Page:The leopard's spots - a romance of the white man's burden-1865-1900 (IA leopardsspotsrom00dixo).pdf/263

 sion of power. You have black hair, dark-brown eyes that look out from your shaggy straight with a piercing light."

"You think the brows too shaggy?"

"No, I like them. They suggest reserve power and brain capacity."

"Good, I never thought of that."

"You have a face that is massive, almost leonine, and a square-cut determined mouth, that always clean shaven, sometimes looks too grim."

"I'll remember that and look pleasant."

"You have a big hand and sometimes shake hands too strongly. You have a handsome aristocratic foot when you wear decent shoes. You often walk hump-shouldered, and sit so too."

"I'll brace up."

"You have deep vertical wrinkles between your eyes just where your straight eyebrows meet."

"Heavens, I didn't know I had wrinkles!"

"Yes, but they mean habits of thought like your stooping shoulders, I don't object to such wrinkles in a man's face. But the best feature of all your stock is your eye. Your big brown eyes are about the only perfect thing about you. There's infinite tenderness in them. Now and then they gleam with a hidden fire that tells of enthusiasm, thought, will, character, and dauntless courage."

She looked and they were misty with tears.

He pressed her hand. "Auntie, I didn't know how much you've loved me all these years. How love opens one's eyes!"

"You have a high temper, plenty of pride, and are given to looking on the dark side of things too quickly. You lack poise of character and sureness of touch yet, but with it all, yours is a masterful nature."