" And she led me, unresisting, to a
short, sharp-featured woman of sixty or thereabouts, who rustled her
silks, and in a high, thin voice professed herself charmed to see me.
She might have claimed and held the record as the champion of the
conversational ring. I had never met her equal before, nor have I met
one to surpass her since.
Had I been long in the city? She had been here only a week. Came from
down Maine way. This was a dear, dreadful city with such nice people
and such dreadful winds, wasn't it? And then she gave me a catalogue of
the places she had visited, and the attractions of San Francisco, with
a wealth of detail and a poverty of interest that was little less than
marvelous.
Fortunately she required nothing but an occasional murmur of assent in
the way of answer from me.
I looked across the room to the corner where Luella was entertaining
the insignificant Inman. How vivacious and intelligent she appeared!
Her face and figure grew on me in attractiveness, and I felt that I was
being very badly used. As I came to this point I was roused by the
sound of two low voices that just behind me were plainly audible under
the shrill treble of Mrs. Bowser. They were women with their heads
close in gossip.
"Shocking, isn't it?" said one.
"Dreadful!" said the other. "It gives me the creeps to think of it."
"Why don't they lock him up? Such a creature shouldn't be allowed to go
at large."
"Oh, you see, maybe they can't be sure about it.
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