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Modelling, Simulation and Control
of Non-Linear Dynamical Systems

© 2002 Taylor & Francis

 Numerical Insights
Series Editor
A. Sydow, GMD-FIRST, Berlin, Germany
Editorial Board
P. Borne, ~ c o l ede Lille, France G. Carmichael, University of Iowa, USA
L. Dekker, Delft University of Technology, The Netherlands A. Iserles, University
of Cambridge, UK A. Jakeman, Australian National University, Australia
G. Korn, Industrial Consultants (Tucson), USA G.P. Rao, Indian Institute of
Technology, India R. Rice, Purdue University, USA A.A. Samarskii, Russian
Academy of Science, Russia Y. Takahara, Tokyo Institute of Technology, Japan

The Numerical Insights series aims to show how numerical simulations provide valuable
insights into the mechanisms and processes involved in a wide range of disciplines. Such
simulations provide a way of assessing theories by comparing simulations with observa-
tions. These models are also powerful tools which serve to indicate where both theory and
experiment can be improved.
In most cases the books will be accompanied by software on disk demonstrating working
examples of the simulations described in the text.
The editors will welcome proposals using modelling, simulation and systems analysis
techniques in the following disciplines: physical sciences; engineering; environment; ecol-
ogy; biosciences; economics.

Volume 1
Numerical Insights into Dynamic Systems: Interactive Dynamic System Simulation with
Microsofto, Windows 95TMand NTTM
Granino A. Korn

Volume 2
Modelling, Simulation and Control of Non-Linear Dynamical Systems: An Intelligent
Approach using Soft Computing and Fractal Theory
Patricia Melin and Oscar Castillo

This book is part of a series. The publisher will accept continuation orders which may be cancelled
at any time and which provide for automatic billing and shipping of each title in the series upon
publication. Please write for details.

© 2002 Taylor & Francis

Modelling, Simulation and Control
of Non-Linear Dynamical Systems

An Intelligent Approach Using Soft Computing

and Fractal Theory

Patricia Melin and Oscar Castillo

Tijuana Institute of Technology, Tijuana, Mexico

Taylor & Francis

Taylor&Francis Group

Boca Raton London NewYork Singapore

A CRC title, part of the Taylor & Francis imprint, a member of the
Taylor & Francis Croup, the academic division of T&F lnforrna plc.

© 2002 Taylor & Francis

 First published 2002 by Taylor & Francis
11 New Fetter Lane, London EC4P 4EE
Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada
by Taylor & Francis Inc,
29 West 35th Street, New York, NY 10001
Taylor & Francis is an inzprint of the Taylor & Francis Group
O 2002 Taylor & Francis
This book has been produced from camera-ready copy supplied by the authors
Printed and bound in Great Britain by
TJ International Ltd, Padstow, Cornwall
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in
any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter
invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or
retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers.
Every effort has been made to ensure that the advice and information in this book is true
and accurate at the time of going to press. However, neither the publisher nor the authors
can accept any legal responsibility or liability for any errors or omissions that may be
made. In the case of drug administration, any medical procedure or the use of technical
equipment mentioned within this book, you are strongly advised to consult the
manufacturer's guidelines.

British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data
A catalog record for this book has been requested

ISBN 0-415-27236-X

© 2002 Taylor & Francis

 CONTENTS

PREFACE ix

1 INTRODUCTION TO MODELLING, SIMULATION AND CONTROL

OF NON-LINEAR DYNAMICAL SYSTEMS 1
1.1 Modelling and Simulation of Non-Linear Dynamical Systems 2
1.2 Control of Non-Linear Dynamical Systems 5

2 FUZZY LOGIC FOR MODELLING

2.1 Fuzzy Set Theory
2.2 Fuzzy Reasoning
2.3 Fuzzy Inference Systems
2.4 Fuzzy Modelling
2.5 Summary

3 NEURAL NETWORKS FOR CONTROL

3.1 Backpropagation for Feedforward Networks
3.1.1 The backpropagation learning algorithm
3.1.2 Backpropagation multilayer perceptrons
3.2 Adaptive Neuro-Fuzzy Inference Systems
3.2.1 ANFIS architecture
3.2.2 Learning algorithm
3.3 Neuro-Fuzzy Control
3.3.1 Inverse learning
3.3.2 Specialized learning
3.4 Adaptive Model-Based Neuro-Control
3.4.1 Indirect neuro-control
3.4.2 Direct neuro-control
3.4.3 Parameterized neuro-control
3.5 Summary

4 GENETIC ALGORITHMS AND FRACTAL THEORY FOR

MODELLING AND SIMULATION 65
4.1 Genetic Algorithms 67
4.2 Simulated Annealing 72
4.3 Basic Concepts of Fractal Theory 75
4.4 Summary 80

© 2002 Taylor & Francis

 vi CONTENTS

5 FUZZY-FRACTAL APPROACH FOR AUTOMATED

MATHEMATICAL MODELLING
5.1 The Problem of Automated Mathematical Modelling
5.2 A Fuzzy-Fractal Method for Automated Modelling
5.3 Implementation of the Method for Automated Modelling
5.3.1 Description of the time series analysis module
5.3.2 Description of the expert selection module
5.3.3 Description of the best model selection module
5.4 Comparison with Related Work
5.5 Summary

6 FUZZY-GENETIC APPROACH FOR AUTOMATED SIMULATION

6.1 The Problem of Automated Simulation
6.1.1 Numerical simulation of dynamical systems
6.1.2 Behavior identification for dynamical systems
6.1.3 Automated simulation of dynamical systems
6.2 Method for Automated Parameter Selection using Genetic Algorithms
6.3 Method for Dynamic Behavior Identification using Fuzzy Logic
6.3.1 Behavior identification based on the analytical properties of
the model
6.3.2 Behavior identification based on the fractal dimension and the
Lyapunov exponents
6.4 Summary

7 NEURO-FUZZY APPROACH FOR ADAPTIVE MODEL-BASED

CONTROL
7.1 Modelling the Process of the Plant
7.2 Neural Networks for Control
7.3 Fuzzy Logic for Model Selection
7.4 Neuro-Fuzzy Adaptive Model-Based Control
7.5 Summary

8. ADVANCED APPLICATIONS OF AUTOMATED MATHEMATICAL

MODELLING AND SIMULATION
8.1 Modelling and Simulation of Robotic Dynamic Systems
8.1.1 Mathematical modelling of robotic systems
8.1.2 Automated mathematical modelling of robotic dynamic systems
8.1.3 Automated simulation of robotic dynamic systems
8.2 Modelling and Simulation of Biochemical Reactors
8.2.1 Modelling biochemical reactors in the food industry
8.2.2 Automated mathematical modelling of biochemical reactors
8.2.3 Simulation results for biochemical reactors
8.3 Modelling and Simulation of International Trade Dynamics
8.3.1 Mathematical modelling of international trade
8.3.2 Simulation results of international trade

© 2002 Taylor & Francis

 CONTENTS vii

8.4 Modelling and Simulation of Aircraft Dynamic Systems 165

8.4.1 Mathematical modelling of aircraft systems 165
8.4.2 Simulation results of aircraft systems 167
8.5 Concluding Remarks and Future Directions 174

9 ADVANCED APPLICATIONS OF ADAPTIVE MODEL-BASED

CONTROL 175
9.1 Intelligent Control of Robotic Dynamic Systems 175
9.1.1 Traditional model-based adaptive control of robotic systems 177
9.1.2 Adaptive model-based control of robotic systems with a
neuro-fuzzy approach 177
9.2 Intelligent Control of Biochemical Reactors 184
9.2.1 Fuzzy rule base for model 'selection 184
9.2.2 Neural networks for identification and control 190
9.2.3 Intelligent adaptive model-based control for biochemical reactors 192
9.3 Intelligent Control of International Trade 202
9.3.1 Adaptive model-based control of international trade 202
9.3.2 Simulation results for control of international trade 204
9.4 Intelligent Control of Aircraft Dynamic Systems 208
9.4.1 Adaptive model-based control of aircraft systems 208
9.4.2 Simulation results for control of aircraft systems 210
9.5 Concluding Remarks and Future Directions 213

References 215

APPENDIX A PROTOTYPE INTELLIGENT SYSTEMS FOR

AUTOMATED MATHEMATICAL MODELLING 225
A.l Automated Mathematical Modelling of Dynamical Systems 225
A.2 Automated Mathematical Modelling of Robotic Dynamic
Systems 229

APPENDIX B PROTOTYPE INTELLIGENT SYSTEMS FOR

AUTOMATED SIMULATION 235
B.l Automated Simulation of Non-Linear Dynamical Systems 235
B.2 Numerical Simulation of Non-Linear Dynamical Systems 239

APPENDIX C PROTOTYPE INTELLIGENT SYSTEMS FOR

ADAPTIVE MODEL-BASED CONTROL 242
C. 1 Fuzzy Logic Model Selection 242
C.2 Neural Networks for Identification and Control 245

© 2002 Taylor & Francis

 PREFACE

This book presents a unified view of mathematical modelling, simulation and control for
complex non-linear dynamical systems using soft computing techniques and fractal theory.
Our particular point of view is that modelling, simulation and control are problems that can
not be considered apart because they are intrinsically related in real-world applications.
Control of non-linear dynamical systems can not be achieved if we don't have proper
mathematical models for the systems. Also, useful simulations of a model, that can give us
numerical insights into the behavior of a dynamical system, can not be obtained if we don't
have the appropriate mathematical model. On the other hand, we have to recognize that
complex non-linear dynamical systems can exhibit a wide range of dynamic behaviors
(ranging from simple periodic orbits to chaotic strange attractors), so the problem of behavior
identification is a very diffcult one. Also, we want to automate each of these tasks (mod-
elling, simulation and control) because in this way it is easier to solve a particular problem.
We then have three difficult tasks at hand: automated mathematical modelling of a dynami-
cal system, automated simulation of the model, and model-based control of the system. A
real world problem may require that we use modelling, simulation and control, to achieve
the desired level of performance needed for the particular application.
Soft computing consists of several computing paradigms, including fuzzy logic, neural
networks and genetic algorithms, which can be used to produce powerful hybrid intelligent
systems. We believe that solving the difficult problems of modelling, simulation and control
of non-linear dynamical systems require the use of several soft computing techniques to
achieve the level of intelligence needed to automate the processes of modelling and simula-
tion, and also to achieve adaptive control. On the other hand, fractal theory provides us with
powerful mathematical tools that can be used to understand the geometrical complexity of
natural or computational objects. We believe that, in many cases, it is necessary to use fractal
tools to understand the geometry of the problem at hand. For example, the fractal dimension
is a useful tool in measuring the geometrical complexity of a time series and for this reason
can be used to formulate the corresponding mathematical model for the particular problem.
This book is intended to be a major reference for scientists and engineers interested in
applying new computational and mathematical tools for solving the complicated problems
of mathematical modelling, simulation and control of non-linear dynamical systems. The
book can also be used at the graduate or advanced undergraduate level, as a textbook or
major reference, for courses like: mathematical modelling, numerical simulation, non-
linear control of dynamical systems, applied artificial intelligence and many others. We
consider that this book can also be used to get new ideas for new lines of research or to
continue the lines of future research proposed by the authors of the book. The software
accompanying this book provides a good basis for developing more advanced 'intelligent'
software tools for modelling, simulation and control of non-linear dynamical systems.

© 2002 Taylor & Francis

 In Chapter 1, we begin by giving a brief introduction to the problems of modelling,
simulation and control of non-linear dynamical systems. We motivate the importance of
solving these problems, in an automated fashion, for real-world applications. We also
outline the importance of using soft computing techniques and fractal theory to really
achieve automated mathematical modelling and simulation, and model-based adaptive control
of non-linear dynamical systems.
We present in Chapter 2 the main ideas underlying fuzzy logic and the application of this
powerful computational theory to the problem of modelling. We discuss in some detail
fuzzy set theory, fuzzy reasoning and fuzzy inference systems. At the end, we also give
some remarks about fuzzy modelling. The importance of fuzzy logic as a basis for devel-
oping intelligent systems (sometimes in conjunction with other soft computing techniques)
for control has been recognized in many areas of application. For this reason, we consider
reading this chapter essential to understand the new methods for modelling, simulation and
control presented in later chapters.
We present in Chapter 3 the basic concepts, notation and basic learning algorithms for
neural networks. We discuss in some detail feedforward networks, adaptive neuro-fuzzy
inference systems, neuro-fuzzy control and adaptive neuro-control. First, we give a brief
review of the basic concepts of neural networks and the backpropagation learning algo-
rithm. We then give a brief description of adaptive neuro-fuzzy systems. Finally, we end the
chapter with a brief review on the current methods for neuro-fuzzy control and some
remarks about adaptive control and model-based control. We can not emphasize enough the
importance of neural networks as a computational tool to achieve 'intelligence' for software
systems. For this reason, neural networks have been applied for solving complex problems
of modelling, control and identification.
We present in Chapter 4 the basic concepts and notation of genetic algorithms, simulated
annealing and fractal theory. Both genetic algorithms and simulated annealing are basic
search methodologies that can be used for modelling and simulation of complex non-linear
dynamical systems. Since both techniques can be considered as general purpose optimiza-
tion methodologies, we can use them to find the mathematical model which minimizes the
fitting errors for a specific problem. We also present in this chapter the basic concepts of
dynamical systems and fractal theory, which are two powerful mathematical theories that
enable the understanding of complex non-linear phenomena. Dynamical systems theory
gives us the general framework for treating non-linear systems and enables the identifica-
tion of the different dynamical behaviors that can occur for a particular dynamical system.
On the other hand, fractal theory gives us powerful concepts and techniques that can be
used to measure the complexity of geometrical objects.
We present in Chapter 5 our new method for automated mathematical modelling of non-
linear dynamical systems. This method is based on a hybrid fuzzy-fractal approach to
achieve, in an efficient way, automated modelling for a particular problem using a time
series as a data set. The use of the fractal dimension is to perform time series analysis of
the data, so as to obtain a qualitative characterization of the time series. The use of fuzzy
logic techniques is to simulate the process of expert model selection using the qualitative
information obtained from the time series analysis module. At the end, the 'best' math-
ematical model is obtained by comparing the measures of goodness for the selected math-
ematical models. In Chapter 8, we show some advanced applications of this method for
automated mathematical modelling.

© 2002 Taylor & Francis

 PREFACE xi

In Chapter 6, we describe the problem of numerical simulation for non-linear dynamical

systems and its solution by using intelligent methodologies. The numerical simulation of
a particular dynamical system consists in the successive application of a map and the
subsequent identification of the corresponding dynamic behaviors. Automated simulation
of a given dynamical system consists in selecting the appropriate parameter values for the
model and then applying the corresponding iterative method (map) to find the limiting
behavior. In this chapter, a new method for automated parameter selection, based on genetic
algorithms, is introduced. Also, a new method for dynamic behavior identification, based
on fuzzy logic, is introduced. The fuzzy-genetic approach for automated simulation con-
sists in the integration of the method for automated parameter selection and the method for
behavior identification.
We describe in Chapter 7 our new method for adaptive model-based control of non-
linear dynamical systems. This method is based on a hybrid neuro-fuzzy approach to achieve,
in an efficient way, adaptive robust control of non-linear dynamical systems using a set of
different mathematical models. We use fuzzy logic to select the appropriate mathematical
model for the dynamical system according to the changing conditions of the system. Adap-
tive control is achieved by using a neural network for control and a neural network for
identification. Combining this method for control with the procedure for fuzzy model
selection, gives us a new method for adaptive model-based control using a hybrid neuro-
fuzzy approach. This method for adaptive control can be used for general dynamical
systems or non-linear plants, since its architecture is domain independent. In Chapter 9, we
show some advanced applications of this new method for adaptive model-based control.
In Chapter 8, we present several advanced applications of the new methods for auto-
mated mathematical modelling and simulation. First, we describe the application of the
new methods for automated modelling and simulation to robotic dynamic systems, which
is a very important application in the control of real-world robot arms and general robotic
systems. Second, we apply our new methods for modelling and simulation to the problem
of understanding the dynamic behavior of biochemical reactors in the food industry, which
is also very important for the control of this type of dynamical system. Third, we consider
the problem of modelling and simulation of international trade dynamics, which is an
interesting problem in economics and finance. Finally, we also consider the problem of
modelling and simulation of aircraft, as this is important for the real-world problem of
automatic aircraft control.
In Chapter 9, we present several advanced applications of the new method for adaptive
model-based control. First, we describe the application of the new method for adaptive
model-based control to the case of robotic dynamic systems, which is very important for
solving the problem of controlling real-world manipulators in real-time. Second, we
describe the application of the method for adaptive model-based control to the case of
biochemical reactors in the food industry, which is a very interesting case due to the
complexity of this non-linear problem. Third, we consider briefly the problem of control-
ling international trade between three or more countries, with our new method for adaptive
model-based control. Finally, we also consider briefly the problem of controlling aircraft
with our new method for adaptive model-based control.
Finally, we would like to thank all the people who helped make this book possible. In
particular, we would like to acknowledge our families for their love and support during the
realization of this project; without them this book would never have been possible.

© 2002 Taylor & Francis

Chapter 1

Introduction to Modelling, Simulation and Control of

Non-Linear Dynamical Systems

We describe in this book new methods for automated modelling and simulation of
non-linear dynamical systems using Soft Computing techniques and Fractal
Theory. We also describe a new method for adaptive model-based control of non-
linear dynamical systems using a hybrid neuro-hzzy-fractal approach. Soft
Computing (SC) consists of several computing paradigms, including fuzzy logic,
neural networks and genetic algorithms, which can be used to produce powerful
hybrid intelligent systems. Fractal Theory (FT) provides us with the mathematical
tools (like the fractal dimension) to understand the geometrical complexity of
natural objects and can be used for identification and modelling purposes.
Combining SC techniques with FT tools we can take advantage of the
"intelligence" provided by the computer methods (like neural networks) and also
take advantage of the descriptive power of fractal mathematical tools. Non-linear
dynamical systems can exhibit extremely complex dynamic behavior and for this
reason it is of great importance to develop intelligent computational tools that will
enable the identification of the best model for a particular dynamical system, then
obtaining the best simulations for the system and also achieving the goal of
controlling the dynamical system in a desired manner. We also describe in this

© 2002 Taylor & Francis

 2 INTRODUCTION

book the basic methodology to develop prototype intelligent systems that are able
to find the best model for a particular dynamical system, then perform the
numerical simulations necessary to identify all of the possible dynamical
behaviors of the system, and finally achieve the goal of adaptive control using the
mathematical models of the system and SC techniques.
As a prelude, we shall provide a brief overview of the existing
methodologies for modelling, simulation and control of non-linear dynamical
systems and also of our own approach in dealing with these problems.

1.1 Modelling and Simulation of Non-Linear Dynamical

Systems

Traditionally, mathematical modelling of dynarnical systems has been performed

by human experts in the following manner (Jamshidi, 1997): 1) The expert
according to his knowledge selects a set of models consider to be appropriate for a
specific given problem, 2) Parameter estimation of the models is performed with
methods similar to least-squares (using the relevant data available), and 3) The
"best" model is selected using the measures of goodness for each of the models.
Also, we can say that linear statistical models have been traditionally used as an
approximation of real dynamic systems, which is not the best thing to do since
many of the mechanical, electrical, biological and chemical systems are
intrinsically non-linear in nature. In this work, we achieved automated
mathematical modelling by using different Soft Computing techniques (Jang, Sun
& Mizutani, 1997). The whole process of modelling starts with a time series (data
set), which is used to perform a "Time Series Analysis" to extract the components
of the time series (Weigend & Gershenfeld, 1994). Time series analysis can be
achieved by traditional statistical methods or by efficient classification methods
based on SC techniques, like neural networks or fuzzy logic (Kosko, 1997). In our
case, we used fuzzy logic for classification of the time series components. After
this time series analysis is performed, the qualitative values of the time series
components are used to obtain a set of admissible models for a specific problem,
this part of the problem was solved by using a set of fuzzy rules (knowledge base)

© 2002 Taylor & Francis

 MODELLING, SIMULATION AND CONTROL ... 3

that simulates the human experts in the domain of application. Finally, the "best"
model is selected by comparing the measures of goodness for each of the
admissible models considered in the previous step.
The simulation of mathematical models traditionally has been performed
by exploring the possible dynamic behaviors, for a specific system, for different
parameter values of the model (Rasband, 1990). More recently, it has been
proposed to use Artificial Intelligence (Russell & Norvig, 1995) techniques for the
simulation of mathematical models (for example, by using expert systems
(Badiru, 1992)). In this work, we used SC techniques to automate the simulation
of dynamical systems. In particular, we make use of genetic algorithms to generate
the "best" set of parameter values for a specific model with respect to the goal of
obtaining the most efficient simulation possible. Genetic Algorithms (GA)
essentially consist of methods for the optimization of a general function based on
the concept of "evolution" (Goldberg, 1989). In our particular case, the problem
consisted in specifying the appropriate function to be optimized, with the goal of
achieving the most efficient simulation possible, i.e., a simulation that enables the
identification of all the possible dynamic behaviors for a specific dynamical
system. For the identification of dynamic behaviors we make use of a fuzzy rule
base that will identifl a particular behavior according to the results of the
numerical simulations.
In general, the study of non-linear dynamical systems is very important
because most of the physical, electrical, mechanical and biochemical systems can
be mathematically represented by models (differential or difference equations) in
the time domain. Also, it is well known in Dynamical Systems Theory (Devaney,
1989) that the dynamic behavior of a particular system can range from very simple
periodic orbits to the very complicated "chaotic" orbits. Non-linear models may
exhibit the chaotic behavior for systems of at least three coupled differential
equations or at least one difference equation (Ruelle, 1990). In particular, for the
case of real-world dynamical systems the mathematical models needed are of very
high dimensionality and in general there is a high probability of chaotic behavior,
along with all sorts of different periodic and quasi-periodic behaviors (Castillo &
Melin, 1998b). For this reason, it becomes very important to be able to obtain the
appropriate mathematical models for the dynamical systems and then to be able to

© 2002 Taylor & Francis

 4 INTRODUCTION

perform numerical simulations of these models (Castillo & Melin, 1997b), since
this enables forecasting system's performance in future time. In this way,
automated mathematical modelling and simulation of dynamical systems can
contribute to real-time control of these systems, and this is critical in real-world
applications (Melin & Castillo, 1998b). Also, an intelligent system for modelling
and simulation can be useful in the design of real dynamical systems with certain
constraints, since the information obtained by the numerical simulations can be
used as a feedback in the process of design. The main contribution of the research
work presented in this book is to combine several Soft Computing techniques to
achieve automated mathematical modelling and simulation of non-linear
dynamical systems using the advantages that each specific technique offers. For
example, fuzzy logic (Von Altrock, 1995) was used to simulate the reasoning
process of human experts in the process of mathematical modelling and genetic
algorithms was used to select the best set of parameter values for the simulation of
the best model.
The importance of the results presented in this book can be measured from
the scientific point of view and also from the practical (or applications) point of
view. First, from the scientific point of view, we consider that this research work
is very important because the computer methods for automated mathematical
modelling and simulation of dynamic systems that were developed contribute, in
general, to the advancement of Computer Science, and, in particular, to the
advancement of Soft Computing and Artificial Intelligence because the new
algorithms that were developed can be considered "intelligent" in the sense that
they simulate human experts in modelling and simulation. From the practical
point of view, we consider the results of this research work very important for the
areas of Control and Design of dynamical systems. Controlling dynamical systems
can be made more easy if we are able to analyze and predict the dynamic
evolution of these systems and this goal can be achieved with an intelligent
system for automated mathematical modelling and simulation. The design of
dynamical systems can be made more easy if we can use mathematical models and
their simulations for planning the performance of these systems under different set
of design constraints. This last two points are of great importance for the
industrial applications, since the control of dynamical systems in real-world plants

© 2002 Taylor & Francis

 MODELLPJG, SIMULATION AND CONTROL ...

has to be very precise and also the design of this type of systems for specific tasks
can be very useful for industry.

1.2 Control of Non-Linear Dynamical Systems

Traditional control of non-linear dynamical systems has been done by using

Classical Linear Control Theory and assuming simple linear mathematical models
for the systems. However, it is now well known that non-linear dynamical systems
can exhibit complex behavior (and as a consequence are difficult to control) and
the most appropriate mathematical models for them are the non-linear ones. Since
the complexity of mathematical models for real dynarnical systems is very high it
becomes necessary to use more advanced control techniques. This is precisely the
fact that motivated researchers in the area of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to apply
techniques that mimic human experts in the domain of dynarnical systems control.
More recently, techniques like neural networks and fuzzy logic have been applied
with some success to the control of non-linear dynamical systems for several
domains of application. However, there also has been some limitations and
problems with these approaches when applied to real systems. For this reason, we
proposed in this book the application of a hybrid approach for the problem of
control, combining neural and fuzzy technologies with the knowledge of the
mathematical models for the adaptive control of dynamical systems. The basic
idea of this hybrid approach is to combine the advantages of the computer
methods with the advantages of using mathematical models for the dynamical
systems. In this work, new methods were developed for adaptive control of non-
linear systems using a combination of neural networks, fuzzy logic and
mathematical models. Neural networks were used for the identification and
control of the dynamical system and fuzzy logic was used to enable the change of
mathematical models according to the dynamic state of the system. Also, the
information and knowledge contained in the mathematical models was used for
the control of the system by using their numerical results as input of the neural
networks.

© 2002 Taylor & Francis

 6 INTRODUCTION

Traditionally, the control of dynamical systems has been performed using

the classical methods of Linear Control Theory and also using linear models for
the systems (Albertos, Strietzel & Mart, 1997). However, real-world problems can
be viewed, in general, as non-linear dynamical systems with complex behavior
and because of this, the most appropriate mathematical models for these systems
are the non-linear ones. Unfortunately, to the moment, it hasn't been possible to
generalize the results of Linear Control Theory to the case of Non-linear Control
due to the complexity of the mathematics that will be required (Omidvar & Elliot,
1997). Of course, this mathematical generalization could still take several years of
theoretical and empirical research to be developed. On the other hand, it is
possible to use non-linear universal approximators that have resulted from the
research in the area of SC to the problem of system identification and control. In
particular, SC methodologies like neural networks and fuzzy logic have been
applied with some success to problems of control and identification of dynamical
systems (Korn, 1995). However, there are also problems where one or both
methodologies have failed to achieved the level of accuracy desired in the
applications (Omidvar & Elliot, 1997). For this reason, we have proposed in this
work the use of a hybrid approach for the problem of non-linear adaptive control,
i.e., we proposed to combine the use of neural networks and fuzzy logic with the
use of non-linear mathematical models to achieve the goal of adaptive control. In
the following lines we give the general idea of this new approach as well as the
reasons why such an approach is a good alternative for non-linear control of
dynamical systems.
Neural networks are computational systems with learning (or adaptive)
characteristics that model the human brain (Kosko, 1992). Generally speaking,
biological neural networks consist of neurons and connections between them and
this is modeled by a graph with nodes and arcs to form the computational neural
network. This graph along with a computational algorithm to specify the learning
capabilities of the system is what makes the neural network a powerful
methodology to simulate intelligent or expert behavior (Miller, Sutton & Werbos,
1995). It has been shown, that neural networks are universal approximators, in the
sense that they can model any general function to a specified accuracy (Kosko,
1992) and for this reason neural networks have been applied to problems of

© 2002 Taylor & Francis

 MODELLING, SIMULATION AND CONTROL ... 7

system identification (Pham & Xing, 1995). Also, because of their adaptive
capabilities neural networks have been used to control real-world dynamical
systems (Ng, 1997).
Fuzzy Logic is an area of SC that enables a computer system to reason
with uncertainty. Fuzzy inference systems consist of a set of "if-then" rules
defined over fuzzy sets. Fuzzy sets are relations that can be used to model the
linguistic variables that human experts use in their domain of expertise (Kosko,
1992). The main difference between fuzzy sets and traditional (crisp) sets is that
the membership function for elements of a hzzy set can take any value between 0
and 1, and not only 0 or 1. This corresponds, in the real world, to many situations
where it is difficult to decide in an unambiguous manner if something belongs or
not to a specific class. Fuzzy expert systems, for example, have been applied with
some success to problems of control, diagnosis and classification just because
they can manage the difficult expert reasoning involved in these areas of
application (Korn, 1995). The main disadvantage with fuzzy systems is that they
can't adapt to changing situations. For this reason, it is a good idea to combine
both methodologies to have the advantages of neural networks (learning and
adaptive capabilities) along with the advantages of fuzzy logic (contain expert
knowledge) in solving complex real world problems where this flexibility is
needed (Yen, Langar & Zadeh, 1995).
In this work, we have proposed a new architecture for developing
intelligent control systems based on the use of neural networks, fuzzy logic and
mathematical models, to achieve the goal of adaptive control of non-linear
dynamical systems. The mathematical model of a non-linear dynamical system
consist of a set of simultaneous non-linear differential (or difference) equations
describing the dynamics of the system. The knowledge contained in the model is
very important in the process of controlling the system, because it relates the
different physical variables and their dependencies (Sueda & Iwamasa, 1995). For
this reason, our approach is to combine mathematical models with neural
networks and fuzzy logic, to achieve adaptive control of non-linear dynamical
systems.
The study of non-linear dynamical systems is very interesting because of
the complexity of the dynamics involved in the underlying processes (for

© 2002 Taylor & Francis

 example, biological, chemical or electrical) and also because of the implications,
in the real world, of controlling industrial processes to maximize production. Real
non-linear dynarnical systems can have a wide range of possible dynamic
behaviors, going from simple periodic orbits (stable) to the very complicated
chaotic behavior (Kapitaniak, 1996). Controlling a non-linear dynamical system,
avoiding chaotic behavior, is only possible using the mathematical models of the
system (Sueda & Iwamasa, 1995). For this reason, model-based control is having
great success in the control of complex real-world dynamical systems. In our
approach, the neural networks were used for identification and control of the
system, fuzzy logic was used to choose between different mathematical models of
the system, and the knowledge given by the models was used to avoid specific and
dangerous dynamic behaviors.
We consider the work on non-linear control presented in this book very
important, from the point of view of Computer Science, because it contributed
with new methods to develop intelligent control systems using a new hybrid
model-based neuro-fuzzy approach for controlling non-linear dynarnical systems.
Also, from the point of view of the applications, this work is very important
because it contributed with new methods for adaptive non-linear control that
could eventually be used in the control of real industrial plants or general
dynamical systems, which in turn will result in increased productivity and
efficiency for these systems.

© 2002 Taylor & Francis

Chapter 2

Fuzzy Logic for Modelling

This chapter introduces the basic concepts, notation, and basic operations for
fuzzy sets that will be needed in the following chapters. Since research on Fuzzy
Set Theory has been underway for over 30 years now, it is practically impossible
to cover all aspects of current developments in this area. Therefore, the main goal
of this chapter is to provide an introduction to and a summary of the basic
concepts and operations that are relevant to the study of fuzzy sets. We also
introduce in this chapter the definition of linguistic variables and linguistic values
and explain how to use them in fuzzy rules, which are an efficient tool for
quantitative modelling of words or sentences in a natural or artificial language. By
interpreting fuzzy rules as fuzzy relations, we describe different schemes of fuzzy
reasoning, where inference procedures based on the concept of the compositional
rule of inference are used to derive conclusions from a set of fuzzy rules and
known facts. Fuzzy rules and fuzzy reasoning are the basic components of fuzzy
inference systems, which are the most important modelling tool based on fuzzy set
theory.
The "fuzzy inference system" is a popular computing framework based on
the concepts of fuzzy set theory, fuzzy if-then rules, and fuzzy reasoning (Jang,
Sun & Mizutani, 1997). It has found successful applications in a wide variety of

© 2002 Taylor & Francis

 10 FUZZY LOGIC FOR MODELLING

fields, such as automatic control, data classification, decision analysis, expert

systems, time series prediction, robotics, and pattern recognition (Jarnshidi, 1997).
Because of its multidisciplinary nature, the fuzzy inference system is known by
numerous other names, such as "fuzzy expert system" (Kandel, 1992), "fuzzy
model" (Sugeno & Kang, 1988), " k z y associative memory" (Kosko, 1992), and
simply "fuzzy system".
The basic structure of a fuzzy inference system consists of three
conceptual components: a "rule base", which contains a selection of fuzzy rules; a
"data base" (or "dictionary"), which defines the membership functions used in the
fuzzy rules; and a "reasoning mechanism", which performs the inference
procedure upon the rules and given facts to derive a reasonable output or
conclusion. In general, we can say that a fuzzy inference system implements a
non-linear mapping from its input space to output space. This mapping is
accomplished by a number of fuzzy if-then rules, each of which describes the
local behavior of the mapping. In particular, the antecedent of a rule defines a
fuzzy region in the input space, while the consequent specifies the output in the
fuzzy region.
In what follows, we shall first introduce the basic concepts of fuzzy sets
and fuzzy reasoning. Then we will introduce and compare the three types of fuzzy
inference systems that have been employed in various applications. Finally, we
will address briefly the features and problems of fuzzy modelling, which is
concerned with the construction of fuzzy inference systems for modelling a given
target system.

2.1 Fuzzy Set Theory

Let X be a space of objects and x be a generic element of X. A classical set A,

AcX, is defined by a collection of elements or objects x E X, such that each x can
either belong or not belong to the set A. By defining a "characteristic function" for
each element x E X, we can represent a classical set A by a set of order pairs (x,O)
or (x,l), which indicates x P A or x E A, respectively.

© 2002 Taylor & Francis

Exploring the Variety of Random
Documents with Different Content
compliment. She wanted to follow it on and on, unfold its every
exposition; but, of course, that was impossible. All this she
concealed behind an indifferent countenance, her slim white fingers
half embedded in the black mantle.
Jason Burrage lighted another cheroot and put his feet up on the
polished brass railing of the iron hearth. This amused her beyond
words. She couldn't remember when she had had another such
vitalized evening. She realized that, through the last years, she had
been appallingly lonely; but with Jason smoking beside her in a tilted
chair the solitude was banished. She got a coal for him in the small
burnished tongs, and he responded with a prodigious puff that set
her to coughing.
When he had gone the house was hatefully vacant; as she went
up to her chamber the empty spaciousness, the semi-dark well of
the stair, the high hall with its low-turned lamp, the blackness of the
third story pouring down over her, oppressed her almost beyond
endurance. Her Aunt Herriot, already old, must be dead before very
long, there was none other of her connections who could live with
her, and she would have to depend on perfunctory, hired
companionship.
Honora saw that she should never escape from the influence
which held her in Cottarsport.
In her room, the door bolted, it was no better. The interior was
large, uncompromisingly square; and, though every possible light
was burning, still it seemed somber, menacing.
The following day was a lowering void with gusts of rain driving
against the windows. Mrs. Cozzens would be away until tomorrow,
and Honora met the afternoon alone. At times she embroidered,
short-lived efforts broken by despondent and aimless excursions
through the echoing halls.
She attempted to read, to compose herself with an elaborate gilt
and embellished volume called “The Garland.” But, at a Lamentation
on the Death of Her Canary, by a Person of Quality, she deliberately
dropped the book into the burning coals of the Franklin stove. The
satisfaction of seeing the pages crisp and burst into flame soon
evaporated. The day was a calamity, the approaching murky evening
a horror.
At supper she wondered what Jason Burrage was doing. A trace of
the odor of his cheroot lingered in the dining room. He was an
astonishingly solid, the only, actuality in a nebulous world of lofty,
flickering ceilings and the lash of rain. He might as well smoke in her
drawing room as in the Burrage kitchen. Paret Fifield would have
drifted naturally to the Canderay house, but not Jason, not a native
of Cottarsport.... With an air of determination she sharply pulled the
plush, tasseled bell rope in the corner.

She heard the servant open the front door; there was a pause—
Jason was taking off his greatcoat—after which he entered, calm and
without query.
“I was tired of sitting by myself,” she said with an air of entire
frankness. In a minute or so more it was all as it had been the
evening before—she held a coal for his cheroot as he tilted back
beside her with his feet on the rail. “You are a very comfortable
man, Jason,” she told him.
He made no reply, although a quiver crossed his lips. Then, after a
little, “It's astonishing how soon you get used to things. Seems as if
I had been here for years, and this is only the third time.'”
“Have you thought any more of California?”
He faced her with an expression of surprise. “It had gone clean
out of my mind. I suppose I will shift back, though—nothing here for
me. I can't come to see you every evening.”
She preserved a silence in which they both fell to staring into a
dancing, bluish flame. The gusts of rain were audible like the tearing
of heavy linen. An extraordinary idea had taken possession of
Honora—if the day had been fine, if she had been out in a sparkling
air and sun, a very great deal would have happened differently. But
just what she couldn't then say: the fact alone was all that she
curiously apprehended.
“I suppose not,” she answered, so long after his last statement
that he gazed questioningly at her. “I wonder if it has occurred to
you,” she continued, “how much alike we are? I often think about it.”
“Why, no,” he replied, “it hasn't. Jason Bur-rage and Honora
Canderay! I wouldn't have guessed it, and I don't believe any one
else ever has. I'd have a hard time thinking about two more
different. It's—it's ridiculous.” He became seriously animated. “Here I
am—well, you know all about me—with some money, perhaps, and a
little of the world in my head; but you're Honora Canderay.”
“You said once that I was nothing but a woman,” she reminded
him.
“I remember that,” he admitted with evident chagrin. “I was
drunk.”
“That's when the truth is often hit on; I am quite an ordinary sort
of woman.”
He laughed indulgently.
“You said last evening I had some of a very common quality.”
“Now you mustn't take that serious,” he protested; “it was just in a
way of speech. I told you I couldn't rightly explain myself.”
“Anyhow,” she asserted bluntly, “I am lonely. What will you do
about it?”
His amazement turned into a consternation which even now she
found almost laughable. “Me?” he stammered. “There's no way I can
help you. You are having a joke.”
She realized, with a feeling that her knowledge came too late, that
she was entirely serious. Jason Burrage was the only being alive who
could give her any assistance, yes, save her from the future. Her
hands were cold, she felt absolutely still, as if she had suddenly
turned into marble, a statue with a heart slightly fluttering.
 “You could be here a lot,” she told him, and then paused, glancing
at him swiftly with hard, bright eyes. He had removed his feet from
the stove, and sat with his cheroot in a poised, awkward hand. She
was certain that he would never speak.
“We might get married.”
Honora was startled at the ease with which the words were
pronounced, and conscious of an absurdly trivial curiosity—she
wondered just how much he had been shocked by her proposal? She
saw that he was stupefied. Then:
“So we might,” he pronounced idiotically. “There isn't any real
reason why we shouldn't. That is——.” He stopped. “Where does the
laugh start?” he demanded.
Suddenly Honora was overwhelmed, not by what she had said,
but by the whole difficulty and inner confusion of her existence. She
turned away her head with an unintelligible period. A silence
followed, intensified by the rain flinging against the glass.
“It's a bad night,” he muttered.
The banality saved her. Again practically at her ease, she regarded
him with slightly smiling lips. “I believe I've asked you to marry me,”
she remarked.
“Thank you,” said Jason Burrage. He stood up. “If you mean it, I'd
like to very much.”
“You'd better sit down,” she went on in an impersonal voice;
“there ought to be a lot of things to arrange. For instance, hadn't we
better live on here, for a while anyhow? It's a big house to waste.”
“Honora, you'll just have to stop a little,” he asserted; “I'm kind of
lost. It was quick in California, but that was a funeral procession
compared with you.”
Now that it was done, she was frightened. But there was time to
escape even yet. She determined to leave the room quickly, get
away to the safety of her bolted door, her inviolable privacy. She
didn't stir. An immediate explanation that she hadn't been serious—
how could he have thought it for a moment!—would save her. But
she was silent.
A sudden enthusiasm lighted up his immobile face. “I'll get the
prettiest diamond in Boston,” he declared.
“You mustn't——” she commenced, struggling still to retreat. He
misunderstood her.
“The very best,” he insisted.
When he had gone she remained seated in the formal chamber. At
any rate she had conquered the emptiness of her life, of the great
square house above her. It was definitely arranged, they were to
marry. How amazed Herriot Cozzens would be! It was probable that
she would leave Cot-tarsport, and her, Honora, immediately. Jason
hadn't kissed her, he had not even touched her hand, in going. He
had been extremely subdued, except at the thought of the ring he
would buy for her.
There were phases of the future which she resolutely ignored.
Mrs. Cozzens came back as had been planned, and Honora told
her at once. The older woman expressed her feeling in contained,
acid speech. “I am surprised he had the assurance to ask you.”
“Jason didn't,” Honora calmly returned.
“It's your father,” the elder stated; “he had some very vulgar
blood. I felt that it was a calamity when my sister accepted him. A
Cot-tarsport person at heart, just as you are, always down about the
water and those low docks.”
“I'm sure you're right, and so it's much better for me to find where
I belong. I have tried to get away from Cottarsport, and from the
sea and the schooners sailing in and out of the Narrows, a thousand
times. But I always come back, just as father did, back to this little
place from the entire world—China and Africa and New York. The
other influences weren't strong enough, Aunt Herriot; they only
made me miserable; and now I've killed them. I'll say good-bye to
you and Paret and the cotillions.” She kissed her hand, but not gaily,
to a whole existence irrevocably lost.
 With Jason's ring blazing on her slim finger she drove, the day
before the wedding, for the last time as Honora Canderay. The
leaves had been stripped from the elms on the hills, brown and
barren against the flashing, steely water. She saw that Coggs was so
impotent with age that if the horses had been more vigorous he
would be helpless. Coggs had driven for her father, then her, for
thirty years. It was too cold for the old man to be out today. His
cheeks were dark crimson, and continually wet from his failing eyes.
Herriot Cozzens had left her; Coggs... all the intimate figures of so
many years were vanishing. Jason remained. He had almost entirely
escaped annoying her, and she was conscious of his overwhelming
admiration, the ineradicable esteem of Cottarsport for the
Canderays; but a question, a doubt more obscure than fear, was
taking possession of her. After all she was supremely ignorant of life;
she had been screened from it by pride and luxurious circumstance;
but now she had surrendered all her advantage. She had given
herself to Jason; and he was life, mysterious and rude. The thunder
of large, threatening seas, reaching everywhere beyond the placid
gulf below, beat faintly on her perception.
 JASON

I
N an unfamiliar upper room of the Canderays' house Jason
stood prepared for the signal to descend to his wedding. The
ceremony was to occur at six o'clock; it was now only five
minutes before—he had absently looked at his watch a great many
times in a short space—and he was striving to think seriously of
what was to follow. But in place of this he was passing again
through a state of silent, incoherent surprise. This was the sort of
thing for which a man might pinch himself to discover if he were
awake or dreaming. In five, no, four, minutes now Honora Canderay
was to become his, Jason Burrage's, wife.
A certain complacency had settled over him in the past few days,
something of his inborn feeling of the Canderays as a house apart
seemed to have evaporated; and, in addition, he had risen—Honora
wouldn't take any just happen so. Jason was never notable for
humility. Yet who, even after he had returned from California with
his riches, could have predicted this evening? His astonishment was
as much at himself, illuminated by extraordinary events, as at any
exterior circumstance. At times he had the ability to see himself, as if
from the outside; and that view, here, was amazing. Why, only a
short while ago he had been drinking rum in the shed in back of
“Pack” Clower's house, perhaps the least desirable shed in
Cottarsport.
Of one fact, however, he was certain—no more promiscuous
draughts of Medford. He recognized that he had taken so much not
from the presence of desire, but from a total absence of it as well as
of any other mental state. “Pack” and his associates, too, were now
a thing of the past, a bitterly rough and vacant element. The glass
lamp on a bureau was smoking: he stepped forward to lower the
wick, when a knock fell on the door. A young Boston relative of
Honora's—a supercilious individual in checked trousers and lemon-
colored gloves—announced that they were waiting for Jason below.
With a determined settling of his shoulders and tightly drawn lips, he
marched resolutely forward.
The marriage was to be in the chamber across from the one in
which he had generally sat. Smilax and white Killamey roses had
been bowed over the mantel at the farthest end, and there Jason
found the clergyman waiting. The room was half full of people
occupying chairs brought from other parts of the house; and he was
conscious of a sudden silence, an intent, curious scrutiny, as he
entered. An instinctive antagonism to this deepened in him: he felt
that, with the exception of his father and mother, he hadn't a friend
in the room.
Such other local figures as were there were facilely imitating the
cold stare of Honora's connections. He stood belligerently facing Mrs.
Cozzens' glacial calm, the inspection of a man he had seen driving
with Honora in Cottarsport, now accompanied by a pettish,
handsome girl, evidently his wife. His father's weathered
countenance, sunken and dry on its bones, was blank, except for a
faint doubt, as if some mistake had been made which would
presently be exposed, sending them about face. His mother,
however, was triumphant pride and justification personified. Then
the music commenced—a harp, violin, and double bass.
The wedding ring firmly secured, Jason stirred with a feeling of
increasing awkwardness. He glared back, with a protruding lip, at
the fellow with the young wife, at the small, aggressive group from
Boston; and then he saw that Honora was in the room. She was
coming slowly toward him. Her expression of absolute unconcern
released him from all petty annoyance, any thought of the malicious
onlookers. As she stopped at his side she gave him a slight nod and
smile; and at that moment a tremendous, sheer admiration for her
was born in him.
Honora had chosen to be unattended—she had coolly observed
that she was well beyond the age for such sentimentality—and he
realized that though the present would have been a racking occasion
for most women, it was evident that she was not disturbed in the
least. He had a general impression of sugary white satin, of her
composed, almost disdainful face in a cloud of veil with little waxen
orange flowers, of slender still hands, when they turned from the
room to the minister.
They had gone over the marriage service together, he had read it
again in the kitchen at home; he was fairly familiar with its periods
and responses, and got through with only a slight hesitation and half
prompting. But the thickness of his voice, in comparison with
Honora's open, decisive utterance, vainly annoyed him. He wanted
desperately to clear his throat. Suddenly it was over, and Honora, in
a swirl of satin, was sinking to her knees. Beside her he listened with
a feeling of comfortable lull to a lengthy prayer.
Rising, he perfunctorily clasped a number of indifferent palms,
replied inanely to gabbled expressions of good will and hopes for the
future unmistakably pessimistic in tone. Honora told him in a rapid
aside the names of those approaching. She smiled radiantly at his
father and mother, leaned forward and whispered in the latter's ear;
and they followed the guests streaming into the dining room.
There champagne was being opened by the caterer's assistants
from Boston. There were steaming platters of terrapin and oysters
and fowl. The table bore pyramids of nuts and preserved fruit, hot
Cinderellas in cups with sugar and wine, black case cake, Savoy
biscuits, pumpkin paste, and frothed creams with preserved peach
leaves. A laden plate was thrust into Jason's hand, and he sat with it
in a clatter of voices and topics that completely ignored him. He was
isolated in the absorption of food and wine, in a conversational
exchange as strange to him as if had been spoken in a foreign
language.
Honora was busily talking to young Mrs. Fifield—he remembered
the name now. Apparently she had forgotten his existence. At first
this annoyed him; he determined to force his way into their
attention, but a wiser realization held him where he was. Honora
was exactly right: he had nothing in common with these people,
probably not one of them would come into his life or house again.
And his wife, in the fact of her marriage, had clearly signified how
little important they were to her. His father joined him.
“You made certain when the New York packet leaves?” he queried.
“Everything's fixed,” Jason reassured him.
“Your mother wanted to see you. But she got set and is kind of
timid about moving.” Jason rose promptly, and, with the elder, found
Mrs. Hazzard Burrage. “I'd like to have Honora, too,” the latter told
them, and Jason turned sharply to find her. When they stood facing
the old couple his mother hesitated doubtfully; then she put out her
hand to the woman in wedding array. But Honora ignored it; leaning
forward she kissed the round, bright cheek.
“You have to be patient with them at times,” the mother said,
looking up anxiously.
“I'm afraid Jason will need that warning,” Honora replied; “he is a
very imprudent man.”

Jason's mind returned to this later, sitting in the house that had
been the Canderays', but which now was his too. Honora's remark to
his mother had been clear in itself, but it suggested wide
speculations beyond his grasp. For instance—why, after all, had
Honora married him? He was forced to acknowledge that it was not
the result of any overwhelming feeling for him. The manner of their
wedding, the complete absence of the emotion supposed to be the
incentive of such consummations, Honora herself, all, denied any
effort to fix such a personally satisfactory cause. That she might
have had no other opportunity—Honora was not so young as she
had been—he dismissed as obviously absurd. Why——
His gaze was fastened upon the carpet, and he saw that time and
the passage of feet had worn away the design. He looked about the
room, and was surprised to discover a general dinginess which he
had never noticed before. He said nothing, but, in his movements
about the house, examined the furnishings and walls, and an
astonishing fact was thrust upon him—the celebrated dwelling was
grievously run down. It was plain that no money had been spent on
it for years. The carriage, too, and the astrakhan collar on Coggs'
coat, were worn out.
He considered this at breakfast—his wife behind a tall Sheffield
coffee urn—and he was aware of the cold edge of a distasteful
possibility. The thought enveloped him insidiously, like the fog which
often rolled through the Narrows and over the town, that the
Canderays were secretly impoverished, and Honora had married him
only for his money. Jason was not resentful of this in itself, since he
had been searching for a motive he could accept, but it struck him in
a peculiarly vulnerable spot—his admiration for his wife, for Honora.
The idea, although he assured himself that the thing was readily
comprehensible, somehow managed to diminish her, to tarnish the
luster she held for him. It was far beneath the elevation on which
Cottarsport had placed the Canderays; and he suffered a distinct
sense of loss, a feeling of the staleness and disappointment of living.
The more he considered this explanation the more he was
convinced of its probability. A great deal of his genuine warmth in his
marriage evaporated. Still—Honora had married him, she had given
herself in return for what material advantage he might bring; and he
would have to perform his part thoroughly. He ought to have known
that——
What he must do now was to save them both from any painful
revelation by keeping for ever hid that he was aware of her purpose,
he must never expose himself by a word or act; and he must make
her understand that whatever he had was absolutely hers. It would
be necessary for her to go to the money with entire freedom and
without any accounting.
This, he found, was not so easy to establish as he thought.
Honora was his wife, but nevertheless there was a well marked
reticence between them, a formal nicety with which he was heartily
in accord. He couldn't just thrust his fortune before her on the table.
He hesitated through the day, on the verge of various blunders; and
then, in the evening, said in a studied causality of manner:
“What do you think about fixing some of the rooms over new? You
might get tired of seeing the same things for so long. I saw real
elegant furniture in Boston.”
She looked about indifferently. “I think I wouldn't like it changed,”
she remarked, almost in the manner of a defense. “I suppose it does
seem worn to you; but I'm used to it; there are so many
associations. I am certain I'd be lost in new hangings.”
Jason was so completely silenced by her reply that he felt he must
have shown some confusion, for her gaze deliberately turned to him.
“Is there any particular thing you would like repaired?” she inquired.
“No, of course not,” he said hastily. “I think it's all splendid. I
wouldn't change a curtain, only—but....” He cursed himself for a
clumsy fool while Honora continued to study him. He endeavored to
shield himself behind the trivial business of lighting a cheroot; but he
felt Honora's query searching him out. Finally, to his extreme dismay,
he heard her say:
“Jason, I believe you think I married you for money!”
Pretense, he realized, would be no good now.
“Something like that did occur to me,” he acknowledged
desperately.
“Really,” she told him sharply. “I could be cross very easily. You are
too stupid. Father did wonderfully well on his voyages, and his profit
was invested by Frederic Cozzens, one of the shrewdest financiers of
his day. I have twice, probably three times, as much as you.”
She confronted him with a faintly sparkling resentment. However,
the pleasure, the reassurance, in what he had just heard made him
indifferent to the rest. It was impossible now to comprehend how he
had been such a block! He even smiled at her, which, he was
delighted to observe, obviously puzzled her.
“Perhaps I ought to tell you, Jason, and perhaps it is too late
already, that I thought I married you because I was lonely, because I
feared the future. Anyhow, that's what I told myself the night I sent
for you. You might have a right to complain very bitterly about it.”
“If I have, I won't,” he assured her cheerfully.
“I thought that then; but now I am not at all sure. It no longer
seems so simple, so easily explained. I used to feel that I
understood myself very thoroughly, I could look inside and see what
was there; but in the last month I haven't been able to; and it is
very disturbing.”
“Anyhow we're married,” he announced comfortably.
“That's a beautiful way to feel,” she remarked. “I appear to get
less sure of things as I grow older, which is pathetic.”
He wondered what, exactly, she meant by this. Honora said a
great many little things which, their meaning escaping him, gave him
momentary doubts. He discovered that she had a habit of saying
things indirectly, and that, as the seriousness of the occasion
increased, her manner became lighter and he could depend less on
the mere order of her words. This continually disconcerted him, put
him on the defensive and at small disadvantages: he was never
quite at ease with Honora.
Obversely—the ugly shade of mercenary purpose dispelled—close
at hand his admiration for her grew. Every detail of her living was as
fine as that publicly exposed in the drawing room. She was not
rigidly and impossibly perfect, in, for instance, the inflexible attitude
of Olive Stanes; Honora had a very human impatience, she could be
disagreeable, he found, in the morning, and she undoubtedly felt
herself superior to the commonalty of life. But in the ordering of her
person there was a wonderfully exact delicacy and fragrant charm.
Just as she had no formal manner, so, he discovered, she possessed
no “good” clothes; she dressed evidently from some inner necessity,
and not merely for the sake of impression. She had, too, a
remarkable vigor of expression; Honora was not above swearing at
contradictory circumstance; and she was so free of small pruderies
that often she became a cause of embarrassment to him. At times
he would tell himself uneasily that her conduct was not quite
ladylike; but at the same instant his amusement in her would mount
until it threatened him with laughter.
There was a great deal to be learned from Honora, he told
himself; and then he would speculate whether he were progressing
in that acquisition; and whether she were happy; no, not happy, but
contented. Ignorant of her reason for marrying, he vaguely dreaded
the possibility of its departure, mysterious as it had come, leaving
her regarding him with surprise and disdain. He tried desperately,
consciously, to hold her interest and esteem.
That was the base of his conception of their married existence,
which, then, he was entirely willing to accept.

However, as the weeks multiplied without bringing him any

corresponding increase in the knowledge of either Honora or their
true situation, he was aware of a disturbance born of his very
pleasure in her; an uncomfortable feeling of insecurity fastened upon
him. But all this he was careful to keep hidden. There was evidently
no doubt in the minds of Cottarsport of the enviableness of his
position—with all that gold, wedded to Honora Canderay, living in
the Canderay mansion. The more solid portion of the town gave him
a studied consideration denied to the mere acquisition of wealth;
and the rough element, once his companion but now relentlessly
held at a distance, regarded him with a loud disdain fully as humanly
flattering. Sometimes with Honora he passed the latter, and they
grumbled an obscure acknowledgment of his curt greeting; when he
was alone, they openly disparaged his attainments and qualified
pride.
There were “Pack” Clower, an able seaman whose indolent
character had dissipated his opportunities of employment without
harming his slow, powerful body; Emery Radlaw, the brother of the
apothecary and a graduate of Williams College, a man of vanished
refinements and taker of strange drugs, as thin and erratically rapid
in movements as Clower was slow; Steven, an incredibly soiled
Swede; John Vleet, the master and part owner of a fishing schooner,
a capable individual on the sea, but an insanely violent drunkard on
land. There were others, all widely different, but alike in the
bitterness of a common failure and the habit of assuaging doubtful
self-esteem, of ministering to crawling nerves, with highly potential
stimulation.
Jason passed “Pack” and Emery Radlaw on a day of late March,
and a mocking and purposely audible aside almost brought him to
an adequate reply. He had disposed of worse men than these in
California and the Isthmus. His arrogant temper rose and threatened
to master him; but something more powerful held him steadily and
silently on his way. This was his measureless admiration for Honora,
his determination to involve her in nothing that would detract from
her fineness and erect pride. Brawling on the street would not do for
her husband. He must give her no cause to lessen what
incomprehensible feeling, liking, she might have for him, give life to
no regrets for a hasty and perhaps only half considered act. After
this, in passing any of his late temporary associates, he failed to
express even the perfunctory consciousness of their being.

In April he was obliged to admit to himself that he knew no more

of Honora's attitude toward him than on the day of their wedding.
He recognized that she made no show of emotion; it was an
essential part of her to seem at all times unmoved. That was well
enough for the face she turned toward the world; but directed at
him, her husband, its enigmatic quality began to obsess his mind.
What Honora thought of him, why she had married him, became an
almost continuous question.
 It bred an increasing sense of instability that became loud,
defiant. More than once he was at the point of self-betrayal: query,
demand, objection, would rise on a temporary angry flood to his lips.
But, struggling, behind a face as unmoved as Honora's own, he
would suppress his resentment, the sense of injury, and smoke with
the appearance of the greatest placidity.
His regard for his wife placed an extraordinary check on his
impulses and utterance. He deliberated carefully over his speech,
watched her with an attention not far from a concealed anxiety, and
was quick to absorb any small conventions unconsciously indicated
by her remarks. She never instructed or held anything over him; he
would have been acutely sensitive to any air of superiority, and
immediately antagonized. But Honora was entirely free from
pretensions of that variety; she was as clear and honest as a goblet
of water.
Jason's regard for her grew pace by pace with the feeling of
baffling doubt. He was passing through the public square, and his
thoughts were interrupted by a faint drifting sweetness. “I believe
the lilacs are out,” he said unconsciously aloud and stopping. His
surrounding was remarkably serene, withdrawn—the courthouse, a
small block of brick with white corniced windows, flat Ionic portico,
and slatted wood lantern with a bell, stood in the middle of the
grassy common shut in by an irregular rectangle of dwellings with
low eaves and gardens. The sun shone with a beginning warmth in a
vague sky that intensified the early green. It seemed that he could
see, against a house, the lavender blur of the lilac blossoms.
Then his attention was attracted by the figure of a man, at once
strange and familiar, coming toward him with a dragging gait. Jason
studied the other until a sudden recognition clouded his
countenance, filled him with a swift, unpleasant surprise.
“Thomas!” he exclaimed. “Whenever did you get back?”
“Yesterday,” said Thomas Gast.
Well, here was Thomas returned from California like himself. Yet
the most negligent view of the latter revealed that there was a vast
difference between Jason and this last Argonaut—Thomas Gast's
loosely hung jaw, which gave to his countenance an air of
irresolution, was now exaggerated by an aspect of utter defeat. His
ill conditioned clothes, sodden brogans, and stringy handkerchief still
knotted miner-fashion about his throat, all multiplied the fact of
failure proclaimed by his attitude.
“How did you strike it?” Jason uselessly asked.
“What chance has the prospector today?” the other heatedly and
indirectly demanded. “At first a man could pan out something for
himself; but now it's all companies, all capital. The state's interfered
too, claims are being held up in court while their owners might
starve; there are new laws and trimmings every week. I struck it rich
on the Reys, but I was drove out before I could get my stakes in.
They tell me you did good.”
“At last,” Jason replied.
“And married Honora Canderay, too.”
The other assented shortly.
“Some are shot with luck,” Thomas Gast proclaimed; “they'd fall
and skin their face on a nugget.”
“How did you come back?”
“Worked my passage in a crazy clipper with moon-sails and the
halliards padlocked to the rail. Carried away the foretopmast and
yard off the Horn and ran from port to port in a hundred and four
days.”
The conversation dwindled and expired. Thomas Gast gazed about
moodily, and Jason, with a tight mouth, nodded and moved on. His
mind turned back abruptly to Eddie Lukens, the man who had
robbed him of his find in the early days of cradle mining, the man he
had killed.
He had said nothing of this to Honora; the experience with Olive
Stanes had convinced him of the advisability of keeping past
accident where, he now repeated, it belonged. He despaired of ever
being able, in Cottarsport, to explain the place and times that had
made his act comprehensible. How could he picture, here, the
narrow ravines cut by swift rivers from the stupendous slopes and
forests of the Sierra Nevada, the isolation of a handful of men with
their tents by a plunging stream in' a rift so deep that there would
be only a brief glimmer of sunlight at noon? And, failing that, the
ignorant could never grasp the significance of the stillness, the
timeless shadows, which the miners penetrated in their madness for
gold. They'd never realize the strangling passion of this search in a
wilderness without habitation or law or safety. They could not
understand the primary justice of such rude courts as the miners
were able to maintain on the more populous outskirts of the region.
He, Jason Burrage, had been tried by a jury for killing Eddie
Lukens, and had been exonerated. It had been months since he had
reiterated this dreary and only half satisfying formula. The inner
necessity filled him with a shapeless concern such as might have
been caused by a constant, unnatural shadow flickering out at his
back. He almost wished that he had told Honora at the beginning;
and then he fretfully cursed the incertitude of life—whatever he did
appeared, shortly after, wrong.
But it was obvious that he couldn't go to her with the story today;
the only time for that had been before his marriage; now it would
have the look of a confession of weakness, opportunely timed; and
he could think of nothing more calculated to antagonize Honora than
such a crumbling admission.
All this had been re-animated by the mere presence of Thomas
Gast in Cottarsport; certainly, he concluded, an insufficient reason
for his troubling. Gast had been a miner, too, he was familiar with
the conditions in the West.... There was a great probability that he
hadn't even heard of the unfortunate affair; while Olive Stanes
would be dragged to death rather than garble a word of what he
had told her: Jason willingly acknowledged this of Olive. He
resolutely banished the whole complication from his mind; and,
walking with Honora after supper over the garden in back of their
house, he was again absorbed by her vivid delicate charm.
 The garden was deep and narrow, a flight of terraces connected
by a flagged path and steps. At the bottom were the bergamot pear
trees that had been Ithiel Canderay's especial charge in his last,
retired years. Their limbs, faintly blurred with new foliage, rose
above the wall, against a tranquil evening sky with a white slip of
May moon. The peace momentarily disturbed in Jason Burrage's
heart flooded back, a sense of great well-being settled over him.
Honora rested her hand within his arm at an inequality of the stone
walk.
“I am really a very bad wife, Jason,” she said suddenly; “self-
absorbed and inattentive.”
“You suit me,” he replied inadequately. He was extraordinarily
moved by her remark: she had never before even suggested that
she was conscious of obligation. He wanted to put into words some
of the warmth of feeling which filled his heart, but suitable speech
evaded him. He could not shake off the fear that such protestations
might be displeasing to her restrained being. Moving slightly away
from him she seemed, in the soft gloom, more wonderful than ever.
Set in white against the depths of the garden, her face, dimly visible,
appeared to be without its customary faintly mocking smile.
“Do you remember, Jason,” she continued, “how I once said I
thought I was marrying you because I was lonely, and that I found
out it wasn't so? I didn't know why.” She paused.
He was enveloped by an intense eagerness to hear her to the end:
it might be that something beyond his greatest hopes was to follow.
But disappointment overtook him.
“I was certain I'd see more clearly into myself soon, but I haven't;
it's been useless trying. And I've decided to do this—to give up
thinking about things for myself, and to wait for you to show me.”
“But I can't do that,” he protested, facing her; “more-than half the
time I wonder over almost that same question—why you ever
married me?”
“This is a frightful situation,” she observed with a return of her
familiar manner; “two mature people joined for life, and neither with
the slightest idea of the reason. Anyhow I have given it up.... I
suppose I'll die in ignorance. Perhaps I was too old—-”
He interrupted her with an uncustomary incivility, a heated
denunciation of what she had been about to say.
“So you are not sorry,” he remarked after a little.
“No,” she answered slowly, “and I'm certain I shan't be. I'm not
that sort of person. I would go down to ruin sooner than regret.”
She said no more, but went into the house, leaving Jason in the
potent spring night.
There was no longer any doubt about the lilacs: the air was laden
with their scent. An entire hedge of them must have blossomed as
he was standing there. He moved to the terrace below: there might
be buds on the pear trees. But it was impossible to see the limbs.
How could Honora expect him to make their marriage clear? He had
never before seen her face so serene. He thought that he heard a
vague stir outside the wall, and he remembered the presence of a
semi-public path. Now there was a cautious mutter of voices. He
advanced a step, then stopped at a scrambling of shoes against the
wall. A vague form shouldered into view, momentarily clinging above
him, and a harsh voice cried:
“Murderer!”
Even above the discordant dash of his startled sensibilities rose
the fear, instantaneously born, that Honora had heard. All the vague
uneasiness which had possessed him at Thomas Gust's return
solidified into a recognizable, leaden dread—the conviction that his
wife must learn the story of his misadventure, told with animus and
lies. Then a more immediate dread held him rigidly attentive: there
might be a second cry, a succession of them shouted discordantly to
the sky. Honora would come out, the servants gather, while that
accusing voice, indistinguishable and disembodied by the night,
proclaimed his error. This was not the shooting of Eddie Lukens, but
the neglect to comprehend Honora Canderay.
Absolute silence followed. He made a motion toward the wall, but,
oppressed by the futility of such an act, arrested himself in the midst
of a step and stood with a foot extended. The stillness seemed to
thicken the air until he could hardly breathe; he was seized by a
sullen anger at the events which had gathered to betray him. The
crying tones had been like a chemical acting on his complexity,
changing him to an entirely different entity, darkening his being; the
peace and fragrance of the night were destroyed by the anxiety that
now sat upon him.
Convinced that nothing more was to follow here, he was both
impelled into the house, to Honora, and held motionless by the fear
of seeing her turn toward him with her familiar light surprise and a
question. However, he slowly retraced his way over the terraces,
through a trellis hung with grape vines, and into the hall. As he
hoped, Honora was on the opposite side of the dwelling. She had
heard nothing. Jason sat down heavily, his gaze lowered and
somber.
The feeling smote him that he should tell Honora of the whole
miserable business at once, make what excuse for himself was
possible, and prepare her for the inevitable public revelation. He
pronounced her name, with the intention of doing this; but she
showed him such a tranquil, superfine face that he was unable to
proceed. Her interrogation held for a moment and then left him,
redirected to a minute, colorful square of glass beads.
A multiplication of motives kept him silent, but principal among
them was the familiar shrinking from appearing to his wife in any
little or mean guise. It was precisely into such a peril that he had
been forced. He felt, now, that she would overlook a murder such as
the one he had committed far more easily than an intangible error of
spirit. He could actually picture Honora, in his place, shooting Eddie
Lukens; but he couldn't imagine her in his humiliating situation of a
few minutes before.
He turned to the consideration of who it might be that had called
over the wall, and immediately recognized that it was one of a small
number, one of “Pack” Clower's gang: Thomas Gast would have
gravitated quickly to their company, and their resentment of his,
Jason Burrage's, place in life must have been nicely increased by
Gast's jealousy. The latter, Jason knew, had not washed an honest
pan of gravel in his journey and search for a mythical easy wealth;
he had hardly left the littered fringe of San Francisco, but had filled
progressively menial places in the less admirable resorts and
activities.
With so much established beyond doubt he was confronted by the
necessity for immediate action, the possibility of yet averting all that
threatened him, of preserving his good opinion in Honora's eyes.
Clower and Emery Radlaw and the rest, with the balance of neither
property nor position, lawless and inflamed with drink, were a
difficult opposition. He repeated that he had mastered worse, but
out in California, where a man had been nakedly a man; and then he
hadn't been married. There he would have found them at once, and
an explosion of will, perhaps of powder, would soon have cleared the
atmosphere. But in Cottarsport, with so much to keep intact, he was
all but powerless.
Yet, the following day, when he saw the apothecary's brother
enter the combined drug and liquor store, he followed; and, to his
grim satisfaction, found Thomas Gast already inside. The apothecary
gave Jason an inhospitable stare, but the latter ignored him, striding
toward Gast. “Just what is it you've brought East about me?” he
demanded.
The other avoided the query, his gaze shifting over the floor.
“Well?” Jason insisted, after a pause. Thomas Gast was leaning
against a high counter at one side, behind which shelves held
various bottles and paper boxes and tins. The counter itself was
laden with scales and a mortar, powders and vividly striped candy in
tall glass jars.
“You know well as I do,” Gast finally admitted.
“Then we're both certain there's no reason for name-calling over
my back wall.”
“You shot him, didn't you?” the other asked thinly. “You can't get
away from the fact that you killed a pardner.”
 “I did,” said Jason Burrage harshly. “He robbed me. But I didn't
shout thief at him from the safety of the dark; it was right after
dinner, the middle of the day. He was ready first, too; but I shot him.
Can you get anything from that?”
“You ought to realize this isn't San Francisco,” Radlaw, the drug
taker, put in. “A man couldn't be coolly derringered in Cottarsport.
There's law here, there's order.” He had a harried face, dulled eyes
under a fine brow, a tremulous flabby mouth, with white crystals of
powder adhering to its corners, and a countenance like the yellow
oilskins of the fishermen.
Jason turned darkly in his direction. “What have you or Clower got
to do with law?”
“Not only them,” the apothecary interposed, “but all the other men
of the town are interested in keeping it orderly. We'll have no
western rowdyism in Cottarsport.”
“Then hear this,” Jason again addressed Thomas Gast; “see that
you tell the truth and all the truth. My past belongs to me, and I
don't aim to have it maligned by any empty liar back from the Coast.
And either of you Radlaws—I'm not going to be blanketed by the
town drunkards or old women, either. If I have shot one man I can
shoot another, and I care this much for your talk—if any of this muck
is allowed to annoy Mrs. Burrage I'll kill whoever starts it, spang in
the middle of day.”
“That's where it gets him,” the ex-scholar stated. “Just there,”
Jason agreed; “and this Gast, who has brought so much back from
California, can tell you this, too—that I had the name of finishing
what I began.”
But, once more outside, alone, his appearance of resolution
vanished: the merest untraceable rumor would be sufficient to
accomplish all that he feared, damage him irreparably with Honora.
He was far older in spirit and body than he had been back on Indian
Bar; he had passed the tumultuous years of living. The labor and
privation, the continuous immersion in frigid streams, had lessened
his vitality, sapped his ability for conflict. All that he now wished was
the happiness of his wife, Honora, and the quietude of their big,
peaceful house; the winter evenings by the Franklin stove and the
spring evenings with the windows open and the candles guttering in
the mild, lilac-hung air.

Together with his uncertainty the pleasure in the sheer fact of his
wife increased; and with it the old wonderment at their situation
returned. What, for instance, did she mean by saying that he must
explain her to herself? He tried again all the conventional reasons for
marriage without satisfaction: the sentimental and material equally
failed. Jason felt that if he could penetrate this mystery his grasp on
actuality would be enormously improved; he might, with such
knowledge, successfully defy Thomas Gast and all that past which
equally threatened to reach out destructively into the future.
His happiness, in its new state of fragility, became infinitely
precious; a thing to dwell on at nights, to ponder over walking
through the town. Then, disagreeably aware of what overshadowed
him, he would watch such passersby as spoke, searching for some
sign of the spreading of his old fault. Often he imagined that he saw
such an indication, and he would hurry home, in a panic of haste—
which was, too, intense reluctance—to discover if Honora yet knew.
He approached her a hundred times determined to end his misery
of suspense, and face the incalculable weight of her disdain; but on
each occasion he failed as he had at the first. Now his admission
seemed too damned roundabout; in an unflattering way forced upon
him. His position was too insecure, he told himself.... Perhaps the
threat in the apothecary's shop would be sufficient to shut the
mouth of rumor. It had not been empty; he was still capable of
uncalculating rage. How closely was Honora bound to him? What did
she think of him at heart?
 He couldn't bear to remember how he had laid open her dignity,
the dignity and position of the Canderays in Cottarsport, to
whispered vilification. Connected with him she was being discussed
in “Pack” Clower's shanty. His mind revolved endlessly about the
same few topics, he elaborated and discarded countless schemes to
secure Honora. He even considered giving Thomas Gast a sum of
money to repair what harm the latter had wrought. Useless—his
danger flourished on hatred and envy and malice. However
exculpable the killing of Eddie Lukens had been, the results were
immeasurably unfortunate, for a simple act of violent local justice.
They were in the carriage above Cottarsport; Coggs had died
through the winter, and his place been taken by a young coachman
from the city. The horses rested somnolently in their harness, the
bright bits of rubbed silver plate shining. Honora was looking out
over the harbor, a gentian blue expanse. “Good Heavens,” she cried
with sudden energy, “I am getting old at a sickening rate. Only last
year the schooners and sea made me as restless as a gull. I wanted
to sail to the farthest places; but now the boats are—are no more
than boats. It fatigues me to think of their jumping about; and I
haven't walked down to the wharves for six weeks. Do I look a
haggard fright?”
“You seem as young as before I went to California,” he replied
simply. She did. A strand of hair had slipped from its net, and
wavered across her flawless cheek, her lips were bright and smooth,
her shoulders slimly square.
“You're a marvelous woman, Honora,” he told her.
She gazed at him, smiling. “I wonder if you realize that that is
your first compliment of our entire wedded life?”
“Ridiculous,” he declared incredulously.
“Isn't it?”
“I mean I'm complimenting you all the time. I think——”
“You can hardly expect me to hear thoughts,” she interrupted.
He silently debated another—it was to be about the ribbon on her
throat—but decided against giving it voice. Why, like the reasons for
so much else, he was unable to say; they all had their root in the
blind sense of the uncertainty of his situation.
Throughout the evening his thoughts shifted ceaselessly from one
position to another. This, he realized, could not continue indefinitely;
soon, from within or out, Honora and himself must be revealed to
each other. He was permeated by the weariness of constant strain;
the peace of the past months had been destroyed; it seemed to him
that he had become an alien to the serenity of the high, tranquil
rooms and of his wife.
He rose early the following morning, and descended into a rapt
purity of sunlight and the ecstatic whistling of robins. The front door
had not been opened; and, as he turned its shining brass knob, his
gaze fell upon a sheet of paper projecting below. Jason bent,
securing it, and, with a premonition of evil, thrust the folded scrap
into his pocket. He turned through the house into the garden; and
there privately scrutinized a half sheet with a clumsily formed,
disguised writing:
“This,” he read, “will serve you notice to move on. Dangerous
customers are not desired here. Take a suggestion in time and skip
bad consequences. You can't hide back of your wife's hoops.” It was
signed “Committee.”
A robin was thrilling the air with melody above his head. Jason
listened mechanically as the bird ended his song and flew away.
Then the realization of what he had found overwhelmed him with a
strangling bitterness: he, Jason Burrage, had been ordered from his
birthplace, he had been threatened and accused of hiding behind a
woman, by the off-scouring of the alleys and rum holes. A feeling of
impotence thrust its chilling edge into the swelling heat of his
resentment. He would have to stand like a condemned animal before
the impending fatal blow; he was held motionless, helpless, by every
circumstance of his life and hopes.
He crumpled the warning in a clenched hand. How Cottarsport
would point and jeer at him, at Jason Burrage who was Honora
Canderay's husband, a murderer; Jason, who had returned from
California with the gold fleece! It wasn't golden, he told himself, but
stained—a fleece dark with blood, tarnished from hellish
unhappiness, a thing infected with immeasurable miseries. Its edge
had fallen on Olive Stanes and left her—he had passed her only
yesterday—dry-lipped and shrunken into sterile middle age. It
promised him only sorrow, and now its influence was reaching up
toward Honora, in herself serenely apart from the muck and
defilement out of which he thought he had struggled.
The sun, rising over the bright spring foliage, filled the garden
with sparkling color. His wife, in a filmy white dress, called him to
breakfast. She waited for him with her faint smile, against the cool
interior. He went forward isolated, lonely, in his secret distress.
This communication, like the spoken accusation of a previous
evening, was, apparently, bare of other consequences. Jason's
exterior life progressed without a deviation from its usual smooth
course. It was clear to him that no version of the facts about the
killing of Eddie Lukens had yet spread in Cottarsport. This, he
decided, considering the character of Thomas Gast, the oblique
quality of his statements, was natural. He could not doubt that such
public revelation, if threat and intimidation failed, must come.
Meanwhile he was victimized by a growing uncertainty—from what
direction would the next attack thrust?
He smiled grimly to himself at the memory of the withdrawn and
secure aspect of the town when he had first returned from the West.
To him, striding across the hills from the Dumner stage, it had
resembled an ultimate haven. The seeming harmony and peace of
the grey fold of houses about their placid harbor had concealed
possibilities of debasement as low as California's worst camps. Now,
successful, when he had looked for the reward of his long years of
brutal toil, the end of struggle, he was confronted by the ugliest
situation of his existence.
He was glad that he had always been a silent man, or Honora
would have noticed and demanded the cause of the moroseness
which must have settled over him. They sat no longer before the
stove in the drawing room, but on a side porch that commanded an
expanse of lawn and a high privet hedge, while he smoked morosely
at the inevitable cheroots, gloomily searching for a way from the
difficulty closing in upon him.
Honora had been to Boston, and she was describing lightly an
encounter with her aunt, Herriot Cozzens. He was only half
conscious of her amused voice. Clouds had obscured the evening
sky, and there was an air of suspense, like that preceding a thunder
storm, in the thickening dark. A restlessness filled Jason which he
was unable to resist; and, with a short, vague explanation, he rose
and proceeded out upon the street. There, his hands clasped behind
his back and head lowered, he wandered on, lost in inner
despondence.
He turned into the courthouse square, dimly lighted by gas lamps
at its outer confines, and paced across the grass, stirring a few wan
fireflies. It was blacker still beyond the courthouse. He stumbled
slightly, recovered himself, and wearily commenced a return home.
But he had scarcely taken a step when a figure closed in upon him,
materializing suddenly out of the darkness. He stopped and was
about to speak when a violent blow from behind grazed his head
and fell with a splintering impact on his shoulder. He stood for a
moment bewildered by the unexpected pain; then, as he saw
another shape, and another, gather around him, he came sharply to
his senses. His hand thrust into a pocket, but it was empty—he had
laid aside the derringer in Cottarsport.
His assailants grappled with him swiftly, and he swayed struggling
and hitting out with short blows in the center of a silent, vicious
conflict. A rough hard palm was crushed against his mouth, a head
ground into his throat, and a heavy, mucous breath of rum smote
him. There was muttered cursing, and low, disregarded commands.
A cotton handkerchief, evidently used as a mask, tore off in Jason's
hand; strained voices, their caution lost in passion, took
unmistakably the accents of “Pack” Clower and the Swede, Steven. A
thinner tone outside the swirling bodies cried low and urgent, “Get it
done with.” A fist was driven again Jason's side, leaving a sharp,
stabbing hurt, a heavy kick tore his thigh. Then he got his fingers
into a neck and put into the grip all the sinewy strength got by long
years with a miner's pan and shovel. A choked sob responded, and
blood spread stickily over his palms.
It seemed to Jason Burrage that he was shaking himself free, that
he was victorious; with a final supreme wrench he stood alone,
breathing in gusts. There was a second's imponderable stillness, and
then the entire night appeared to crash down upon his head...
He thought it was the flumed river, all their summer's labor,
bursting over him. He was whirled downward through a swift course
of jagged pains, held under the hurtling water and planks and
stones. He fought, blind and strangled, but he was soon crushed into
a supine nothingness. Far below, the river discharged him: he was
lying beside a slaty bank in which the gold glittered like fine and
countless fish scales. But he couldn't move, and the bank flattened
into a plain under a gloomy ridge, with a camp of miners. He saw
that it was Sunday, for the men were all grouped before the tents
singing. There was Eddie Lukens gravely waving a hand to the beat
of the melody:=
"'Don't you cry for me.
I'm going to Calaveras
With my wash bowl on my knee.'”=
It was undoubtedly Eddie, his partner, but he had never seen him
so white and—why, he had a hole over his eye! Eddie Lukens was
dead; it wasn't decent for him to be standing up, flapping his hands
and singing. Jason bent forward to remonstrate, to persuade him to
go back—back to where the dead belonged. Then he remembered,
but it was too late: Eddie had him in an iron clutch, he was dragging
him, too, down.
Jason made a convulsive effort to escape, he threw back his head,
gasping; and saw Honora, his wife, bending over him. The
tormenting illusion slowly perished—this was Cottarsport and not
California, he was back again in the East, the present, married to
Honora Canderay. An astounding fact, but so. Through the window
of his room he could see the foliage of a great horse-chestnut tree
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