silence.

For a young man, this was rather a morbid turn of character, and so
affected Carrie. Indeed, it affected the entire atmosphere of the flat,
as such things are inclined to do, and gave to his wife's mind its
subdued and tactful turn, anxious to avoid taciturn replies. Under the
influence of Carrie's announcement he brightened up somewhat.

"You didn't lose any time, did you?" he remarked, smiling a little.

"No," returned Carrie with a touch of pride.

He asked her one or two more questions and then turned to play with the
baby, leaving the subject until it was brought up again by Minnie at the
table.

Carrie, however, was not to be reduced to the common level of
observation which prevailed in the flat.

"It seems to be such a large company," she said, at one place.

"Great big plate-glass windows and lots of clerks. The man I saw said
they hired ever so many people."

"It's not very hard to get work now," put in Hanson, "if you look
right."

Minnie, under the warming influence of Carrie's good spirits and her
husband's somewhat conversational mood, began to tell Carrie of some
of the well-known things to see--things the enjoyment of which cost
nothing.

"You'd like to see Michigan Avenue. There are such fine houses. It is
such a fine street."

"Where is H. R. Jacob's?" interrupted Carrie, mentioning one of the
theatres devoted to melodrama which went by that name at the time.

"Oh, it's not very far from here," answered Minnie. "It's in Halstead
Street, right up here."

"How I'd like to go there. I crossed Halstead Street to-day, didn't I?"

At this there was a slight halt in the natural reply. Thoughts are a
strangely permeating factor. At her suggestion of going to the theatre,
the unspoken shade of disapproval to the doing of those things which
involved the expenditure of money--shades of feeling which arose in the
mind of Hanson and then in Minnie--slightly affected the atmosphere of
the table. Minnie answered "yes," but Carrie could feel that going to
the theatre was poorly advocated here. The subject was put off for a
little while until Hanson, through with his meal, took his paper and
went into the front room.

When they were alone, the two sisters began a somewhat freer
conversation, Carrie interrupting it to hum a little, as they worked at
the dishes.

"I should like to walk up and see Halstead Street, if it isn't too far,"
said Carrie, after a time. "Why don't we go to the theatr