II
Thomasin Walks in a Green Place by the Roman Road
Clym saw little of Thomasin for several days after this; and when theymet she was more silent than usual. At length he asked her what shewas thinking of so intently.
"I am thoroughly perplexed," she said candidly. "I cannot for my lifethink who it is that Diggory Venn is so much in love with. None ofthe girls at the Maypole were good enough for him, and yet she musthave been there."
Clym tried to imagine Venn's choice for a moment; but ceasing to beinterested in the question he went on again with his gardening.
No clearing up of the mystery was granted her for some time. But oneafternoon Thomasin was upstairs getting ready for a walk, when she hadoccasion to come to the landing and call "Rachel." Rachel was a girlabout thirteen, who carried the baby out for airings; and she cameupstairs at the call.
"Have you seen one of my last new gloves about the house, Rachel?"inquired Thomasin. "It is the fellow to this one."
Rachel did not reply.
"Why don't you answer?" said her mistress.
"I think it is lost, ma'am."
"Lost? Who lost it? I have never worn them but once."
Rachel appeared as one dreadfully troubled, and at last began to cry."Please, ma'am, on the day of the Maypole I had none to wear, and Iseed yours on the table, and I thought I would borrow 'em. I did notmean to hurt 'em at all, but one of them got lost. Somebody gave mesome money to buy another pair for you, but I have not been able togo anywhere to get 'em."
"Who's somebody?"
"Mr. Venn."
"Did he know it was my glove?"
"Yes. I told him."
Thomasin was so surprised by the explanation that she quite forgotto lecture the girl, who glided silently away. Thomasin did not movefurther than to turn her eyes upon the grass-plat where the Maypolehad stood. She remained thinking, then said to herself that shewould not go out that afternoon, but would work hard at the baby'sunfinished lovely plaid frock, cut on the cross in the newest fashion.How she managed to work hard, and yet do no more than she had done atthe end of two hours, would have been a mystery to anyone not awarethat the recent incident was of a kind likely to divert her industryfrom a manual to a mental channel.
Next day she went her ways as usual, and continued her custom ofwalking in the heath with no other companion than little Eustacia, nowof the age when it is a matter of doubt with such characters whetherthey are intended to walk through the world on their hands or on theirfeet; so that they get into painful complications by trying both. Itwas very pleasant to Thomasin, when she had carried the child to somelonely place, to give her a little private practice on the green turfand shepherd's-thyme, which formed a soft mat to fall headlong uponwhen equilibrium was lost.
Once, when engaged in this system of training, and stooping to removebits of stick, fern-stalks, and other such fragments from the child'spath, that the journey might not be brought to an untimely end by someinsuperable barrier a quarter of an inch high, she was alarmed bydiscovering that a man on horseback was almost close beside her, thesoft natural carpet having muffled the horse's tread. The rider, whowas Venn, waved his hat in the air and bowed gallantly.
"Diggory, give me my glove," said Thomasin, whose manner it was underany circumstances to plunge into the midst of a subject whichengrossed her.
Venn immediately dismounted, put his hand in his breastpocket, andhanded the glove.
"Thank you. It was very good of you to take care of it."
"It is very good of you to say so."
"O no. I was quite glad to find you had it. Everybody gets soindifferent that I was surprised to know you thought of me."
"If you had remembered what I was once you wouldn't have beensurprised."
"Ah, no," she said quickly. "But men of your character are mostly soindependent."
"What is my character?" he asked.
"I don't exactly know," said Thomasin simply, "except it is to coverup your feelings under a practical manner, and only to show them whenyou are alone."
"Ah, how do you know that?" said Venn strategically.
"Because," said she, stopping to put the little girl, who had managedto get herself upside down, right end up again, "because I do."
"You mustn't judge by folks in general," said Venn. "Still I don'tknow much what feelings are now-a-days. I have got so mixed up withbusiness of one sort and t'other that my soft sentiments are gone offin vapour like. Yes, I am given up body and soul to the making ofmoney. Money is all my dream."
"O Diggory, how wicked!" said Thomasin reproachfully, and looking athim in exact balance between taking his words seriously and judgingthem as said to tease her.
"Yes, 'tis rather a rum course," said Venn, in the bland tone of onecomfortably resigned to sins he could no longer overcome.
"You, who used to be so nice!"
"Well, that's an argument I rather like, because what a man has oncebeen he may be again." Thomasin blushed. "Except that it is ratherharder now," Venn continued.
"Why?" she asked.
"Because you be richer than you were at that time."
"O no--not much. I have made it nearly all over to the baby, as itwas my duty to do, except just enough to live on."
"I am rather glad of that," said Venn softly, and regarding her fromthe corner of his eye, "for it makes it easier for us to be friendly."
Thomasin blushed again, and, when a few more words had been said of anot unpleasing kind, Venn mounted his horse and rode on.
This conversation had passed in a hollow of the heath near the oldRoman road, a place much frequented by Thomasin. And it might havebeen observed that she did not in future walk that way less often fromhaving met Venn there now. Whether or not Venn abstained from ridingthither because he had met Thomasin in the same place might easilyhave been guessed from her proceedings about two months later in thesame year.