He made the other young men appear commonplace and feeble in her eyes, and threw the minister into pale relief, emphasizing his serenity, his scholarship, and his security of position.
Harold gave close attention to the young minister, who, as Mary's lover, became important.

As a man of action he put a low valuation on a mere scholar, but King was by no means contemptible physically.

Jack also perceived the charm of such a man to Mary, and acknowledged the good sense of her choice.

King could give her a pleasant home among people she liked, while Harold could only ask her to go to the wild country, to a log ranch in a cottonwood gulch, there to live month after month without seeing a woman or a child.
A bitter and desperate melancholy fell upon the plainsman.

What was the use?
Such a woman was not for him.