Weekly expositor. (Brockway Centre, Mich.) 1882-1894, 1893-06-09

servant, and took the dish out OF his
hands. He sprang forward to help
Annie as she opened the oven
to take out the tart and
burned his fingers on the oven
door. But still he repeated, wiring
ing his hand:
"What is 1t you are going to bep"
"a nurse" answered Annie, COM
posedly.
"A nurse!"
Ale repeated the word, surprised,
but not exactly displeased.
"What hospital are you going to
train at?" he asked confdentially,
with rosy look of hope, struggling
with some rising jealousy, on his
face.
"Oh, I'm not going to be a sick
nurse, | couldn't do that. | don't
believe I'm strong enough either; and
l shouldn't like to break down. I'm
going to be a children's nurse"
"Oh, a lady-nurse, ! see. >"
"NO, mamma says | should do my
self no good by labelling myself like
that, and that if | go among people
of refinement they will soon enough
find out my level, whatever it is.
This startlingly uncommon piece of
good sense struck Cameron for mo-
ment dumb. At last he said:
Mrs. May must be wonderfully
wise woman
A smile broke out on Annie's face
as she turned to arrange some pears
and plums together, in huge pyra-
mid, on fruit dish.
You are laughing at me. Why?"
You are so changeable. First you
think one thing about a person, and
then another"
Cameron looked puzzled.
Il don't think have ever before
mentioned your mothers name.
don't even know her..
Annie's hand shook little and the
plum, with which she was carefully
browning her fruit pyramid, tumblcd
down. They both tried to save it
from rolling to the floor, and the
white hand and the brown met on the
edge of the deal kitchen table. 1t
was the turn of that big, brown hand
to tremble now. Cameron's breath
began to come quickly, as he de-
| taiped the little fingers with daring
pressure, and looked into the girls
shy gray eyes. Why was she flush
ing like that, and avoiding his own.
She knew what she would see in his
face if she would only look up, she
knew, aye, and she cared-just lit
tie, or she was treating him as never
a woman of heart could treat man!
She tried to draw her hand away of
course; he did not mind that; it was
only modest and natural, only pref
ty gesture of invitation to him TO
hold it more firmly. He did so, and,
scarcely knowing what he said, re-
peated his last words:
IL don't even know your
MOTHER
Like flash of lightning the girls
glance met his, full of reproach and
passionate anger. He almost stag
gered A moment before she had
been all coy shyness and maidenly
smiles; now, with her head held back
and her nostrils dilated, she was a
veritable tragedy queen. She strug-
gled for a few seconds to find words,
only at first repeating mo, no." as if
her feelings were choking her utter
ance. Then she snatcbed away her
hand, and leaning against the table,
opened the food-gates of her wrath
upon him.
mo" she said for the third
time. "You do not know my mother,
and yet you have abused her
in terms which man might
we'll be ashamed of himself for using
toward any woman"
Cameron drew a long breath. The
shock was so sudden, so great, that
at first he felt cold and sick, and
could not speak. For he had no need
to ask another question; that very
moment he saw what an idiot he had
been not to guess that the gentle
girl before him, whom he had caught
tending the flowers, and who had
come to his aid so sweetly, was
the daughter of the adventures, y
the "thief," the vampire" on whom
he had lavished all the terms of abuse
that came to his lips. He gave one
look into Annie's flushed face, and
overcome with remorse and horror at
the atrocities of which he had been
guilty, drew one long breath, tried
in vain TO speak, and then bad only
time to take one step away, before he
burst into tears.
Annie was sorry in a moment, and
would have spoken, but that mans
sobbing frightens an inexperienced
girl, so that she pressed her hands
together and turned red and white
and did not know what to say.
Before she had mastered these sen
sations, the young fellow, shaking
with his sobs, had staggered up stairs
and left her alone.
CHAPTER X.
Tonfaoainn