m--all about the
Talmud. You must come."

"Well, I'll come," said the second lady; "but nothing would induce me to
be a regular member."

Whatever the mystic circle might be, Ransom agreed with the second lady
that regular membership must have terrors, and he admired her
independence in such an artificial world. A considerable part of the
company had now directed itself to the further apartment--people had
begun to occupy the chairs, to confront the empty platform. He reached
the wide doors, and saw that the place was a spacious music-room,
decorated in white and gold, with a polished floor and marble busts of
composers, on brackets attached to the delicate panels. He forbore to
enter, however, being shy about taking a seat, and seeing that the
ladies were arranging themselves first. He turned back into the first
room, to wait till the audience had massed itself, conscious that even
if he were behind every one he should be able to make a long neck; and
here, suddenly, in a corner, his eyes rested upon Olive Chancellor. She
was seated a little apart, in an angle of the room, and she was looking
straight at him; but as soon as she perceived that he saw her she
dropped her eyes, giving no sign of recognition. Ransom hesitated a
moment, but the next he went straight over to her. It had been in his
mind that if Verena Tarrant was there, _she_ would be there; an instinct
told him that Miss Chancellor would not allow her dear friend to come to
New York without her. It was very possible she meant to "cut"
him--especially if she knew of his having cut her, the other week, in
Boston; but it was his duty to take for granted she would speak to him,
until the contrary should be definitely proved. Though he had seen her
only twice he remembered well how acutely shy she was capable of being,
and he thought it possible one of these spasms had seized her at the
present time.

When he stood before her he found his conjecture perfectly just; she was
white with the intensity of her self-consciousness; she was altogether
in a very uncomfortable state. She made no response to his offer to
shake hands with her, and he saw that she would never go through that
ceremony again. She looked up at him when he spoke to her, and her lips
moved; but her face was intensely grave and her eye had almost a
feverish light. She had evidently got into her corner to be out of the
way; he recognised in her the air of an interloper, as he had felt it in
hims