Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1872-11-21

| Stdltu llIluSCll VII IL INV Sdlu p-SJOpl
beside her, folding the wrap over the
two. 81 never saw so rough sea as
this all the way from Honolulu to San
Francisco" said he looking out upon
the gentle swell Of the lazily mounting
waves.
"Rough ?" cried Miss Armour; 81
am sure the ocean is as smooth as a
mill-pond!
"Oh, but not as compared to the Pa
cifc--peaceful-it was rightly named.
We have never such gales on that as
sweep the Atlantic, but only the gen
tlest westerly breezes. The New Zea-
lander shivered as he spoke, and drew
his wrap closer over his knees. "We
have the most charming climate in
New Zealand" he went on: "we are
never too hot, and never too cold. In
fact, we never think of the weather
And the soil is the most fertile in the
world"
"Pity it is in such an out-of-the-way
part Of the earth that nobody can live
there" SAID Miss Armour.
Beg your pardon, miss; there are
several English towns of thirty thou
sand inhabitants each, and we never
think of ourselves as being out of the
way, but rather feel sorry for those
who live so far off, returned the other,
bending his tall figure earnestly for
ward.
Rosa leaned her pretty head toward
him in a confiding attitude Of interest
and laughed. "Oh, so you are the
people, ard wisdom is going to die
with you!' said she. "But what do
you do out there in the heart of the
universe p
"We dig gold for one thing, and
raise sheep for another-millions and
millions of them. From thirty to forty
vessels are constantly plying to Eng
land with the tallow and pressed wool "
"What do you do with all the NUT.
ton ?? asked Rosa, looking idly at the
light in her ring, and then as idly at
the light in the speakers eyes.
1--WE use what we can, was the re-
ply; 'and sometimes, am sorry to
say, we bury the fesh-not unusually !;
but sometimes an oQler will come to
one farmer for a thousand sheep, if you
please, and all he can do is clip off the
wool, get out the fat, and bury the car
cases.
"What pity the meat can't be sent
to the hungry poor at home. Why
don't somebody condense it, as they do
the beef in Texas ?" | said. in my prac-
tical way.
''In good time ] daresay somebody
will, but we cant do everything at
once, replied the New Zealander, look
inc with sudden interest 1.-THE game
of shufle-board being played beside
us.
Just then along come the ships sur
geon, blonde youth in uniform, with
his hair parted in the middle.
"Aliss Armour said he, ''the gun is
to be fired at the bow; will YOU come
and see it done q
Miss Armour started up at once,
turning the same halfconfding glance
and ready smile upon him she had been
giving us.
81 am going to leave my rug with
you; shall come back" said she,
beaming over her shoulder upon me as
she took the surgeons arm and went
away.
The New Zealander looked after her,
tried to console himself by drawing his
wrap in another fold across his knees,
did not succeed, and finally got up and
went away. OF course it was not worth
his while to make himself agreeable to
middle aged woman in hood and
waterproof So / sat and looked at
the likeness of lake among the sunset
clouds, and tried to decide whether |
had better take oatmeal Cruel or bis
cuit-tea for my supper, wondering the
while, half unconsciously, about the
old chord in memory that was always
being struck by certain musical ring
in the New Zealanders voice.
After an hour Or so, the gun was
fired, and presently Miss Armour came
back with the disorder of the strong
sea wind in her hair, and its freshness
in her pretty pink cheeks.
"I've come as | said, she murmured,
dropping at my feet again, and smiling
up, as though she had got where she
best liked to be, and that was how the
days went. The passengers read and
paced the deck, played games and
guessed riddles, and were always hun
CRY; the pilot stood steady and firm
at the wheel; the sailors ran up and
down about the rigging like overgrown
spiders, and were forever securing and
scrubbing, tying and untying, drawing
up ana letting down. mus at last we
had come safely almost to our desired
haven, With fair sailing we were only
one day out from port, and fond as we
had grown to be Of each other we were
getting impatient to part.
Miss Armour during all the voyage
had kept on as she began, beguiling
every one with her trick of lip and eye.
They ran after her like boys at the
string of kite. Well they had moth
ing better to do just then; and when
she had faded out, as a rainbow fades,
make no doubt she would he as easi-
ly forgotten, or only remembered as a
nidsummsr's day dream, by sll unless