\" Hemeantthisforasarcasticthrustataprevailingfoibleoftheprofession。 \"Well,no,\"gentlyansweredthearchitect。\"Iwasthinkingperhapsawhitemarblechimney—piece,treatedintherefinedEmpirestyle,wouldbethethingforthatroom。\" \"Whitemarble!\"exclaimedtheColonel。\"Ithoughtthathadgoneoutlongago。\" \"Reallybeautifulthingscan’tgoout。Theymaydisappearforalittlewhile,buttheymustcomeback。 It’sonlytheuglythingsthatstayoutafterthey’vehadtheirday。\" Laphamcouldonlyventureverymodestly,\"Hard—woodfloors?\" \"Inthemusic—room,ofcourse,\"consentedthearchitect。 \"Andinthedrawing—room?\" \"Carpet。Somesortofmoquette,Ishouldsay。ButI shouldprefertoconsultMrs。Lapham’stasteinthatmatter。\" \"Andintheotherrooms?\" \"Oh,carpets,ofcourse。\" \"Andwhataboutthestairs?\" \"Carpet。AndIshouldhavetherailandbanisterswhite——banistersturnedortwisted。\" TheColonelsaidunderhisbreath,\"Well,I’mdumned!\" buthegavenoutterancetohisastonishmentinthearchitect’spresence。Whenhewentatlast,——thesessiondidnotendtilleleveno’clock,——Laphamsaid,\"Well,Pert,Iguessthatfellow’sfiftyyearsbehind,ortenyearsahead。 IwonderwhattheOngpeerstyleis?\" \"Idon’tknow。Ihatedtoask。Butheseemedtounderstandwhathewastalkingabout。Ideclare,heknowswhatawomanwantsinahousebetterthanshedoesherself。\" \"Andaman’ssimplynowhereincomparison,\"saidLapham。 Butherespectedafellowwhocouldbeathimateverypoint,andhaveareasonready,asthisarchitecthad; andwhenherecoveredfromthedazeintowhichthecompleteupheavalofallhispreconceivednotionshadlefthim,hewasinafitstatetoswearbythearchitect。 Itseemedtohimthathehaddiscoveredthefellow(ashealwayscalledhim)andownedhimnow,andthefellowdidnothingtodisturbthisimpression。HeenteredintothatbriefbutintenseintimacywiththeLaphamswhichthesympatheticarchitectholdswithhisclients。 Hewasprivytoalltheirdifferencesofopinionandalltheirdisputesaboutthehouse。Heknewjustwheretoinsistuponhisownideas,andwheretoyield。 Hewasreallybuildingseveralotherhouses,buthegavetheLaphamstheimpressionthathewasdoingnonebuttheirs。 Theworkwasnotbeguntillthefrostwasthoroughlyoutoftheground,whichthatyearwasnotbeforetheendofApril。Eventhenitdidnotproceedveryrapidly。 Laphamsaidtheymightaswelltaketheirtimetoit; iftheygotthewallsupandthethingclosedinbeforethesnowflew,theycouldbeworkingatitallwinter。 Itwasfoundnecessarytodigforthekitchen;atthatpointtheoriginalsalt—marshlaynearthesurface,andbeforetheybegantoputinthepilesforthefoundationtheyhadtopump。Theneighbourhoodsmeltliketheholdofashipafterathreeyears’voyage。PeoplewhohadcasttheirfortuneswiththeNewLandwentbyprofessingnottonoticeit;peoplewhostill\"hungontotheHill\" puttheirhandkerchiefstotheirnoses,andtoldeachothertheoldterriblestoriesofthematerialusedinfillinguptheBackBay。 NothinggaveLaphamsomuchsatisfactioninthewholeconstructionofhishouseasthepile—driving。Whenthisbegan,earlyinthesummer,hetookMrs。Laphameverydayinhisbuggyanddroveroundtolookatit; stoppingthemareinfrontofthelot,andwatchingtheoperationwithevenkeenerinterestthanthelittleloafingIrishboyswhosuperintendeditinforce。 Itpleasedhimtoheartheportableenginechuckleoutahundredthinwhiffsofsteamincarryingthebigironweighttothetopoftheframeworkabovethepile,thenseemtohesitate,andcoughonceortwiceinpressingtheweightagainstthedetachingapparatus。 Therewasamomentinwhichtheweighthadtheeffectofpoisingbeforeitfell;thenitdroppedwithamightywhackontheiron—boundheadofthepile,anddroveitafootintotheearth。 \"Bygracious!\"hewouldsay,\"thereain’tanythinglikethatinTHISworldforBUSINESS,Persis!\" Mrs。Laphamsufferedhimtoenjoythesighttwentyorthirtytimesbeforeshesaid,\"Well,nowdriveon,Si。\" Bythetimethefoundationwasinandthebrickwallshadbeguntogoup,thereweresofewpeopleleftintheneighbourhoodthatshemightindulgewithimpunityherhusband’spassionforhavingherclamberoverthefloor—timbersandtheskeletonstair—caseswithhim。ManyofthehouseholdershadboardeduptheirfrontdoorsbeforethebudshadbeguntoswellandtheassessortoappearinearlyMay; othershadfollowedsoon;andMrs。Laphamwasassafefromremarkasifshehadbeeninthedepthofthecountry。 OrdinarilysheandhergirlslefttownearlyinJuly,goingtooneofthehotelsatNantasket,whereitwasconvenientfortheColoneltogettoandfromhisbusinessbytheboat。Butthissummertheywerealllingeringafewweekslater,underthenovelfascinationofthenewhouse,astheycalledit,asiftherewerenootherintheworld。 LaphamdrovetherewithhiswifeafterhehadsetBartleyHubbarddownattheEventsoffice,butonthisdaysomethinghappenedthatinterferedwiththesolidpleasuretheyusuallytookingoingoverthehouse。 AstheColonelturnedfromcastinganchoratthemare’sheadwiththehitching—weight,afterhelpinghiswifetoalight,heencounteredamantowhomhecouldnothelpspeaking,thoughthemanseemedtosharehishesitationifnothisreluctanceatthenecessity。Hewasatallish,thinman,withadust—colouredface,andadead,clericalair,whichsomehowsuggestedatoncefeeblenessandtenacity。 Mrs。Laphamheldoutherhandtohim。 \"Why,Mr。Rogers!\"sheexclaimed;andthen,turningtowardherhusband,seemedtoreferthetwomentoeachother。 Theyshookhands,butLaphamdidnotspeak。\"Ididn’tknowyouwereinBoston,\"pursuedMrs。Lapham。\"IsMrs。Rogerswithyou?\" \"No,\"saidMr。Rogers,withavoicewhichhadtheflat,succinctsoundoftwopiecesofwoodclappedtogether。 \"Mrs。RogersisstillinChicago\" Alittlesilencefollowed,andthenMrsLaphamsaid—— \"Ipresumeyouarequitesettledoutthere。\" \"No;wehaveleftChicago。Mrs。Rogershasmerelyremainedtofinishupalittlepacking。\" \"Oh,indeed!AreyoucomingbacktoBoston?\" \"Icannotsayasyet。Wesomethinkofsodoing。 Laphamturnedawayandlookedupatthebuilding。 Hiswifepulledalittleatherglove,asifembarrassed,orevenpained。Shetriedtomakeadiversion。 \"Wearebuildingahouse,\"shesaid,withameaninglesslaugh。 \"Oh,indeed,\"saidMr。Rogers,lookingupatit。 Thennoonespokeagain,andshesaidhelplessly—— \"IfyoucometoBoston,IhopeIshallseeMrs。Rogers。\" \"Shewillbehappytohaveyoucall,\"saidMrRogers。 Hetouchedhishat—brim,andmadeabowforwardratherthaninMrs。Lapham’sdirection。 Shemountedtheplankingthatledintotheshelterofthebarebrickwalls,andherhusbandslowlyfollowed。 Whensheturnedherfacetowardhimhercheekswereburning,andtearsthatlookedhotstoodinhereyes。 \"Youleftitalltome!\"shecried。\"Whycouldn’tyouspeakaword?\" \"Ihadn’tanythingtosaytohim,\"repliedLaphamsullenly。 Theystoodawhile,withoutlookingattheworkwhichtheyhadcometoenjoy,andwithoutspeakingtoeachother。 \"Isupposewemightaswellgoon,\"saidMrs。Laphamatlast,astheyreturnedtothebuggy。TheColoneldroverecklesslytowardtheMilldam。Hiswifekeptherveildownandherfaceturnedfromhim。Afteratimesheputherhandkerchiefupunderherveilandwipedhereyes,andhesethisteethandsquaredhisjaw。 \"Idon’tseehowhealwaysmanagestoappearjustatthemomentwhenheseemstohavegonefairlyoutofourlives,andblighteverything,\"shewhimpered。 \"Isupposedhewasdead,\"saidLapham。 \"Oh,don’tSAYsuchathing!Itsoundsasifyouwishedit。\" \"Whydoyoumindit?Whatdoyoulethimblighteverythingfor?\" \"Ican’thelpit,andIdon’tbelieveIevershall。 Idon’tknowashisbeingdeadwouldhelpitany。 Ican’teverseehimwithoutfeelingjustasIdidatfirst。\" \"Itellyou,\"saidLapham,\"itwasaperfectlysquarething。 AndIwish,onceforall,youwouldquitbotheringaboutit。 Myconscienceiseasyasfarasheisconcerned,anditalwayswas。\" \"AndIcan’tlookathimwithoutfeelingasifyou’druinedhim,Silas。\" \"Don’tlookathim,then,\"saidherhusband,withascowl。 \"Iwantyoushouldrecollectinthefirstplace,Persis,thatIneverwantedapartner。\" \"Ifhehadn’tputhismoneyinwhenhedid,you’d’a’ brokendown。\" \"Well,hegothismoneyoutagain,andmore,too,\" saidtheColonel,withasulkyweariness。 \"Hedidn’twanttotakeitout。\" \"Igavehimhischoice:buyoutorgoout。\" \"Youknowhecouldn’tbuyoutthen。Itwasnochoiceatall。\" \"Itwasabusinesschance。\" \"No;youhadbetterfacethetruth,Silas。Itwasnochanceatall。Youcrowdedhimout。Amanthathadsavedyou!No,youhadgotgreedy,Silas。Youhadmadeyourpaintyourgod,andyoucouldn’tbeartoletanybodyelseshareinitsblessings。\" \"Itellyouhewasadragandabrakeonmefromthewordgo。 Yousayhesavedme。Well,ifIhadn’tgothimouthe’d’a’ruinedmesoonerorlater。Soit’saneventhing,asfarforthasthatgoes。\" \"No,itain’taneventhing,andyouknowit,Silas。Oh,ifI couldonlygetyouoncetoacknowledgethatyoudidwrongaboutit,thenIshouldhavesomehope。Idon’tsayyoumeantwrongexactly,butyoutookanadvantage。 Yes,youtookanadvantage!Youhadhimwherehecouldn’thelphimself,andthenyouwouldn’tshowhimanymercy。\" \"I’msickofthis,\"saidLapham。\"Ifyou’ll’tendtothehouse,I’llmanagemybusinesswithoutyourhelp。\" \"Youwereverygladofmyhelponce。\" \"Well,I’mtiredofitnow。Don’tmeddle。\" \"IWILLmeddle。WhenIseeyouhardeningyourselfinawrongthing,it’stimeformetomeddle,asyoucallit,andIwill。Ican’tevergetyoutoownuptheleastbitaboutRogers,andIfeelasifitwashurtingyouallthewhile。\" \"WhatdoyouwantIshouldownupaboutathingforwhenI don’tfeelwrong?ItellyouRogershain’tgotanythingtocomplainof,andthat’swhatItoldyoufromthestart。 It’sathingthat’sdoneeveryday。Iwasloadedupwithapartnerthatdidn’tknowanything,andcouldn’tdoanything,andIunloaded;that’sall。\" \"Youunloadedjustatthetimewhenyouknewthatyourpaintwasgoingtobeworthabouttwicewhatiteverhadbeen; andyouwantedalltheadvantageforyourself。\" \"Ihadarighttoit。Imadethesuccess。\" \"Yes,youmadeitwithRogers’smoney;andwhenyou’dmadeityoutookhisshareofit。Iguessyouthoughtofthatwhenyousawhim,andthat’swhyyoucouldn’tlookhimintheface。\" AtthesewordsLaphamlosthistemper。 \"Iguessyoudon’twanttoridewithmeanymoreto—day,\" hesaid,turningthemareabruptlyround。 \"I’masreadytogobackaswhatyouare,\"repliedhiswife。 \"Anddon’tyouaskmetogotothathousewithyouanymore。 Youcansellit,forallme。Isha’n’tliveinit。 There’sbloodonit。\" IV。 THEsilkentextureofthemarriagetiebearsadailystrainofwrongandinsulttowhichnootherhumanrelationcanbesubjectedwithoutlesion;andsometimesthestrengththatknitssocietytogethermightappeartotheeyeoffalteringfaiththecurseofthoseimmediatelyboundbyit。 Twopeoplebynomeansrecklessofeachother’srightsandfeelings,buteventenderofthemforthemostpart,maytearateachother’sheart—stringsinthissacredbondwithperfectimpunity;thoughiftheywereanyothertwotheywouldnotspeakorlookateachotheragainaftertheoutragestheyexchange。Itiscertainlyacuriousspectacle,anddoubtlessitoughttoconvinceanobserverofthedivinityoftheinstitution。 Ifthehusbandandwifeareblunt,outspokenpeopleliketheLaphams,theydonotweightheirwords; iftheyaremorerefined,theyweighthemverycarefully,andknowaccuratelyjusthowfartheywillcarry,andinwhatmostsensitivespottheymaybeplantedwithmosteffect。 Laphamwasproudofhiswife,andwhenhemarriedherithadbeenariseinlifeforhim。Forawhilehestoodinaweofhisgoodfortune,butthiscouldnotlast,andhesimplyremainedsupremelysatisfiedwithit。 Thegirlwhohadtaughtschoolwithaclearheadandastronghandwasnotafraidofwork;sheencouragedandhelpedhimfromthefirst,andboreherfullshareofthecommonburden。 Shehadhealth,andshedidnotworryhislifeoutwithpeevishcomplaintsandvagaries;shehadsenseandprinciple,andintheirsimplelotshedidwhatwaswiseandright。 Theirmarriagewashallowedbyanearlysorrow:theylosttheirboy,anditwasyearsbeforetheycouldlookeachotherinthefaceandspeakofhim。NoonegaveupmorethantheywhentheygaveupeachotherandLaphamwenttothewar。Whenhecamebackandbegantowork,herzealandcourageformedthespringofhisenterprise。 Inthataffairofthepartnershipshehadtriedtobehisconscience,butperhapsshewouldhavedefendedhimifhehadaccusedhimself;itwasoneofthosethingsinthislifewhichseemdestinedtoawaitjustice,oratleastjudgment,inthenext。Ashesaid,Laphamhaddealtfairlybyhispartnerinmoney;hehadletRogerstakemoremoneyoutofthebusinessthanheputintoit; hehad,ashesaid,simplyforcedoutofitatimidandinefficientparticipantinadvantageswhichhehadcreated。ButLaphamhadnotcreatedthemall。 Hehadbeendependentatonetimeonhispartner’scapital。 Itwasamomentofterribletrial。Happyisthemanforeverafterwhocanchoosetheideal,theunselfishpartinsuchanexigency!Laphamcouldnotrisetoit。 Hedidwhathecouldmaintaintobeperfectlyfair。 Thewrong,ifany,seemedtobecondonedtohim,exceptwhenfromtimetotimehiswifebroughtitup。 Thenallthequestionstungandburnedanew,andhadtobereasonedoutandputawayoncemore。Itseemedtohaveaninextinguishablevitality。Itslept,butitdidnotdie。 HiscoursedidnotshakeMrs。Lapham’sfaithinhim。 Itastonishedheratfirst,anditalwaysgrievedherthathecouldnotseethathewasactingsolelyinhisowninterest。Butshefoundexcusesforhim,whichattimesshemadereproaches。Shevaguelyperceivedthathispaintwassomethingmorethanbusinesstohim; itwasasentiment,almostapassion。Hecouldnotshareitsmanagementanditsprofitwithanotherwithoutameasureofself—sacrificefarbeyondthatwhichhemustmakewithsomethinglesspersonaltohim。Itwasthepoetryofthatnature,otherwisesointenselyprosaic; andsheunderstoodthis,andforthemostpartforbore。 Sheknewhimgoodandtrueandblamelessinallhislife,exceptforthiswrong,ifitwereawrong;anditwasonlywhenhernervestingledintolerablywithsomechancerenewalofthepainshehadsuffered,thatshesharedheranguishwithhimintruewifelyfashion。 Withthosetwotherewasneveranythinglikeanexplicitreconciliation。Theysimplyignoredaquarrel; andMrs。Laphamhadonlytosayafewdaysafteratbreakfast,\"Iguessthegirlswouldliketogoroundwithyouthisafternoon,andlookatthenewhouse,\" inordertomakeherhusbandgrumbleoutashelookeddownintohiscoffee—cup。\"Iguesswebetterallgo,hadn’twe?\" \"Well,I’llsee,\"shesaid。 TherewasnotreallyagreatdealtolookatwhenLaphamarrivedonthegroundinhisfour—seatedbeach—wagon。