FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   118   119   120   121   122   123   124   125   126   127   128   129   130   131   132   133   134   135   136   137   138   139   140   141   142  
143   144   145   146   147   148   149   150   151   152   153   154   155   156   157   158   159   160   161   162   163   164   165   166   167   >>   >|  
ride, with much disappointment. 'You said you would, and now you won't. That is not fair!' 'But how can we send it if we don't know whom to send it to?' 'If you really want to send such a thing it can easily be done,' said Mrs. Swancourt, coming to her step-daughter's rescue. 'An envelope addressed, "To the Critic of THE COURT OF KELLYON CASTLE, care of the Editor of the PRESENT," would find him.' 'Yes, I suppose it would.' 'Why not write your answer yourself, Elfride?' Mrs. Swancourt inquired. 'I might,' she said hesitatingly; 'and send it anonymously: that would be treating him as he has treated me.' 'No use in the world!' 'But I don't like to let him know my exact name. Suppose I put my initials only? The less you are known the more you are thought of.' 'Yes; you might do that.' Elfride set to work there and then. Her one desire for the last fortnight seemed likely to be realized. As happens with sensitive and secluded minds, a continual dwelling upon the subject had magnified to colossal proportions the space she assumed herself to occupy or to have occupied in the occult critic's mind. At noon and at night she had been pestering herself with endeavours to perceive more distinctly his conception of her as a woman apart from an author: whether he really despised her; whether he thought more or less of her than of ordinary young women who never ventured into the fire of criticism at all. Now she would have the satisfaction of feeling that at any rate he knew her true intent in crossing his path, and annoying him so by her performance, and be taught perhaps to despise it a little less. Four days later an envelope, directed to Miss Swancourt in a strange hand, made its appearance from the post-bag. 'Oh,' said Elfride, her heart sinking within her. 'Can it be from that man--a lecture for impertinence? And actually one for Mrs. Swancourt in the same hand-writing!' She feared to open hers. 'Yet how can he know my name? No; it is somebody else.' 'Nonsense!' said her father grimly. 'You sent your initials, and the Directory was available. Though he wouldn't have taken the trouble to look there unless he had been thoroughly savage with you. I thought you wrote with rather more asperity than simple literary discussion required.' This timely clause was introduced to save the character of the vicar's judgment under any issue of affairs. 'Well, here I go,' said Elfride, desperately tearing open the sea
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   118   119   120   121   122   123   124   125   126   127   128   129   130   131   132   133   134   135   136   137   138   139   140   141   142  
143   144   145   146   147   148   149   150   151   152   153   154   155   156   157   158   159   160   161   162   163   164   165   166   167   >>   >|  



Top keywords:
Swancourt
 

Elfride

 

thought

 

initials

 

envelope

 
despise
 
performance
 

tearing

 
taught
 

directed


appearance

 

strange

 
satisfaction
 

criticism

 
feeling
 

affairs

 
crossing
 
ventured
 

desperately

 

intent


annoying

 

simple

 

Nonsense

 

father

 

asperity

 

grimly

 

literary

 

discussion

 

Though

 

wouldn


trouble

 
Directory
 

savage

 

required

 

character

 
lecture
 

judgment

 
sinking
 

impertinence

 
timely

feared
 

writing

 
introduced
 
clause
 

colossal

 

PRESENT

 
suppose
 

Editor

 
KELLYON
 

CASTLE