ed in a basket. This she carried down
the stairs, and, without saying good-bye to a soul, left the house.

Her brother Markus was standing with sprawled legs in the sun before the
store, whistling. He caught sight of her with his one eye, smiled
contemptuously at her, and cried: "Happy journey!"

Philippina turned to him, and said: "You branded lout! You're going to
have a lousy time of it, mark what I tell you!"

In this frame of mind and body she came to Daniel, and said to him: "I
want to work for you. You don't need to pay nothing if you ain't got
it."

Daniel had been noticing for some time that Eleanore could not stand the
exertion required of her by the extra work.

"Will you mind the baby and sleep with it?" Daniel asked. Philippina
nodded and looked down.

"If you will take care of the child and act right toward it and me, I
shall be awfully grateful to you," he said, breathing more easily.

Thereupon Philippina threw her hands to her face, and shuddered from
head to foot. She was not exactly crying; there was something much
worse, much more despairing, in what she was doing than in mere crying.
She seemed to be convulsed by some demoniac power; a ghastly dream
seemed to have seized her in a moment of higher consciousness. She
turned around and trotted into the room where the child was playing with
a wooden horse.

She sat down on a foot-stool, and stared at the restless little
creature.

Daniel stopped, stood perfectly still, and looked at her in a mood of
solicitous reflection.

IV

During a rehearsal of "Traviata," Daniel flew into a rage at Fraeulein
Varini: "Listen, pay attention to your intonation, and keep in time.
It's enough to make a man lose his mind! What are you squeaking up at
the gallery for? You're supposed to be singing a song, and not whining
for a little bit of cheap applause."

The lady stepped out to the foot-lights with heaving bosom. Her offended
dignity created something like the spread tail of a peacock about her
hips: "How dare you?" she exclaimed: "I give you your choice: You can
apologise or leave this place. Whatever you do, you are going to become
acquainted with the power I have."

Daniel folded his arms, let his eyes roam over the members of the
orchestra, and said: "Good-bye, gentlemen. Since it is the director's
place to choose between me and this lady, there is no doubt whatever but
that my term of usefulness in this positio