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aspirated to an "O-o-o-o," and entered one of the doors at the head of the stairs. When she was in, Abner turned out the hall light and went up to his own room.
He entered his room, switched on the light, stood for a moment, then sat down on the side of his bed with the hot-and-cold feeling of a person with an ague. The hot-air vent from the furnace had been turned on and presently he was too warm. The dried air pinched his throat and nostrils. Even at the risk of growing ill from the unhealthful night air, Abner opened a window, put his feverish face in the cold draught, and breathed deeply. He had no desire for sleep, but sat on the side of his bed staring into the darkness. Presently he turned off his light, and this changed the outer world to a dull gray and his own room to an unrelieved black except for the counterpane on which he sat; this glimmered faintly in the starlight falling through the window.
In his attempt to console Mrs. Sandage, Abner had to some extent consoled himself. At least, he thought over his downfall more dispassionately. Indeed, his whole surprising elevation and sudden fall repeated itself over and over in his mind. Once he tried to stop it by shutting his eyes and shaking his head, but the drama continued on and on.
In the midst of this annoying reiteration the gasoline engine which controlled the water and light in the house burst into a quick throbbing. It shocked Abner. It seemed as if the little electric heart of the house had received a sharp fright. It beat at an amazing rate. Abner listened to it intently and presently decided that something was wrong with the engine. He was making up his mind to go down and find out the trouble when the engine stopped as abruptly as it began. It left the silence in the stricken house blanker than ever. It reminded Abner of his own sharp rise to fortune and his abrupt loss; a shoot up, a drop down. . . .
Abner never knew how long he sat by the window, but after some indeterminate time he was aroused to complete wake-