Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1907-05-01
cHARTER Xxx.

Brittany was anything but a beasdy
place, as Jack Wesley had declared,
and the prospect of golden sands,
deep blue sea and sky, and rugged
rocks ought to have flied CyriPs arts
tic soul with rapture.
But the expression on his face vas
anything but rapturous, and he worked
at his picture with the stoEd, dosged
countenance of a convict pursu Ig his
allotted task
Every now and then he stopped
painting and stared at the canvas as
IL he were looking through it, and at
such times his head sank upon mis-
breast, and what little light had been
in his eyes died out, and hopeless,
sick-andsorry look crypt over his
handsome face; look which was not
good to see on the countenance of a
man. young, clever, and with all the
world before MIN.
1t is scarcely necessary to say that
at these times he was thinking of No
rah. 1t would be rather difficult to
say when he was not thinking 0f her;
and just as her thoughts OF him were
full of problems and unanswerabie
enigmas, so were his of her.
When a man falls in love with a
girl, he f1atters himself that at least
he knows and understands her nature.
For instance: If any one had asked
Cyril TO describe Norah, he would
have summed her up somewhat in this
fashion:
Beautiful truthful. loving, honest
as the day to all the world, and faith
full 10 me unto DEATH"
And this girl, this pearl among
women, had quietly and coolly Tilted
him; and had either grown tired OF
him in a few days, or thrown him
over at the behest of her father.
The more he thought of her and hsc
desertion of him. the more bitter he
became the more puzzled and thv
more miserable. For, notwitAstand-
ing her treatment of him, he knew
that he loved her stilI-that If she
chose to turn to him and whistle him
to her side he must fly to her, and
kneel at her feet just as much her
worshiper and slave as he had ever
been
In the words of the Persian poet
Sadi, he had given his heart to her.
and could not take It back
Behind him. perched on the Gifts,
was he house which Lord Newall had
bull for himself. but his lordship had
gone away and left Cyril sole master.
In fact, his lordship had found the
young artist SO gloomy and morose "a
companion that he could not stand
him 'or longer than a week, and hal
probably go mad.
Cyril would have flown too: quite
hundred times a day he had been as
sailed by an intense longing to kick
his unfinished picture into the sen
and start off somewhere, or anywhere:
but he had learned something else
beside the knack Of painting. ard that
was that for his complaint there was
no remedy half SO effcacious as hard
work He could manage to forget
Norah-say, for a quarter OF an h1u
at lime while he WIS painting. and
he felt that if he threw up his worl-
and wandered off with nothing tc do
bur brood over his trouble, he should
probalv go mad.
So, he worked on silently and moodi-
". The good people Of Lorient, who
are sociable enough l. you rub them
he right way, could make nothing OF
the young painter who was staying at
milord's" house. The men got moth
ing in answer to their genial Bon
jour, monsieur" but a growl, and the
girls--most Of whom are terrible
pretty-might as we'll have cast their
smiles at the rocks and stones as be-
stow them upon the handsome young
foreigner who did nothing but paint.
paint, paint, or tramp, tramp, tramp,
up aud down the sea-shore.
They called him THE Silent Eng
Usher"
On this particular Afternoon he went
on painting and thinking till the fad
ing light warned him that it was time
to leave off painting and take To
thinking only, and he was just about
20 rise and put his things together.
when he heard step on the beach
behind MIN
II did not turn his head, because
whel he did so, the peasants, who had
occasionally strayed from the fields
across the beach, would persist in
trying to talk to him. and he kept his
eyes fixed sullenly before him until
the footsteps came close behind him
and a voice said:
Good eveRlng, sir"
"Jack!"
How doth the busy bee? Well,
lad, how goes the picture?"
why. man, where did you come
from?" he demanded what on earth
brings you here?'
81 will be merciful and not reply the
Hayre boat and my own legs" said
Jack, smiling "Is there any Jaw,
French or otherwise, which forbids
me to put foot on Breton shore?"
IL couldn't tell you how glad I
am to see YOU If l tried" said Cyril.
his face flushed with the unexpected
pleasure. II was thinking of you not
ten minutes ago, was, indeed. How
well You look. Jack"
~ .