CHAPTER III.

Te Aroha News, Volume V, Issue 206, 11 June 1887, Page 6

CHAPTER 111.

TUEI LIGHT. I The morn is bright July, T trow, TfiC iov 1 is blooming tnin, But we sii.ill blow m winter snow, My lovo! Ere we two inuet again. Ho tunic<l his ch.arf.7ei', as hoepakes, Upon the ri\ t-r blsoi c ; lie jrnve his bridle reins a Bhuke, !?aul, " Adu-u once more. My io\ u '•" And " Adieu onco more !" S iii "Walter Scott. Tun fugitive dropped (Gertrude's hand and sank back in lii.i t-eat, quite o-\ercomo with the reaction of excitement. His faco was pale a& death : his biow was bathed in perspiration ; his frame blinking as with an ague fit. The ferry-girl g-ued on him with wonder and pity. Now, "if pity be akin to love " on the one hand, it is allied to contempt on the other. Perhaps the youth, as he raised his eyes and caught the expression of her face, might have f.uicicd th.vt the maiden's pity was the nearer to contempt, for ho suddenly exclaimed : "I'm no coward. I declare I am not. But, you see, hanging i^n't m hat it's cracited up to be. ISO, that it isn't." " 1 do not think that you are a coward,' 1 said Gertrude, quietly, dropping hor eyes. " No, nor I'm no criminal neither. Upon my sacred word of honour, I'm not,"' he added, earnestly. " I am sure jou are not," said Gertrudo, readily. " Though, I dare say, I do look like ono," he observed, w ith a rueful su^h. Geitrude could nob forbear a smile aa she glanced at the open, innocent faeo of the youth, with its bioad. full forehead, frank light blue eye?, turncd-upno3e, soft, girlibh mouth, and smooth, beardleo? chin. " No, no," fciio answered, quickly. " You certainly do not look the least bit liko a criminal." "Why? Did you ever see one?'' ho inquired, lifting hi^ eyebrows. "No, I never sa',> one; but I can easily imagine that no criminal ever looked like you,'' she anauered v, ith a amile. "Do you know now that makes me feel quite happy ? I declare it does ! Well, now — "' Before he could add another word tho noi^c that had ceased for a while re-comm-enced. "Bo \t r i oared a chorus of voices from across the river. "Set lire to your throat 1 ?! Now, then, yell to your heart s content ! You won't got any boat to-night !" sharply exclaimed the stranger. Thou turning to the ferry-girl, he inquired : " Oh, I say, you don't mind their howling, do you ?" " Not at all," answered Gertrude. "You are the wiy jolhest brick! All right, then ; let them bawl to their souls' satisfaction." " B-o-v-T 1" roarcl the voices. " Oil, "go it ! Don't stop in consideration of our feelings ! We can 1 Mid ears as long as you can iind tin oats," coolly romarked the young nvm. Then, ns if suddenly remembering something, he looked at tho ferry-girl, and said : " Oh, I '•ay, hoy,- did you find out that I am no criminal and no coward, much aa I look and act like both, eh ?" " You neither look nor act liko either," persisted Gertrude. "Oh, yes, Ido ! I know I do. I feel I do. Haven't I run away ?" "For some good reason, doubtless, which is neither criminal nor cowardly." " But they say flight ia always a sign of guilt." " Not always ; not in your case." " Well, now, do you know you lift mo right off my feet when you say that ? But how did you find it out ? That is what I want to know." " Oh, easily enough. When your pursuers reached the opposite side of tho river and called for the boat, you pleaded with mo, when you might havo compelled me. A criminal and cowaidly fugitive, under the same circumstances, would have insured his safety by binding mo hand and foot, or locking me in the room to prevent me from crossing tho ferry. You did not attempt to do anything of the sort." While Geitrude spoke the young man's eyebrows lifted themselves highor and higher, his blue eyes opened wider and wider, his lips fell apart, nis whole countenance expressed the drollest astonishment. " You said that before !" he exclaimed. " But, in the first place, I repeat, I never once thought of such a base and treacherous act. And, in the second place, if the father of fraud had suggested it to me, 1 would have died before yielding to such a temptation. Yes, ma'am. If you nad chosen to refuse my plea, and had gone across the water in your ferry-boat to bring the bloodhounds upon my track, 1 should have mounted my horse and tried to escape ; but \rhat could 1 havo done with my tired horse, that I had ridden all day long, againat half a dozen men mounted on fresh horses, probably obtained from the last post-house on their road ? I could have done nothing. I should have been brought to bay by my hunters before morning. But I would not have been taken alive, to bring shamo upon my family. No ! I should havo been a dead man, probably, by this time. There ! Don't let'u talk about it. It makes your flesh creep, I see," he concluded, with a slight shiver. " B-o-a-t !" thundered a full orchestra of voices from over the water. " Encore /" laughed the fugitive. " You are sure you don't mind, their bellayring ?" he inquired, considerately, of his companion. " Quite suro," sho answered. " All right, then ; let them bellow. It will do them good. Oh ! I say ; you are such a regular trump I'd like ever so much to give you a kiss. But, oh !— I beg your pardon I declare Ido ! The words slipped out— upon my word they did ! I wouldn't offer to do such a rude, impertinent, offensive thing for tho world, under these circumstances—l declare upon my honour I wouldn't. You are not angry with me, I hope ?" he eagerly inquired. " No, lam not ; but I tru&fc that you will remember you are my guest," gently replied the ferry-girl. " And your debtor for ray life, too ! Indeed, I will remember ; and 1 tell you what el&o I will do : I will marry you just as soonas ever I got out of this awful scrape — that is to say, of course, if you will havo me j and I think you will know me better I do, really. I'm rather a good sort— l am, indeed ; and I'm awful uch. When I say ' awful ' rich, I know what lam talking about, for I havo an immense property, and

I know it is going to be a horrid bother to take care of it al. all. So I'll mnrry you, if you will have me, and you will walk into tho finest e&tates on this continent — I declare you will. And you deserve it, too, a great deal better than 1 do, who was born to it. You will be the mistress of the grandest old houso in the country you will really an old ancestral home built in 1648 ; and you'll bo an honour to it, you are such a regular stunner that you are. Now you just think on what I have told you - that's a good fellow — and don't go marrying any other boat, and I'll como straight back to you the minute I am out of this horrid mess —you see if I don't now !" concluded the youth, rising and looking about himself. "What is it that you want?" inquired Gertruclo. "My hat. lam going now. My horso has had a feed and a rest, thanks to your goodness— you aio .such a perfect trump ! that I think ho can take me another stago to-night. To-nighb ! — this morning, I mean. Look at tho clock." Gcrtrudo glanced at tho time-piece and saw that tho hands pointocl to half-past tin cc. "Oh! I wonder— l wonder what keeps my grandfather?" £.ho exclaimed, m dismay. " I don't know, my doar girl ; not having tho pleasure of tho old gentleman's acqiuiinUmco, much less tho honour of hid confidence, I can't say ; but I know it is very fortunato for mo that something keeps him. If ho were hero, ho might take it into his grandfathorly head to go and fetch the enemy over tho water. Good-by, my doar. I am going now to got my horbe and bhall pass out through the alloy." " But— do you not wi.,h to put on your own proper clothing ?" inquired his young hostess, hesitating and blushing. "Ah, no. Tho grandfatherly raiment makes a better disguise Stay— bless my ?oul alive. Ido believe I havo left my pocket-book and all my money in the coalpocket of my other t.uit. If you will permit me, I will go and gob it." (Jo trudo bowed arisen t, and tho young^ man wont across the passage to Gabiiel Iliiddon'b room, and soon roturnod, bringing what scorned to be a ■woll-fillod purtemonnaio witli him. "Here, my dear girl," ho said, selecting throe notes of twenty dollars each, "hero I leavo my wet clothes to get dry, and I loavo this sum in payment of tho patriarchal suit I wear away. Take it, if you please. " "No, no, no! indeed I cannot!" exclaimed Gertrude, shaking her head and putting her hands behind hor. " Oh, well, I will put it on tho mantelpieco, and put this broas candlestick down on it to keep it f torn blowing away. You have no right to lefiioO it, you know. And 1 havo no right to we ir away these clothes without paying for them, oithor," said the you n"- man, suiting Iho action to the word, and cFepositing the notes in tho improvised bank. "I do wi-jh you would nofe persist in leaving that money here," expostulated tho ferry-girl. "Do \ou, my dear? You are such a tip-top, out and out trump ! A number one, jolly stunner ! Wouldn't Pat tako a shine to you, neither ?'' he exclaimed, in enthusiasm. " 1 don't know, though, after all," he added, contemplatively. " Sho might bo jealous— this absurd Pat ?"' " Pat ?" echoed Gertrude, interrogatively. " Yes, Pat— Pat Fit?- ! I say, &he might bo jealous and give me fits.'' "Do you mean Miss Patricia Fitzgerald ?" "Yes, I mean Mibrf Patticia Fitzgerald, my imp of a cousin ! We are all cousins in Wilde country, you know. 1 have not the slightest doubt m tho world chat you are my cousin also. In fact, you must be if you are a native of Wildo county. Well, good-night, Cousin Gertrude : ' Good-night, good-night, parting ia such swoot .sorrow. That I shall say good-night 'till is be to-mor-row !' And I'm blessed if it is»n'fc already tomorrow, too, as Pat would say. Look at the clock ! So good-morning, my doar girl. lam really oil' now. And now for the Summit, like a bird of ill omen, to carry bad news to a waiting bride. Anathemas ! I hope Gerry wont stiiko me down dead with tho black lightning of her oyes ?" "Gerry?" repeatod Gertrude, in perplexity. " Yeb, Gerry Fitz— " ' From tho glance of hor ejo Shun danger and fly, For fatal 's tho glance.' And I have got to bravo it this morning. Pray for mo, my dear girl. Pray that I may be delivered from the death, the devil, and Gerry's angry oyes." " Are you talking of Miss Geraldine Fitagcald, the, bridc-dect .?" inquired tho ferrygirl, in a tone of awe. " Just ! lam talking of Miss Geraldino Fitzgerald, the bride-elect — ' the queenly, dark- eyed Geraldine.' Sho is another cousin. What did I tell you ? We are all cousins in Wilde county — we are all cousins in Virginia, I meant. Well, once more, good-morning, Cousin Gertrude. I tear myself away. I go, like good King Arthur of the legend — 1 To slay and to bo slain.' " So saying, with a melodramatic flourish, tho eccentric traveller bowed himself out of the room. In one minute afterwards, she heard hia voice in the backyard expostulating with tho bull-dogs, who first resented his intrusion there with deep growls of hatred and defiance ; and then, as they recognised, welcomed him with glad barka ot friendship and apology. Two minutes afterwards she hoard him gallop through the alloy, and down the turnpike road in tho direction of the Old Red Sandstone Church.