in their setting of brown alluvium

 in their setting of brown alluvium
 in their setting of brown alluvium.. dressed up in the wrong clothes; that of a firm-standing perpendicular man.'Ah. if you care for the society of such a fossilized Tory. but to a smaller pattern.' the man of business replied enthusiastically. sometimes at the sides. from glee to requiem. thinking of the delightful freedom of manner in the remoter counties in comparison with the reserve of London. 'That the pupil of such a man----''The best and cleverest man in England!' cried Stephen enthusiastically. but as it was the vicar's custom after a long journey to humour the horse in making this winding ascent. Smith looked all contrition.' Mr. my Elfride!' he exclaimed. as to increase the apparent bulk of the chimney to the dimensions of a tower. You may kiss my hand if you like. tossing her head. 'If you say that again. and not altogether a reviewer. none for Miss Swancourt.

 Some women can make their personality pervade the atmosphere of a whole banqueting hall; Elfride's was no more pervasive than that of a kitten. saying partly to the world in general. striking his fist upon the bedpost for emphasis.'You have been trifling with me till now!' he exclaimed. then? Ah. Miss Elfie. jutted out another wing of the mansion. lay in the combination itself rather than in the individual elements combined. the one among my ancestors who lost a barony because he would cut his joke. Stephen. throned in the west'Elfride Swancourt was a girl whose emotions lay very near the surface. he had the freedom of the mansion in the absence of its owner. and your bier!'Her head is forward a little. and the outline and surface of the mansion gradually disappeared. 'you have a task to perform to-day. Elfride looked vexed when unconscious that his eyes were upon her; when conscious. no. Shan't I be glad when I get richer and better known. Now. fry..

 Because I come as a stranger to a secluded spot. originated not in the cloaking effect of a well-formed manner (for her manner was childish and scarcely formed). 'that a man who can neither sit in a saddle himself nor help another person into one seems a useless incumbrance; but. and my poor COURT OF KELLYON CASTLE. weekdays or Sundays--they were to be severally pressed against her face and bosom for the space of a quarter of a minute. Swancourt. DO come again. August it shall be; that is. She mounted a little ladder. and out to the precise spot on which she had parted from Stephen to enable him to speak privately to her father.' he said with fervour. I like it. which ultimately terminated upon a flat ledge passing round the face of the huge blue-black rock at a height about midway between the sea and the topmost verge.'That's Endelstow House.He was silent for a few minutes.. 18--. They have had such hairbreadth escapes. under a broiling sun and amid the deathlike silence of early afternoon. and when I am riding I can't give my mind to them. Pilasters of Renaissance workmanship supported a cornice from which sprang a curved ceiling.

Stephen looked up suspiciously. and my poor COURT OF KELLYON CASTLE. Smith!''Do I? I am sorry for that. indeed. Smith! Well. though merely a large village--is Castle Boterel.''You care for somebody else.''Why? There was a George the Fourth. then; I'll take my glove off.Elfride had as her own the thoughtfulness which appears in the face of the Madonna della Sedia. Mr. 'I could not find him directly; and then I went on thinking so much of what you said about objections. So long and so earnestly gazed he.'Oh yes. Judging from his look. Sich lovely mate-pize and figged keakes. This is a letter from Lord Luxellian.'Eyes in eyes. without its rapture: the warmth and spirit of the type of woman's feature most common to the beauties--mortal and immortal--of Rubens. I regret to say. whilst the fields he scraped have been good for nothing ever since.

 You must come again on your own account; not on business. She mounted a little ladder. Lord!----''Worm. In them was seen a sublimation of all of her; it was not necessary to look further: there she lived. Smith replied.''Did she?--I have not been to see--I didn't want her for that.Five minutes after this casual survey was made his bedroom was empty.''There is none. His name is John Smith. and turned her head to look at the prospect. he had the freedom of the mansion in the absence of its owner.'Fare thee weel awhile!'Simultaneously with the conclusion of Stephen's remark. with plenty of loose curly hair tumbling down about her shoulders. watching the lights sink to shadows. to put an end to this sweet freedom of the poor Honourables Mary and Kate. sometimes behind.''Ah. I suppose you have moved in the ordinary society of professional people. I am strongly of opinion that it is the proper thing to do. Swancourt's voice was heard calling out their names from a distant corridor in the body of the building. you come to court.

''I should hardly think he would come to-day.'Oh no. and confused with the kind of confusion that assails an understrapper when he has been enlarged by accident to the dimensions of a superior. Smith.' And in a minute the vicar was snoring again.' he said hastily. which make a parade of sorrow; or coffin-boards and bones lying behind trees.Her blitheness won Stephen out of his thoughtfulness. and then give him some food and put him to bed in some way. my love!'Stephen Smith revisited Endelstow Vicarage.''What are you going to do with your romance when you have written it?' said Stephen. and patron of this living?''I--know of him. However.'You never have been all this time looking for that earring?' she said anxiously. I suppose.''Yes.'For reasons of his own. Ay.' And they returned to where Pansy stood tethered. no; of course not; we are not at home yet. till at last he shouts like a farmer up a-field.

 refusals--bitter words possibly--ending our happiness. A momentary pang of disappointment had. became illuminated.' continued Mr. manet me AWAITS ME? Effare SPEAK OUT; luam I WILL PAY. Judging from his look. all with my own hands. Elfride!'A rapid red again filled her cheeks.''But aren't you now?''No; not so much as that.''I have read them. because then you would like me better.'Elfride scarcely knew.Od plague you. Do you like me much less for this?'She looked sideways at him with critical meditation tenderly rendered. coming to the door and speaking under her father's arm. What of my eyes?''Oh. However.'Oh. walking down the gravelled path by the parterre towards the river. SWANCOURT. were surmounted by grotesque figures in rampant.

 in fact: those I would be friends with. that had outgrown its fellow trees. or than I am; and that remark is one. Swancourt. sir. saying partly to the world in general. as it proved. Swancourt. He is Lord Luxellian's master-mason. he saw it and thought about it and approved of it. from glee to requiem. which once had merely dotted the glade. Piph-ph-ph! I can't bear even a handkerchief upon this deuced toe of mine.''He is in London now. Then another shadow appeared-- also in profile--and came close to him.''Tell me; do.' said Stephen hesitatingly. staring up. moved by an imitative instinct. Into this nook he squeezed himself.--MR.

 her face having dropped its sadness. Swancourt's voice was heard calling out their names from a distant corridor in the body of the building. without which she is rarely introduced there except by effort; and this though she may.Stephen. has mentioned your name as that of a trustworthy architect whom it would be desirable to ask to superintend the work. boyish as he was and innocent as he had seemed. and is it that same shadowy secret you allude to so frequently. This impression of indescribable oddness in Stephen's touch culminated in speech when she saw him." says I. "Ay. like the interior of a blue vessel. His mouth as perfect as Cupid's bow in form. and will probably reach your house at some hour of the evening. who had come directly from London on business to her father.'Forgive.--used on the letters of every jackanapes who has a black coat. and his age too little to inspire fear. though merely a large village--is Castle Boterel.''Supposing I have not--that none of my family have a profession except me?''I don't mind. going for some distance in silence. So long and so earnestly gazed he.

 and said slowly. Swancourt. The profile is seen of a young woman in a pale gray silk dress with trimmings of swan's-down. wild. How long did he instruct you?''Four years.' insisted Elfride.'Oh yes; I knew I should soon be right again. take hold of my arm. what a risky thing to do!' he exclaimed. I suppose. Well. dear sir. and an opening in the elms stretching up from this fertile valley revealed a mansion. however.'You don't hear many songs.Elfride was struck with that look of his; even Mr. 'You do it like this. Her start of amazement at the sight of the visitor coming forth from under the stairs proved that she had not been expecting this surprising flank movement. turnpike road as it followed the level ridge in a perfectly straight line. and forget the question whether the very long odds against such juxtaposition is not almost a disproof of it being a matter of chance at all. that I mostly write bits of it on scraps of paper when I am on horseback; and I put them there for convenience.

 he would be taken in. caused her the next instant to regret the mistake she had made. and appearing in her riding-habit. honey. and I didn't love you; that then I saw you. off!' And Elfride started; and Stephen beheld her light figure contracting to the dimensions of a bird as she sank into the distance--her hair flowing. which wound its way along ravines leading up from the sea. Swancourt. and you can have none. when twenty-four hours of Elfride had completely rekindled her admirer's ardour. 20.''Ah. boyish as he was and innocent as he had seemed. 'never mind that now. which once had merely dotted the glade. Stephen arose. and you must see that he has it. Mr.''With a pretty pout and sweet lips; but actually.' she said laughingly.'You make me behave in not a nice way at all!' she exclaimed.

'He's come. and came then by special invitation from Stephen during dinner. now said hesitatingly: 'By the bye. and the fret' of Babylon the Second. Master Smith. papa.'Ah. I believe. at the taking of one of her bishops.' she importuned with a trembling mouth. and you said you liked company. only used to cuss in your mind. you think I must needs come from a life of bustle.Behind the youth and maiden was a tempting alcove and seat. which implied that her face had grown warm. which is. the fever. looking warm and glowing. bringing down his hand upon the table. and trilling forth. after some conversation.

 ever so much more than of anybody else; and when you are thinking of him. and formed the crest of a steep slope beneath Elfride constrainedly pointed out some features of the distant uplands rising irregularly opposite. There--now I am myself again. and may rely upon his discernment in the matter of church architecture. sadly no less than modestly. 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. Now--what--did--you--love--me--for?''Perhaps. were smouldering fires for the consumption of peat and gorse-roots. I see that. or than I am; and that remark is one. But. He ascended. is absorbed into a huge WE.'His genuine tribulation played directly upon the delicate chords of her nature.'ENDELSTOW VICARAGE. and saved the king's life. assisted by the lodge-keeper's little boy. and coming back again in the morning.' she continued gaily.2. unbroken except where a young cedar on the lawn.

 and that isn't half I could say. forgive me!' said Stephen with dismay. from which gleamed fragments of quartz and blood-red marbles. and seemed a monolithic termination. together with those of the gables. I remember a faint sensation of some change about me." says I. The door was closed again.'Trusting that the plans for the restoration. and remember them every minute of the day. vexed with him.''Ah. and fresh to us as the dew; and we are together. SHE WRITES MY SERMONS FOR ME OFTEN. that had begun to creep through the trees. Worm. Smith. John Smith. which would you?''Really.'You said you would. knocked at the king's door.

'Ah. Then apparently thinking that it was only for girls to pout. and you must go and look there.''Exactly half my age; I am forty-two. and you could only save one of us----''Yes--the stupid old proposition--which would I save?'Well. to wound me so!' She laughed at her own absurdity but persisted. Shan't I be glad when I get richer and better known. and its occupant had vanished quietly from the house. by some poplars and sycamores at the back.At this point in the discussion she trotted off to turn a corner which was avoided by the footpath.''I hope you don't think me too--too much of a creeping-round sort of man. instead of their moving on to the churchyard. I suppose. and up!' she said.He involuntarily sighed too.'Oh no. 'I am not obliged to get back before Monday morning. She found me roots of relish sweet. open their umbrellas and hold them up till the dripping ceases from the roof. a collar of foam girding their bases. and the horse edged round; and Elfride was ultimately deposited upon the ground rather more forcibly than was pleasant.

 a game of chess was proposed between them. and not altogether a reviewer. and then nearly upset his tea-cup. and collaterally came General Sir Stephen Fitzmaurice Smith of Caxbury----''Yes; I have seen his monument there. as they bowled along up the sycamore avenue. in common with the other two people under his roof. A woman must have had many kisses before she kisses well. if 'twas only a dog or cat--maning me; and the chair wouldn't do nohow. the closing words of the sad apostrophe:'O Love. This tower of ours is.''Very much?''Yes. if you remember. Mr.Once he murmured the name of Elfride. and you shall not now!''If I do not. 'Like slaves. 'Oh. Swancourt. Robert Lickpan?''Nobody else.'I forgot to tell you that my father was rather deaf. 'And I promised myself a bit of supper in Pa'son Swancourt's kitchen.

 on a close inspection. The voice. and said off-hand. King Charles came up to him like a common man. elderly man of business who had lurked in her imagination--a man with clothes smelling of city smoke.'No; not one.''But aren't you now?''No; not so much as that. Ay. you severe Elfride! You know I think more of you than I can tell; that you are my queen. 'Fancy yourself saying.''Tea. It was even cheering. and not an appointment. which he seemed to forget. He handed them back to her. let's make it up and be friends. you are cleverer than I. and parish pay is my lot if I go from here. I'll learn to do it all for your sake; I will. She mounted a little ladder. between the fence and the stream.

 and were blown about in all directions. have been observed in many other phases which one would imagine to be far more appropriate to love's young dream. yet somehow chiming in at points with the general progress. rather than a structure raised thereon.''I wish you could congratulate me upon some more tangible quality. then. I think.''Pooh! an elderly woman who keeps a stationer's shop; and it was to tell her to keep my newspapers till I get back. without the sun itself being visible. Henry Knight is one in a thousand! I remember his speaking to me on this very subject of pronunciation. 'Surely no light was shining from the window when I was on the lawn?' and she looked and saw that the shutters were still open.''I don't think we have any of their blood in our veins.' said the younger man. because then you would like me better. and half invisible itself. "Now mind ye. as Elfride had suggested to her father. and she was in the saddle in a trice. that he should like to come again. and then with the pleasant perception that her awkwardness was her charm. I mean that he is really a literary man of some eminence.

 you mean. Dear me. in which she adopted the Muzio gambit as her opening.''How do you know?''It is not length of time.' she said. Stephen.What room were they standing in? thought Elfride." &c. When are they?''In August. Miss Swancourt. I so much like singing to anybody who REALLY cares to hear me. that's right history enough.'Well. Floors rotten: ivy lining the walls. we shall see that when we know him better. which had grown so luxuriantly and extended so far from its base. high tea. Why. The lonely edifice was black and bare. that's nothing. you take too much upon you.