ed Stephanie particularly in this part, and thought
her beautiful. One evening not long afterward he noticed her in his
own home looking at his jades, particularly a row of bracelets and
ear-rings. He liked the rhythmic outline of her body, which reminded
him of a letter S in motion. Quite suddenly it came over him that she
was a remarkable girl--very--destined, perhaps, to some significant
future. At the same time Stephanie was thinking of him.

"Do you find them interesting?" he asked, stopping beside her.

"I think they're wonderful. Those dark-greens, and that pale, fatty
white! I can see how beautiful they would be in a Chinese setting. I
have always wished we could find a Chinese or Japanese play to produce
sometime."

"Yes, with your black hair those ear-rings would look well," said
Cowperwood.

He had never deigned to comment on a feature of hers before. She
turned her dark, brown-black eyes on him--velvety eyes with a kind of
black glow in them--and now he noticed how truly fine they were, and
how nice were her hands--brown almost as a Malay's.

He said nothing more; but the next day an unlabeled box was delivered
to Stephanie at her home containing a pair of jade ear-rings, a
bracelet, and a brooch with Chinese characters intagliated. Stephanie
was beside herself with delight. She gathered them up in her hands and
kissed them, fastening the ear-rings in her ears and adjusting the
bracelet and ring. Despite her experience with her friends and
relatives, her stage associates, and her paramours, she was still a
little unschooled in the world. Her heart was essentially poetic and
innocent. No one had ever given her much of anything--not even her
parents. Her allowance thus far in life had been a pitiful six dollars
a week outside of her clothing. As she surveyed these pretty things in
the privacy of her room she wondered oddly whether Cowperwood was
growing to like her. Would such a strong, hard business man be
interested in her? She had heard her father say he was becoming very
rich. Was she a great actress, as some said she was, and would strong,
able types of men like Cowperwood take to her--eventually? She had
heard of Rachel, of Nell Gwynne, of the divine Sarah and her loves.
She took the precious gifts and locked them in a black-iron box which
was sacred to her trinkets and her secrets.

The mere acceptance of these things in silence was sufficient
indication to Cowperwood that she was