The Holly chieftain., 1903-05-22
CHAPTER vi.

di.otHcI gay spell, tneu CAME tue
spring, and people began to make
their summer plans. The Stages were
to go to their house at Beverly. as
usual, and Eleanor openly expressed
her pleasure at the prospect of return
ing to the seaside. There had been
no further developments in the court
ship-or more properly, no culmina-
tion of it, for Mr.. Pages devotion was
not whit less marked. Indeed. Its
persistency was constant source of
announcement to Mrs. Stagg, whose
vigilant scrutiny had failed to detect
any signs Of Irritation on his part.
He continued to send to Eleanor,
from time to time, beautiful flowers,
he rode with her in the park. he
walked with her on Sunday after
moons, and what was even more sig
nificant, he had ceased to pay SINH
lar attention to other girls. Still, he
had not proposed. But, as Emma
sagely reflected. if ever an impatient
thought seized her, presumably he
was OF the deliberate kind, and in SO
serious a matter as matrimony, pre-
ferred to move circumspectly. Nor
reed their departure from town prove
an interruption. inasmuch as he had
declared his intention of frequenting
the Beverly shore with his yacht,
ostensibly for racing purposes, but
there could be little doubt as to what
magnet really attracted him thither.
A more haunting uncertainty in
.Imma's mind at this time was as to
her niece's feelings, regarding which,
strangely enough, in her own estima-
ton, she was considerably in the
dark; so much SO that she was begin
ming to deem 1t her duty to have a
definite talk with Eleanor on the sub
ject. And yet she realized the danger
of an iil-considered interference. 1t
might well be that the child was
shyly in love, in which case an inop-
perfume or meddlesome word might
freeze her into secretive coldness
toward her lover and induce deplor-
able consequences. She had believed
it wiser thus far to invite confidence
by indirect illusions rather than to
demand 1t. but Ter forbearance had
borne no fruit in the way of discovery.
Could it possibly be that Eleanor was
unaware that Owen Page was seri-
ously devoted to her? That was the
deduction Emma sometimes drew
from her placid. unconcerned way of
accepting his attentions. Eleanor
seemed to enjoy being with him, and
always admired his roses, and was
ready to accept his courtesies, but her
enjoyment and readiness were of such
rational. unembarrassed kind that
Emma could not help feeling uneasy.
Could any one in love appear so un-
conscious, SO free from coyness and
coquetrys Not unless she were ex-
ceptionaily deep, surely, which SEEM
ed very unlikely in this instance.
Moreover. Emma could not help re-
flecting that the inuendoes she had
delicacy, and yet suggestively as it
appeared to her, ought to have set the
child thinking. to say the least. Moth
ing had been left unsaid which could
present Mr.. Page in favorable light
or acceatuate the good fortune of any
girl to whose society he was partial.
Ought she to 90 further than this and
point out the fact that he was evil
IDENTIFY fascinated by her, and that If
she were not suitably encouraging she
might lose the best opportunity of
making a brilliant match that she
would ever have in all probability?
The necessary words had several
times rembled on her lips, and yet
she had refrained from uttering them.
One day. some weeks after they had
moved to Beverly, while Emma was
still in the throes of this dilemma,
Harold Stagg telegraphed that he was
bringing Professor Phneas Baldwin
home to pass Sunday. This was an
elder and only brother of Eleanor's
father. geologist, who had just been
called to an important educational
position connected with his specially,
in New York. He was bachelor and
had lived nomadic kind of life in the
interest of science, residing in vari.
Gus portions of the West, and, though
he was intimate with his brother,
with whom he corresponded vigorous
ly. Eleanor, who was very fond of
Hhim, had seen him but little. At the
time of Silas Baldwins death he was
abroad with an exploring expedition
under the auspices of the govern
ment, but on receipt of the news he
had promptly offered to give the child
rem home before being apprised that
they had been adopted by the Stages.