The Man in Possession — page 232: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

THE MAN IN POSSESSION. 227 To abuse oneself soundly and roundly (just allowing a margin for ‘‘extenuating circumstances ”) is some- times avery salutary proceeding. Youth must go through its period of folly. As Ibsen says, ‘‘It has to be. There is no other way.” No one pities its sufferings, least of all the person for whom these sufferings are endured, that person being what the story-books call ‘‘ the object of its affections.” And yet, if the ‘‘object” only knew how genuine and pure a thing that affection is, how flattered and how grateful she ought to be. The heart of youth in its first love is as a firework flashing heavenwards, and transforming everything with its glow and glory. The glow is brief ; the glory, alas! fades into the commonplace descent of the burnt-out case that bore the fiery meteor skywards. But, while it lasts, its brilliance exceeds any other feeling and emotion in the world! if only the ‘‘ object” would believe it. But, as a rule, she won’t. She laughs and mocks and flouts the swain who tries to convince her of his passion ; and what can he do, poor youth, save credit her with meaning what she says, and then hie him away to solitude, to pine and die, or console himself with less obdurate maidens, How many times Tom Rivers paced to and fro by the misty riverside: How much he thought, and vowed, andresolved, and un-resolved. How hard it seemed that he should have escaped all the wiles and witcheries, the snares and allurements of woman- kind so long, only to fall a victim to an ‘‘ unrequited attachment.” — : For with all the will in the world to look upon the ECOMNCE OOO SS) (SO