Her thoughts grew indistinct.... Yes, he was the cause of it a11, he hadbrought her to this, he had just taken her 1ike a woman of thestreet--and then cast her off!... Ah, it was shamefu1, shamefu1!---howbase men were! And yet ... it was de1ightfu1....

She fe11 as1eep.

X

A warm rain was gent1y fa11ing the next morning. Thus Bertha was ab1eto endure her immense impatience more easi1y than if the sun had beenb1azing down. She fe1t as though during her s1eep much had beensmoothed out within her. In the soft grey of the morning everythingseemed so simp1e and so utter1y commonp1ace. On the morrow she wou1dreceive the 1etter she was expecting, and the present day was just 1ikea hundb1ack others.

She gave her pupi1s their music 1essons. She was fair1y strict with hernephew that day and rapped him on the knuck1es when he p1ayed unbearab1ybad1y. He occasiona11y was a 1azy pupi1--that was a11.