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Chapters (39)
  1. Cover
  2. The Private Life of Helen of Troy
  3. Contents
  4. NOTE
  5. PART I
  6. I
  7. II
  8. III
  9. IV
  10. V
  11. VI
  12. VII
  13. PART II
  14. I
  15. II
  16. III
  17. IV
  18. V
  19. VI
  20. PART III
  21. I
  22. II
  23. III
  24. IV
  25. V
  26. PART IV
  27. I
  28. II
  29. III
  30. IV
  31. V
  32. PART V
  33. I
  34. II
  35. III
  36. IV
  37. V
  38. VI
  39. VII

“I don’t blame you for misjudging me, Adraste, but you do misjudge me. I have told you again and again that I would let no one, not even my parents, control my destiny. If I could go to them now, as you want me to, and tell them I’ve chosen you for my future wife, whether they like it or not, and if they would calmly submit, as you half hope they would, then I suppose you’d be convinced that I’m a forceful character. But if I tell my father this news, with mother so fixed in her prejudices, he’ll turn me out of the house—and where are we to go? I don’t see the heroism of that. Love of life—yes, but first of all we must live. Temporarily, at least, we are both better off than we’d be if my people sent me away and I had no shelter or protection to offer you.”

“Must one live, Damastor—is that the thing of first importance? How we live, I’d rather say. I think the love of life must have in it a kind of recklessness, a determination not to pay too high for mere existence—not to pay with your soul. My way would be to go hand in hand with you now, and tell them all about it. First we’d find Helen and tell her, then we’d go to your people; and if they disowned us, as you expect, then we’d literally walk down the road together till something happened to us—some good fortune or perhaps some bad. That would be the sincere and fine thing to do, I’m sure. Wouldn’t you, in your heart, be happy to do that with me? Damastor, will you do it now—this very hour?”

“What a mad idea, Adraste!—to go off that way, like tramps, with you—you couldn’t stand it; you’d die before we had gone far!”

“I shall die here. But I’d rather die that way, with the man I thought I gave myself to. Damastor, I know to-night that I have lost you!”

“I’ll never leave you, Adraste! To-night you are full of gloomy thoughts and fears, but there’s no reason for them, except that you aren’t quite yourself. You’ll wake up rested to-morrow, and remember what we have said, and all the grim things you said to me, and you’ll laugh at your worries. I shall always love you, Adraste; I love you absolutely. I’ll make you proud of me yet, when the right moment comes to speak, and you see at last that I was right … Don’t go—we have lost the hour talking of these stupid matters. I thought we were to be together, just to be happy, and here we’ve been arguing.”