The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1885-07-11
CHAPTER XI.
"MORBID'S THE WORD.'

Thanks to the remarkably fine air # Oak
| hurry, and to an absolute cessation OF Cly
thing like hard work, Mr. Carruthcrs soon
| lost his jadcd appearance. At the end OF Il
days he declared himself to be in rude health,
and his looks did not belle his words. Ger
tainly those worthy housewives, his cousins
had taken great care of him. They fel a..
fattened him. insisting that Le should tai
| beef tea at intervals, and that his euro shou.D
be hastened by his drinking plenty Of that old
~ port for which their fathers cellar hal
been noted. Close as the 'TabbieS" were il
their housekeeping arrangements, they
grudged the stranger within their gates moth
ing.
In less than a week Frank had taken the
measure of his cousins-of his male cousins
at least. He had even ceased to be sni2eG
with an almost irresistible desire to go into q
secluded corner and chuckle when be saw
! these great men engaged in some duty which
is supposed to appertain peculiarly to women
kind; or when he heard their simple consul
tations on the price OF meat, groceries, OF
other household commodities. Being, Ike
Mr. Mordle, gifted with a vein Of humor, lie
found the Taberts most interesting char
acters; but had he found their eccentricitics
weariSome, the kindness they showed hin
would have compensated for the discomfort,
| For in spite of the exclusiyenesS which they
were compelled by circumstances to adopt.
! they were amiable, lovable men. So Mr..
Carruthers took them as they were, AMI liked
! the two brothers better and better tie more
he really understood them.
But Beatrice was another matter He had
studied her with even moro attention, but
felt that the result of his studies was unsats.
| factory So far us she was concerned he
knew ho had got at nothing like the truth.
| except on one self-evident point, that she was
| very beautiful. When first they met hcI
beauty struck him, but it was days before he
| finished finding new and fresh personal
charms perhaps he never ceased finding
| them. Under certain circumstances such
discoveries are endless.
Frank Carruthers' studies of Miss Clauson's
outward she'll should therefore have been
very pleasing to that young lady, had the
result been made known to her, and had she
cared twopence to find favor in the students
eyes For the rest he was i'll puzzle, which
he spent many hours trying to solve. Miss
| Clauson little thought, as she looked out OF
Tire window and saw Mr. Carruthers lying on
the turf with his straw hat tilted over his
ewes and thin blue stream of smoke curling
up from his cigarette, that he was neither
sleeping nor projecting a new political arti'
Gle for The Latterday, but thinking entirely
of her own sweet self.
They had seen great deal of one another
during the last week. Frank was not a man
who loved twenty-mile walks, or cared &c
rush from one end of county to another tc
look at a rock or waterfall. His idea of &
holiday he summed up in the word 'loafne5.
"a good loafer is great rarity" he told
Miss Clauson. 'Loafing proper is an art
which cannot be acquired. have met with
| many spurious limitations, but the real article
is hard to find. Show me the man who can
spend a whole day like this, and you show me
one who can get very near to happiness
"I.ke this" meant lying on his back as de
scribed.
But YOU do something-you smoke, said
Beatrice.
"Yes, for the sake of appearances. In
these days Of hard work q man mustn't be
absolutely idle"
OF course she ought to have laughed at the
feeble joke. But she did not She looked
down at him from her chair, and her gray
ewes were annoyingly serious In gloriou:
August weather. when the sky is a cloudles.
blue when all the trees, except the spend
thrift chestnuts, are in full beauty, wher
roses are still budding, breaking into bloom
and succeeding their fallen fellows, young
lady has no right to look seriously ut the mar
by her side. Certainly not Beatrice ClauSon
with her beauty and fortune.
Yet she looked and spoke gravely. "Hol
wrong Yourself talking such nonsense, Mr.
Carruthers."
He raised himself on his elbow. Il dom
talk nonsense. i am speaking of my idea o
enjoying a holiday. When l work it i
another matter. / trust work to the best o
my ability. When idle, idle to the best o
my ability"
''Your idea of human happiness is hum
bic one"
us it, Then give me yours IN exchange
Beatrice was silent. She even turned he
head away.
well, l am waiting for the definition.
There was no trace Of levity i'll Frank Noic
as he spoke. His manner was as serious a
her OWL.
II have none to give" said Beatrice.
'None-at your agel Are your dream
all Comet Young ladies do dream, l believe
They dream Of being queens of society, Q
marrying rich men; il they are romantic, O
marrying poor men; they dream of n life q
religion: of having q mission TO perform
Which is your particular dream"
81 have none,n she said coldly.
''You must dream. You are sleeping now
and all sleepcrs dream at times. Only in til