Part 40 (1/2)
”Do you know what the country is saying?” she asked quickly.
”What the country is saying?” he repeated after her.
”Yes, this country, all about us, everywhere! It's telling me something, and I just wondered if you could be getting the message, too.”
He pretended to be listening.
”I can hear a brown thrasher warbling to me how much we love you! Is that what you mean?”
”I wish you would be serious,” she said--being, in fact, very far from the wish. ”The day is so lovely, so abundant with a nameless something which comes to so few days, that it's asking if you won't try not to spoil it with silly misrelations. Can't you hear it, now?”
”There's no doubt about my hearing it now,” he gloomily admitted. ”I suppose we should have brought Dale, after all!”
”Don't spoil it in another way,” she laughed. ”You're such a--I was about to say kid, but that's slangy, and I detest it. You're slangy--awfully, Brent--aren't you!”
In spite of himself his face relaxed into a grin. There was no resisting Jane's appeals, and if she wanted now to be quiet, or talk about anything under the sun, at this admirable day's request, he was, for the time being, willing. He told her this, and it is one of the anomalies of human infelicity that she felt a tinge of disappointment at his ready acquiescence.
”I've always loved this lane,” she murmured, after not too long a pause.
”Isn't it the soul of peace?”
”Peace? How can you?” he looked down at her. ”See the struggle!
Honeysuckle, trumpet-vine, poison-ivy, wild-grape, alder--and everything else which I can't name--crowding and tangling and choking out each other's lives! You call it peace?”
They had reached a crest of a hill and, down in front of them half a mile on, stood the chapel, so snugly placed that only its little cross could be seen above the tree-tops, summoning the indolent country-side to prayer. With her eyes resting on it, she answered:
”The approach to your devotions seems to have made you pessimistic.”
”My devotions are here, at my side,” he said in a low voice. ”And my pessimism is caused by the true gla.s.s of my nature being held honestly before my eyes. It started cutting up this way today after you left us, and ever since I've not been able to spare myself. I don't know how to make you understand it--perhaps you don't want to understand it--but the two sides of this lane seem so peculiarly expressive of my life that I see no peace in them at all.”
”The lane might not be so attractive without a medley of rioting things,” she answered dreamily. ”Yet, it could be improved by cutting out the poison-ivy!”
”If that were cut out of the lane I mean, there would be little left.
It seems to have taken possession of--of my lane!”
”Are there not gardeners,” she smiled a wee bit tenderly up at him, ”who know how it could be done?”
”But I have no gardener.” The wistfulness in his voice checked her smile.
They were at the chapel now, and he drove beneath the grove of trees, helped her down, and then unchecked and tied the horse near a few others already there. She waited. Slowly they went up to the silent door, but on its threshold he touched her arm.
”May I find a gardener?” He was looking down with a strong appeal in his eyes.
”For your sake, do,” she hurriedly whispered, and went in.
They were early, and the chapel seemed to be dozing in a cool gloom which was softly set in motion as she glided, like a graceful shadow, up the aisle. He followed with more st.u.r.dy strides. So very quiet and vault-like was the place, that each wors.h.i.+pper there before them could be heard turning to see who came; and when he finally stretched back in the pew of her selection, the creaking of its heavy walnut joints let loose the echoes of a hundred years.
She had knelt, but he sat back watching her. The slowly westering sun, piercing the outside branches and filtering a gleam of rose through one of the gothic windows, touched her raised face that was in no need of color. And while she gazed upon the crucifix, he looked tenderly upon her who was typifying the most lovely purity he had to that time known.