The pioneer express. [volume] (Pembina, Dakota [N.D.]) 1883-1928, 1898-05-13

I am all ready; I must 60 with you"
"You must not think of It, Clara.
There will be crowding and confusion
at the water-side. You are not strong
enough to bear it. Wait-I won't be
long away-walt till come back"
II must, and will, go with you!
Crowd! He will be among the crowd!
Confusion! In that confusion he will
find his way to Frank! Don't ask mo
to wait. l shall go mad If I wait. !
shall not know moments ease till
have seen Frank with my own eyes
safe in the boat which takes him to his
ship. You have got your bonnet on;
what are we stopping here for? Come!
or shall go without you. Look at the
clock! We have not a moment to
lose!'
It was useless to contend with her.
Mrs. Crawford yielded. The two women
left the house together.
The landing-stage, as Mrs. Crawford
had predicted, was thronged with spec
tators. Not only the relatives and
friends of the Arctic voyagers, but
strangers as we'll, had assembled in
large numbers to see the ships sail.
Clara's eyes wandered affrighted hither
and thither among the strange faces
in the crowd, searching for the one
face that she dreaded to see, and not
finding it. So completely were her
nerves unstrung that she started with
a cry of alarm on suddenly hearing
Franks voice behind her.
"The Sea-Mew's boats are waiting"
he said. II must go, darling. How pale
you are looking, Clara! Are you ill?"
She never answered. She questioned
him with wild eyes and trembling lips.
"Has anything happened to you,
Frank? anything out of the common ?"
Frank laughed at the strange question.
Anything out of the common" he
repeated. Nothing that know Of, ex-
cept sailing for the Arctic Seas. That's
out of the common, I suppose; isn't
it,"
"Has anybody spoken to you since
last night? Has any stranger followed
you in the street,"
Frank turned in blank amazement to
Mrs. Crawford. What on earth does
she mean?"
Mrs. Crayford's lively invention slp-
piled her with an answer on the spur
of the moment.
'sDo you believe in dreams, Frank?
OF course you don't! Clara has been
dreaming about you, and Clara il, fool
ish enough to believe in dreams. That's
all; it's not worth talking about.
Hark! they are calling for you. Say
goodbye, or you'll be too late for the
boat
Frank took Clara's hand. Long af-
terward-in the dark Arctic days, in the
dreary Arctic nights-he remembered
how coldly and how passively that
hand lay in his.
Courage, Clara!" he said gaily. "a
sailors sweetheart must accustom her
self to partings. The time will soon
pass. Goodbye, my darling. Good
bye, my wife,"
He kissed the cold hand: he looked
his last-for many a long year per-
haps!-at the pale and beautiful face.
How she loved me! he thought. How
the parting distresses her! He still
held her hand; he would have fingered
longer, if Mrs. Crawford had not wisely
waived all ceremony and pushed him
away.
The two ladies followed him at a safe
distance through the crowd, and saw
him safely step into the boat. The
oars struck the water; Frank waved his
cap to Clara. In moment more n
vessel at anchor hid the boat from
view. They had seen the last of him
on his way to the Frozen Deep!
"No Richard Wardour in the boat.
said Mrs. Crawford. mo Richard
Wardour on the shore. Let this be a
lesson to you, my dear. Never be fool
ish enough to believe in presentimcnts
again."
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