Page:The Dial (Volume 68).djvu/360

His loose, angular body sprawled upon a bench in Boston Common, Albert Bean loafed and accepted the universe. The clear autumn morning with its brittle sky and brisk wind engendered in his soul an all-embracing interest in the minute and particular affairs of nature. In each motion of a leaf, of a twig, he read the secret of being. He became one with the universe and felt life to be vast, eternal, and purposeless vegetation. He loafed at ease, regarding a sparrow before him on the walk.

For three hours Albert Bean had lounged on the bench. The cold wind had guarded his happiness from any intrusion by human beings, and he had rested and observed nature alone. For three hours not a soul had appeared along the deserted lanes, except one tottering old man who had raked up a few dead leaves and stuffed them in a basket. But the old man had amused Albert Bean, for he had grumbled and puttered a good deal because the frisky wind had made the task of gathering the leaves into a heap a difficult one. However, after a little time the old man had wandered wearily away with his rake under his arm and his basket, leaving Albert Bean and the universe to themselves.

Swiftly had the remembrance and despair of yesterday departed from him. To-day no sharp conscience irritated him into the uneasy thought that he should stand up with the world and look for work. No despondency leadened his soul to-day, but yesterday almost the moment he had placed himself on his customary bench in the Common, a blunt thought had slugged him into the chill belief that he ought to find work. All day this thought had gnawed into his happiness like a rat, and an evil rat too, for though he had searched his mind ever so carefully he had found no more acceptable excuse for toil than to feed his own body. But he had not been hungry, and besides he had no family, no friends to support. He was alone, and yet yesterday duty had troubled him.

But upon this morning he had rolled out of his bunk at the People's Palace full of gay thoughts, and after washing down two