g, and stopped and gazed, and said not a word for many
minutes. Then he asked what it was. Ah, it was too bad that he should
ask such a direct question. I had to answer it, of course, and I did.
I said it was fire. If it annoyed him that I should know and he must
ask; that was not my fault; I had no desire to annoy him. After a pause
he asked:

"How did it come?"

Another direct question, and it also had to have a direct answer.

"I made it."

The fire was traveling farther and farther off. He went to the edge of
the burned place and stood looking down, and said:

"What are these?"

"Fire-coals."

He picked up one to examine it, but changed his mind and put it down
again. Then he went away. NOTHING interests him.

But I was interested. There were ashes, gray and soft and delicate and
pretty--I knew what they were at once. And the embers; I knew the
embers, too. I found my apples, and raked them out, and was glad; for I
am very young and my appetite is active. But I was disappointed; they
were all burst open and spoiled. Spoiled apparently; but it was not so;
they were better than raw ones. Fire is beautiful; some day it will be
useful, I think.

FRIDAY.--I saw him again, for a moment, last Monday at nightfall, but
only for a moment. I was hoping he would praise me for trying to
improve the estate, for I had meant well and had worked hard. But he was
not pleased, and turned away and left me. He was also displeased on
another account: I tried once more to persuade him to stop going over
the Falls. That was because the fire had revealed to me a new passion
--quite new, and distinctly different from love, grief, and those others
which I had already discovered--FEAR. And it is horrible!--I wish I had
never discovered it; it gives me dark moments, it spoils my happiness,
it makes me shiver and tremble and shudder. But I could not persuade
him, for he has not discovered fear yet, and so he could not understand
me.

EXTRACT FROM ADAM'S DIARY

Perhaps I ought to remember that she is very young, a mere girl and make
allowances. She is all interest, eagerness, vivacity, the world is to
her a charm, a wonder, a mystery, a joy; she can't speak for delight
when she finds a new flower, she must pet it and caress it and smell it
and talk to it, and pour out endearing names upon it. And she is
color-mad: brown rocks, yellow sand, gray moss, green foliage, blue sky;
the pear