The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1898-02-21

pensed in that fashion they are about as
uncomfortable as spilled needles. | say,
Street, this war is all blamed foolish
ness anyway"
II haven't seen enough of it to Judge
yet" said Lemuel quietly, and Maxwell
frankly acknowledged he had him there.
Several more shells were dispensed
with view to discourage any probable
blockade runners, but the two in the
boat built by Maxwell escaped un.
scathed. The first cold gray lances Of
light which heralded another day were
piercing the eastern sky when Lemuel
and Maxwell set foot on the opposite
shore.
The skiff was beached and hidden.
Three oarsmen were given their choice
of returning Or casting in their lot with
the two who were to make their own
way as best they could without money
and without scrip through an unknown
region. They sat contentedly munching
the bread they had brought with them
before starting for the nearest railroad
station. Maxwell was rapidly develop
ing philosophical views Of life.
! II say, Street, an hour after fellow
has been in danger Of having his head
blown off he can breakfast off dry bread
and bottled buttermilk with remarkable
equanimity. If Nanny Jane had set
me down to such menu as this yester-
!, day morning, should have ho&led.r
"If you are one of the sort that bowls
whenever his breakfast doesn t suit him,
congratulate them all on getting rid
Of you"
"Thanks. I won't run any risk of be-
ing spoiled by you, | see. !"
"None whatever. We arc starting
out on a give and take expedition, my
boy, and you need not look for any IA
vors until you get back to Nanny
Jane"
"Oh, that's all right. bet I can
rough it with you straight through
say, speaking of bowling makes me
think of Miss Bascom."
II am quite sure she is not one Of the
bowling sort"
II should rather say not. She is as
cold and unimpressionable as a grave
stone. Whether she doesn't care or
whether she is one of those women who
can have wolf tearing out her heart
like that Spartan fellow, WASH t it?-and
give no sign, I'm not prepared to say"
Substitute vulture for wolf and
make few other changes in your quo :.
tation, and it will pass muster. But
what about Miss Bascom?"
"Well, the women made me take out
to her all the letters the company sent
home by Moses. They thought, you see,
that she might extract some sort of COM
fort out of them, as they teemed with
praises of her father.
"And of Captain Belknap?''
"Yes, Reggie came in for nice share,
but nobody was thinking Of that when
they wanted Miss Bascom to read what
his men had written about the colonel
Before ] consented to go out there I
thought I'd rather face gunboat shell
or any other explosive"
"You know better now," said Lem
uel, inspecting the buttermilk bottle
gravely.
ooh, look here, Street, I didn't know
you were one Of the sort to rub thing
in"
Neither am Oh general principles.
That was shabby. Tell me about Miss
Bascom.
well, there isn't much to tell. 1t
was who felt like bowling. I told her
why the ladies wanted her to see the
letters, and she said Thank you I
told her Marianne sent word she wanted
to como to see her, and she said
THANK you again. That is about the
sum and substance of our talk. I didn't
see any particular object in staying Ion.
ger, and SO l came away, leaving her
sitting in chair on the front gallery
as white and motionless as a ghost. She
held the bundle of letters in her hand,
but she hadn't taken single one out Of
its envelope when I left"
II fancy she is not the sort of woman
who would like stranger to pry into
her feelings. Come, we must be getting
along if we are to reach the railroad by
noon."
Without ever having seen her Lem
uel had struck the keynote Of Jessica's
character. She shrank with unreason-
ing repulsion from any eye that might
pry into her heart. The story of her ia
theirs disappearance from the field Of
Chickamauga had been duly communi-
Gated to her by the Rev. Mr.. Brownell.
Her reception Of it had sent him away
baffled and angry because be was baffled.
To Mrs. Brownell he confdentially i'm.
parted his conviction that "the girl had
no more feeling than stone"
When Maxwell Belknap had gone
away, leaving her sitting SO still, with
her hands olasped about the package of I
letters, she was mentally running over
the strange story Of her life since she :
had been brought to her fathers house 3
from the narrower sphere Of Mrs. Short {
ers influence .
He and she had lived together just !
long enough for her heart to send out
new tendrils to Irvine them together. v
Each day Of her intercourse with him 7
had resulted in an access of respect and
affection. She had not known until this '
story Of his death had come how tender 3
ly she had come 10 feel toward him. l.
She knew now that every act Of her q
regency as head of his estate had been y
dictated by what she thought no would u
have her do. q
And then in this matter of her Aunt 81
Ellen! She had taken such deep delight o.
in thinking of how he would rejoice to II
return and find the sister he had incurred :,
as one tragically dead sitting at his own u
Preside, a gentle, quiet woman, whose N
to the home of her girlhood "
and to the peaceful routine Of care 81
free life had bought her back to the o.
mental level Of the time when nothing ,.
worse was said Or thought than that q
she was not as bright as the rest Of the tt
Bascoms. l
And now he was never to come back IL
10 her. She must 60 on forever just do.
ing things because it was her duty to W
10 them, caring for her Aunt Ellen be. OF
cause she was here to be cared for, sit m
hing at tho head Of the table, with that re
placid, beautiful face On one side of her pi
md Miss Turner's round, we'll fed little al