Atlanta Georgian. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1912-1939, 1914-01-30


was much excited, went off to pay his
respects to the great people, Icrudled
up in the corner of the cabin that was
nearest to the door and told myself
| that after all had been turned out of
my fathers house, and would never
see my mother and Martin any more.
| was sitting so, with my hands in
my big muff and my face to the stern.
making the tiriest occasional sniff as
! the mountains of my home faded
away in the sunlight, which was now
tipping the hilltops with a feathery
crest, when my cabin was darkened
/ by somebody who stood in the door
way.
1t was a tall boy, almost a man,
and | knew in a moment who he was.
He was the young Lord Raa. And at
first l thought how handsome and
well dressed he was as he looked
down at me and smiled. After a mo-
ment he stepped into the cabin anc
sat in front of me and said:
80 you are little Mary O'Neill, are
you?"
/ did not speak ] was thinking he
was not so very handsome after all,
having two big front teeth like Betsy
Beauty
THE girl who ought to have been
a boy and put my nose out, eh?"
Still l did not speak. l was think
ing his voice was like Messy Mac
Leod's-shrill and hearsh and grating
Poor little mite! Going all the
way to Rome to convent, isn't she %
Even yet I did not speak. was
thinking his eyes were like Aunt
Eridget's-cold and gray and pierre
ing.
$50 silent and demure. though!
Quite a little nun already! deuced
pretty one. too, if anybody asks me -
was beginning to have a great
contempt for him.
Where did yau get those big angel
eyes from? Stole them from some
picture of the Madonna, I'll swear"
1.-THE Spitfire.
BY this time I had concluded that
he was not worth speaking to, so I
turned my head and l was looking
back at the sea, when I heard him
say:
Il suppose you are going to give me
a kiss, you nice little woman. aren't
you?"
mo"
ooh. but you must-we are rela-
tons, you know"
81 won't"
He laughed at that, and rising from
his seat. he reached over to kiss me.
whereupon / drew one of my hands
out of my muff and doubling my lit
tie mittened fist. l struck him in the
face.
Being. as | afterward learned,
young autocrat, much INDUCED by
servants AMI generally tryannizing
over them, he was surprised and an
CRY.
THE spitfire!" he said. who
would have believed 1t? The face of
a nun and the temper of devil! But
you'll have 10 make amends for this,
my lady"
With that he went away and l saw
no more of him until the steamer was
drawing up at the landing stage at
Liverpool and then, while the pas
sengers were gathering up their lug
gage, he came back with Father Dan,
and the tall. sallow man who was his
guardian. and said
Going to give me that kiss to make
amends, or are you to owe me
grudge for the rest of your life, my
lady?"
my little Mary couldn't. owe a
grudge to anybody" said Father Dan
She'll kiss his lordship and make
amends I'm certain"
And then l did to the young Lord
Raa what l had done to Aunt Bridget
i held UP my face and he kissed me.
1t was a little, simple, trivial incl
dent but 1t led with other things to
the most lamentable fact of my life,
and when think OF 1t sometimes
wonder how It comes to pass that He
who numbers the flowers Of the field
and counts the sparrows as they fall
has no handwriting with which to
warn His children that footsteps may
not fail.
TWELFTH CHAPTER.
NF our journey to Rome nothing