before had been granted, and that what I called the infinite had come.
What that woman, without knowing it, had given me by showing me her
naked kiss--was it not the crowning beauty the reflection of which
covers you with glory?

. . . . .

The dinner bell rang.

This summons to everyday reality and one's usual occupations changed
the course of my thoughts for the moment. I got ready to go down to
dinner. I put on a gay waistcoat and a dark coat, and I stuck a pearl
in my cravat. Then I stood still and listened, hoping to hear a
footstep or a voice.

While doing these conventional things, I continued to be obsessed by
the great event that had happened--this apparition.

I went downstairs and joined the rest of my fellow-boarders in the
brown and gold dining-room. There was a general stir and bustle and
the usual empty interest before a meal. A number of people seated
themselves with the good manners of polite society. Smiles, the sound
of chairs being drawn up to the table, words thrown out, conversations
started. Then the concert of plates and dishes began and grew steadily
louder.

My neighbours talked to those beside them. I heard their murmur, which
accentuated my aloneness. I lifted my eyes. In front of me a shining
row of foreheads, eyes, collars, shirtfronts, waists, and busy hands
above a table of glistening whiteness. All these things attracted my