“She would do that,” Bertha said.
“And so she came to me and forced me to sign a release!”
“Forced!”
“Yes.”
“How did she do that?”
The black eyes stared defiantly at Bertha. “I told you that once a person started defying conventions, there was no telling just where he’d stop you—”
“Don’t bother with all that stuff. Just tell me why you signed.”
“And,” the woman went on, heedless of Bertha’s interruption, “one person can’t fight the world. It makes no difference whether public opinion is right or wrong. No character is big enough or strong enough to stand out against public opinion without getting bruised, without— Have you ever struggled with a great big fat man, Mrs. Cool?”
Bertha Cool frowned as she probed her recollection. “No-o-o,” she said at length, “Well, if I have, I can’t remember it right now.”
“I have,” her visitor said. “And fighting against public opinion is like fighting with a big fat man who simply puts his weight on you and smothers you. He doesn’t need to do anything, you simply can’t fight against that oppressing weight.”