第7章
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  \"Yes,beupearly,myboy,\"interruptedBonaparte,smiling。\"Iamtobemasterofthisfarmnow;andweshallbegoodfriends,Itrust,verygoodfriends,ifyoutrytodoyourduty,mydearboy。\"

  Waldoturnedtogo,andBonaparte,lookingbenignlyatthecandle,stretchedoutoneunstockingedfoot,overwhichWaldo,lookingatnothinginparticular,fellwithaheavythuduponthefloor。

  \"Dearme!Ihopeyouarenothurt,myboy,\"saidBonaparte。\"You’llhavemanyaharderthingthanthatthough,beforeyou’vegonethroughlife,\"headdedconsolingly,asWaldopickedhimselfup。

  TheleanHottentotlaughedtilltheroomrangagain;andTantSannietitteredtillhersidesached。

  WhenhehadgonethelittlemaidbegantowashBonaparte’sfeet。

  \"Oh,Lord,belovedLord,howhedidfall!Ican’tthinkofit,\"criedTantSannie,andshelaughedagain。\"Ialwaysdidknowhewasnotright;butthiseveninganyonecouldseeit,\"sheadded,wipingthetearsofmirthfromherface。\"Hiseyesareaswildasifthedevilwasinthem。Heneverwaslikeotherchildren。ThedearLordknows,ifhedoesn’twalkaloneforhourstalkingtohimself。Ifyousitintheroomwithhimyoucanseehislipsmovingthewholetime;andifyoutalktohimtwentytimeshedoesn’thearyou。Daft—eyes;he’sasmadasmadcanbe。\"

  ThisrepetitionofthewordmadconveyedmeaningtoBonaparte’smind。Heleftoffpaddlinghistoesinthewater。

  \"Mad,mad?Iknowthatkindofmad,\"saidBonaparte,\"andIknowthethingtogiveforit。Thefrontendofalittlehorsewhip,thetip!Nicething;

  takesitout,\"saidBonaparte。

  TheHottentotlaughed,andtranslated。

  \"Nomorewalkingaboutandtalkingtothemselvesonthisfarmnow,\"saidBonaparte;\"nomoremindingofsheepandreadingofbooksatthesametime。

  Thepointofahorsewhipisalittlething,butIthinkhe’llhaveatasteofitbeforelong。\"Bonaparterubbedhishandsandlookedpleasantlyacrosshisnose;andthenthethreelaughedtogethergrimly。

  AndWaldoinhiscabincrouchedinthedarkinacorner,withhiskneesdrawnuptohischin。

  Chapter1。X。HeShowsHisTeeth。

  Dosssatamongthekaroobushes,oneyelloweardrawnoverhiswickedlittleeye,readytoflapawayanyadventurousflythatmightsettleonhisnose。Aroundhiminthemorningsunlightfedthesheep;behindhimlayhismasterpolishinghismachine。Hefoundmuchcomfortinhandlingitthatmorning。Adozenphilosophicalessays,orangelicallyatunedsongsfortheconsolationofthebereaved,couldneverhavebeentohimwhatthatlittlesheep—shearingmachinewasthatday。

  Afterstrugglingtoseetheunseeable,growingdrunkwiththeendeavourtospantheinfinite,andwrithingbeforetheinscrutablemystery,itisarenovatingrelieftoturntosomesimple,feelable,weighablesubstance;tosomethingwhichhasasmellandacolour,whichmaybehandledandturnedoverthiswayandthat。Whethertherebeorbenotahereafter,whethertherebeanyuseincallingaloudtotheUnseenpower,whethertherebeanUnseenpowertocallto,whateverbethetruenatureofthe\"I\"whocallandoftheobjectsaroundme,whateverbeourmeaning,ourinternalessence,ourcause(andinacertainorderofmindsdeathandtheagonyoflossinevitablyawakenthewilddesire,atothertimessmothered,tolookintothesethings),whateverbethenatureofthatwhichliesbeyondtheunbrokenwallwhichthelimitsofthehumanintellectbuilduponeveryhand,thisthingiscertain——aknifewillcutwood,andonecoggedwheelwillturnanother。Thisissure。

  Waldofoundanimmeasurablesatisfactioninthehandlingofhismachine;

  butDosswinkedandblinked,andthoughtitallfrightfullymonotonousoutthereontheflat,andpresentlydroppedasleep,sittingboltupright。

  Suddenlyhiseyesopenedwide;somethingwascomingfromthedirectionofthehomestead。Winkinghiseyesandlookingintently,heperceiveditwasthegreymare。NowDosshadwonderedmuchoflatewhathadbecomeofhermaster。Seeingshecarriedsomeoneonherback,henowcametohisownconclusion,andbegantomovehistailviolentlyupanddown。Presentlyheprickeduponeearandlettheotherhang;histailbecamemotionless,andtheexpressionofhismouthwasoneofdecideddisapprovalborderingonscorn。Hewrinkledhislipsuponeachsideintolittlelines。

  Thesandwassoft,andthegreymarecameonsonoiselesslythattheboyheardnothingtillBonapartedismounted。ThenDossgotupandmovedbackastep。HedidnotapproveofBonaparte’sappearance。Hiscostume,intruth,wasofauniquekind。Itwasacombinationofthetownandcountry。

  Thetailsofhisblackclothcoatwerepinnedupbehindtokeepthemfromrubbing;hehadonapairofmoleskintrousersandleathergaiters,andinhishandhecarriedalittlewhipofrhinoceroshide。

  Waldostartedandlookedup。Hadtherebeenamoment’stimehewouldhavedugaholeinthesandwithhishandsandburiedhistreasure。Itwasonlyatoyofwood,buthelovedit,asoneofnecessityloveswhathasbeenbornofhim,whetherofthefleshorspirit。Whencoldeyeshavelookedatit,thefeathersarerubbedoffourbutterfly’swingforever。

  \"Whathaveyouhere,mylad?\"saidBonaparte,standingbyhim,andpointingwiththeendofhiswhiptothemedleyofwheelsandhinges。

  Theboymutteredsomethinginaudible,andhalfspreadoverthething。

  \"Butthisseemstobeaveryingeniouslittlemachine,\"saidBonaparte,seatinghimselfontheantheap,andbendingdownoveritwithdeepinterest。\"Whatisitfor,mylad?\"

  \"Shearingsheep。\"

  \"Itisaverynicelittlemachine,\"saidBonaparte。\"Howdoesitwork,now?Ihaveneverseenanythingsoingenious!\"

  Therewasneveraparentwhohearddeceptioninthevoicethatpraisedhischild——hisfirst—born。Herewasonewholikedthethingthathadbeencreatedinhim。Heforgoteverything。Heshowedhowtheshearswouldworkwithalittleguidance,howthesheepwouldbeheld,andthewoolfallintothetrough。Aflushburstoverhisfaceashespoke。

  \"Itellyouwhat,mylad,\"saidBonaparteemphatically,whentheexplanationwasfinished,\"wemustgetyouapatent。Yourfortuneismade。

  Inthreeyears’timethere’llnotbeafarminthiscolonywhereitisn’tworking。You’reagenius,that’swhatyouare!\"saidBonaparte,rising。

  \"Ifitweremadelarger,\"saidtheboy,raisinghiseyes,\"itwouldworkmoresmoothly。Doyouthinktherewouldbeanyoneinthiscolonywouldbeabletomakeit?\"

  \"I’msuretheycould,\"saidBonaparte;\"andifnot,whyI’lldomybestforyou。I’llsendittoEngland。Itmustbedonesomehow。Howlonghaveyouworkedatit?\"

  \"Ninemonths,\"saidtheboy。

  \"Oh,itissuchanicelittlemachine,\"saidBonaparte,\"onecan’thelpfeelinganinterestinit。Thereisonlyonelittleimprovement,oneverylittleimprovement,Ishouldliketomake。\"

  Bonaparteputhisfootonthemachineandcrusheditintothesand。Theboylookedupintohisface。

  \"Looksbetternow,\"saidBonaparte,\"doesn’tit?Ifwecan’thaveitmadeinEnglandwe’llsendittoAmerica。Good—bye;ta—ta,\"headded。\"You’reagreatgenius,aborngenius,mydearboy,there’snodoubtaboutit。\"

  Hemountedthegreymareandrodeoff。Thedogwatchedhisretreatwithcynicalsatisfaction;buthismasterlayonthegroundwithhisheadonhisarmsinthesand,andthelittlewheelsandchipsofwoodlayonthegroundaroundhim。Thedogjumpedontohisbackandsnappedattheblackcurls,till,findingthatnonoticewastaken,hewalkedofftoplaywithablackbeetle。Thebeetlewashardatworktryingtorollhomeagreatballofdungithadbeencollectingallthemorning:butDossbroketheball,andatethebeetle’shindlegs,andthenbitoffitshead。Anditwasallplay,andnoonecouldtellwhatithadlivedandworkedfor。Astriving,andastriving,andanendinginnothing。

  Chapter1。XI。HeSnaps。

  \"Ihavefoundsomethingintheloft,\"saidEmtoWaldo,whowaslistlesslypilingcakesoffuelonthekraalwall,aweekafter。\"Itisaboxofbooksthatbelongedtomyfather。WethoughtTantSanniehadburntthem。\"

  Theboyputdownthecakehewasraisingandlookedather。

  \"Idon’tthinktheyareverynice,notstories,\"sheadded,\"butyoucangoandtakeanyyoulike。\"

  Sosaying,shetookuptheplateinwhichshehadbroughthisbreakfast,andwalkedofftothehouse。

  Afterthattheboyworkedquickly。ThepileoffuelBonapartehadorderedhimtopackwasonthewallinhalfanhour。Hethenwenttothrowsaltontheskinslaidouttodry。Findingthepotempty,hewenttothelofttorefillit。

  BonaparteBlenkins,whosedooropenedatthefootoftheladder,sawtheboygoup,andstoodinthedoorwaywaitingforhisreturn。Hewantedhisbootsblacked。Doss,findinghecouldnotfollowhismasteruptheroundbars,satpatientlyatthefootoftheladder。Presentlyhelookeduplongingly,butnooneappeared。ThenBonapartelookedupalso,andbegantocall;buttherewasnoanswer。Whatcouldtheboybedoing?TheloftwasanunknownlandtoBonaparte。Hehadoftenwonderedwhatwasupthere;

  helikedtoknowwhatwasinalllocked—upplacesandout—of—the—waycorners,buthewasafraidtoclimbtheladder。SoBonapartelookedup,andinthenameofallthatwastantalizing,questionedwhattheboydidupthere。Theloftwasusedonlyasalumber—room。Whatcouldthefellowfinduptheretokeephimsolong?

  CouldtheBoer—womanhavebeheldWaldoatthatinstant,anylingeringdoubtwhichmighthaveremainedinhermindastotheboy’sinsanitywouldinstantlyhavevanished。For,havingfilledthesalt—pot,heproceededtolookfortheboxofbooksamongtherubbishthatfilledtheloft。Underapileofsackshefoundit——aroughpacking—case,nailedup,butwithonelooseplank。Heliftedthat,andsawtheevenbacksofarowofbooks。Hekneltdownbeforethebox,andranhishandalongitsroughedges,asiftoassurehimselfofitsexistence。Hestuckhishandinamongthebooks,andpulledouttwo。Hefeltthem,thrusthisfingersinamongtheleaves,andcrumpledthemalittle,asaloverfeelsthehairofhismistress。Thefellowgloatedoverhistreasure。Hehadhadadozenbooksinthecourseofhislife;nowherewasamineofthemopenedathisfeet。Afterawhilehebegantoreadthetitles,andnowandagainopenedabookandreadasentence;buthewastooexcitedtocatchthemeaningsdistinctly。Atlasthecametoadull,brownvolume。Hereadthename,openeditinthecentre,andwhereheopenedbegantoread。Itwasachapteronpropertythathefellupon——Communism,Fourierism,St。Simonism,inaworkonPoliticalEconomy。Hereaddownonepageandturnedovertothenext;hereaddownthatwithoutchanginghisposturebyaninch;hereadthenext,andthenext,kneelingupallthewhilewiththebookinhishand,andhislipsparted。

  Allhereadhedidnotfullyunderstand;thethoughtswerenewtohim;butthiswasthefellow’sstartledjoyinthebook——thethoughtswerehis,theybelongedtohim。Hehadneverthoughtthembefore,buttheywerehis。

  Helaughedsilentlyandinternally,withthestillintensityoftriumphantjoy。

  So,then,allthinkingcreaturesdidnotsenduptheonecry——\"Asthou,dearLord,hascreatedthingsinthebeginning,soaretheynow,sooughttheytobe,sowilltheybe,worldwithoutend;anditdoesn’tconcernuswhattheyare。Amen。\"Therewerementowhomnotonlykopjesandstoneswerecallingoutimperatively,\"Whatarewe,andhowcamewehere?

  Understandus,andknowus;\"buttowhomeventheold,oldrelationsbetweenmanandman,andthecustomsoftheagescalled,andcouldnotbemadestillandforgotten。

  Theboy’sheavybodyquiveredwithexcitement。Sohewasnotalone,notalone。Hecouldnotquitehavetoldanyonewhyhewassoglad,andthiswarmthhadcometohim。Hischeekswereburning。NowonderthatBonapartecalledinvain,andDossputhispawsontheladder,andwhinedtillthree—

  quartersofanhourhadpassed。Atlasttheboyputthebookinhisbreastandbuttonedittightlytohim。Hetookupthesaltpot,andwenttothetopoftheladder。Bonaparte,withhishandsfoldedunderhiscoat—tails,lookedupwhenheappeared,andaccostedhim。

  \"You’vebeenratheralongtimeupthere,mylad,\"hesaid,astheboydescendedwithatremuloushaste,mostunlikehisordinaryslowmovements。

  \"Youdidn’thearmecalling,Isuppose?\"

  Bonapartewhiskedthetailsofhiscoatupanddownashelookedathim。

  He,BonaparteBlenkins,hadeyeswhichwereveryfar—seeing。Helookedatthepot。Itwasratherasmallpottohavetakenthree—quartersofanhourinthefilling。Helookedattheface。Itwasflushed。Andyet,TantSanniekeptnowine——hehadnotbeendrinking;hiseyeswerewideopenandbright——hehadnotbeensleeping;therewasnogirlupthere——hehadnotbeenmakinglove。Bonapartelookedathimsagaciously。Whatwouldaccountforthemarvellouschangeintheboycomingdowntheladderfromtheboygoinguptheladder?Onethingtherewas。DidnotTantSanniekeepintheloftbultongs,andnicesmokedsausages?Theremustbesomethingnicetoeatupthere!Aha!thatwasit!

  Bonapartewassointerestedincarryingoutthischainofinductivereasoningthathequiteforgottohavehisbootsblacked。

  Hewatchedtheboyshuffleoffwiththesalt—potunderhisarm;thenhestoodinhisdoorwayandraisedhiseyestothequietbluesky,andaudiblypropoundedthisriddletohimself:

  \"Whatistheconnectionbetweenthenakedbackofacertainboywithagreatcoatonandasalt—potunderhisarm,andthetipofahorsewhip?

  Answer:Noconnectionatpresent,buttherewillbesoon。\"

  Bonapartewassopleasedwiththissallyofhiswitthathechuckledalittleandwenttoliedownonhisbed。

  Therewasbread—bakingthatafternoon,andtherewasafirelightedinthebrickovenbehindthehouse,andTantSanniehadleftthegreatwooden—

  elbowedchairinwhichshepassedherlife,andwaddledouttolookatit。

  NotfaroffwasWaldo,who,havingthrownapailoffoodintothepigsty,nowleanedoverthesodwalllookingatthepigs。Halfofthestywasdry,butthelowerhalfwasapoolofmud,ontheedgeofwhichthemothersowlaywithclosedeyes,hertenlittleonessucking;thefatherpig,knee—

  deepinthemud,stoodrunninghissnoutintoarottenpumpkinandwrigglinghiscurledtail。

  Waldowondereddreamilyashestaredwhytheywerepleasanttolookat。

  Takensinglytheywerenotbeautiful;takentogethertheywere。Wasitnotbecausetherewasacertainharmonyaboutthem?Theoldsowwassuitedtothelittlepigs,andthelittlepigstotheirmother,theoldboartotherottenpumpkin,andalltothemud。Theysuggestedthethoughtofnothingthatshouldbeadded,ofnothingthatshouldbetakenaway。And,hewonderedonvaguely,wasnotthatthesecretofallbeauty,thatyouwholookon——Sohestooddreaming,andleanedfurtherandfurtheroverthesodwall,andlookedatthepigs。

  AllthistimeBonaparteBlenkinswasslopingdownfromthehouseinanaimlesssortofway;buthekeptoneeyefixedonthepigsty,andeachgyrationbroughthimnearertoit。WaldostoodlikeathingasleepwhenBonapartecamecloseuptohim。

  Inolddays,whenasmallboy,playinginanIrishstreet—gutter,he,Bonaparte,hadbeenfamiliarlyknownamonghiscomradesunderthetitleofTrippingBen;this,fromtherareeaseanddexteritywithwhich,bymerelyprojectinghisfoot,hecouldprecipitateanyunfortunatecompanionontothecrownofhishead。Yearshadelapsed,andTrippingBenhadbecomeBonaparte;buttheoldgiftwasinhimstill。Hecameclosetothepigsty。

  Allthedefunctmemoriesofhisboyhoodreturnedonhiminaflood,as,withanadroitmovement,heinsertedhislegbetweenWaldoandthewallandsenthimoverintothepigsty。

  Thelittlepigswerestartledatthestrangeintruder,andranbehindtheirmother,whosniffedathim。TantSanniesmoteherhandstogetherandlaughed;butBonapartewasfarfromjoiningher。Lostinreverie,hegazedatthedistanthorizon。

  ThesuddenreversalofheadandfeethadthrownoutthevolumethatWaldocarriedinhisbreast。Bonapartepickeditupandbegantoinspectit,astheboyclimbedslowlyoverthewall。Hewouldhavewalkedoffsullenly,buthewantedhisbook,andhewaiteduntilitshouldbegivenhim。

  \"Ha!\"saidBonaparte,raisinghiseyesfromtheleavesofthebookwhichhewasexamining,\"Ihopeyourcoathasnotbeeninjured;itisofanelegantcut。Anheirloom,Ipresume,fromyourpaternalgrandfather?Itlooksnicenow。\"

  \"Oh,Lord!oh!Lord!\"criedTantSannie,laughingandholdinghersides;

  howthechildlooks——asthoughhethoughtthemudwouldneverwashoff。

  Oh,Lord,Ishalldie!You,Bonaparte,arethefunniestmanIeversaw。\"

  BonaparteBlenkinswasnowcarefullyinspectingthevolumehehadpickedup。Amongthesubjectsonwhichthedarknessofhisunderstandinghadbeenenlightenedduringhisyouth,PoliticalEconomyhadnotbeenone。Hewasnot,therefore,veryclearastowhatthenatureofthebookmightbe;andasthenameofthewriter,J。S。Mill,might,foranythingheknewtothecontrary,havebelongedtoavenerablememberoftheBritishandForeignBibleSociety,itbynomeansthrewlightuponthequestion。HewasnotinanywaysurethatPoliticalEconomyhadnothingtodowiththecheapestwayofprocuringclothingforthearmyandnavy,whichwouldbecertainlybothapoliticalandeconomicalsubject。

  ButBonapartesooncametoaconclusionastothenatureofthebookanditscontents,bytheapplicationofasimplerulenowlargelyactedupon,butwhich,becominguniversal,wouldsavemuchthoughtandvaluabletime。

  Itisofmarvelloussimplicity,ofinfiniteutility,ofuniversalapplicability。Itmayeasilybecommittedtomemoryandrunsthus:

  Wheneveryoucomeintocontactwithanybook,person,oropinionofwhichyouabsolutelycomprehendnothing,declarethatbook,personoropiniontobeimmoral。Bespatterit,vituperateagainstit,stronglyinsistthatanymanorwomanharbouringitisafooloraknave,orboth。Carefullyabstainfromstudyingit。Doallthatinyouliestoannihilatethatbook,person,oropinion。

  Actingonthisrule,sowideinitscomprehensiveness,sobeautifullysimpleinitsworking,BonaparteapproachedTantSanniewiththebookinhishand。Waldocameastepnearer,eyeingitlikeadogwhoseyounghasfallenintoevilhands。

  \"Thisbook,\"saidBonaparte,\"isnotafitandproperstudyforayoungandimmaturemind。\"

  TantSanniedidnotunderstandaword,andsaid:

  \"What?\"

  \"Thisbook,\"saidBonaparte,bringingdownhisfingerwithenergyonthecover,\"thisbookissleg,sleg,Davel,Davel!\"

  TantSannieperceivedfromthegravityofhiscountenancethatitwasnolaughingmatter。Fromthewords\"sleg\"and\"Davel\"sheunderstoodthatthebookwasevil,andhadsomeconnectionwiththeprincewhopullsthewiresofeviloverthewholeearth。

  \"Wheredidyougetthisbook?\"sheasked,turninghertwinklinglittleeyesonWaldo。\"IwishthatmylegsmaybeasthinasanEnglishman’sifitisn’toneofyourfather’s。HehadmoresinsthanalltheKaffersinKafferland,forallthathepretendedtobesogoodallthoseyears,andtolivewithoutawifebecausehewasthinkingoftheonethatwasdead!Asthoughtendeadwivescouldmakeupforonefatonewitharmsandlegs!\"

  criedTantSannie,snorting。

  \"Itwasnotmyfather’sbook,\"saidtheboysavagely。\"Igotitfromyourloft。\"

  \"Myloft!mybook!Howdareyou?\"criedTantSannie。

  \"ItwasEm’sfather’s。Shegaveitme,\"hemutteredmoresullenly。

  \"Giveithere。Whatisthenameofit?Whatisitabout?\"sheasked,puttingherfingeruponthetitle。

  Bonaparteunderstood。

  \"PoliticalEconomy,\"hesaidslowly。

  \"DearLord!\"saidTantSannie,\"cannotonehearfromtheverysoundwhatanungodlybookitis!Onecanhardlysaythename。Haven’twegotcursesenoughonthisfarm?\"criedTantSannie,eloquently;\"mybestimportedMerinoramdyingofnobodyknowswhat,andtheshort—horncowcastinghertwocalves,andthesheepeatenupwiththescabandthedrought?Andisthisatimetobringungodlythingsabouttheplace,tocalldownthevengeanceofAlmightyGodtopunishusmore?Didn’ttheministertellmewhenIwasconfirmednottoreadanybookexceptmyBibleandhymn—book,thatthedevilwasinalltherest?AndIneverhavereadanyotherbook,\"

  saidTantSanniewithvirtuousenergy,\"andIneverwill!\"

  Waldosawthatthefateofhisbookwassealed,andturnedsullenlyonhisheel。

  \"SoyouwillnotstaytohearwhatIsay!\"criedTantSannie。\"There,takeyourPolity—gollity—gominy,yourdevil’sbook!\"shecried,flingingthebookathisheadwithmuchenergy。

  Itmerelytouchedhisforeheadononesideandfelltotheground。

  \"Goon,\"shecried;\"Iknowyouaregoingtotalktoyourself。Peoplewhotalktothemselvesalwaystalktothedevil。Goandtellhimallaboutit。

  Go,go!run!\"criedTantSannie。

  Buttheboyneitherquickenednorslackenedhispace,andpassedsullenlyroundthebackofthewagon—house。

  Bookshavebeenthrownatotherheadsbeforeandsincethatsummerafternoon,byhandsmorewhiteanddelicatethanthoseoftheBoer—woman;

  butwhethertheresultoftheprocesshasbeeninanycasewhollysatisfactory,maybequestioned。Welovethatwithapeculiartenderness,wetreasureitwithapeculiarcare,ithasforusquiteafictitiousvalue,forwhichwehavesuffered。Ifwemaynotcarryitanywhereelsewewillcarryitinourhearts,andalwaystotheend。

  BonaparteBlenkinswenttopickupthevolume,nowloosenedfromitscover,whileTantSanniepushedthestumpsofwoodfurtherintotheoven。

  Bonapartecameclosetoher,tappedthebookknowingly,nodded,andlookedatthefire。TantSanniecomprehended,and,takingthevolumefromhishand,threwitintothebackoftheoven。Itlayupontheheapofcoals,smoked,flared,andblazed,andthe\"PoliticalEconomy\"wasnomore——goneoutofexistence,likemanyanotherpoorhereticoffleshandblood。

  Bonapartegrinned,andtowatchtheprocessbroughthisfacesoneartheovendoorthatthewhitehaironhiseyebrowsgotsinged。Hetheninquirediftherewereanymoreintheloft。

  Learningthattherewere,hemadesignsindicativeoftakinguparmfulsandflingingthemintothefire。ButTantSanniewasdubious。ThedeceasedEnglishmanhadleftallhispersonaleffectsspeciallytohischild。ItwasallverywellforBonapartetotalkofburningthebooks。Hehadhadhishairspirituallypulled,andshehadnowishtorepeathisexperience。

  Sheshookherhead。Bonapartewasdispleased。Butthenahappythoughtoccurredtohim。Hesuggestedthatthekeyoftheloftshouldhenceforthbeputintohisownsafecareandkeeping——noonegainingpossessionofitwithouthispermission。TothisTantSanniereadilyassented,andthetwowalkedlovinglytothehousetolookforit。

  Chapter1。XII。HeBites。

  BonaparteBlenkinswasridinghomeonthegreymare。Hehadriddenoutthatafternoon,partlyforthebenefitofhishealth,partlytomaintainhischaracterasoverseerofthefarm。Asherodeonslowly,hethoughtfullytouchedtheearsofthegreymarewithhiswhip。

  \"No,Bon,myboy,\"headdressedhimself,\"don’tpropose!Youcan’tmarryforfouryears,onaccountofthewill;thenwhypropose?Wheedleher,tweedleher,teedleher,butdon’tlethermakesureofyou。Whenawoman,\"saidBonaparte,sagelyrestinghisfingeragainstthesideofhisnose,\"Whenawomanissureofyoushedoeswhatshelikeswithyou;butwhensheisn’t,youdowhatyoulikewithher。AndI——\"saidBonaparte。

  Herehedrewthehorseupsuddenlyandlooked。Hewasnowclosetothehouse,andleaningoverthepigstywall,incompanywithEm,whowasshowingherthepigs,wasastrangefemalefigure。Itwasthefirstvisitorthathadappearedonthefarmsincehisarrival,andhelookedatherwithinterest。Shewasatall,pudgygirloffifteen,weighingahundredandfiftypounds,withbaggypendulouscheeksandup—turnednose。

  ShestrikinglyresembledTantSannie,informandfeature,buthersleepygoodeyeslackedthattwinklethatdweltintheBoer—woman’ssmallorbs。

  Shewasattiredinabrightgreenprint,worebrassringsinherearsandglassbeadsroundherneck,andwassuckingthetipofherlargefingerasshelookedatthepigs。

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