Waterbury evening Democrat., 1889-04-05

afraid the roads won't be naxigable for some davs--that we arc prisoners, in fact"
 "The deuce! Then what arc we to do with i!.a> eirl?''
 ''Well--if we can't get out. suppose s:lc can't get out either.
 '.EIumph! It's confoundedly awk- ward"
 s.I quite agree with you. It is awk- ward"
 There was q pause; then Carruthers said:
 Curious that you should know her people"
 '.Yes, it was curious replied Darrell. as he struck q match.
 "She seems nice little thing" went on the other. ''Awfully young, too, and not bad looking"
 Darrell made no reply. He was lying back in his chair, watching the blue rings of smoke curl upwards to the rafter bound ceiling.
 How do the rations stand:' he asked suddenly.
 "Phcw! I don't kliow!' exclaimed Gilbert, taking his pipe out of his mouth, and sitting up straight in his chair. Now that 1 come to think of it, there csnt bc a superabundance, or Wellings wouldn't have trudged to Princetown in the teeth of a coming storm. Old fool! as if he couldn't have seen to things sconer," he muttered. resuming his former position.
 "Well, we must inspect the supplies in the morning." said Darrell tranquilly. By love, how the wind whistles!''
 "Ycs, and the snow is up to the lodges of the windows already" returned the other, ''at least, it was steadily progress ing that way when l opened the back door. Heaven knows how high it'll be before morning. It's an awful pity we didn't go last week. Lance. knew this would come"
 In which case poor Miss Heath would most certainly have been frozen to dcath," Darrell answered quietly. Carruthers looked serious.
 "Ah, yes, I forgot that" he said. Poor little girl, yes, of course"
 Meanwhile Leslie Heath, in the seclusion of her room tor rather, to speak more correctly, Capt. Darrell's room) was inspecting her quar- ers"Mith some curiosity. It was good sized room, quite as largo as tho sitting room, uncarpeted, and of severe, almost military simplicity in it's appointments. It looked very cozy, however, in the light of tho roaring heaped-up fire, which blazcd in the wide grate, and shone brightly on the bare walls and on the bars of the narrow brass bedstead. A gun case and a battered portmanteau, all most covered with half effaced labels, oc- cupied one corner of tho room, and a | couple of tweed coats, smelling strongly of tobacco, hung behind the door, Tired and cold though she was. 6 wild desire to scream with laughter took pos session of the girl as she noted the ar engagements made for her comfort. A large bath was placed immediately in front of the fire, and beside it stood can of steaming hot water. A pile of clean towels lay on chair.
 'SiX-no, seven," murmured Leslie, counting them ill much amusement.
 On the bed was sconspicuously displayed q masculine dressing gown, warm and gray and soft. AS this last met her view, Leslie abandoned herself to the agonies 1 of noiselcss laughter.
 "Poor fellowsr she said half aloud, ''how good of them, and yet-how funny" Here she choked again. "Oh, what would Aunt Priscilla say? How nicc they are-especially Capt. Darrell. And how very strange that should make his acquaintance in such an outrageous way. Old enough to be my father. he said. Well, he does not look it. Iwon- l der how much brandy he put in this,' regarding with much distastc the tum- bier she had just set down. | She took off her drenched little gown. stockings, and having put them to dry, brushed out her hair with an ivory | backed brush on which an inextricable | silver monogram flourished, batfling all her efforts to decipher it. Then she OK amined a little pile of books which lay l on the mantelpiece, consisting of q couple of French novels, q railway time | table, and small morocco bound Bible. | On the fly leaf of this last was written "Lancelot E. Darrell, from his loving | mother" It was his room, then, the | girl thought with q curious sense of sat l isfaction. At this point she became aware that she was feeling rather sleepy | so she obeyed Darrelrs instructions to tho letter, extinguished tho candle | jumped into bed, and in two minutes was fast asleep:
 When she awoke the fire was out, and the room in darkness; so she promptly went to sleep again. From this sleep she was awakened by footsteps passing hel door, and by the sound of subdued voices. She got out of bed, lit her can. dle, and looked at her watch. It was twenty minutes to twelve, Surely Il must Do more than that, she thought in some perplexity. She felt as Ii she had been asleep for long time, All at once she became conscious of strong, prevailing odor oi newly made coffee, mingled with the ap petizing fragrance of fried bacon. Was it possible it could be nearly twelve noon She drew aside the window blind anG looked out. It was pitch dark. Muct puzzled, she examined the clothes she had hung to tho fire. They felt quite dry l By this she knew that many hours mus,