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Anne spent half an hour talking to William but obtamed little response

He was then retired for a sleep in the same manner by which he had arrived Anne nobly resisted the fruit and candy piled by her bedside She was deten - nined to get back into all - her dresses by the suhtful place in all the fashionable azines Had not the Prince de Garonne said that she was the only beautiful object in Boston? Her long golden hair, fine delicate features, and sliure had attracted excited admiration in cities she had never even visited She checked in the mirror: no telltale lines on her face; people would hardly believe that she was theboy, thought Anne

She enjoyed a light lunch and prepared herself for the visitors ould appear during the afternoon, already screened by her private secretary

Those allowed to see her on the first days had to be family or from the very best families; others would be told she was not yet ready to receive the in Aree of social prominence, there was unlikely to be any unexpected intrudex

The room which she alone occupied could have easily taken another five beds had it not already been siven forit for a minor horticultural show, if it had not been for the presence of the young ht in bed Anne switched on the electric light, still a novelty for her; Richard and she had waited for the Cabots to have them fitted, which all of Boston had interpreted as an oracular sign that electronetic induction was as of that moment socially acceptable

The first visitor was Anne’s mother - in - law, Mrs Thomas Lowell Kane, the head of the faant lateinto a room to her own total satisfaction and to its occupants’ undoubted disco chemise dress, which made it impossible to view her ankles; the only man who had ever seen her ankles was now dead She had always been lean In her opinion, fat wo She was now the oldest Lowell alive; the oldest Kane, come to that She therefore expected and was expected to be the first to arrive to view her new gr - andson After all, had it not been she who had arranged thebetween Anne and Richard? Love had seemed of little consequence to Mrs Kane - Wealth, position and prestige she could always come to terms with, Love was all very well, but it rarely proved to be a lasting cohter - in - law approvingly on the forehead Anne touched a button on the wall, and a quiet buzz could be heard The noise took Mrs Kane by surprise; she could not believe electricity would ever catch on The nurse reappeared with the heir Mrs Kane inspected him, sniffed her satisfaction and waved him away

’Well done, Anne,’ the old lady said, as if her daughterin - law had won a yrnkhana prize ’All of us are very proud of you’

Anne’s own mother, Mrs Edward Cabot, arrived a few minutes later She, like Mrs Kane, had been ithin recent years and differed so little from her in appearance that those who observed theet them muddled up But to do her justice, she took consider - ably hter The inspection moved to the flowers

’How kind of the Jacksons to remember,’ murmured Mrs Cabot

Mrs Kane adopted a more cursory procedure Her eyes skimmed over the delicate blooms then settled on the donors’ cards She whispered the soothing nainsons

Neither grandmother commented on the nae of wanting to learn of anything or anyone new They left together, well pleased: an heir had been born and appeared, on first sight, to be adequate They both considered that their final faation had been successfully, albeit vicariously, perforress to the role of chorus

They were both wrong

Anne and Richard’s close friends poured in during the afternoon with gifts and good wishes, the forh - pitched Brahmin accents

When her husband arrived after the close of business, Anne was sone at lunch for the first time in his life - old Amos Kerbes had insisted and, with the whole So on, Richard could hardly have refused He seemed to his wife to be a little less stiff than usual Solid in his long black frock coat and pinstripe trousers, he stood fully six feet one; his dark hair with its centre parting gleauessed his age correctly as only thirty - three : youth had never been i that ain William Lowell Kane was called for and inspected, as if the father were checking the balance at the end of the banking day All seeers, ten toes and Richard could see nothing that ht later embarrass him, so William was sent away