CAMELLA;

Waikato Times, Volume XXXVI, Issue 2890, 22 January 1891, Page 4

CAMELLA;

08, AN IGNORANT WRANGLER

By Mrs L. Frost Battray

(JIIAPrEIi ll.—Amusements on THE S.S. " PiOMOLA."

Mil Kenuidgk was perfectly right when he said that but for Stanley TaU'erson's accident, Camella would not have been particularly interested in him. She liked the honest, manly, genial fellow very much and would have continued to like him exactly .so much for the rest of the voyage, had not his sudden ducking aroused her sympathy, and hisencounterwith tho shark, which might have killed bin: before her eyes, finished and deepened the tenderness she, as a woman, felt for one in peril of his life.

1 liid lie been an .absolute stranger, she: would, in common with nil the other ladies, have experienced a sense of pity and an anxiety for his fate commensurate with their respective capabilities of feeling. .1 »u t lie was also a young man with whom she was talking at the very moment when he lost his balance and fell overboard ; this in itself was sufficient to imbue her with a special feeling of interest in his fate. She had warned him of his danger as a sister might have done, and she blamed herself for not enforcing that warning. Altogether, if Stanley TaU'eraon had intended to win Camella Pittersley, he coulcl not have made a better move than the involuntary one of tumbling into the water. And when he appeared on deck the next morning, a little pallor showing even through his bronze, his left arm arranged in a sling, Camella felt exceedingly sorry for tho wounded hero, and tnore convinced than over that it was hor fault. He made his way towards lier chair, interrupted every moment by inquiries after his maimed arm. Was it seriously hurt ? AVas it true that ho must go ashore at their next next stopping-place, and have it amputated? Was tho ship's surgeon afraid to undertake such a serious operation, unaided ? And so tho various questions were showered oil him, some out of real kindliness, others out of tho polite wish to lot him see tho qurnst intended to intimate his sympathy and condolence thereby. When at length Stanley reached the comfortable chair which had been dragged across to the sheltered nook where Mrs Slangston held court, he dropped into it with an exhausted air that, had he known it, was most, effective. Camella handed hitn her smelling salts, which ho motioned away, and gladly drank a concoction of tho doctor's, though he pulled a faco after swallowing tho mixturo. "Is your arm very painful?" askod tho Newnham scholar, timidly. Stanley rousod himself. "Oh no, it's a little sore and stiff, that's all, thank you. I hoar you have been ill,'' ho went on, trying to look under tho large shady hat which ol'foclually concealed tho girl's classical features whenever sho dropped her head. She raised lier lovoly groy eyes •with an expression almost roproachful in their clear depths. "I? no iudcod, lam perfectly well; whatovormadeyou imagine such a thing?" " 1 did not imagine it, I hoard on good authority that you had fainted, when tho brute went for me. You cannot think how grieved I am to have given you even a moment's pain, and you might havo hurt yourself falling on tho hard deck," ho added, with a compassionato glanco at tho delicate girl. Tho two were virtually loft to themselves. Tho ehaporonc was leaning forward in her chair earnestly discussing the details of tho marriago of a mutual friend with a young lady named Kato I'owys, who was on her way to Auckland to moot her botrothed, and was consequently much interested in the wedding quostion The colonel was deploring tho last badly-conducted expedition against u savago tribe, and tho auditor, Longbow, appoarcd dooply interested in tho soldier's graphic description of tho way ho would havo managed had ho only boon at tho head of tho troops. " T can't think why you all mako it fuss about a trifle," said Camella,

•' f often fainted when T was studying 1 for my degree, and never thought anything of it. I hope you have had a lesion, though, and will not give us poor women a I right, like we had yesterday, again. Stanley's impulse was to lemirk that only the interest displayed by one of tiio fair ladies oil the steamer was of anv moment to him, but he refrained from uttering it, fearing he might often { Oaniella. She was net at, all like 'lie colonial young ladies of his acquaintance, 'who would not. have thought, their friendship of tuo recent a date, if it had onlv existed a week, to warrant a remark of that nature, especially on board ship, where love itself is of mushroom giowth,and frequently that whatever else sho had graduated in tho Nownham, she had not even loarnt, the A. ]>. f!. of tho correct art of flirting. She would never, he was sure, acquire sufficient knowledge of that science to graduate in it. She hud exactly the same manner to all, man or woman, and though, this morning sho seemed alittle shy with Mr Tafferson, her reticence conveyed 110 idea of coquetry. She was, in fact, a woman, who was thoroughly true. Stanley sighed, and leant back 111 his chair rather wearily. "You have never been in Now Zealand before, have you, Miss Pittersley ? I wonder how you will like it."' . .

" I am only going 011 a visit, you know, and of course I shall liko it. I hear on all sides that tho people are most hospitable to strangers, and that will be nice for me. as I have never boon in tho colonies at all."

"Yes, I fancy we are rather foud of entertaining strangers, especially if thoy happen to have a handle to their name, or magic letters after it," lie laughed, witli a little bow to the wrangler.

"Do you call M.A. magic letters, or were you trying to make a fearfully bad pun ?" " I don't see anything like a pun in what I said," observed Stanley, "do you mean to say you fancied there was one ?" " What have you got there, Mr Kenridge ?" asked Camella, glad of Henry's approach to change the conversation. The young man had been ruefully contemplating the couple for some tiino, and at length dccidcd that Tafferson had had a long enough innings. ]3ut how to stop him, ho could not at first think. It_ would bo bad form, and too noticcablo althogethor, to walk straight up to them, and join in a talk that seemed strictly (ideus. A happy idea occurred to him. It was too rough to catch any specimens of ichthyology, but ho had a zoophyte in his cabin which ho thought he might palm off on the Professor's nieco as a freshly caught and very rare jelly-fish. "Look here, Miss Pittersloy, ho cried with all a collector s enthusiasm, ''isn't he a beauty? Now what do you suppose he is ?" •' I don't know, I'm sure, " said the fair girl, poking her white hands cautiously into the pail. "Pray don't do that," cried Stanlov. •'some of those things are horribly poisonous, and would make you feel as if you had been suddenly stricken with paralysis. Please don't touch it.

Camella quickly drew her hands away, and availing herself of her chfipcronc's absorption in Miss Powy's narrative, surreptitiously possessed herself of one of her knitting-needles, with which she pursued her investigations. "It belongs to the llydroza," she decided at length. Mr Kenridce ventured to disagree with herT To toll the truth, he knew nothing whatever about the subject, he had picked up a few names which he generally contrived to introduce with great eflect. " I think it is one of the Lueeruaride-i, one of the " hidden-eyed " beauties of the vasty deep." But Camella had been exploring her reticule for the little pocket magnifying-glass she always carried with her.

" How very strange, it's got that funny mark I pointed out to you yesterday, on the one you caught then."

liaising her eyea before licnry had succeeded in banishing the smile called up by her words, she exclaimed, " Oh, Mr Kenridge, it's the identical jellyfish. Whatever made you try to hoax inn? - ' As it was quite impossible to tell her the truth, Henry stammered out that the mark she had indicated was a distinguishing characteristic of that particular kind of Medusidea, but she scofted at the idea. Mrs Slangston's attention was attracted by the discussion. "My dear Camella, what is the matter ? What horrid, slimy animal have you caught Y' Then the disputant appealed to her ; but the good lady entirely declined to give any opinion on the identity or otherwise of the jellyfish with the particular one Mr Kenridge had fished out of the water the day before, " It's simply ridiculous," she said, " all those things are oxac.tly alike. '* I shouldn't wonder if Mr Kenridgo had brought tho whole lot from London ; you can got anything in the world there." '• lint those are not worldly cvet--1 hits at all," began Henry, but ho was stopped by Airs Slangston, who cried with an accent of great relief in hor voice, "Hero comes tho Secretary for Public Entertainments on board the s.s. " Komola. Well, Mr Secretary, do you require my services?" " That entirely depends on your line of action, Mrs Slangston. Just now. I am in search of a low comedian: can you undortako tho part ?" '• I am afraid not, but I am quite willing to play tho part of unnatural step-mother, cruel aunt, aged grandmother, or anything of that sort."

"Thank you. I shall certainly claim the fulfilment of your promiso

iini! ov ii'linr of those io.s

before we 11:tvo linished our amaleiir theatricals, hul. just, lor to night, tnv sole remaining want is n ,j 1 Konridge, will you help u.s ? " [ never made -i spontaneous joke in my life." iins'.voroil Henry, "how on <;;irfli then, (lo you expect iih! to make them bv tho hundredweight, and to order, too ?" "I won't trouble you, then, ' said tho Secretary, smiling, and turnin" t > Stanley, he asked him if lie I'cft. well enough to fiil tho position. lJut again lie met, with no success, and in despair lie left them, iifu-r telling Oatnella to meet him in I the social liall in half-nn-hour with her violin, for an orchestral prac-

Henry had quietly returned the disputed .jelly-fish to its native element, and availed himself of the colonel's departure in the wake of the indefatigable secretary and sta"e-manager —for the unfortunate man had rashly undertaken the two positions —to seize the Vacated chair, and talk to Camolbi acioss tho interesting invalid who occupied a much-coveted place beside her. " Are you gain" to favour us with some music to-night f he demanded of that young lady. " I am going to play a little," she said. '• But there are to be charades, and burlesques and that sort of thing', not music. We of the orchestra have only to make a noise to cover the scene-shifting, and divert tho audience from noticing how fearfully slow amateur actors are in changing their costumes." " It's not tho actors, if you please, it's invariably the ladies. Once," said Henry, " they induced me to take part in some private theatricals. The hostess invited half London, and, when the ballroom was packed to suffocation, we thought it time to begin. So they started the first scene, and presently I, who was supposed to be a disconsolate lover, was left alone on the stage to wait for | my lady-love. But I had said all I had to say and muttered a whole page out of the Ingoldby Legends, and some one called out, " Speak up, man." So then I got angry and stamped and yelled, " She's played me false, I won't remain here to be laughed at, and made a dupe of any longer,' or something of that sort. I was so vexed, I really didn't know what I said. Then I made a dash for the wings, and over-turned a table, and caught my foot in the cloth, and came down an awful cropper, and the audience clapped, and the stagemanager told me afterwards it was the best imitation of a rage he had ever seen ; and the lady thanked me for keeping the audience so nicely amused whilst she hunted for her fan !"

" I say, Miss Pittersley," said Longbow, sauntering up, " they are howling clown below because you promised to be punctual, and you are quite a quarter of an hour behind time already." The young lady jumped up. " 1 am so sorry," she said, " but Mr Kenridge was telling such delighttul stories, that 1 quite forgot about the practice." " Let -me carry some of your paraphernalia you. Do you know, that we are put down for an instrumental duet to-morrow night 1" " Take nare, Mr Longbow," said Caraella, wondering why he laughed as she pronounced his name, " that is my precious uiagnifying-glass, I would not have it broken for any-

tiling." As she moved near the two other gentlemen, she saw that they were both smiling, and feeling a little piqued, resolved to ask Henry what the joke was, as soon as she had an

opportunity. When the practice was over, he appeared andjasked her to take a promenade with him before dinner. As soon as they had gained the poop, she said quickly : "Please tell me why you and Mr TafFerson laughed when I spoke to Mr Longbow !" "Did we really laugh? It was awfully rude of us, and I humbly apologise for my part. But why do you still call him Longbow ?'' " Is not that his name?'' ".No, it is only a nick-name, bestowed one day by some fellow who fancied his yarns were not as strictly probable as they should bo, and it has stuck to him ever since.'' " Oh,'' in a dismayed tone from Camella, " but you said 1 Longbow' when you introduced him to me." " I beg your pardon, I carefully, with great self-denial, said ' Strongbow,' which is his proper patronymic." " I am so vexed," cried the Newnham girl, "and I have always addressed him as Mr Longbow. Whatever will he think of me V

"He will only imagine that a wrangler fancies that since she has taken a man's degree, she is at liberty to use any fellow's club pet name."

" How mean of you to say such a thing," exclaimed Caniella, turning her flashing eyes on him, "you know perfectly well, Mr Kenridgc, that I, at least, would never, wittingly, be guilty of such an act."

" That colour in your face reminds me of the jolly days when we were young together, before this insane fad of higher education for women came in, and ruined your health in common with so many other girls. You used to call me ' Harry,' then, Camella; why don't yon now T' "Because,'' retorted the girl, "I have learned that it is not correct to address a man loy his pet name. Excuse me, Mr Kcnridge, I want to speak to Miss l'owys." " She's clie nicest girl I know," said the suddenly-bercavod young man, " and if I had lots of money, I would marry her, yes I roally believe I would. But she's not the sort to rough it, and until I am my own master, and able to support a wifo in comfort, I shall ask no girl to link lior fato with mino. Meantime, I must just see that 110 other

fellow runs off with my fair ('ainolla. - ' ( Tn bt' .)