Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1914-04-28
CHAPTER XIII.
The Quest Of the Hermit.

puppets speeches had al
ways been 80 apt. Last
night you sent me on a sort Of quest
| for the golden fleece. l didn't know
who had been feeced or what the idea
was. But l Jared forth, as they say.
l got it for you
The eyes Of the girl glowed happily.
She was beaming.
"I'm 30 glad" she said. "But why
why didn't you give 1t to me last
night? 1t would have meant so much
If you had"
That" replied Mr.. Magee. "is what
I'm coming to-very reluctantly. Did
you note any spirit Of caution in the
fellow who set forth on your quest and
dropped over the balcony rail? You
did not / waited on the porch and
saw Max tap the safe. saw him and
Cargan come out. waited for them.
Just as l was about to jump on them
somebody-the man with the seventh
key, l guess-did 1t for me. There was
scufie. Joined It emerged with
the package everybody seems so In
| terested In"
"Yes." said the girl breathlessly.
And them
81 started to bring it to you." went
on Magee, glancing over his shoulder
ut Max. II was all aglow with ro-
nance and battle and all that sort of
thing. l pictured the thrill Of hand
Ing you the thing you had asked. l
ran upstairs. At the head Of the stairs
Il saw her"
The light died in her eyes. Re-
proach entered there.
eyes," continued Magee. "your knight
errant lost his nerve. He ceased to
run on schedule. She. too. asked me
for that package Of money"
"And you gave 1t to her." said the
girl sc.rnfully.
"Oh, no." answered Magee quickly.
mot 80 bad as that. I simply sat
down on the steps and thought. I got
cautious. decided to walt until to-
day. IL did wait"
He paused. The girl strode on, look
Ing straight ahead.
81 know" lie said. what you think.
I'm a fine specimen Of man to send
on q hunt like that-a weakkneed
mollycoddle who passes into state Of
coma at the crucial moment. But
I'm going to give you that package
yet"
The girl turned her head. Mr. Ma
gee saw that her eyes were misty with
| tears.
You're playing with me-" she said
brokenly. II might have known.
And trusted you. You're in the game
| with the others-and I thought you
weren't. staked my whole chance OF
success on you. Now you're making
sport Of me. You never intended to
give me that money. You don't In
tend to now"
ION my word" cried Magee. II do
intend to give 1t to you-the minute
we get back to the inn! / have it safe
in my room."
"Give it to her." said the girl bitter
ly. "Why don't you give 1t to herr"
Oh, the perversity of women!
"Its you 1 want to give 1t to-" re-
piled Magee warmly. ~ don't know
| what was the matter with me last
night. / was fool. You don't be-
| lieve in me, l know Her face was
cold and expressionless.
"And wanted to believe in you
80 much" she said.
"Why did you want TOT" cried Ma
gee. "Why"
She plodded on through the snow.
"You must believe" he pleaded. Il
don't know what all this is about-on
my word of honor. But want to give
you that money, and will-the min
ute we get back to the inn. VIII you
believe then? Will you?"
II hate you," said the girl simply.
She should not have said that. AS
far back as he could remember such
opposition had stirred Mr.. Magee to
wild deeds. He opened his mouth,
and words flowed forth. What were
the words?
IL love you! love you! Ever since
that moment in the station I have
loved you! l love you"
Family he heard himself saying 1t
! over and over. By the gods. he was
proposing-inanely, in words of one
syllable, as the butchers boy might
have told his love to the second kitch-
en- maid.
II love you," he continued. Idiot!
Often Mr.. Magee had. thought OF
the moment when he would tell his
love to q woman. 1t was a moment
Of dim lights, music perhaps In the
distance, two souls caught up in the
magic of the moonlit night-a pretty
graceful speech from him. q sweet
gracious surrender from the girl. And
this-instead.
~ love you." In heavens name, was
he never going to stop saying It? 81
want you to believe"
Good lord! He recalled that a Eel
low novelist, whose love scenes were
regarded as models by young people
suffering the tender passion, had once
confessed that he proposed to his wife
on q street car and was accepted Just
as the conductor handed him his trans
fers.
The girl deliberately stopped. There
was never less of sweet gracious sur
render in suffragette hurling stone
through a shopkeeper's window. Sht
eyed Mr.. Magee pityingly, and they
| stood until Mr.. Max caught up will
them.
$50 that's the hermit's shack" sale
Max, indicating the little wooden hui
at which they had arrived. "A funn!
place for a guy to bury nlmsen.
should think he'd get to longing FOL
the white lights and the table d'hotes
with red wine"
"A very unromantic speech" reprov
ed the girl. "You should be deeply
thrilled at the thought Of penetrating
the secrets of the hermitage. ! am
Are you, Mr.. Magee?"
She smiled up at Magee, and he wal
in that state where he thought that II
the blue depths Of her eyes he saw tn
sunny slopes of the islands Of the blest