She is beautiful, and she is good, and she
is my choice.'
"'She's a jolly enough little girl,' I replied, 'and, I should say,
affectionate; but have you considered, Smythe, whether she is quite--what
shall we say--quite as intellectual as could be desired?'
"'Really, to tell the truth, I have not troubled myself much about her
intellect,' he replied, with one of his sneering smiles. 'I have no
doubt that the amount of intellect absolutely necessary to the formation
of a British home, I shall be able to supply myself. I have no desire
for an intellectual wife. One is compelled to meet tiresome people, but
one does not live with them if one can avoid it.'
"'No,' he continued, reverting to his more natural tone; 'the more I
think of Elizabeth the more clear it becomes to me that she is the one
woman in the world for whom marriage with me is possible. I perceive
that to the superficial observer my selection must appear extraordinary.
I do not pretend to explain it, or even to understand it. The study of
mankind is beyond man. Only fools attempt it. Maybe it is her contrast
to myself that attracts me. Maybe my, perhaps, too spiritual nature
feels the need of contact with her coarser clay to perfect itself. I
cannot tell. These things must always remain mysteries.
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