Beyond the Rocks

And as Josiah had done, he could only say: "Oh, God! Oh, God!"

On top of his large escritoire there stood a minute and very perfect

copy of the fragment of Psyche, which he had so intensely admired. He

turned to it now as his only consolation; the likeness to Theodora was

strong; the exact same form of face, and the way her hair grew; the pure

line of the cheek, and the angle which the head was set on to the column

of her throat--all might have been chiselled from her. How often had he

seen her looking down like that. Perhaps the only difference at all was

that Theodora's nose was fine, and not so heavy and Greek; otherwise he

had her there in front of him--his Theodora, his gift of the gods, his

Psyche, his soul. And wherever he should wander--if in wildest Africa or

furthest India, in Alaska or Tibet--this little fragment of white marble

should bear him company.

It calmed him to look at it--the beautiful Greek thing.

And he sat down and wrote to his loved one his good-bye.

He told her of his sorrow and his love, and how he was going away

from England, he did not yet know where, and should be absent many

months, and how forever his thoughts from distant lands would bridge the

space between them, and surround her with tenderness and worship.

And her letter, he said, should never leave him--her two letters; they

should be dearer to him than his life. He prayed her to take care of

herself, and if at any time she should want him to send for him from the

ends of the earth. Bracondale would always find him, sooner or later,

and he was hers to order as she willed.

And as he had ended his letter before, so he ended this one now:

"For ever and ever your devoted

"LOVER."

After this he sat a long time and gazed out upon the night. It was very

dark and cloudy, but in one space above his head two stars shone forth

for a moment in a clear peep of sky, and they seemed to send him a

message of hope. What hope? Was it, as she had said, the thought that

there would be a returning spring--even for them?