Great Britain -- Politics and government -- 20th century -- Fiction; Man-woman relationships -- Fiction; Politicians -- Fiction
For had not Harry, when he got his note, dealt quite frankly with
Andy--well, with very considerable frankness as to the past, with
complete as to the future? He admitted that he had "more or less made a
fool of himself," but declared that it had been mere nonsense, and was
altogether over. Absolutely done with! He gave Andy his hand on that,
begged his pardon for having been sulky with him, and told him that
henceforward all his thoughts would be where his heart had been all
through--with Vivien. If Isobel had convinced Andy, Harry convinced him
ten times more. Andy had such a habit of believing people. He was not,
indeed, easily or stupidly deceived by a wilful liar; but he fell a
victim to people who believed in themselves, who thought they were
telling the truth. It was so hard for him to understand that people
would not go on feeling and meaning what they were sincerely feeling and
meaning at the moment. They could convince him, if only they were
convinced themselves.
"Let's think no more about it, and then we can all be happy," he said to
the Nun. It really made a great difference to his happiness how Harry
was behaving.
After all, it was rather hard--and rather hard-hearted--not to believe
in Harry, when Harry believed so thoroughly in himself. The strongest
proof of his regained self-confidence was the visit he paid to the
Nun--a visit long overdue in friendship and even in courtesy. Harry
asked for no forgiveness; he seemed to assume that she would understand
how, having been troubled in his mind of late, he had not been in the
mood for visits. He was quite his old self when he came, so much his old
self that he scarcely cared to disguise the fact that he had given some
cause for anxiety--any more than he expected to be met with doubt when
he implied that all cause for anxiety was past. He had quite got over
that attack, and his constitution was really the stronger for it.
Illnesses are nature's curative processes, so the doctors tell us. Harry
was always more virtuous after a moral seizure. The seizure being the
effective cause of his improvement, he could not be expected to regard
it with unmixed regret. If, incidentally, it witnessed to his conquering
charms, he could not help that. Of course he would not talk about the
thing; he did not so much mind other people implying, assuming, or
hinting at it.
If the Nun obliged him at all in this way, she chose the difficult
method of irony--in which not her greatest admirer could claim that she
was very subtle.
"My dear Harry, I quite understand your not calling. How could you think
of me when you were quite wrapped up in Vivien Wellgood? I was really
glad!"
Now that Harry had come, he found himself delighted with his visit.
"Country air's agreeing with you, Doris. You look splendid." His eyes
spoke undisguised admiration.
"Thank you, Harry. I know you thought me good-looking once." The Nun was
meek and grateful.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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