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ured alittle by the silver candlesticks。 Between these two extremes; the greeting cards; received year afteryear; on Christmas; or Easter; or birthdays; trumpeted their glad tidings; while the green metalserpent; perpetually malevolent; raised its head proudly in the midst of these trophies; biding thetime to strike。 Against the mirror; like a procession; the photographs were arranged。
These photographs ily; which seemed to feel that aphotograph should memorate only the most distant past。 The photographs of John and Roy;and of the two girls; which seemed to violate this unspoken law; served only in fact to prove itmost iron…hard: they had all been taken in infancy; a time and a condition that the children couldnot remember。 John in this photograph lat naked on a white counterpane; and people laughed andsaid that it was cunning。 But John could never look at it without feeling shame and anger that hisnakedness should be here so unkindly revealed。 None of the other children was naked; no; Roy lay in the crib in a white gown and grinned toothlessly into the camera; and Sarah; somber at the ageof six months; wore a white bon; and Ruth was held in her mother’s arms。 When people lookedat these photograph and laughed; their laughter differ from the laughter with which they greetedthe naked John。 For this reason; when visitors tried to make advances to John he was sullen; andthey; feeling that for some reason he disliked them; retaliated by deciding that he was a ‘funny’
child。
Among the other photographs there was one of Aunt Florence; his father’s sister; in whichher hair; in the old…fashioned way; was worn high and tied with a ribbon; she had been very youngwhen his photograph was taken; and had just e North。 Sometimes; when she came to visit; shecalled t
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