The Project Gutenberg EBook of Four Meetings, by Henry James

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Title: Four Meetings

Author: Henry James

Release Date: June 8, 2007 [EBook #21773]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK FOUR MEETINGS ***

Produced by David Widger

FOUR MEETINGS.

By Henry James

1885

I saw her only four times, but I remember them vividly; she made an
impression upon me. I thought her very pretty and very interesting,--a
charming specimen of a type. I am very sorry to hear of her death; and
yet, when I think of it, why should I be sorry? The last time I saw her
she was certainly not--But I will describe all our meetings in order.

I.

The first one took place in the country, at a little tea-party, one
snowy night. It must have been some seventeen years ago. My friend
Latouche, going to spend Christmas with his mother, had persuaded me to
go with him, and the good lady had given in our honor the entertainment
of which I speak. To me it was really entertaining; I had never been in
the depths of New England at that season. It had been snowing all day,
and the drifts were knee-high. I wondered how the ladies had made their
way to the house; but I perceived that at Grimwinter a conversazione
offering the attraction of two gentlemen from New York was felt to be
worth an effort.

Mrs. Latouche, in the course of the evening, asked me if I "did n't want
to" show the photographs to some of the young ladies. The photographs
were in a couple of great portfolios, and had been brought home by her
son, who, like myself, was lately returned from Europe. I looked round
and was struck with the fact that most of the young ladies were
provided with an object of interest more absorbing than the most
vivid sun-picture. But there was a person standing alone near the
mantelshelf, and looking round the room with a small gentle smile which
seemed at odds, somehow, with her isolation. I looked at her a moment,
and then said, "I should like to show them to that young lady."

"Oh, yes," said Mrs. Latouche, "she is just the person. She doesn't care
for flirting; I will speak to her."

I rejoined that if she did not care f