had i only foreseen � what a fool i was i ought to have known better i have had nothing but bad luck all my life nothing it is perfectly wonderful the bad luck have had no matter what i did nothing seemed to go right i if you had gone to see that fellow without me it would have turned out differently but i don t see how i am to tell my sister point blank that i have forbidden him the house what will she say she may fly at me women have queer particularly when you interfere with their young men my sisters have the very worst of you don t know them as i do fortunately it is not sally i assure you i wouldn t face sally with such news for all the money you could give me i am very sorry old chap but we must now go through it you must forbid her to communicate with him she won t heed what i say it will only excite her she will fly at me and call me names and burst into tears i should not be surprised if she went off her head she has been very strange once before i don t mean to say she spring days was ever wrong in her head but she is a nervous girl � most my sisters are the most girls i have ever known it was soon over had not spoken a dozen words when he was interrupted you mean to say you have been to call on him yes and we told him he was never to speak to you again frank expected her eyes to flash fire but he only noticed a slight change in her face a movement of the muscles of the lower jaw then i will speak to neither of you again and she walked out of the room and in dismay they listened to her going upstairs she didn t fly at ine said and looking a little terrified he his moustache softly i told you she would give no heed to what we said nor do i see how we can prevent her seeing that fellow if she chooses he cannot come into the house it is true but she can go out when she pleases we must follow her conscious of defeat desired compromise he could not be induced to take a share of watching and following which frank declared essential and seriously an encounter with whose arm was impossible to forget he shut himself up in the shop and devoted himself to drawing up a most elaborate balance sheet showing how he would stand if he were obliged to close the business to morrow frank about the roads � but mrs came along with her dogs and engaged him in conversation and no matter at q s spring days what comer he stationed himself he found he was not free from observation and next morning he could not bring himself to return to his post and contented himself with looking out of his window and taking an occasional stroll by the when he saw a train daily his condition grew more and more ridiculous true it is that ho had heard that his rival s holiday had come to an end and that he had been forced to return to his counting house in london true it is that mr had in a certain measure approved of s action in forbidding young the house and therefore of his frank s suit but neither of these gains him for the crowning loss of not being able to see his beloved for although the house was still open to him practically it was closed the sisters although at on all subjects had united in him and and during one dinner the misery of which he declared he could never forget they had sat whispering together refusing to address him either by look or word took all this calmly it is an ill wind that blows no good and the silence enabled him to thoroughly his food mr wept a little and laughed a little and reminded them of the oblivion that awaited all their little quarrels all this like much else in life was ridiculous enough but because we are ridiculous it does not follow that we do not suffer and frank suffered very indeed he was five and twenty and light love had him fairly by the shoulder he and he cried out but very soon his dignity gave way and he forgiveness but passed without him for more than spring days a week she resisted all his appeals and it was not until she saw that she was taking the neighbourhood into her confidence and to feel that if she did not a little he might leave and riot return she answered him with a with what bliss did he hear that first no and how passionately he pleaded for a few words it did not seem to matter what they were so long as he heard her speak one whole sentence to him feeling her power she was shy of yielding and with every concession she drew him further into the of love he dined now nearly every day at the house and he spent an hour sometimes two with her in the morning or afternoon he followed her from to but all his efforts were and he failed not only to obtain her promise to marry him but even a renewal of the feeble and partial hopes which she had accorded him that night on the beach he prayed he wept he implored pity he openly spoke of suicide and he hinted at murder but passed him pushing him out of the way with the watering pot threatening to water him too until one day he drew a revolver she screamed and the revolver was put away but on the next occasion a 