for the way I treated
her the last part of the time there. I feel as if I could make my whole
life a reparation," she added passionately.

Mrs. Brinkley believed that this was the mere frenzy of sentimentality,
the exaltation of a selfish asceticism; but at the break in the girl's
voice and the aversion of her face she could not help a thrill
of motherly tenderness for her. She wanted to tell her she was an
unconscious humbug, bent now as always on her own advantage, and really
indifferent to others she also wanted to comfort her, and tell her that
she exaggerated, and was not to blame. She did neither, but when Alice
turned her face back she seemed encouraged by Mrs. Brinkley's look to
go on: "I didn't appreciate her then; she was very generous and
high-minded--too high-minded for me to understand, even. But we don't
seem to know how good others are till we wrong them."

"Yes, that is very true," said Mrs. Brinkley. She knew that Alice was
obviously referring to the breach between herself and Miss Anderson
following the night of the Trevor theatricals, and the dislike for
her that she had shown with a frankness some of the ladies had thought
brutal. Mrs. Brinkley also believed that her words had a tacit meaning,
and she would have liked to have the hardness to say she had seen an
unnamed victim of Alice doing his best to console the other she had
specified. But she merely said drily, "Yes, perhaps that's the reason
why we're allowed to injure people."

"It must be," said Alice simply. "Did Miss Anderson ever speak of me?"

"No; I can't remember that she ever did." Mrs. Brinkley did not feel
bound to say that she and Miss Van Hook had discussed her at large, and
agreed perfectly about her.

"I should like to see her; I should like to write to her."

Mrs. Brinkley felt that she ought not to suffer this intimate tendency
in the talk:

"You must find a great many other acquaintances in the hotel, Miss
Pasmer."

"Some of the Frankland girds are here, and the two Bellinghams. I have
hardly spoken to them yet. Do you think that where you have even been
in the right, if you have been harsh, if you have been hasty, if you
haven't made allowances, you ought to offer some atonement?"

"Really, I can't say," said Mrs. Brinkley, with a smile of distaste.
"I'm afraid your question isn't quite in my line of thinking; it's more
in Miss Cotton's way. You'd better ask her some time."

"No," said Alice sadly; "she would flat