a while, if merely to renew old memories.

Of course, if he had really wanted to find Sylvia it would have been
easy from the date upon the envelope to have discovered the ship
"sailing the following Saturday." Passengers were compelled to
register their names in full, and to state their intended movements
after arrival in America. Sylvia was not a common Christian name. By
the help of a five-dollar bill or two--. The idea had not occurred to
him before. He dismissed it from his mind and sought a quiet hotel up
town.

New York was changed less than he had anticipated. West Twentieth
Street in particular was precisely as, leaning out of the cab window,
he had looked back upon it ten years ago. Business had more and more
taken possession of it, but had not as yet altered its appearance. His
conscience smote him as he turned the corner that he had never once
written to Ann. He had meant to, it goes without saying, but during
those first years of struggle and failure his pride had held him back.
She had always thought him a fool; he had felt she did. He would wait
till he could write to her of success, of victory. And then when it
had slowly, almost imperceptibly, arrived--! He wondered why he never
had. Quite a nice little girl, in some respects. If only she had been
less conceited, less self-willed. Also rather a pretty girl she had
shown signs of becoming. There were times-- He remembered an evening
before the lamps were lighted. She had fallen asleep curled up in
Abner's easy chair, one small hand resting upon the arm. She had
always had quite attractive hands--a little too thin. Something had
moved him to steal across softly without waking her. He smiled at the
memory.

And then her eyes, beneath the level brows! It was surprising how Ann
was coming back to him. Perhaps they would be able to tell him, the
people of the house, what had become of her. If they were decent
people they would let him wander round a while. He would explain that
he had lived there in Abner Herrick's time. The room where they had
sometimes been agreeable to one another while Abner, pretending to
read, had sat watching them out of the corner of an eye. He would like
to sit there for a few moments, by himself.

He forgot that he had rung the bell. A very young servant had answered
the door and was staring at him. He would have walked in if the small
servant had not planted herself deliberately in his way. It rec