d not care at all with whom she danced, that the motion itself was
enough for her. But he reflected that it was probably that she did not
care at all whether she danced with _him_.

From the other end of the room came Frank's deep-mouthed shout, "The set
is forming! Promenade _to_ your places!"

Nelly moved swiftly in that direction and again Vincent found himself
opposite Frank, dancing this time with Marise Crittenden.

The music broke out into its shaking, quavering iteration of the pulse
of the dance.

"Salute your partners!"

This time Vincent knew what to do, and turning, bowed low to Nelly, who
made him a deep courtesy, her toe pointed, instep high, her eyes
shining, looking straight at him but evidently not seeing him. The music
seemed to float her off on a cloud.

"Chassay _to_ the corners, right!"

Vincent untangled the difference between "chassay" and "balance" and
acquitted himself. Now that his first panic of astonishment was over, he
observed that the figures of the dance were of great simplicity, all but
the central part, the climax.

When the preliminary part was over, the music changed and again the men
broke out into their accompanying chant. This time it ran,

"The gent around the lady
_and_
The lady around the gent.
_Then_
The lady around the lady
_and_
The gent around the gent."

Somewhere in the hypnotic to-and-fro of those swaying, poised, alert
human figures, he encountered Marise, coming on her suddenly, and
finding her standing stock-still.

"_Around_ me!" she commanded, imperatively, nodding and laughing. "Just
as the song says."

"The gent around the lady,"

sang the men.

Frank was circling about Nelly, his eyes on hers, treading lightly, his
tall body apparently weighing no more than thistle-down. It was as
though he were weaving a charm.

Vincent ended his circle.

The men sang, "_And_ the lady round the gent."

Marise and Nelly stepped off, overlaying the men's invisible circle with
one of their own.

The room beyond boiled with the dervish-like whirling of the dancers.
The fiddle rose louder and shriller, faster and faster. The men sang at
the tops of their voices, and beat time heavily. Under cover of this
rolling clamor, Vincent called out boldly to Marise, "A symbol of life!
A symbol of our life!" and did not know if she heard him.

"_Then_
The lady around the lady."

Nelly