THE FIELD-PLAY. 9 



a magician : it is physically divine. Besides the 

 liquid flesh which delights the beliolder, there is then 

 the retina, the mysterious nerve which receives a 

 thousand pictures on one surface and confuses none ; 

 and further, the mystery of the brain, which repro- 

 duces them at will, twenty years, yes, threescore years 

 and ten, afterwards. Perhaps of all physical things, 

 the eye is most beautiful, most divine. 



Her oyes were still beautiful, but subdued and full 

 of a great wrong. What that wrong was became 

 apparent in the course of time. Dolly had to live 

 with Mat, and, unhappily, not as his wife. Next 

 harvest there was a child wrapped in a red shawl with 

 her in the field, placed under the shocks while she 

 worked. Her brother Bill talked and threatened — of 

 what avail was it ? The law gave no redress, and 

 among men in these things, force is master still. 

 There were none who could meet big Mat in fight. 



Something seemed to burn in Mat like fire. Now 

 he worked, and now he drank, but the drink which 

 would have killed another did him no injury. He 

 grew and flourished upon it, more bone, more muscle, 

 more of the savage nature of original man. But there 

 was something within on fire. Was he not satisfied 

 even yet ? Did he arrogate yet further prerogatives 

 of kings ? — prerogatives which even kings claim no 

 longer. One day, while in drink, his heavy fist 

 descended — he forgot his might ; he did not check it, 

 like Ulysses in the battle with Irus — and Dolly fell. 



When they lifted her up, one eye was gone. 



It was utterly put out, organically destroyed; no 

 skill, no money, no loving care could restore it. The 



