This was, fortunately for her and we give it in her 1
own words the sense of a harrowing pathos.
That, primarily, was what appealed to her, what
seemed to open the door of romance for her still
wider than any, than a still more reckless, connec
tion with the " picture-papers." For such was
essentially the point: it was rich, romantic, abysmal,
to have, as was evident, thousands and thousands a
year, to have youth and intelligence and if not
beauty, at least, in equal measure, a high, dim,
charming, ambiguous oddity, which was even bet
ter, and then on top of all to enjoy boundless free
dom, the freedom of the wind in the desert it was
unspeakably touching to be so equipped and yet to
have been reduced by fortune to little humble-
minded mistakes.

It brought our friend's imagination back again
to New York, where aberrations were so possible
in the intellectual sphere, and it in fact caused a
visit she presently paid there to overflow with inter
est. As Milly had beautifully invited her, so she
would hold out if she could against the strain of
so much confidence in her mind; and the remark
able thing was that even at the end of three weeks
she had held out. But by this time her mind had
grown comparatively bold and free; it was dealing
with new quantities, a different proportion alto
gether and that had made for refreshment: she
had accordingly gone home in convenient posses
sion of her subject. New York was vast, New York

[[123]]

p122 _ -chap- _ toc-1 _ p123w _ toc-2 _ +chap+ _ p124

v?