Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1892-07-04

| heaps-stanQlng ABOUT ana swelling ou
their throat bags-I liked to watch them
dogs in the scrub. My wordi 1t was dit
too"
"And it was there that somebody CAV
you that ringP'
| 'tNo, it was in another place. A place
don't want to think Of hate it,
Mr.. Armstrong looked at her in puzzled
way. 81 am sure there is mystery abou
that ring 1t troubles me. 1 think i
| troubles you, too"
Eyes, it troubles me. But I am not eoin,
to let it trouble me any more"
She plucked the ring passionately from
her finger. 81 wanted to get rid of 1t eve
so long ago; but then couldn't. Pelican
Swamp wasn't deep enough to drown it.
Now it is different
Different" he repeated.
'1'm not going back to Pelican Swamp
Uncle Martins wife. And there is Aunt
Harriet-and it's Uncle Martin who wants
to cut off the entail. can drown the ring
here-here in the deep sea 1 wish had
thought of that before Mrs. Haddon saw it
Now look! There!''
She held the ring over the vessels side
and let it fall. They watched it strike the
water. She drew quick long breath. 'Tt's
like drowning living thing" she said.
'Never mind; it's gone-dead-bong- the
blacks say."
"And my all evil memories 20 with it, %
said Mr.. Armstrong, fervently. He still
watched jamie with a curious perplexed ex-
preston. The innocent childish face
seemed to reassure him. He drew a little
nearer her
81 have no right to pry into your secrets, +"
he said, ''but-Miss Calderwood-I wish
you'd answer me this: You've not promised
to marry anybody, have your"
jamie did not answer for moment. Then
she laughed again her hard little laugh
No." she said, GIVE not promised to
marry anybody" And then she walked
away from him; and he saw her little
later playing game of quoits with one of
the passengers, as merry if she had never
known q care.
The steamer was drawing near Alden when
this conversation took place. During the
passage from Gale, Mr.. Armstrong and
Miss Calderwood had become great friends.
They had gone on shore there in the same
party-a party in which jamie had been the
only lady. The other ladies on board did
not take much notice of her, perhaps, poor
little thing, because her clothes were so
shabby. Mr.. Armstrong did not mind that
in the least; be only looked at her face, and
that was sufficiently pleasing object to
atone for all other DEFICIENCIES. They had
driven together through the coooanut plan
tations had watched the after-glow through
the palm stems, and looked at the view
from ok-Walla, and had come back
to the steamer side by side in the stern of
the boat feeling as unconstrain ed in each
others society as though they had been
friends for years. He had listened with the
greatest interest to her childish prattle, and
had been delighted by her delight when he
had set the Cingalese boys diving for small
coins. After that he took it upon himself
to look after her, to lend her books, to play
quoits with her in the aftern oons, and to
walk with her on deck in the evenings.
People soon become intimate on board ship,
and they were on such good terms that the
passengers began to talk about them, and
Mrs. Haddon had bet with the gentleman
who sat next to her at dinner that Mr. Arm
strong and the pretty Australian would be
engaged before they reached Marseilles.
1t was when theyigot into the Red Sea
that the ladies began to be little kinder to
jamie. Her remark about the lawyers had
set Mrs. Haddon upon trail, and it was
not long before she discovered that Frank
Calderwood was the nephew of Colonel Cal
lerwood, of Calderwoods, in Yorkshire;
hat the Calderwoods were an old family,
md that the estate was worth G10, 600
year; that the next heir, Franks father,
was brainless sne'er-do-well banished by
MS relations to Australia, who was quite
'eady to entertain Colonel Calderwood's
proposal of the payment of a sum of money
n consideration that he and his son should
'esign their claims, and that Frank Calder
nnt oit -. L =
,irthright, was now on his way
o England in the hope of effect
ng some arrangement more adyan-
ageous to himself Mrs. Haddon thought
t quite likely that Colonel Calderwood
night take fancy to this handsome young
elbow and might not be indisposed to vel |
ome him as his heir. There was no doubt |
hat little Jenny in her very ignorance and |
implicitly had a fascination for men and |
night be welcome, too, as an element of life |
t Calderwood's. Under such circumstances,
er manners and her wardrobe would soon /
ndergo revision, and jamie might prove a |
esirable English acquaintance. So Mrs |
1addon took jamie under her wing at Suez,
nd when they got into the canal and the |
lights grew cold, insisted very sweetly, and
nth some tact. in providing her with
arm cloak out of her own abundant store.
Wrapped in Mrs Haddon's cloak, jamie
at on deck, Mr. Armstrong generally be-
lde her. How strange and dream-like 1t
eemed, to glide between those low white
anks, with the curious life of the desert
howing itself in glimpses on each side of
hem-a string of camels, native village,
water wheel, party of Arabs in their
lue gowns, group of palms, a mirage, and
hose glorious sunsets Of red and gold and
urple. And then the swift falling night,
nd the Loneliness and immensity of the
asst sand plains, the stars coming out and
inning in the deep blue of space-it was all
ondertul aud poetic, and to poor little
utterly jamie, who had hitherto fluttered
trough life untouched by any of the
er worst trouble in child's play, inex-
ressibly ssddening. Her fri volous chatter
as silenced for while. Somehow of late
avs Armstrong noticed that she had talked
nd laughed less, and he had wondered
hat was the cause. This evening, when
lddenly a deck lamp, just lighted,
vung round the mast by which their
'ats were set, Mr.. Armstrong, to his
lrprise. saw that her eyes were full of
ars.
"What is the matter" he asked. bending
'er the arm of her long basket chair,
You haven't been like yourself lately.
ou're crying-Janie-1 can't bear to see
ou sad. Tell me what it isl
''It's n-nothing, and I'm n-not crying"
ltered jamie
''Yes you are. You're unhappy And
hen you first came on board you were so
y-always laughing. You haven't
lghed all day to-day. Janie-do you
md my calling you Jsnie?"
No. like it,
Tell me what it is in the voyage that has
lde you unhappy"
There's nothing in the voyage. It has
en- beautiful"
sYesn he said softlv-ssbeautiful In. | :