was to court social ostracism. He would win
the enmity of the respectable women of the town, and he knew very well
that respectable women rule their husbands. His prospects in business and
politics, already suffering, would be further damaged.

Here again was a struggle within him. He was of a breed that follows
instinct without fear, that has little capacity for enduring restraints.
And he knew well that the other young lawyers, the gringos, were no more
moral than he. But they were careful. Night was their friend and they were
banded together in a league of obscene secrecy. He despised this code and
yet he feared it. For the gringos held the whip; he must either cringe or
suffer.

So he was careful and made compromises. Dora wanted him to take her to
dinner in the main dining room of the hotel, and he evaded and compromised
by taking her there late at night when not many people were present. She
wanted him to take her to a movie and he pleaded that he had already seen
the bill, and asked her if she wanted to bore him. And when she pouted he
made her a present of a pair of silk stockings. She accepted all sorts of
presents, so that he felt he was making progress. She was making vague
promises now of "sometime" and "maybe," and his desire was whipped up with
anticipation, making him always more reckless.

One night late he took her to the Eldorado and persuaded her to drink
champagne, thinking this would forward his purpose. The wine made her rosy
and pretty, and it also made her forget her poses and affectations. She
was more charming to him than ever before, partly because of the change in
her, and partly because his own critical faculties were blunted by
alcohol. He was almost in love with her and he felt sure that he was about
to win her. But presently she began wheedling him in the old vein. She
wanted him to take her to the dance at the Woman's Club!

This would be to slap convention in the face, and at first he refused to
consider it. But he foolishly went on drinking, and the more he drank the
more feasible the thing appeared. Dora had quit drinking and was pleading
with him.

"I dare you!" she told him. "You're afraid.{~HORIZONTAL ELLIPSIS~} You don't think I'm good
enough for you.{~HORIZONTAL ELLIPSIS~} And yet you say you love me.{~HORIZONTAL ELLIPSIS~} I'm just as good as any
girl in this town.{~HORIZONTAL ELLIPSIS~} Well if you won't, I'm going home. I'm through! I
thought you really cared."

And then