The Yale expositor., 1905-02-24

ed.
II am hardly in fit condition" he OBJ
jected
She laughed. parting her red lips.
"You are extremely picturesque just
as you are" she said, with rather en-
barrassing directness. 81 wouldn't
have you any different for the world.
But my friends don't mind. They are
used to it," She laughed again.
| Thorpe crossed the pole trail and for
the first time found himself by her
side. The warm summer odors were
In the air; a dozen lively little birds
sang in the brush along the rail; the
sunlight danced and flickered through
the openings.
| Then suddenly they were among the
pines, and the air was cool, the vista
dim and the birds songs inconceivably
| far away.
He said little, and that lamely, for
| be dreaded to say too much. To her
playful sallies he had no reposte, and
in consequence he fell more silent with
another boding-that he was losing his
cause outright for lack of a ready
word.
And so the last spoken exchange be-
tween them meant nothing, but if each
could have read the unsaid words that
quivered on the others heart Thorpe
would have returned to the Fighting
Forty more TRANQUILITY, while she would
probably not have returned to the
camping party at all for n number Of
hours.
az do not think you had better come
with me-" she said. make your call
and be forgiven on your own account.
don't want TO drag you in at my
chariot wheels"
"All right. III come this afternoon"
Thorpe had replied.
81 love her; must have her. l must
goat once" his soul cried, quick
now-before l kiss herr
"IIow strong he is" she said to her.
self, chow brave looking, how honest!
He is different from the other men. He
is magnificent"
That afternoon Thorpe met the other
members of the party, offered his apol-
ogies and explanations and was gra-
ciously forgiven. He found the person
mel to consist Of first of all Mrs. Cary.
the chaperon, very young married
woman OF twenty-five or thereabout;
her husband, q youth Of three years
older, clean shaven, light haired, quiet
hammered; Miss Elizabeth Carpenter
who resembled her brother in the char
acteristics of good looks, vivacious dis
81 In iY.. al 10 nj
satellite OF the masculine persuasion
called Morton, and last of all the girl
whom Thorpe had already so variously
encountered and whom lie now met as
Miss Hilda Farrand. Besides these
were Ginger, Il squat negro built to fit
the galley Of a yacht, and three Indian
guides. They inhabited tents, which
made quite a little encampment.
Thorpe was received with enthusi-
asm. Wallace Carpenters stories Of his
woods partner, while never doing more
than justice to the truth, had been
warm. One and all owned lively curl
osity to see what a real woodsman
might be like. When he proved to be
handsome aud we'll hammered as we'll
as picturesque his reception was no Ion
ger in doubt.
Nothing could exceed his solicitude as
to their comfort and amusement. He
inspected personally the arrangement
of the tents and suggested one or two
changes conducive to the hitler COM
forts. Simple things enough they were
it was as though city man were to
direct a newcomer to Central park-yet
Thorpe's new friends were profoundly
impressed with his knowledge Of occult
things. The forest was to them, as to
most, more or less of a mystery unfath-
enable except to the favored of genius.
A man who could interpret it even
little into the speech of everyday COM
fort and eXpediency possessed a strong
claim to their imaginations. When he
had finished these practical affairs they
wanted him to sit down and tell them
more things-to dine with them, to
smoke about their camp fire in the
evening. But here they encountered
decided check. Thorpe became silent,
almost morose. He talked in monosyl-
tables and soon went away. They did
not know what to make of him and so
were of course the more profoundly in
terested The truth was his habitual
reucence would not have permitted
great degree of expansion in any case,
but now the presence Of Hilda made
any but an attitude of hushed waiting
for her words utterly impossible to him.
However, when he discovered that
Hilda had ceased visiting the clump
of pines near the pole trail his desire
forced him back among these people.
He used to walk in swiftly at almost
any time of day, casting quick glances
here and there in search of his divin-
ity.
GLOW do, Mrs. Cary" he would say.
'Nice weather. Enjoying yourselfr
ITO BE CONTINUED
HEAVE-O