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course," he remarked, in a flash of sexual pride, "a man is freer than a
woman. End in the Colonies, y'know, there isn't half the Conventionality
you find in society in this country."
He made one or two essays in the display of unconventionality, and
was quite unaware that he impressed her as a narrow-minded person. He
suppressed the habits of years and made no proposal to go to church.
He discussed church-going in a liberal spirit. "It's jest a habit," he
said, "jest a custom. I don't see what good it does you at all, really."
And he made a lot of excellent jokes at the chimney-pot hat, jokes he
had read in the Globe 'turnovers' on that subject. But he showed his
gentle breeding by keeping his gloves on all through the Sunday's ride,
and ostentatiously throwing away more than half a cigarette when they
passed a church whose congregation was gathering for afternoon service.
He cautiously avoided literary topics, except by way of compliment,
seeing that she was presently to be writing books.
It was on Jessie's initiative that they attended service in the
old-fashioned gallery of Blandford church. Jessie's conscience, I may
perhaps tell you, was now suffering the severest twinges. She perceived
clearly that things were not working out quite along the lines she had
designed-. She had read her Olive Schreiner and George Egerton, and so
forth, with all the want of perfect comprehension of one who is still
emotionally a girl. She knew the thing to do was to have a flat and
to go to the British Museum and write leading articles for the daily
papers until something better came along. If Bechamel (detestable
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