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"I suppose it is because I am a lonely man that I take such a keen interest in my neighbors. I flatter myself that few people have ever appealed to me in vain when they were in trouble, and perhaps it was this trait in my character that drew me unconsciously towards Iza Weiss. I felt sure she was in distress, that her hauteur was unnatural in a girl of her age. There were certain soft lines about her mouth which suggested a sweet and generous disposition, and presently, a little later, she forgot herself and smiled at something that was said.
That smile came as a kind of revelation to me. I knew that behind the frost and snow there was real womanliness, though it was only for a moment she smiled ere her features grew hard and set again.