The Morris County chronicle. [volume] (Morristown, N.J.) 1877-1915, 1904-09-13

4 Z.
nifty. You are merely sch0olboy.'
Her eyes travelling over his face witt
kind Of soft compassion. Your lif
is beginning
With q t0lerable accumulation o.
experience to start FROM, says Sc
verne. Mine years ago, when / frs
| went to Woolwich, looked upon my
/ self, can assure you, as a finished
| Chesterfield in matters Of worldly wis
dom, and now, after spending the thre,
| last years ia India, too, to be toll
coolly that ! am only schoolboy stillv
AFTER spending the three last year
in India repeats Daphne, stoopin;
down and with one finger tracing GU
a kind Of Chinese pagoda upon til,
sand. you must have been youn,
enough, in all conscience, when 70,
/ Went away! And you have never re
turned to England Ance?''
Never. I am in the act Of return
ing at this moment
mot very hurriedIy ~
"Well. no. / wanted to look I'D ar
cid school friend who has married ant
buried himself in Brittany. That de
layed me a fortnight between Paris
and ST. Malo"
sThen?''
Then Murray reminded me Of my
duty. The traveller is here at con.
venient point for visiting the Channel
Islands. You know the rest"
"And the lady who wrote that letter
he's not seen you for three years,
thenw cries Daphne. sweeping out the
pagoda with touch, and raising her
eyes abruptly to Sevefne's. "She will
find you altered. Though you ex-
changed photographs every week, you
could not keep face fresh and living
before you through the changes Of
three years"
It is home thrust. the like Of which
can only be given under one or two
conditions: absolute knowledge or alb
solute ignorance of the conventionali-
ties. Sir John throws a quick look at
Daphne's face, at the serious, truth
telling eyes, the lips from which no
word of "chaff" or other wit of the
period has ever flowed, and comes to
the sudden resolution, then and there,
Of enlightening her as to his engage
ment.
eyes, we shall ind each other
changed, Mrs. Chester, in things, per-
haps. that don't conner within the
scope OF photography" He takes up
a handful Of small pebbles, and, as he
talks, aims one after another at some
imaginary target on the margin of
the water. you see, we had known
each other Just six weeks, and we
were children-Miss Hardcastle, at
least, was a ild-when-whe was
ordered to India. We spoke in our
haste, and I suppose shall have the
interest now Of finding out how far
our speaking led us wrong"
And for one long minute Daphne
Chester is silent.
Her heart is dead, no doubt, on that
point; her belief in personal happiness
shattered. The only feeling she can
possibly entertain toward Sir John Sc
verne is gratitude just what she felt
for equity old DR.. de Garlot, when he
had brought Paul safely through The
measles.
II shall have more faith in my own
cleyerness for the future" SO at
length she speaks, in her matter-of-
fact, quiet voice. when first picked
lup that letter / thought to myself it
was from your sweet from some one
| you cared more than common for. You
must be longing to get back to Eng
land, Sir John. After three years of
! separation, the hours must pass heav-
| lily that keep you apart"
well" answers Severne, discharg-
ing his last shot with vigor at the inn
aginary target, I'VE are not romantic
people, either of us; that is the fact.
Miss Hardcastle isl suppose if I had
| to sum up her characteristics in one
word I should be forced to say-pre-
pare yourself, Mrs. Chester, cold
shock is in store for you-that Miss
Hardcastle is the least bit in the world
| q blue-stocking.
"a blue stockingw exclaims Daphne,
with bitter, sharp sense Of her own
deficiencies. and with vision, grand.
| epic, homicidal, rising before her.
1.-THE term is old-fashioned,D says
Sir John. '.And still with feminine
learning increasing at it's present rate,
/ don't know that we can well afford
| to do without IT,
1T is very awful term" cries
Daphne. II have heard my aunts
speak OF Mrs. Trimmer. Miss Por,
| ter"