The Evansville journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ind.) 1866-1870, 1866-09-20
LOVE LAUGHS AT LOCKSMITHS.
1 CONTINUED

helped; you must return TO your mis-
tress, and must wait here until Miss
Valdane is able to travel.
In the course of the afternoon,
and after Mrs. Slater's servant had
left, | sent up my compliments to
Miss Valdane, and requested to know
how she was, lI
an Miss Valdane's compliments =
she was so much better that she hoped
to be down in the course of an hour
This was good news, and / imme-
diately set about inquiries as to trains
and boat. [ found that by leaving
Ostend at 'half-past three the next
morning, the young lady could be at
her fathers house in time for lunch
the same day. l accordingly made
the requisite arrangements, and await
ed Miss Valdane's appearance.
" Her maid shortly afterwards came
down with message to know if it
would be convsnientto me to have an
interview with her mistress. |, of
course, assented, and directly after
ward young lady came into the
room.
g. bowed and looked at my charge
with some curiosity. Her appearance
surprised me. She was dark, and
had large, tender looking eyes, but in
other respects was by no means good
looking, and seemed to want the ease
and saUoir faire that | should have
imagined girl in her rank of life
would have possessed. She was well
and handsomely dressed, but was de-
oil
want of, freshness and youthfulness.
about her that made her anything but
an attractive looking girl. She adj
dressed me in a constrained and rath-
er unmusical voice.
. "'You ardthe per- the gentleman
that has been sent over to fetch me?'
Il am, Miss Valdane; when will it
be convenient to you, to set out on
your journeyH BgT02
: 80 [ don't know she said, pettish-
ly; / wanted to see the pictures and
the cathedral, but [ suppose | shall
have to do as I'm told -
sc [ was instructed, said /, to es-
lcort you home without any delay.
$50, by the way said she, there's
a school-fellow OF mine and great
friend going with us. She wanted to
go home, so we agreed to travel to-
gether.' ,t sa5L -
How strange, thought /, that the
servant should have made no mention
of this other pupil. But suppose she
was so much engrossed with Miss Val
danes illness that she could think of
nothing else.
Il was not aware" said I, that
sou would have companion; but |
shall Delivery happy to be of use to
her.
''tIin call her down, she said, and
going to the door she called, or rather
shouted, Amy, come down
She forgets, l thought, that she is
in crowded hotel, and not at home,
I heard a light, tripping step on the
stairs, and after some little giggling
outside the door,, Miss Valdane came
in with a very pretty, mischievous-
looking blonde, who could not present
the semblance of gravity when she
was introduced to me. t2''J
What on earth are you laughing
at, AmyY said my charge.
Ir"ttS You, mustn't mind me Mr.. Min
toni said Miss Manners; I'm rather
silly, I'm afraid" ..a
Rather sillyl' said Miss Valdane;
She thinksyeu alittle tom-fool, and
he's perfectly right in thinking So
and before / had time to put in dis
claimer to this opinion, she added, /
don t know what you people are going
to do, but l'msgoing to dine.
"' Shall we dine at once, Miss Val
dane? said,I, and then we canlleave
Antwerp at half past seven, catch the
| night mail at Ostend. and be in Lon
don by midday tomorrow. !a'
80 j ust as you ike, said she.
| ordered dinner for three, and
that finished, the young ladies went
to their rooms to prepare for the
journey. T0f Y98lifsISI
" could hear Miss Valdane whist
ling as she packed, and ] must say
that the young lady's collection of
tunes was yeryev varied, if it was not
II could not help wishing myself
back again at the bank and my hands
clean washed of my eccentric charge.
Miss Valdane embarrassed me very
much as we were leaving the hotel by
interfering with thesvarious directions
that | gave, and when we got to the
station she had an alteration with a
porter, which exhausted all my rather
scanty stock of French to set right.
Miss Manners demonstrated with her
friend, but always as if more amused
/, by her yagaries than annoyed. -
" 1t is needless for me to detail all
the worrying events of the journey to
| Ostend and the voyage to Dover.
During the latter, the sea certainly
did subdue the young lady's spirits,
and she lay on deck with a stiffish
glass of brandy and water beside her,
and held her tongue, Miss. Man
yersiwas a riddle to me as well as her
friend. In a great deal that she
| said and did and In hnr r,nnnn o,.r