Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1914-05-29
CHAPTER VIII.
a Woman's Reason.

wilderment This was not one or thoSe
childish flashes of rudeness that had
amused annoyed and mystified her.
She had hurt him. And how? Her
first explanation was instantly re-
iected as absurd, impossible. They
had known each other less than
fortnight. They had exchanged opinl-
ons upon a thousand topics, but sent-
ment had no visible part in these en-
counters. They had been together
three days on the boat. and once he
had taken tea with her in Rangooh'
She could find nothing save that she
had been kind to him when he most
needed kindness, and that she had
not been stupidity curious, only sympa-
thetically 50. He Interested her ana
held that interest because he was
type unlike anything she had met
outside the covers of book. He was
SO big and strong, and yet so boyish.
He had given her visions of the char-
acter which had carried his manhoou
through all these years of strife anu
bitterness and temptation. And be-
cause of this she had shown him that
she had taken it for granted that
whatever he had done in the past had
not put him beyond the pale Of friend
ship. There had been no degrading
entanglements, and women forgive or
condone all other transgressions.
And what had she just said or done
to put that look of dumb agony IN ms
face? She swung impatiently from
the rail. She hated abstruse prob
lens and not the least of these was
that which would confront her when
she returned to America. She began
to promenade the deck, still clutter
ed with luggage over which the Las
car stewards were moiling. Many
glances followed the supple pleasing
figure of the girl as she passed round
and round the deck. Other prone
naders stepped aside or permitted
her to pass between. The resolute
uplift of the chin, and the staring
dark ewes which saw but inner Wis
ions, impressed them with the TACT
that it would be wiser to step aside
voluntarily. There were some, how
ever. who considered that they had as
much right to the deck as she. Be
fore them she would stop shortly, and
as n current breaks and passes each
side of an immovable object, they, too
gave way.
The colonel fused and fumed, and
his three spinster charges drew their
pale lips into thinner paler lines.
"These Americans are impossible!
And it is scandalous the way the
young women travel alone. One can
never tell what they are
"Humph. Brag and assertiveness.
And there's that ruffian who came
down the river. What's he doing on
the same boat? What?"
Elsa became aware of their presence
at the fifth turn. She nodded absent
". Being immersed in the sea OF
conjecture regarding Warrington's be-
havior, the colonel's glare did not
rouse in her the sense Of impending
disaster.
The first gong for dinner doomed.
Elsa missed the clarion notes of the
bugle. 50 familiar to her ears on the
Atlantic. The echoing wall of the gong
spoke in the voice of the east. of its
dalliance. it's content to drift in
sargassa sea of entangling habits and
desires, of its fatalism and inertia.
Ii did not hearten once or excite her.
Elsa would rather have lain down in
her Canton lOunging-chair. The gong
seemed out of place on the sea. Nauge-
Ia il reminded her of the railway sta
tions at home, where they beat the
gong to entice passengers into the
,yil-smelling restaurants, there to lose
their patience and often their trains.
The dining saloon held two long
tables. only one of which was in COM
mission, the starboard. The saloon
was unattractive, for StateroOmS mar
Shaled along each side of it; and one
caught glimpseS of tumbled luggage
and touseled berthS. A punka stretch
ed from one end Of the table to
the other. and swung indolently
tn and fro, whining mysterouSly as II
i'm protest. sometimes subsiding alto
gether Gas the wearicd COolie above
the lights feel asleep and then HAP
ping Historically CATER shout of
warning from the captain) and setting
the wumen's hair awry.
Elsa and Martha were seated some
where between the head and the foot
of the table The ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
ed surrounded them, and gabbled in
cessantly during the meal Of what
they had seen. of what they were go
ing to see, and of what they had
missed by not going with the other
agency's party Elsas sympathy
went out to the tired and faded con-
ductor.
There was but one vacant chair;
and as she saw Warrington nowhere
Elsa assumed that this must be his
reservation. She was rather glad that
he would be beyond conversational
radius She liked to talk to the
strange and lonely man, but she pre-
did so. Neither of them had yet des-
ccnded to the level of trifies: and FL
sa had no wish To share with persons
unintercsting and uncompanionable
her serious views of life. Sometimes
she wondered if after all, she was
not as old as the hills instead of
twenty-five.
she began as of old to study care
,,sSly the faces of the diners and to
speculate as to their characters and
nccupations Her negligent ObserVa-
ton roved from the pompus captain
down To the dark picturesque face OF
the man Craig. Upon him her glance
a mixture Of contempt and curiosity
rested If he behaved himself and
made no attempt to speak to her, she
was willing TO declare truce. In
Rangoon the man had been drunk
but on the Irrawaddy boat ne had been
.,.I.,, nnouph Craig kent his eyes