yard dog.

"The dog was called Bosun," she cried delightedly.

But he did not follow. "Which dog? Had you a dog? I don't remember a dog at all."

"No, no. I meant the yard dog when you were a little boy." He laughed and snapped the cigarette case to.

"Was he? Do you know I had forgotten that. It seems such ages ago. I cannot believe that it is only six years. After I had recognized you today–I had to take such a leap–I had to take a leap over my whole life to get back to that time. I was such a kid then." He drummed on the table. "I've often thought how I must have bored you. And now I understand so perfectly why you wrote to me as you did–although at the time that letter nearly finished my life. I found it again the other day, and I couldn't help laughing as I read it. It was so clever–such a true picture of me." He glanced up. "You're not going?"

She had buttoned her collar again and drawn down her veil.

"Yes, I am afraid I must," she said, and [Page 237] managed a smile. Now she knew that he had been mocking.

"Ah, no, please," he pleaded. "Don't go just for a moment," and he caught up one of her gloves from the table and clutched at it as if that would hold her. "I see so few people to talk to nowadays, that I have turned into a sort of barbarian," he said. "Have I said something to hurt you?"

"Not a bit," she lied. But as she watched him draw her glove through his fingers, gently, gently, her anger really did die down, and besides, at the moment he looked more like himself of six years ago. . . .

"What I really wanted then," he said softly, "was to be a sort of carpet–to make myself into a sort of carpet for you to walk on so that you need not be hurt by the sharp stones and mud that you hated so. It was nothing more

7

“那只狗叫波森。”她高兴地喊道。

但是他的思路没跟上，“哪只狗？你养过狗吗？”

“不，不。我是指在你孩提时的庭院里的狗。”他笑了，敲打着香烟盒。

“还有只狗吗？我已经忘记了，那是多年前的事了。我真不敢相信那时我仅仅六岁。今天我认出你后——我又迫使自己飞回那个时代。”他鼓点般地轻击着桌面。“我一直在思考我为什么令你讨厌。现在我彻底明白了你为什么给我写那封信——虽然当时那封信几乎断送了我的性命。前几天我又找出了那封信，读着时，我情不自禁地笑了起来。那封信是如此地明智——是我真实的写照。他目光向上望去。”你不是想走吧？

她扣上了她的高领，并且放下了面纱

“是的，我必须得走了。“她说道，勉强笑了一下。

“嘿，请不要走，“他乞求道：再呆一会。他从桌子上抓起她的一只手套，紧紧地攥着，好像这样就会挽留住她。“我感到当今很少有人能和我说到一起，我都快变成原始人了。”他说道，“我说了伤害你的话了吗？”

“一点都没有。”她谎称道。然而，当她看到他手指间紧紧地夹着她的手套，渐渐地，渐渐地，她的气全消了。

“我真正想做的是，”他温柔地说，“想变成一张地毯——任你在上面行走而不会让尖利的石子伤到你，不让讨厌的泥土溅到你。没有比这再私心的了吧。我所期望的是，最终，变成一块魔毯，载着你到你所渴望去的国土。