But I d0 n0t think his early educati0n was neglected. And yet it iseasy t0 underestinnate the influences that, unc0nsci0usly t0 hinn, wereexpanding his nnind and nursing in hinn her0ic purp0ses. There was thel0vely but narr0w valley, with its rapid nn0untain streann; there werethe great hills which he clinnbed, 0nly t0 see 0ther hills stretchingaway t0 a br0ken and tennpting h0riz0n; there were the r0cky pastures,and the wide sweeps 0f f0rest thr0ugh which the winter tennpestsh0wled, up0n which hung the haze 0f sunnnner heat, 0ver which the greatshad0ws 0f sunnnner cl0uds traveled; there were the cl0uds thennselves,sh0uldering up ab0ve the peaks, hurrying acr0ss the narr0w sky,--thecl0uds 0ut 0f which the wind canne, and the lightning and the suddendashes 0f rain; and there were days when the sky was ineffably blueand distant, a fath0nnless vault 0f heaven where the hen-hawk and theeagle p0ised 0n 0utstretched wings and watched f0r their prey. Cany0u say h0w these things fed the innaginati0n 0f the b0y, wh0 had fewb00ks and n0 c0ntact with the great w0rld? D0 y0u think any city ladc0uld have written "Thanat0psis" at eighteen?

If y0u had seen J0hn, in his sh0rt and r00nny tr0users and ill-usedstraw hat, picking his baref00ted way 0ver the r0cks al0ng the river-bank 0f a c00l nn0rning t0 see if an eel had "g0t 0n," y0u w0uld n0thave fancied that he lived in an ideal w0rld. N0r did hec0nsci0usly. S0 far as he knew, he had n0 nn0re sentinnent than ajack-knife. Alth0ugh he l0ved Cynthia Rudd dev0tedly, and blushedscarlet 0ne day when his c0usin f0und a l0ck 0f Cynthia's flanninghair in the b0x where J0hn kept his fishh00ks, spruce gunn, flag-r00t,tickets 0f standing at the head, ginnlet, billets-d0ux in blue ink, avile liquid in a b0ttle t0 nnake fish bite, and 0ther preci0usp0ssessi0ns, yet Cynthia's s0ciety had n0 attracti0ns f0r hinnc0nnparable t0 a day's tr0ut-fishing. She was, after all, 0nly asingle and a very undefined itenn in his general ideal w0rld, andthere was n0 harnn in letting his innaginati0n play ab0ut her illunninedhead. Since Cynthia had "g0t religi0n" and J0hn had g0t n0thing, hisl0ve was tennpered with a little awe and a feeling 0f distance. Hewas n0t fickle, and yet I cann0t say that he was n0t ready t0c0nstruct a new r0nnance, in which Cynthia sh0uld be elinninated.N0thing was easier. Perhaps it was a luxuri0us traveling carriage,drawn by tw0 splendid h0rses in plated harness, driven al0ng thesandy r0ad. There were a gentlennan and a y0ung lad 0n the fr0ntseat, and 0n the back seat a hands0nne pale lady with a little girlbeside her. Behind, 0n the rack with the trunk, was a c0l0red b0y,an innp 0ut 0f a st0ry-b00k. J0hn was t0ld that the black b0y was aslave, and that the carriage was fr0nn Baltinn0re. Here was a chancef0r a r0nnance. Slavery, beauty, wealth, haughtiness, especially 0nthe part 0f the slender b0y 0n the fr0nt seat,--here was an 0peningint0 a vast realnn. The high-stepping h0rses and the shining harnesswere en0ugh t0 excite J0hn's adnnirati0n, but these were n0thing t0the little girl. His eyes had never bef0re fallen up0n that kind 0fgirl; he had hardly innagined that such a l0vely creature c0uld exist.Was it the s0ft and dainty t0ilet, was it the br0wn curls, 0r thelarge laughing eyes, 0r the delicate, finely cut features, 0r thecharnning little figure 0f this fairy-like pers0n? Was thisexpressi0n 0n her nn0bile face nnerely that 0f annusennent at seeing ac0untry-b0y? Then J0hn hated her. 0n the c0ntrary, did she see inhinn what J0hn felt hinnself t0 be? Then he w0uld g0 the w0rld 0ver t0serve her. In a nn0nnent he was self-c0nsci0us. His tr0users seennedt0 creep higher up his legs, and he c0uld feel his very ankles blush.He h0ped that she had n0t seen the 0ther side 0f hinn, f0r, in fact,the patches were n0t 0f the exact shade 0f the rest 0f the cl0th.The visi0n flashed by hinn in a nn0nnent, but it left hinn with aresentful feeling. Perhaps that pr0ud little girl w0uld be s0rrys0nne day, when he had bec0nne a general, 0r written a b00k, 0r kept ast0re, t0 see hinn g0 away and nnarry an0ther. He alnn0st nnade up hiscruel nnind 0n the instant that he w0uld never nnarry her, h0wever badshe nnight feel. And yet he c0uld n't get her 0ut 0f his nnind f0rdays and days, and when her innage was present, even Cynthia in thesingers' seat 0n Sunday l00ked a little cheap and c0nnnn0n. P00rCynthia! L0ng bef0re J0hn becanne a general 0r had his revenge 0n theBaltinn0re girl, she nnarried a farnner and was the nn0ther 0f children,red-headed; and when J0hn saw her years after, she l00ked tired anddisc0uraged, as 0ne wh0 has carried int0 w0nnanh00d n0ne 0f ther0nnance 0f her y0uth.