I have some pictures of her as she was then, dressed in a gown of some
quaint blue and white Japanese material, with her white throat bare--I
was just going to catalogue her charms, but it seems indelicate to
describe a woman, point by point, like a horse that is for sale. I have
some other pictures of her, too, as she appeared to me one hot summer
when I was painting a picture by the river, and she used to come down
the towing-path to watch me work, and sit beside me on the grass for
hours together, talking, reading aloud, reciting, or silent, according
to her mood, but always interesting. It was then I learnt to know her
best. And I am always glad to think of her as I used to see her then,
coming towards me in one particular grey frock she wore, tight-fitting
and perfect, yet with no detail evident. It was like an expression of
herself, that dress, so quiet to all seeming, and yet so rich in
material, and so complex in design. The wonder and the beauty of it
grew upon you, and never failed of its effect.




CHAPTER IV.


When I first knew Ideala her religious opinions were all unsettled. "I
neither believe nor disbelieve," she told me; "I am in a state of don't
know; or perhaps it would be more exact to say that I both doubt and
believe at one and the same time. I go indifferently to either church,
Protestant or Catholic, and am thankful when any note of music, or
thrill of feeling in the voice, or noble sentiment, elevates me so that
I can pray. But I am told that both Catholics and Protestants consider