Year: 1873

VIII NdIS tlC AICt Mi1lCl VIC hHoW OI'
"That the niece? know the lady ;
at least met her at my sisters we'd
ding three years ago. She is, by the
by, a sort of cousin of mine.'


"Shall you claim relationship 2"
asked Fred, eagerly.


..s'.Aha! you want to wake up the
aunt, and do little agreeable love-
making to the niece. l don't know
that shall renew our acquaintance ;
it depends on circumstances"
Nevertheless, the next day Henry
Graham was walking the deck with
Kate Miller, apparently very well
pleased with his position, and making
the most of his slight relationship to
her, while Fred made himself agreea-
bic to the rich aunt, who sat very
willing to be entertained, and pluming
herself ON not being sea-sick. The
lady evidently had not gotten over
the novelty Of her position, and was
enjoying it to the full. She had not
relinquished all pretensions to perso-
nal charms, and decked herself with
the costliest, and what she, no doubt,
considered the most becoming gar
ments. She only made the common
mistake of thinking that her favorite
colors at fifteen would be equally
suitable now that she was five and
thirty. With blue eyes that had be-
come pale, and a once fair skin that
was now crumpled and fetri, and her
hair, that from flaxen had become a
pale tow-color, the poor lady wore
pale blue and blush-rose color and
white Swiss. Kate often wondered,
if she faded out like that, whether she
would not see that her favorite colors
no longer heightened her beauty, but
only showed the ravages time had
made.


Harry had cleaned from Kate that
her father had died since he had met
her the morning Of the wedding, and
had left her nearly penniless; also that
her aunt, who had formerly lived
with them, had lately been most un-
expectedly enriched by the death of a
friend, who had beqneathed all her
fortune to her; and Harry thought it
was very sad that Kate should have to
live almost dependent on such piece
of inanity as Miss Miller. Surely Kate,
whom we have seen fretting under a
sense of poverty when she had a home,
must have learned resignation, for
there was much on this voyage to
have stung her pride.


She was forced to see her aunt the
object of almost exclusive attention
from nearly all on board, while she
was sighted, or cultivated only as a
means of making acquaintance with
Miss Miller. But worse than this, she
saw Fred Alcott devoted to her aunt
while in her presence, yet daring, i'll
the absence of that lady, to try and
make it evident that she alone was
admired by him; and still she con-
tented herself with ignoring all this,
aud by no sign could Harry, who
watched her keenly, see that she was
annoyed.


Toward the close of the voyage
Harry felt he must ask Kate Miller a
very important question, on which his
future happiness depended, and as a
means of approaching the subject he
began by remarking that Fred Alcott
Eappeared to have lost his heart to Miss
Miller. He was sorry he had said it,
for Kate looked sternly and said:


ado not joke on such Il subject. /
never realized until lately that power
ty had any compensation, and now I
see there is some advantage in being
poor; ut least one is never in danger
of being sought by Mr.. Alcott."


She spoke with hot disdain, and
Harry lost his fear in admiration, and
told her his tale Of love. She had
given so little sign that she cared for
him, that he was agreeably relieved
when, putting her hand i'll his, her
eyes beaming with love, she said
simply:


"I love you more than can say"
OF course Harry Graham was the
happiest fellow imaginable, and when
Kate asked him to meet her on deck
at a certain very early hour next
morning, he felt that as far as he was
concerned he would be willing to re-
main where he was forever with her
but she was of different opinion, and
left him to go below. He was not
long alone, for Fred Alcott came up
to him and began, us was his custom,
! to pour out his doubts and fears.
81 don't know what to do about that
half million, and that's a fact; l have
a great mind to go in for it. | should
have done it long ago if Kate Miller
had not been Oh board but just as |
make up my mind, a sight of he1
makes me quake at what l am about
to do. By Jove! | believe l am really
IN love with the girl"


"Well, if that is so, I am very sor-
ry, as she has just promised to be my
wife,


"Your wife Well, you have been
pretty shy about it, l must say.
have decided to go for the other party
Why, by Jove! Harry, shall be YOU
uncle!"


I Harry made WY flce-he was moi
sure that he cared about him becom.
ing Kate's uncle.


| That night, as he was smoking hi: