Year: 1864

dozen more, were gathered in the Low


old-f fashioned parlor ready to 90 int,


supper. Mary Everett, who had nev


er before met Miss Ash, looked at heI
: critically rs she stood beside Alice De


yon; the two having just been intro


duced by Thorne, who, whatever BIZ


might have betrayed when taken b,


surprise, was perfectly selfpossessed


now. e


There was no disputing that the


newcomer was the handsomest wo


man at "The Shoals" 1t was a grand


regal style which swayed a power Of


its own. The tall, full figure the


matchless complexion, with its color


clear and bright as dawn the great


magnetic eyes; the tawny gold hair


filling the silken net not full the


mouth SO ripe and tempting-all these,


with the misunderstanding, the aplome


OF twenty-five years. In that stately


presence little Alice Devon, with her


seventeen years and her primrose face,


looked Uniformed and childish. But


there was something about her most


sweet and tender and touching, which


made Mary Everett think of rose


bud with the morning dew still
on; and glancing back to the other
she hummed, half under her breath,
snatch of an old nursery song


"The sunhower with her brilliant crown
Looked lovely and tempting to the bee;
Yet not one drop of honey he found
In her wonder cup of gold and brown
She was false at heart, though fair to see."
Aggie French had not arrived at the
whole truth about the separation be-
tween Miss Ash and Howard Thorne.
She had not Tilted him. They had
given each other up mutually. 1t was
the fortieth lovers quarrel perhaps !;
for Miss Ash was of tempestuous tenn
permanent, and Thorne not over pa
tient. 1t was one too many, at any
rate for they had never made it up,
and five years had passed without their
seeing each other. In the meantime
some of Thorne's relations had died
and left him fortune, making him bet
ter worth winning. Miss Aggie was
mistaken, too, in thinking that her
friend came to "The Shoals" without
knowing that her old lover was there.
No allusion to the knowledge had es-
capped her in the letter but the cer-
tainty of meeting him had been her
sole motive. To do her justice she did
know of his engagement. She learned
that for the first time in her two hours
with Miss French before tea. 1t dis
mayed her not little. 1t was an OBJ
staele that she had not foreseen, and
she did not feel entire faith now in the
success which had seemed so certain
before.


When they were introduced she
looked at Alice anxiously. She was
not blind to the youth and freshness
against which she must contend. She
acknowledged to herself that the girl
ish face, with the bunch of blue fow-
ers (the treasure. .trove) in the soft hair,
had sweet charm of its own. She
almost despaired-not quite.


For some days she held herself aloof
from Howard Thorne and his little be-
trothed. When anything brought her
in contact with them, she was playful.
sometimes a little reserved
and sad, though kind always. There
was SO much variety in her moods that
Thorne grew interested before he knew
it in watching them. he began to re-
alize, now he observed her more close
ly, how royalty beautiful she was. She
had: been far less so in the old days
when he had thought the whole uni
verse bounded by her smile. Her
had changed too. She had
been imperious then-she was SO still
at times; but oftener there was ten
der, half-pathetic softness in words
and ways which made him think she
had grown sadder with the sad years.
Had her life missed him? There was
a subtle fattery in the thought against
which his vanity was not proof


He was not untrue towards his little
love in all these speculations, at least
not unconsciously, but they were dan
gerous. Very dangerous when, one
day, he suffered himself, sitting idly
and alone on the piazza, to wonder
what would have been the result of his
meeting again with Miss Ash if he had
never seen Alice.


Just then she came up the walk in
I l.. IT,. l.