A weak man would have put off the issue until the last moment, through dislike of disagreeable scenes. But I am not one of those who aggravate difficulties by postponing them. The day after Walter and Natalie sailed from the other side for the homeward journey, I sent for her father. “Matt,” said I, “as you probably remember, I made up my mind to do something for your daughter as soon as she decided to become my daughter, too. I finally got round to it this morning. I thought I’d tell you I had made the necessary changes in my will.”
He looked at me narrowly, with an expression between wonder and suspicion. “I don’t understand,” said he.
“I promised your daughter she should have the income of a quarter of a million,” I replied, “and this morning I put the necessary provision into my will.”
His mouth dropped open. He wiped his forehead with his handkerchief several times. Then all of a sudden he flushed a violent red and struck the table with his fist. “Why, damn it, Galloway,” he exclaimed, “you promised her you’d settle an income of a quarter of a million on her at once.”
I looked at him as if I thought him crazy. “Where did you get that notion?” said I. “I never heard of anything so preposterous. Did you think I’d gone stark mad?” I let him see that I was getting angry.
“She told me so—told me within an hour of your promising it,” he replied. “And, by heavens, you’ll stick to your promise!” He banged the table with his fist again.
As I had made clear my intention—which was my only purpose for that first interview—I rose. “I permit no man to talk to me in that fashion,” said I; “not even an old friend who has apparently gone out of his mind. I do not care to discuss the matter further.”
I went into my inner office and shut him out. I knew he was too practical a man ever really to have believed that I intended to give his daughter any such stupendous sum. I was certain he had pretended to her that he believed it, because he was as eager for her to marry Walter as I was. Assuming that he did believe it, he could not but see there was nothing but disaster for him in offending me. Therefore, I had not the slightest fear that he would persist in his anger; I knew he would calm down, would at most cook up some scheme for trying to frighten some sort of a settlement out of me, and would break the news to his daughter at the first opportunity, so that he might caution her against doing anything foolish on impulse.
I heard nothing from him and did not see him again until we all went down to the dock to meet Walter and Natalie. The exchange of greetings between the two families was far from cordial, her father and I barely nodding at each other. Natalie and her mother and Walter went up-town together. I saw that her mother could hardly wait to get her alone so that she could tell her and coach her.
I did not permit her to see me in circumstances in which she could have talked freely until nearly two weeks had passed. Then, her friendly manner was rather strained, but she said nothing about her settlement—and, of course, I’m not the one to poke a sleeping dog. I was delighted to find such a striking confirmation of my good opinion of her. Doubtless she doesn’t feel especially kindly toward me, but she has given no sign—and that is the important fact. A less intelligent woman would not have seen how useless it was to make a fight, or would have given way to her temper just for the pleasure of relieving her feelings.