Whilst the visionary Vashti bore him company, the real Vashti had passed him unseen. So it was ever. The real Vashti eluded his vision; her place was filled by a mimic Vashti created of an ideal and his love, and tricked out in all the virtues.
At the house every one was busy. The preparations for dinner were approaching a crisis. Temperance, with a look of ineffable importance such as only a managing and forehanded woman can wear upon such an occasion, was cutting pies, piling plates with biscuits, arranging pickles in glass dishes, and between whiles taking flights to the oven, where a huge roast was browning.
Mabella was arranging the table with knives and forks; she reckoned up, six or eight times, the number of people to set for, substracted two for the ends, and divided to find how many for each side. Mabella had no head for figures, so she made a mistake in this process; but as the basis of her calculation was wrong the result was correct. An unexpected thing! But Mabella, cheerfully confident in her methods, had no thought of all this; she trotted about the table with the gladness of one who does not save steps.
Vashti was bringing chairs out from the other rooms to complement the number in the kitchen; and Sally, the preacher’s handmaiden, was arranging the tin basins with soap and water for the men to wash in, and varying the monotony by tantalizing the chained-up mastiff till he was nearly crazed to get at her, drawing back to his kennel door and launching himself forward with magnificent disregard of the chain which at each attempt jerked him off his feet.
Sidney leaned against the door-jamb watching the homely scene with just the faintest tinge of proud proprietorship in his eyes when they rested upon Vashti.
Presently she came and stood before him. Her figure was so suavely graceful that her most ordinary movements took on an artistic significance. Just now her attitude was that of a queen who fain would ape the serving maid, but who could not cast aside her sovereignty.
“Will you sit down with the men?” she asked.
“Your father does, doesn’t he?”
“Indeed, yes.”
“Then I will also.”