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James, Henry, 1843-1916

"Roderick Hudson"


He called that evening upon Roderick, and found one in the information
offered him at the door, by the old serving-woman--the startling
information that the signorino had gone to Naples.



CHAPTER VIII. Provocation
About a month later, Rowland addressed to his cousin Cecilia a letter of
which the following is a portion:--
... "So much for myself; yet I tell you but a tithe of my own story
unless I let you know how matters stand with poor Hudson, for he gives
me more to think about just now than anything else in the world. I need
a good deal of courage to begin this chapter. You warned me, you know,
and I made rather light of your warning. I have had all kinds of hopes
and fears, but hitherto, in writing to you, I have resolutely put the
hopes foremost. Now, however, my pride has forsaken me, and I should
like hugely to give expression to a little comfortable despair. I should
like to say, 'My dear wise woman, you were right and I was wrong; you
were a shrewd observer and I was a meddlesome donkey!' When I think of
a little talk we had about the 'salubrity of genius,' I feel my ears
tingle.


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