ly. And it became clear to her that in his bull-headed way
he had forged all the links of one of his intense antagonisms. He had
been like that all his life; of pronounced personality himself, he had
never been able to abide pronounced personality in those with whom he
came in contact. He had ridden rough-shod over inferior men all his
life; he liked to ride rough-shod; he was never pleased when his path
crossed people over whom he could not ride rough-shod. Generally she had
accepted his classification of those who opposed him strongly as "blamed
idiots"; sometimes with a little of her laughing banter, but usually,
his superiority standing out sharp and clear when opposed to the dull
Canaanites, endorsing his opinion. "I sort of wish," he went on, with
that keen, wire-edged exasperation still sawing in his voice, "that you
wouldn't have much to do with that chap. He isn't my kind of people. I
shouldn't mind if, now that you've given him a good high swing, you'd
let him drop."

"Why, Father! You oughtn't to forget that there was one time in your
life when he might have let you drop--and didn't!"

He saw that he had got himself before her in too keen a light.

"Yes, but you don't expect me to let him hold me up by the collar
forever, do you, Pet? That's his dog-on way, anyhow--wants to dictate. I
can't stand a man who wants to dictate. I think we've had enough of him.
That's what I mean, and all I mean." He patted her hands and got up from
his chair again. "There comes Samson with the mail," he said nervously.

A negro man rode up through the big gate at the front of the grounds and
came on to Madeira, who took two letters from him. "One for you, Sally,"
said Madeira, "and one for me."

"Oh, from Elsie Gossamer!" she cried, and took her letter and sat,
unobservant of him, for several moments, the little frown that his words
had brought out still on her brow. Presently she looked up and saw that
he had read his letter, and had put it in his pocket; he was tilted
back against the crab-apple tree again, his forehead knit, his eyes
brilliant, a peculiar fixity in their gaze. "Oh, here!" she cried
protestingly, "you look as though you had just decided to become the
President of the United States of America! Stop scowling and listen;
Elsie is after me again to join her in Europe. She is fairly eloquent
with the project----"

He broke in upon her with a sudden intensity of interest: "Do it!" he
cried. "It's the very thing