Custer weekly chronicle. [volume] (Custer City, S.D.) 1890-1931, 1908-05-09
CHAPTER IX-Continued.

| ner color coming and going, to catch
my eye, to appease me as the greater
stranger and TO keep the peace between
| her Ill matched companions, who in
deed stalked along eyeing one another
much as a wolf hound and a badger
dog might regard each other across
choice bone. But the young Dutch
mans sudden appearance had put me
out l was not in love with her.
yet j liked to talk to her. and
/ grudged her to him-he seemed so
mean fellow. And so--churl that /
was-in answer to her speech, l let
drop some sneer about the great fear
of the Spaniards which seemed to pre-
vail in these parts.
You are not afraid OF them, them
Van Tree said, with a smile.
No: / am not" / answered, my lip
curling also
All" with much meaning, perhaps
you do not know them very well!'
Perhaps not" 1 replied. Still, my
grandmother was a Spaniard."
so l should have thought" he re-
torted swiftly, so swiftly that / felt the
words as ] should have felt a blow.
"Whan Dc YOU mean?" blurted out,
hating bsAbre him. with my cheek
crimson. In vain were all Dymphna'I =
appealing glances; all her signs Of dis
tress. Il will have you explain, Master
Van Tree, what you mean by that"
/ repeated fiercely.
Il mean what l said" he answered,
confronting me stubbOrnly and shaking
off Dymphna's hand. His blue eyes
twinkled with rage; his thin beard
bristled; he was the color OF a turkey
cocks comb. At home we should have
thought him comical little figure, but
he did not seem absurd here. For one
thing, he looked spiteful enough for
anything, and for another, though
topped him by head and shoulders,
could not fiatter myself that he was
afraid of me. On the contrary. / felt
that In the presence Of his mistress
small and shortsighted as he was. he
would have faced a lion without wink
ing
His courage was not to be put to the
proof II was still glaring at him, seek
ing some retort which should provoke
him beyond endurance, when a hand
was laid on my shoulder, and I turned
TO find that Master BERTHE and the
duchess had Joined us.
so here are the truants," the former
said pleasantly, speaking in English
and showing no consciousness whatever
Of the crisis in the middle OF which he
had come up. though he must have dis
cerned In our defiant attitudes and In
Dymphna's troubled face that some
thing was wrong. You know who this
Is, Master Frances" he continued
heartily, "or have you not been intro
duced to Master Van Tree. the be-
trothed OF our hosts daughter"
Mistress Dymphna has done me that
honor" l said stiffiy. recovering myself
in appearance, while at heart sore and
angry with everybody. But l fear
the Dutch gentleman has not thanked
her for the introduction since he
learned that my grandmother was
Spanish"
Your grandmother, do you mean?"
cried the duchess, much astonished.
Yes. madam"
We'll, to be sure" she exclaimed.
lifting UP her hands and appealing
whimsically to the others, this boy is
full OF starts and surprises. You never
know what he will produce next. The
other day II was a warrant! Today
ii is grandmother and a temper"
/ could not be angry with her, and
perhaps ! was not sorry now that my
quarrel with the young Dutchman had
stopped where 1t had. l affected as
well as l could TO Join In the laugh at
my expense and took advantage OF the
arrival of our host, who at this mo-
ment came up the slope from the land
ing place, his hands outstretc ched and
smile Of greeting on his kindly face,
to slip away unnoticed and make
amends to my humor by switching off
the heads OF the withes by the river.
But naturally the scene left a degree
of Ill feeling behind il, and for the first
time during the two months we had
spent under Master Lindstrom's roof
the party who sat down to supper were
under constraint. 1t felt that the young
Dutchman had had the best OF the bout
in the garden and / talked loudly and
foolishly In the boyish attempt to as
sert myself and to set myself right dt
least in my own estimation Master
Van Tree meanwhile sat silent, eve
ing me from time to time I'm no friendly
fashion. Dymphna seemed nervous and
frightened, and the duchess and her
husband exchanged troubled glances.
Only our host and Mistress Anne, who
was in particularly good spirits, were
by the prevailing chill.
Mistress Anne indeed in her ignorance
made matters worse. She had begun to
pick up some Dutch and was fond Of
airing her knowledge and practicing
fresh sentences at meal times By some
i'll luck she contrived this evening
particularly after, finding no one to
me. l had fallen into com
parative silenCe-to frame her sentences
so as to cause as much embarrassment
as possible to all OF us.
Where did you walk with Dymphna
this morning." was the question put
to me.
You are fond of water-Englishmen
are fond of water" she said to
Dymphna. "Dymphna is tall: Master
Francis is tall. / sit by you tonight:
the Dutch lady sat by you last night"
and so on, and so on, with prattle
which seemed to amuse our host ex-
was never tired of cor
recting her mistakes-but which put
the rest of us out of countenance,
the tears to poor Dymphnas
eyes-she did not know where to look
and making her lover glover at me as
though he would eat me.
1t was in vain that the duchess
made spasmodic rushes into con-
and in the intervals
nodded and frowned at the delin-
quent. Mistress Anne. in he in
nocence, saw nothing. She went on un-
Ill Van Tree could stand II no longer,
and with half smothered threat,
which was perfectly intelligible to me,
rose roughly from the table and went
night.
What is the matter" Mistress Anne
said wonderingly in English. Her eyes
seemed at length to be opened to the
fact that something was amiss with us.
Before l could answer the duchess,
VINO mad risen, came Denlnd her. You
little fool" she whispered fiercely, IF
fool you are, you deserve to be
Why, what have ] done?" murmured
he girl, really frightened now and ap-
pealing to me.
"Done!" whispered the duchess, and
think she pinched her, for my neigh
Dor WINGED. More harm than you
guess, you mink! And for you, Master
Francis. word with you. Come with
ne to my room, please"
/ went with her, half minded to be
angry and half inclined to feel ashamed
)f myself. She did not give me time.
however, to consider which attitude
should take up, for the moment the
door OF her room was closed behind us
she turned upon me, the color high in
ler cheeks. Now, young man." she
IN Ia In, q tr,,o nf ,rinuirn 80. 80, ...Ir