The Fairmont West Virginian. (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1904-1914, 1911-04-07
CHAPTER XIV.
Accusation and Admission,

Wv .lHst the bTepl ulOilcHl' nau
come-for Langford had at last recos,
nized the woman whom he sought In
spite Of her strange garb-he became
suddenly acutely conscious OF trivial
details and accurately responsible to
matters OF. no moment. He stepped,
for instance, near the bow OF the boat,
told the coxswain that he might allow
the. men to land but that they must re
main close to the beach and within
easy call and see that the boat was
properly secured. Then he turned and
walked slowly-sineular how eager he
had been for that moment and how
tardy he was in aya!ling himself Of
it when It came-toward the two who
stood silently watching a little dis.
tanca away.
He was dressed in. a boating suit
Of. white and wore a white yachting
cap. He was distinctly good looking.
His repentance. his anxiety, his disap-
pointment had refined his face to a
certain degree and he was not an lin.
worthy specimen Of humanity in ap.
p%earance. The man looked at him
with vivid curiosity and a sudden
sense OF dfsmay to find the new conner
SO worthy Of respect on the ground Of
appearance at least.
The glance that Langford gave the
ran was at once casual and indifer.
ent. His whole interest was conferred
upon the woman He found himself
trembling violently in spite OF the
s%uperhuman efforts he put forth at
control. It was only the most iron
constraInt indeed that enabled him to
approach her at.alli As he drew hear
to Der, he took OF his leap, bowed to
her and, stroYe to5peak;
katharine. he said at last ;hoarse.
ly. thank God that have found Sou!!"
Woman, said the;mansbyihe side,
stepping. swiftly Forward and confront.
ing Langlord' WHO Is this MANI"
His name." ssreturned the woman
steadily sis Valentine Arthur Lang
ford"
What did You 10 to hery." asskedNthe
man with the bfuntest possible direct.
ness, that she weeps at the thought OF
you: that she Is filed with horror as
you approach; that she looks at you
as she does now2SI have never seen
that look upon her face since wei shave
been upon this island"
.Langford turIed and faced the man
as these. singular queries were put to
him,
WHO is. this man. Katharine?" he
asked, an angry flush in his face.
Il don't know for certain" the
woman answered, but | think his
name is" :
What has my. name 70 do with IT,
interrupted the man persistcntly.
will You answer my questions?"
When l know who you are and by
what right you gut them, I will dc.
eide" was Langford's contemptuous
answer.
The woman had never seen her com.
pan!on In a temper, but he was peril.
ously near the breaking point now. and
Langford, although he realized 1t not,
had never been and would never be
in SO much danger as at that instant.
A swift glance showed hcf the man
strung to the rery ou%tbreaking point.
The wom.n laid her hand upon his
arm. a calming touch.
I'm the world.s she said, people are
presented to one another"
How, she loathed Langford. She
thought for a moment that she had
only to say the word and her. island
companion would tear him to pieces.
She wondered how far after all she
had succeeded In Installing into his
mind the restraints OF civilization. She
began to see dimly that such an
achievement was beyond the power OF
any single individual: that It had been
in the past and would always be In the
future the result of the cooperation
and restraint Of the many. Yet she
forced herself to speak evenly to the
visitor.
"Mr. Langford, / believe this mans
name to be John Reveil Charnock. |
believe him TO- be an American. a vir:
ginlan. I found him here upon the
island"
This matters nothing" said the Is
lander. II don't care what this mans
name is. or who he Is. want to know
why he d%istressest YOU"
Sir said Langford, wondering what
the best tone to take With this
singular being, pray let us Withdraw
;yonder 10 the, shade Of the, trees where
We can be more private"
The menini the boat who had scram-
bled out upon the sands had been
eager spectators and auditors Of every
thing that had gone on. Their curl.
oslty was greatly excited and their,
%propinquity was evidently dlstasteful
to ~Langford.
You are refusing to answer, my
questions" said the man. II will not
be put OF further"
Man" said the woman, laying her
hand upon his, arm, ut IS my Wish"
"Oh, II Syom Wish 1t"
He turned without word and led
PILES cURED lNs % f45pSYs.