not able to support a wife had hindered him from devoting himself to
her. He knew that she, or rather her father, had considerable
property; but Gorham was not willing to take this into consideration;
he would never offer himself until his own income was sufficient for
both their needs. But, on the other hand, his ideas of a sufficient
income were not extravagant. He looked forward to building a
comfortable little house in the suburbs in the midst of an acre or two
of garden and lawn, so that his neighbors' windows need not overlook
his domesticity. He would have a horse and buggy wherewith to drive
his wife through the country on summer afternoons, and later, if his
bank-account warranted it, a saddle-horse for Emily and one for
himself. He would keep open house in the sense of encouraging his
friends to visit him; and, that they might like to come, he would have
a thoroughly good plain cook--thereby eschewing French kickashaws--and
his library should contain the best new books, and etchings and
sketches luring to the eye, done by men who were rising, rather than
men who had risen. There should be no formality; his guests should do
what they pleased, and wear what they pleased, and, above all, they
should become intimate with his wife, instead of merely tolerating her
after the manner of the bachelor friends of so many other men.

Thus he had been in the habit of depicting to himself the future, and
at last, by dint of undeviating attention to his business, he had got
to the point where he could afford to realize his project if his
lady-love were willing. His practice was increasing steadily, and he
had laid by a few thousand dollars to meet any unexpected emergency.
His life was insured for fifty thousand dollars, and the policies were
now ten years old. He had every reason to expect that in course of
time as the older lawyers died off he would either succeed to the
lucrative conduct of large suits or be made a judge of one of the