Literature.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume XLVI, Issue 232, 5 October 1904, Page 4

Literature.

.—o K JIADGE'S FERRY-BOAT FRIEND. \ (Continued.) ! " No, indeed ! I should prefer it in - A palace. A romantic person casts a "t glamour over everything through the < imagination: a practical being r thinks of the reality. For instance, i my sister and you would think oi' the S- lovel/, sweet-smelling roses growing. [ toe cottage door, while I should . '" be thinking o( the prabatble smell of { \ ham and egga inside the door.'' He ! [ laughed. fc- •' You might turn vegetarian," he m suggested. W "I think I should like to have i money, lots of money, to go about . and enjoy life, and to be free from t- the niiessity of having to work for \ a living," went on Madge, taking no ' * notice of his remark. r "I have an idea you told me the [> other day that you gloried in being i a serf-supporting woman." [ "What ill did? Don't you know

\ that every woman has the rigjot to be F- inconsasitent if she likes—so some- £ body says, I .forget whom," | "It is a right they need," he said [ gravely but seriously. "If you loved F a man and he was poor, would you not marry him ? " f Madge thought for a moment. \ "I don't know that I would. I i £,m not a romantic maiden, and I al- ( ways think that if single poverty is ! bad, married poverty would be far L worse " E All of which speech went to prove gt that Madge had r...<:r yet been in t love. F "I am sorry you look at it in that i light," he said quietly. And Madge . telt that it was impossible for her to • decide whether there was an underlying tone, so to speak, of personal ret, giet mills remark. They continued C' v to be good boat friends, however, F and the subject of marriage was not r again mentioned between them. t. ««*«*• R The summer had gone by. It was W early winter, when one day Madge E heard that Herbert Foster was in the f, hospital, with typhoid fever, dangerr ously ill. It was possible that he might recover, but—here her infoim- [ ant shook his head. I It was in that moment that Madge realised that Herbert Forster was ~ dearer to her than anyone else in the ■- world. She had missed him on the boats for a week past and wondered ' at his absence. And she remembered sorrowfully how he had told her that he was an : i orphan without kith or Sin ; and how \ £ she bad scorned *• love in a cottage" f to Eim, and now—now it was too i late perhaps. i~ Had she known that he loved her 1 - Madge would ..have ignored Mrs. ■,,. Grundy and gone to see him, but as ? it was she did not know, and could i do nothing, nothing. *■ That was the hardship of it, she reflected. So she had to content herfc seK as best she could with whatever J -news of him she .might hear on the i boats. *; At first everything was vague and L doubtful. T&si she heard that the I crias had passed—he would pull i. through—he was improving—he was t up—he had been out for a little—and : r taally he was going away for a t few week(3 to recruit. Having no expectation of seeing ■him Jhstere.he went, she was agreebly i surprised when he came on to her boat one evening. Rising, she walked forward to meet him ; her face flushed with pleasure. " I am glad you are better," she said, holding out her hand. "Thanka," he answered rather ; 'meanly, as they sat down together. r It was what everyone had said to X Mm, if.\ am so glad you are bet- \ ter." The landlady and her daughter \ at his lodgings, the people at " the office," his boat friends ; and now « Madge used the very same words. '■ From'her at least he would have lik- ■ ed something different. "I was so sorry for you," Madge was saying! now, sympathetically; r~ c being ill at the hpstipal, with no t mother or sister, and having to be f nursed by strangers. It must have S been very horrid for you." 'f ,The young man turned a pair of t quizzical grey eyes upon her. His » sense of humour asserted itself in : spite of himself. " It grieves me to destroy your ililusions, ;but hospital is the very best possible place to be ill; and as tor attention I couldn't possibly have been better looked after if I had a dozen mothers and sisters. There was a. very pretty nurse who was uncommonly good to me," he informed her.

"Dp you mean, Nurse Gresty '! " she asked quickly. "Yes, do you know 'her ? " '•' No ; but I have heard of her. She nursed Mr Baker, y o u know, and others." •"> Oh, yes, I had forgotten about lfr,j Baker. Would you care to see her photo ? !i '•' Yea, very much," answered Madge her heart beating quickly. Drawing a,targe envelop out of his pocket he showed her a cabinet phofo of Nurse C resty. "I have just been buying a frame for it," he explained. " I hope you will admire her because I do, immensely." " Yes, she is very pretty, indeed." " She was awfully good to me. I must look out for something to bring her from Matlock. And how have you been all this long time ? " he asked again turning his grey eyes upon her. ''•' Oh, I'm all right, thanks," she answered, in a rather off-hand manner.

'.'Youdon't look' particularly well —not been walking the decks enough, perhaps," he said lightly, and was surprised to see a quick flush mount to the girl's cheeks. She spoke however, quietly enough. •'■• You are going away at once, are you not ? " she asked. •'■ Yes, to-morrow." His thoughts returned to the hospital. " I wonder what , 1,, could bring Nurse Gresty home 1" Here they were joined by another boat friend, Mr. Baker, and as all three .walked from the ferry together, the, two young men talked chiefly of Nurse Gresty', Madge listening. And this was the meeting to which she hod looked forward so much. Af the end of the month Herbert Forster returned a nd resumed his work in the city. Almost his first words to Madge were of Nurse Gresty*

•'■' I didn't know what to get for Nurse Gresty, so I wrote and asked her, and I'm giving her a chair. She wanted a comfortable one very badly it seems, for the sitting-room. I must go round and see her as soon as I can," he said. And poor Madge felt her heart sink within her. For she Knew now that money and all it couht give were not to be compared witb love. She was silent and the young man continued speaking. "She comes from my county, y o u know, Devonshire, ana has not been here very long and, like me, she is away from all her friends ; though unlike me, she has a home and people belonging to her, and I have not." "■ Is she a practical gijrl or romantic ? Does she believe in love in a :ottage ? " Madge could not resist asking. " Really, I don't know. I have never analysed Nurse Gresty. One just takes her as she is and she is delightful." And Madge's heart sank still lower. She made an attempt to avoid Mr. Forster after that for her own sake, but It was useless, for whenever he saw her alone he joined her. ,Very frequently too, he talked to her of Nurse Gresty. One day he came up to her looking very 'grave. Folding an evening paper he handed it to her, the column containing tie deaths being uppermost—among them was Nurse Gresty's. (To be continued.)