The little lady was full of
decorous glee, and her mirth, like a working cauldron, threw all
her high-minded tastes to the surface. She asked Howard's opinion
about quite a number of literary masterpieces, and she ingenuously
gave utterance to her meek and joyful views of life, the privileges
she enjoyed, and the inspiration which she derived from the ethical
views of Robert Browning. Howard found himself wondering why it was
all so dreadfully uninteresting and devoid of charm; he asked
himself whether, if the little spinster had been personally more
attractive, her optimistic chirpings would have seemed to have more
significance. Miss Merry had a perfectly definite view of life, and
she made life into a distinct success; she was a happy woman,
sustained by an abundance of meek enthusiasm. She accepted
everything that happened to her, whether good or evil, with the
same eager interest. Suffering, according to Miss Merry, had an
educative quality, and life was haunted for her by echoes of
excellent literature, accurately remembered. But Howard had a
feeling that one must not swallow life quite so uncritically, that
there ought somehow to be more discrimination; and Miss Merry's
eager adoration of everything and everybody reduced him to a
flatness which he found it difficult to conceal. He could not think
what was the matter with her views. She revelled in what she called
problems, and the more incomplete that anything appeared, the more
certain was Miss Merry of ultimate perfection.
Pages:
154
155
156
157
158
159
160
161
162
163
164
165
166
167
168
169
170
171
172
173
174
175
176
177
178