Evening journal., 1900-12-24

L4LIiNIl hUNN iliio u lfiltI ftitU tUNtTItL NGT
face lritt her trembling hands.
When / came down before dinner l
found Ralph and Charles talking earn
estly by the hall fire, Ralph's hand on
his brothers shoulder.
"You see we are no further forward
than we were" he was saying.
1--WE shall have Marston back to-mor-
row." said Charles, as the gong began to
sound. eve cannot take any step till
then, especially If we don't want to put
Our foot in it. have been racling my
brains all the afternoon without the YES
tige Of a result. We must just hold our
bands-for the moment"
Dinner was announced. and we waited
patiently for few minutes and impa-
tiently for a good many more, until
Evelyn hurried down, apologizing for
being late. all with message from
Lady Mary that we were not to wait for
hc.. - she was dining upstairs in her
owaroon. a practice to which she seemed
raslor I'd ,ictad.
"Anl wae-e Is Aurchas' asked Ralph
"She Is not coming down to dinner
either" said Evelyn. "She has bad
headache again, and is lying down. Sine
asked me to tell you that she wishes par
ticularly to see you this evening, as she
is going away tomorrow, and if she is
well enough she win come down to the
morning room at Q; indeed she said she
would come down anyhow"
After Ralphs natural anxiety respect
ing his lady love had been relieved, and
he had been repeatedly assured that
nothing much was amiss, we went in to
dinner, and n more lugubrious repast
never remember being present at. The
meals of the day might have been CLASH
fed thus Breakfast, dismal; luncheon,
d5smaller (or more dismal); dinner. dis
B1llest (or most dismal). There really
Wis no conversation. Even /, who,
without going very deep (Which I con-
slider is not in good taste), have some
thing to say on almost every subject
even l felt myself nonplused for tine
tipe being. Each of us in turn got out
a few constrained words and then re-
lapsed into silence.
Evelyn ate nothing and her hand
trembled so much when she poured ont
glass of water that she split some on
the cloth. 1 saw Charles was watching
her furtively, and I became more and
more certain that Aurelia was right
and that Evelyn knew something about
the mystery of the night before. must
and would speak to her that very even
ing.
bitterly cold" said Ralph, when al
last we had reached the dessert stage
''It is showing still, and the wind is
getting up"
In truth the wind was moaning round
the house like an uneasy spirit.
'That sound in the wind always
means snow" said Charles, evidently
for the sake Of saying something. Il
Is easterly, I should think. Yes" aftel
{. pause, when another silence seemo,
Imminent, "there goes the s o'clocl
train. It must be quite a quarter Of al
hour late, though, for it has struck
some time. I can hear it distinctly
The station is three miles away, and yol
never hear the train unless the wind j
in the east"
"COine, Charles, not three miles-tw
miles and a half, put in Ralph.
''Well, two and a half from here dow
to the station, but certainly three fror
the station up here replied Charlie.
and so silence was laboriously avoide
by diIgent small talk, until we returne
TO the drawing room, thankful there q
least we could take up book and be s
lentif we wished. We all did wishit, AZ
parently Evelyn was sitting by lam
when we came in with a book befoI
her, her elbow on the table, shading he
Al. l.1ta,Aa hrn1 III
remained motionlees, her eyes fixed upo
the page, but noticed after some tim
that she had never turned 1t owe
Charles may have read his newspape
but il he did it was with one eye upC
Evelyn all the time. Between watchiI
them both did not, as may be imagi
ed, make much progress myself. Ho
was 1 to manage to speak to Evell
alone, and without Charles knowledge
AT last Ralph, who had gone into t
morning room, opened the drawing roo
door. and put his head in.
"Aurelia has not come down yet, a.
it is a quarter past o. wish you won
run up, Evelyn, and see if she is col
ing
ssshe is sure to comel" replied Evely
without raising her eyes. "She said S
must see you"
Ralph disappeared again, and
books and papers We're studied an
with answering devotion. AT the e
of another ten minutes however,
impatient lover reappeared.
1T is half-past o." he said, in an
iured tone ''Do pray run up, Evel.
don't think she can be coming at all
am afraid she is worse"
Evelyn laid down her book and
the room. Ralph sauntered back il