Evening journal., 1897-03-04
OUR DESERT ISLAND.

ong and suspicious. 1t conveyed an al
ogether unworthy slur upon the pro
eedings of the inhabitants Of the room,
nd Cynthia laughed with amused resig-
alton.
"It is Charlie, she said. "He al
Ways comes in like that. +"
"We must do the same for him" l
eplied, "when he arrives at years Of
discretion and becomes engaged. "
Cynthia's youngest brother stole into
he room rapidly and softly. Keeping
lis eyes religiously averted from the
ofa by the fireplace, he picked up a
'ook from the table and departed ]
'ffered some casual observation, but he
ook no notice, clearly thinking it
would be injudicious of him to be mixed
tp in the business at all. My innocent
,osition, which was two good yards
rom Cynthia, courted observation, and
We both felt little injured
II wonder what he expects to seer" /
'aid, resuming my seat upon the sofa.
Augustus in the presence of Cleopatra
vas not more careful to see nothing Is
Z a sense of dccorum or feeling of
contempt that inspires his caution?"
Never mind, answered Cynthia
Let us talk about ourselves. Are you
ure? Are you sure you are quite sure?"
This conundrum / had heard before,
md my answer was stereotyped. was
luite sure, and l pressed her hand to
convince her.
"And when" " she continued when
lid you first, you know? Was it at
he -
Any demonstration that l may have
been contemplating was rudely inter
upted by a further agitation of the
ioor. With a promptness bred of some
practice 1 was again in an erect position
IN the hearth rug, and Cynthia was read
ing a book. IL was a manservant with a
scuttle 0fquite unnecessary coal for the
Are. He poured ON the fuel and brushed
the hearth with scrupulous care. The
operation seemed to take an enormously
long time.
Left once more to our tete-a-tete,
Cynthia's impatience of these interludes
found words.
''I wish we lived ON a desert island, ="
she said. "How delightful it would bel'
Indeed it would, 1 agreed. Long
yellow sands and blue sea and palm
trees and solitude with nothing to dis
turb our conversation. We could talk
together from sunrise to sunset.
$50 we could-or we could read to-
gether.
"Or you could sing to me, T" said
ST should want an accompanist, " she
observed obviously, because you cant
play the piano
1T would be most Elysian, went
ON. 1--WE should have our house, oui
books and our music. Far away from
any fellow creature we could idle away
the sunny summer afternoons together
and be totally happy. We would be in
visible to even the telescope of the pass
ing vessel
Cynthia took up the parable and am
plified it. 1.-The world would contain
for you one woman and for me on'
man, and each would be ample company
for each other.
"Ampler' cried confidently. W.
had only been engaged a fortnight.
"Amplel' she maintained with sus
picious emphasis, as if conscious tina
the statement needed repetition to ren
der it convincing.
For exercise, continued, rashl,
sketching in the details, 1--WE woul'
have lawn tennis court. F"
"You beat me so easily" she sighed
L
ed her delightful hair. A tap resounde'
on the window pane behind us ant
made us jump dreadfully. II was m,
uncle, a man devoid of proper feeling
and 1 knew he was about TO make
shouted suggestion Of stroll in tn
garden, himself being the third, a
Thucydides used TO put it. So / shoe
my head firmly, and he waddled OF
with a despairing wave of his han
which he may have considered humoI
Gus, for / saw him smile as he went.
''How long, asked Cynthia, becom
& ing pink in the face, "do you think?
And she nodded guiltily toward tn
window.
II wish l knew, " was my answer
1--WE ought to draw the curtain. 4"
"That would only make matter
worse. Besides, there is really nothin
i to be ashamed of. "
Nothing whatever, said. "Sh
the island would be less painful to I'll
s. nerves.
"You could play cricket ON Ii
randsr' cried Cynthia, rendered despe
ate by the stings of conscience. AN,
Z thing to be rid Of these constant di
q fractions
Il might at low tide, - said dubiou
ly, ''but you know prefer to play wit
B 81 other men.
''If they We're nice men, said Cynthi
blandly, 1--WE might allow them
come. delight in watching cricket. -
mice menu 1 repeated with susp
cious severity. Recollect was new
the character of a passionate shepher'
''Well, we could take our bicycles,
s. any rate, - said Cynthia diplomaticall,
1.-THE roads would be exquisite; no hill
and no thorng in the road -