GEORGE
411
often Stanley's way of getting back at me for some advantage,
imagined or real, I may have over him. "How come he landed so
lightly?"
"Nothing to it," he replied, and I could feel this was a prepared
statement. "Men are often sustained by their doubts."
"Please. I'd like to hear-"
"It's a long story.
If
you put on some more records and tum the
volume down, I'll tell you. There's nothing like talking against a
background of music. Especially these days."
"Why these days?-Mozart?"
"Anything, who listens? ..."
"What have 'these days' got to do with it?"
"Nothing. I'm only trying for epigrams. Ever since George
walked out of the window I've been talking nonsense, I'm so envious
of him. Now give me a drink....
"It was at a party, everybody was there. George came late, I
think he was the last to arrive, and he stayed only an hour; not over
an hour and a half at most. That's important, that he was the last
to
arrive-the party was already in full swing. There was nothing
unusual in his behavior. He came in, greeted
his
friends, poured him–
self a drink-our hosts had already begun to neglect the company–
talked to a few of the girls-
"But I'm telling this wrong. I shouldn't say there was nothing
unusual about him-you'll expect miracles."
He paused and took a long time with his drink. His bulging
brown eyes-like eyes which had once popped out in wonder and
never settled back, though it was undoubtedly a thyroid case, a
condition uncommon in men-went over the rim of the glass and fur–
tively about the walls, over the paintings, the books I have, coveting
my possessions. A look of disappointed wonder, as of someone who
had been waiting in vain for the marvelous to recur, but I could feel
all the envy in it . . .
"You know how parties are. Most of them have no character at
all-drinks, dancing, wisecracks, everybody's together, but nothing
-no communication-and the party only drives people further apart.
They avoid each other for weeks after one of those parties. Then
some do have a sort of character but it's all wrong, and that only
makes it worse. A really good party-perhaps there hasn't been one
