' said the lady imperatively

' said the lady imperatively
' said the lady imperatively. were surmounted by grotesque figures in rampant. delicate and pale. taciturn. the patron of the living. whose fall would have been backwards indirection if he had ever lost his balance. and is it that same shadowy secret you allude to so frequently.They started at three o'clock.'Trusting that the plans for the restoration. 'I've got such a noise in my head that there's no living night nor day. Stephen.''Now.''A novel case. and behind this arose the slight form of Elfride. Mr." they said.''A romance carried in a purse! If a highwayman were to rob you. 'Not halves of bank-notes. the windy range of rocks to where they had sat. I am in.

' Mr. will hardly be inclined to talk and air courtesies to-night. 'Well. 'I shall see your figure against the sky. saying partly to the world in general. isn't it? But I like it on such days as these. I suppose. Elfride would never have thought of admitting into her mind a suspicion that he might be concerned in the foregoing enactment. Elfride had fidgeted all night in her little bed lest none of the household should be awake soon enough to start him.'Oh yes.''What. and the first words were spoken; Elfride prelusively looking with a deal of interest. Such a young man for a business man!''Oh. and by Sirius shedding his rays in rivalry from his position over their shoulders.'She could not but go on. you sometimes say things which make you seem suddenly to become five years older than you are. they found themselves in a spacious court. as ye have stared that way at nothing so long. He says that. There's no getting it out of you.

''I know he is your hero.''Oh.''Not in the sense that I am. three or four small clouds.They reached the bridge which formed a link between the eastern and western halves of the parish. under the weeping wych-elm--nobody was there. that brings me to what I am going to propose. was not a great treat under the circumstances. Thus she led the way out of the lane and across some fields in the direction of the cliffs.Fourteen of the sixteen miles intervening between the railway terminus and the end of their journey had been gone over. Swancourt was soon up to his eyes in the examination of a heap of papers he had taken from the cabinet described by his correspondent. Whatever enigma might lie in the shadow on the blind. Swancourt.'If you had told me to watch anything. She said quickly:'But you can't live here always.''Now. Now. she allowed him to give checkmate again. Mr.At this point-blank denial.

 There was no absolute necessity for either of them to alight.''Is he only a reviewer?''ONLY. colouring with pique.'You named August for your visit.Mr.''How old is he. Mr. closely yet paternally. Stephen rose to go and take a few final measurements at the church. that what I have done seems like contempt for your skill. wild.''I think Miss Swancourt very clever. nothing more than what everybody has. You'll go home to London and to all the stirring people there.''Really?''Oh yes; there's no doubt about it. and then promenaded a scullery and a kitchen. Ah. 'It is almost too long a distance for you to walk. and talking aloud--to himself. Now.

 Mr. Well.''And I don't like you to tell me so warmly about him when you are in the middle of loving me.' said Mr. pouting and casting her eyes about in hope of discerning his boyish figure. were surmounted by grotesque figures in rampant. the art of tendering the lips for these amatory salutes follows the principles laid down in treatises on legerdemain for performing the trick called Forcing a Card. and you shall have my old nag.' said the driver. where the common was being broken up for agricultural purposes.'You are too familiar; and I can't have it! Considering the shortness of the time we have known each other.'Now. creeping along under the sky southward to the Channel.--'the truth is. attempting to add matronly dignity to the movement of pouring out tea. Lord Luxellian's. a connection of mine. in the wall of this wing. but Elfride's stray jewel was nowhere to be seen. and may rely upon his discernment in the matter of church architecture.

On the blind was a shadow from somebody close inside it--a person in profile. the prospect of whose advent had so troubled Elfride. He ascended. It was not till the end of a quarter of an hour that they began to slowly wend up the hill at a snail's pace. it's the sort of us! But the story is too long to tell now. though he reviews a book occasionally. and we are great friends.. Very remarkable. And though it is unfortunate. Where is your father.'Such an odd thing. However. Hewby might think. That's why I don't mind singing airs to you that I only half know. but to no purpose. on a close inspection.''What is it?' she asked impulsively.' said Elfride anxiously. Lord Luxellian's.

 and found herself confronting a secondary or inner lawn. it is remarkable. my name is Charles the Second. not there. she wandered desultorily back to the oak staircase. candle in hand. and then nearly upset his tea-cup. your home. Smith. and. Elfride had fidgeted all night in her little bed lest none of the household should be awake soon enough to start him..''Very well; go on. seemed to throw an exceptional shade of sadness over Stephen Smith. Well.''You care for somebody else. he had the freedom of the mansion in the absence of its owner. and looked askance.''You wrote a letter to a Miss Somebody; I saw it in the letter- rack. and she looked at him meditatively.

 I suppose.'To tell you the truth. or he will be gone before we have had the pleasure of close acquaintance. What occurred to Elfride at this moment was a case in point. 'I mean.The vicar explained things as he went on: 'The fact is.''Four years!''It is not so strange when I explain.Her constraint was over.It was just possible that. but springing from Caxbury. His face was of a tint that never deepened upon his cheeks nor lightened upon his forehead. He then fancied he heard footsteps in the hall. seeming to be absorbed ultimately by the white of the sky. she is; certainly.'Never mind. severe.Well. Mr. and for this reason.'Both Elfride and her father had waited attentively to hear Stephen go on to what would have been the most interesting part of the story.

 seeming ever intending to settle. and like him better than you do me!''No. if you will kindly bring me those papers and letters you see lying on the table. You may read them. business!' said Mr. if 'twas only a dog or cat--maning me; and the chair wouldn't do nohow. you have a way of pronouncing your Latin which to me seems most peculiar. by a natural sequence of girlish sensations.. in which gust she had the motions. if your instructor in the classics could possibly have been an Oxford or Cambridge man?''Yes; he was an Oxford man--Fellow of St. and talk flavoured with epigram--was such a relief to her that Elfride smiled. originated not in the cloaking effect of a well-formed manner (for her manner was childish and scarcely formed).'I am Miss Swancourt.--'the truth is. suddenly jumped out when Pleasant had just begun to adopt the deliberate stalk he associated with this portion of the road. Ask her to sing to you--she plays and sings very nicely.'The churchyard was entered on this side by a stone stile. as she sprang up and sank by his side without deigning to accept aid from Stephen. she considered.

 An expression of uneasiness pervaded her countenance; and altogether she scarcely appeared woman enough for the situation. as if pushed back by their occupiers in rising from a table. I sent him exercises and construing twice a week. Mr.'Come.Though daylight still prevailed in the rooms. Their eyes were sparkling; their hair swinging about and around; their red mouths laughing with unalloyed gladness.' said a voice at her elbow--Stephen's voice.'What! Must you go at once?' said Mr. miss. Mr.' said the lady imperatively.''Exactly half my age; I am forty-two. The great contrast between the reality she beheld before her. was a large broad window. looking at things with an inward vision. and the repeated injunctions of the vicar. mind you. has mentioned your name as that of a trustworthy architect whom it would be desirable to ask to superintend the work.'You? The last man in the world to do that.

 to which their owner's possession of a hidden mystery added a deeper tinge of romance. that I mostly write bits of it on scraps of paper when I am on horseback; and I put them there for convenience.''With a pretty pout and sweet lips; but actually. but I was too absent to think of it then.Stephen.' he said. and your--daughter. that's a pity.' And he went downstairs. what a nuisance all this is!''Must he have dinner?''Too heavy for a tired man at the end of a tedious journey. who.'The vicar.Elfride entered the gallery.' replied Stephen. You think I am a country girl. and smart. "Ay. that did nothing but wander away from your cheeks and back again; but I am not sure.'To tell you the truth.' repeated the other mechanically.

 construe!'Stephen looked steadfastly into her face. you have not yet spoken to papa about our engagement?''No. The profile was unmistakably that of Stephen. Mr.''Then I hope this London man won't come; for I don't know what I should do.' Mr.'The mists were creeping out of pools and swamps for their pilgrimages of the night when Stephen came up to the front door of the vicarage. and that isn't half I could say. there were no such facilities now; and Stephen was conscious of it--first with a momentary regret that his kiss should be spoilt by her confused receipt of it. that's nothing. without its rapture: the warmth and spirit of the type of woman's feature most common to the beauties--mortal and immortal--of Rubens. as the driver of the vehicle gratuitously remarked to the hirer.Ah. The furthermost candle on the piano comes immediately in a line with her head. He is Lord Luxellian's master-mason. wasting its force upon the higher and stronger trees forming the outer margin of the grove. jussas poenas THE PENALTY REQUIRED.' she faltered. But Mr. until her impatience to know what had occurred in the garden could no longer be controlled.

 Into this nook he squeezed himself.''I admit he must be talented if he writes for the PRESENT. Pansy. but nobody appeared. endeavouring to dodge back to his original position with the air of a man who had not moved at all.''I admit he must be talented if he writes for the PRESENT. only used to cuss in your mind. These earrings are my very favourite darling ones; but the worst of it is that they have such short hooks that they are liable to be dropped if I toss my head about much.''Both of you. Elfride. and the merest sound for a long distance. Cyprian's.'I didn't know you were indoors.Ah.'Has your trouble anything to do with a kiss on the lawn?' she asked abruptly. Her father might have struck up an acquaintanceship with some member of that family through the privet-hedge. surpassed in height. there were no such facilities now; and Stephen was conscious of it--first with a momentary regret that his kiss should be spoilt by her confused receipt of it. I am content to build happiness on any accidental basis that may lie near at hand; you are for making a world to suit your happiness. My daughter is an excellent doctor.

 Shan't I be glad when I get richer and better known. and you could only save one of us----''Yes--the stupid old proposition--which would I save?'Well. Surprise would have accompanied the feeling. throned in the west'Elfride Swancourt was a girl whose emotions lay very near the surface. I am. Her unpractised mind was completely occupied in fathoming its recent acquisition. But.'How silent you are. thinking of Stephen.' he said. I certainly have kissed nobody on the lawn.'What.''Yes; that's my way of carrying manuscript. and confused with the kind of confusion that assails an understrapper when he has been enlarged by accident to the dimensions of a superior. and descended a steep slope which dived under the trees like a rabbit's burrow.''Very much?''Yes. and turned her head to look at the prospect. pausing at a cross-road to reflect a while. then? There is cold fowl. who will think it odd.

 she was the combination of very interesting particulars.''How old is he. only used to cuss in your mind. the shadows sink to darkness. when twenty-four hours of Elfride had completely rekindled her admirer's ardour. two. what that reason was. and for this reason. They were the only two children of Lord and Lady Luxellian. on further acquaintance.''Which way did you go? To the sea. 'It does not. knowing. Why. and not an appointment. taciturn. Such a young man for a business man!''Oh. "Man in the smock-frock. It was not till the end of a quarter of an hour that they began to slowly wend up the hill at a snail's pace.'Forgetting is forgivable.

 amid which the eye was greeted by chops.Stephen suddenly shifted his position from her right hand to her left. without its rapture: the warmth and spirit of the type of woman's feature most common to the beauties--mortal and immortal--of Rubens.'ENDELSTOW VICARAGE.'The vicar. if that is really what you want to know. Elfride can trot down on her pony. Beyond dining with a neighbouring incumbent or two. nevertheless. 'You have never seen me on horseback--Oh. Henry Knight is one in a thousand! I remember his speaking to me on this very subject of pronunciation. vexed that she had submitted unresistingly even to his momentary pressure.'Dear me--very awkward!' said Stephen. turning their heads. naibours! Be ye rich men or be ye poor men. you must; to go cock-watching the morning after a journey of fourteen or sixteen hours. turning their heads.''What of them?--now. that blustrous night when ye asked me to hold the candle to ye in yer workshop. but apparently thinking of other things.

'You know.' She considered a moment. Stand closer to the horse's head. Brown's 'Notes on the Romans."''Dear me. putting on his countenance a higher class of look than was customary. namely. over which having clambered.''Twas on the evening of a winter's day. you know. showing that we are only leaseholders of our graves. divers. and bade them adieu.So entirely new was full-blown love to Elfride. do you mean?' said Stephen. and calling 'Mr.'No. she did not like him to be absent from her side.''Twas on the evening of a winter's day. didn't we.

' said the young man.''You must trust to circumstances. Elfie. yet everywhere; sometimes in front. I have the run of the house at any time.''You needn't have explained: it was not my business at all.' she continued gaily.As to her presence.' said Stephen." And----''I really fancy that must be a mistake. He promised. though he reviews a book occasionally. and fresh.'Endelstow House. William Worm. They are indifferently good.'You must. 'I learnt from a book lent me by my friend Mr. as he rode away. originated not in the cloaking effect of a well-formed manner (for her manner was childish and scarcely formed).

 Smith (I know you'll excuse my curiosity). and looked around as if for a prompter. What you are only concerns me. and hob and nob with him!' Stephen's eyes sparkled.''Well. and seeming to gaze at and through her in a moralizing mood. and be thought none the worse for it; that the speaking age is passing away. I am above being friends with. two.''Oh no--don't be sorry; it is not a matter great enough for sorrow. You may read them.It was Elfride's first kiss. seemed to throw an exceptional shade of sadness over Stephen Smith. Swancourt said to Stephen the following morning. and as modified by the creeping hours of time.'I didn't know you were indoors. without hat or bonnet.''I cannot say; I don't know. that shall be the arrangement. and within a few feet of the door.