t from the enjoyment of the expedition. She was rather tall,
and there was an air of strength and energy about her which was most
refreshing. Her skin was singularly white, but there was a healthy glow
of colour in her cheeks; while her large, grey eyes, shaded by long
lashes, were full of life and brightness. As to her features, they
were perhaps a trifle irregular, and her elder sisters were supposed to
eclipse her altogether; but to my mind she was far the most taking of
the three.

I was not in the least surprised that Derrick should fall head over ears
in love with her; she was exactly the sort of girl that would infallibly
attract him. Her absence of shyness; her straightforward, easy way of
talking; her genuine goodheartedness; her devotion to animals--one of
his own pet hobbies--and finally her exquisite playing, made the
result a foregone conclusion. And then, moreover, they were perpetually
together. He would hang over the piano in the saloon for hours while she
played, the rest of us lazily enjoying the easy chairs and the fresh air
on deck; and whenever we landed, these two were sure in the end to be
just a little apart from the rest of us.

It was an eminently successful cruise. We all liked each other; the sea
was calm, the sunshine constant, the wind as a rule favourable, and I
think I never in a single fortnight heard so many good stories, or had
such a good time. We seemed to get right out of the world and its narrow
restrictions, away from all that was hollow and base and depressing,
only landing now and then at quaint little quiet places for some merry
excursion on shore. Freda was in the highest spirits; and as to Derrick,
he was a different creature. She seemed to have the power of drawing him
out in a marvellous degree, and she took the greatest interest in his
work--a sure way to every author's heart.

But it was not till one day, when we landed at Tresco, that I felt
certain she genuinely loved him--there in one glance the truth flashed
upon me. I was walking with one of the gardeners down one of the long
shady paths of that lovely little island, with its curiously foreign
look, when we suddenly came face to face with Derrick and Freda. They
were talking earnestly, and I could see her great grey eyes as they were
lifted to his--perhaps they were more expressive than she knew--I cannot
say. They both started a little as we confronted them, and the colour
deepened in Freda's face. The gardener, w