English
Thetendaysglidedswiftlyaway:and,thedaybeforethegreatpartywastotakeplace,ArthurproposedthatweshouldstrolldowntotheHall,intimeforafternoon-tea.
“Hadn’tyoubettergoalone?”Isuggested.“SurelyIshallbeverymuchdetrop?”
“Well,it’llbeakindofexperiment,”hesaid.“Fiatexperimentumincorporevili!”
headded,withagracefulbowofmockpolitenesstowardstheunfortunatevictim.
“YouseeIshallhavetobearthesight,to-morrownight,ofmylady-lovemakingherselfagreeabletoeverybodyexcepttherightperson,andIshallbeartheagonyallthebetterifwehaveadress-rehearsalbeforehand!”
“Mypartintheplaybeing,apparently,thatofthesamplewrongperson?”
“Well,no,”Arthursaidmusingly,aswesetforth:“there’snosuchpartinaregularcompany.‘HeavyFather’?Thatwo’n’tdo:that’sfilledalready.‘SingingChambermaid’?
Well,the‘FirstLady’doublesthatpart.‘ComicOldMan’?You’renotcomicenough.
Afterall,I’mafraidthere’snopartforyoubutthe‘Well-dressedVillain’:only”,withacriticalside-glance,“I’maleetleuncertainaboutthedress!”
WefoundLadyMurielalone,theEarlhavinggoneouttomakeacall,andatonceresumedoldtermsofintimacy,intheshadyarbourwherethetea-thingsseemedtobealwayswaiting.
Theonlynoveltyinthearrangements(onewhichLadyMurielseemedtoregardasentirelyamatterofcourse),wasthattwoofthechairswereplacedquiteclosetogether,sidebyside.
Strangetosay,Iwasnotinvitedtooccupyeitherofthem!
“Wehavebeenarranging,aswecamealong,aboutletter-writing,”Arthurbegan.“Hewillwanttoknowhowwe’reenjoyingourSwisstour:andofcoursewemustpretendweare?”
“Ofcourse,”shemeeklyassented.
“Andtheskeleton-in-the-cupboard”Isuggested.
“—isalwaysadifficulty”,shequicklyputin,“whenyou’retravellingabout,andwhentherearenocupboardsinthehotels.
However,oursisaveryportableone;andwillbeneatlypacked,inaniceleathercase”
“Butpleasedon’tthinkaboutwriting”,Isaid,“whenyou’veanythingmoreattractiveonhand.Idelightinreadingletters,butIknowwellhowtiringitistowritethem.
“Itis,sometimes,”Arthurassented.“Forinstancewhenyou’reveryshyofthepersonyouhavetowriteto.”
“Doesthatshowitselfintheletter?”LadyMurielenquired.“Ofcourse,whenIhearanyonetalking—you,forinstance—Icanseehowdesperatelyshyheis!Butcanyouseethatinaletter?”
“Well,ofcourse,whenyouhearanyonetalkfluently—you,forinstance—youcanseehowdesperatelyun-shysheis—nottosaysaucy!
Buttheshyestandmostintermittenttalkermustseemfluentinletter-writing.
Hemayhavetakenhalf-an-hourtocomposehissecondsentencebutthereitis,closeafterthefirst!”
“Thenlettersdon’texpressallthattheymightexpress?”
“That’smerelybecauseoursystemofletter-writingisincomplete.
Ashywriteroughttobeabletoshowthatheisso.
Whyshouldn’themakepausesinwriting,justashewoulddoinspeaking?
Hemightleaveblankspaces—sayhalfapageatatime.
Andaveryshygirl—ifthereissuchathing—mightwriteasentenceonthefirstsheetofherletter—thenputinacoupleofblanksheets—thenasentenceonthefourthsheet:andsoon.”
“Iquiteforeseethatwe—Imeanthiscleverlittleboyandmyself—”LadyMurielsaidtome,evidentlywiththekindwishtobringmeintotheconversation,“—aregoingtobecomefamous—ofcourseallourinventionsarecommonpropertynow—foranewCodeofRulesforLetterwriting!Pleaseinventsomemore,littleboys”
“Well,anotherthinggreatlyneeded,littlegirl,issomewayofexpressingthatwedon’tmeananything.”
“Explainyourself,littleboy!Surelyyoucanfindnodifficultyinexpressingatotalabsenceofmeaning?”
Imeanthatyoushouldbeable,whenyoudon’tmeanathingtobetakenseriously,toexpressthatwish.
Forhumannatureissoconstitutedthatwhateveryouwriteseriouslyistakenasajoke,andwhateveryoumeanasajokeistakenseriously!
Atanyrate,itissoinwritingtoalady!”
“Ah,you’renotusedtowritingtoladies!”LadyMurielremarked,leaningbackinherchair,andgazingthoughtfullyintothesky.“Youshouldtry.”
“Verygood,”saidArthur.“HowmanyladiesmayIbeginwritingto?AsmanyasIcancountonthefingersofbothhands?”
“Asmanyasyoucancountonthethumbsofonehand!”hislady-loverepliedwithmuchseverity.“Whataverynaughtylittleboyheis!Isn’the?”(withanappealingglanceatme).
“He’salittlefractious,”Isaid.“Perhapshe’scuttingatooth.”WhiletomyselfIsaid“HowexactlylikeSylvietalkingtoBruno!”
“Hewantshistea.”(Thenaughtylittleboyvolunteeredtheinformation.)“He’sgettingverytired,atthemereprospectofthegreatpartyto-morrow!”
“Thenheshallhaveagoodrestbefore-hand!”shesoothinglyreplied.“Theteaisn’tmadeyet.
Come,littleboy,leanwellbackinyourchair,andthinkaboutnothing—oraboutme,whicheveryouprefer!”
“Allthesame,allthesame!”Arthursleepilymurmured,watchingherwithlovingeyes,asshemovedherchairawaytotheteatable,andbegantomakethetea.
“Thenhe’llwaitforhistea,likeagood,patientlittleboy!”
“ShallIbringyoutheLondonPapers?”saidLadyMuriel.
“IsawthemlyingonthetableasIcameout,butmyfathersaidtherewasnothinginthem,exceptthathorridmurder-trial.”
(Societywasjustthenenjoyingitsdailythrillofexcitementinstudyingthedetailsofaspeciallysensationalmurderinathieve’sdenintheEastofLondon.)
“Ihavenoappetiteforhorrors,”Arthurreplied.“Buthopewehavelearnedthelessontheyshouldteachus—thoughweareveryapttoreaditbackwards!”
“Youspeakinriddles,”saidLadyMuriel.“Pleaseexplainyourself.
Seenow,”suitingtheactiontotheword“Iamsittingatyourfeet,justasifyouwereasecondGamaliel!Thanks,no.”
(Thiswastome,whohadrisentobringherchairbacktoitsformerplace.)“Praydon’tdisturbyourself.
Thistreeandthegrassmakeaveryniceeasy-chair.
Whatisthelessonthatonealwaysreadswrong?”
Arthurwassilentforaminute.“IwouldliketobeclearwhatitisImean,”hesaid,slowlyandthoughtfully,“beforeIsayanythingtoyou—becauseyouthinkaboutit.”
AnythingapproachingtoacomplimentwassounusualanutteranceforArthur,thatitbroughtaflushofpleasuretohercheek,asshereplied“Itisyou,thatgivemetheideastothinkabout.”
“One’sfirstthought”,Arthurproceeded,“inreadinganythingspeciallyvileorbarbarous,asdonebyafellow-creature,isapttobethatweseeanewdepthofSinrevealedbeneathus:andweseemtogazedownintothatabyssfromsomehigherground,farapartfromit.”
“IthinkIunderstandyounow.Youmeanthatoneoughttothink—not‘God,IthankTheethatIamnotasothermenare’—but‘God,bemercifultomealso,whomightbe,butforThygrace,asinnerasvileashe!”
“No,”saidArthur.“Imeantagreatdealmorethanthat.”
Shelookedupquickly,butcheckedherself,andwaitedinsilence.
“Onemustbeginfurtherback,Ithink.Thinkofsomeotherman,thesameageasthispoorwretch.
Lookbacktothetimewhentheybothbeganlife—beforetheyhadsenseenoughtoknowRightfromWrong.
Then,atanyrate,theywereequalinGod’ssight—”
Shenoddedassent.
“Wehave,then,twodistinctepochsatwhichwemaycontemplatethetwomenwhoseliveswearecomparing.
Atthefirstepochtheyare,sofarasmoralresponsibilityisconcerned,onpreciselythesamefooting:theyarealikeincapableofdoingrightorwrong.
Atthesecondepochtheoneman—Iamtakinganextremecase,forcontrast—haswontheesteemandloveofallaroundhim:hischaracterisstainless,andhisnamewillbeheldinhonourhereafter:theotherman’shistoryisoneunvariedrecordofcrime,andhislifeisatlastforfeitedtotheoutragedlawsofhiscountry.
Nowwhathavebeenthecauses,ineachcase,ofeachman’sconditionbeingwhatitisatthesecondepoch?
Theyareoftwokinds—oneactingfromwithin,theotherfromwithout.
Thesetwokindsneedtobediscussedseparately—thatis,ifIhavenotalreadytiredyouwithmyprosing?”
“Onthecontrary,”saidLadyMuriel,“itisaspecialdelighttometohaveaquestiondiscussedinthisway—analysedandarrangedsothatonecanunderstandit.
Somebooks,thatprofesstoargueoutaquestion,aretomeintolerablywearisome,simplybecausetheideasareallarrangedhaphazard—asortof‘firstcome,firstserved’.”
“Youareveryencouraging,”Arthurreplied,withapleasedlook.
“Thecauses,actingfromwithin,whichmakeaman’scharacterwhatitisatanygivenmoment,arehissuccessiveactsofvolition—thatis,hisactsofchoosingwhetherhewilldothisorthat.”
“WearetoassumetheexistenceofFree-Will?”Isaid,inordertohavethatpointmadequiteclear.
“Ifnot,”wasthequietreply,“caditquaestio:andIhavenomoretosay.”
“Wewillassumeit!”therestoftheaudience—themajority,Imaysay,lookingatitfromArthur’spointofview—imperiouslyproclaimed.Theoratorproceeded.
“Thecauses,actingfromwithout,arehissurroundings—whatMr.HerbertSpencercallshis‘environment’.
NowthepointIwanttomakeclearisthis,thatamanisresponsibleforhisactofchoosing,butnotresponsibleforhisenvironment.
Hence,ifthesetwomenmake,onsomegivenoccasion,whentheyareexposedtoequaltemptation,equaleffortstoresistandtochoosetheright,theircondition,inthesightofGod,mustbethesame.
IfHeispleasedintheonecase,sowillHebeintheother,ifdispleasedintheonecase,soalsointheother.”
“Thatisso,nodoubt:Iseeitquiteclearly,”LadyMurielputin.
“Andyet,owingtotheirdifferentenvironments,theonemaywinagreatvictoryoverthetemptation,whiletheotherfallsintosomeblackabyssofcrime.”
“ButsurelyyouwouldnotsaythosemenwereequallyguiltyinthesightofGod?”
“Eitherthat”,saidArthur,“orelseImustgiveupmybeliefinGod’sperfectjustice.
Butletmeputonemorecase,whichwillshowmymeaningevenmoreforcibly.
Lettheonemanbeinahighsocialposition—theothersay,acommonthief.
Lettheonebetemptedtosometrivialactofunfairdealing—somethingwhichhecandowiththeabsolutecertaintythatitwillneverbediscovered—somethingwhichhecanwithperfecteaseforbearfromdoing—andwhichhedistinctlyknowstobeasin.
Lettheotherbetemptedtosometerriblecrime—asmenwouldconsiderit—but,underanalmostoverwhelmingpressureofmotives—ofcoursenotquiteoverwhelming,asthatwoulddestroyallresponsibility.
Now,inthiscase,letthesecondmanmakeagreatereffortatresistancethanthefirst.
Alsosupposebothtofallunderthetemptation—Isaythatthesecondmanis,inGod’ssight,lessguiltythantheother.”
LadyMurieldrewalongbreath.“Itupsetsallone’sideasofRightandWrong—justatfirst!
Why,inthatdreadfulmurder-trial,youwouldsay,Isuppose,thatitwaspossiblethattheleastguiltymanintheCourtwasthemurderer,andthatpossiblythejudgewhotriedhim,byyieldingtothetemptationofmakingoneunfairremark,hadcommittedacrimeoutweighingthecriminal’swholecareer!”
“CertainlyIshould,”Arthurfirmlyreplied.“Itsoundslikeaparadox,Iadmit.
Butjustthinkwhatagrievoussinitmustbe,inGod’ssight,toyieldtosomeveryslighttemptation,whichwecouldhaveresistedwithperfectease,andtodoitdeliberately,andinthefulllightofGod’sLaw.
Whatpenancecanatoneforasinlikethat?”
“Ica’n’trejectyourtheory,”Isaid.“ButhowitseemstowidenthepossibleareaofSinintheworld!”
“Isthatso?”LadyMurielanxiouslyenquired.
“Oh,notso,notso!”wastheeagerreply.
“Tomeitseemstoclearawaymuchofthecloudthathangsovertheworld’shistory.
Whenthisviewfirstmadeitselfcleartome,Irememberwalkingoutintothefields,repeatingtomyselfthatlineofTennyson’Thereseemednoroomforsenseofwrong!’
Thethought,thatperhapstherealguiltofthehumanracewasinfinitelylessthanIfanciedit—thatthemillions,whomIhadthoughtofassunkinhopelessdepthsofsin,wereperhaps,inGod’ssight,scarcelysinningatall—wasmoresweetthanwordscantell!
Lifeseemedmorebrightandbeautiful,whenoncethatthoughthadcome!
‘Alivelieremeraldtwinklesinthegrass,Apurersapphiremeltsintothesea!’”
Hisvoicetrembledasheconcluded,andthetearsstoodinhiseyes.
LadyMurielshadedherfacewithherhand,andwassilentforaminute.“Itisabeautifulthought,”shesaid,lookingupatlast.“Thankyou—Arthur,forputtingitintomyhead!”
TheEarlreturnedintimetojoinusattea,andtogiveustheveryunwelcometidingsthatafeverhadbrokenoutinthelittleharbour-townthatlaybelowus—afeverofsomalignantatypethat,thoughithadonlyappearedadayortwoago,therewerealreadymorethanadozendowninit,twoorthreeofwhomwerereportedtobeinimminentdanger.
InanswertotheeagerquestionsofArthur—whoofcoursetookadeepscientificinterestinthematter—hecouldgiveveryfewtechnicaldetails,thoughhehadmetthelocaldoctor.
Itappeared,however,thatitwasanalmostnewdisease—atleastinthiscentury,thoughitmightprovetobeidenticalwiththe“Plague”recordedinHistory—veryinfectious,andfrightfullyrapidinitsaction.
“Itwillnot,however,preventourpartytomorrow,”hesaidinconclusion.
‘’Noneoftheguestsbelongtotheinfecteddistrict,whichis,asyouknow,exclusivelypeopledbyfishermen:soyoumaycomewithoutanyfear.”
Arthurwasverysilent,allthewayback,and,onreachingourlodgings,immediatelyplungedintomedicalstudies,connectedwiththealarmingmaladyofwhosearrivalhehadjustheard.
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