glad to see you, whatever.'

"I saw the foreign sailor she had been dancing with looking very black
at me, and I began to laugh, and talk, and joke with Bella, just to
plague him, and we danced and drank together, and I soon saw that the
two years I had been away had not improved her. She was more noisy,
and her talk was more coarse, and many an oath was on her lips. I saw
it, but I didn't care, because I had become quite reckless, and my
laugh and my jokes were louder than anyone's in the room.

"'Well, wherever you have been,' says Bella, 'you're very much
improved, Gethin.'

"'Am I that?' says I. 'And how, then?'

"'Oh, well, you are not afraid of a joke, and you've not got that hard
look on your mouth when you hear a light word. Oh, anwl! I was afraid
of you those days; but I will say you had a kind heart, Gethin Owens.'

"'Well,' I says, 'that's alright still, whatever.'"

"'Well then,' she says, 'if it is, you'll take me to the Vampire
Theatre to-night. Come on, Gethin Owens, for the sake of old times,'
she says; and I was glad to see her, certainly, 'twas so long since I
had met an old friend, and the brandy had got in my head a little,
though I hadn't had so much as Bella.

"'Come on, then,' sez I, for I couldn't refuse her when she said 'for
the sake of old times'; and I looked round for Ben Barlow to tell him I
was going, but I couldn't see him anywhere. Well, off we went
together, and when we got out in the street, in spite of the flaring
gas-lamps, you could see 'twas a beautiful night. The moon was shining
round and clear above us, and I never could see the full moon, Sara,
even far away in foreign countries, without thinking of Garthowen
slopes and the moor. Well, this night they came before me very plain,
but I shut them out from my thoughts, with the music from The Vampire
sounding loud in nay ears, and Bella Lewis hanging on my arm.

"All of a sudden, when we reached the door of the theatre, Bella turned
round, and something glittered on her neck in the moonlight.

"'What is that?' I said, pointing to it.

"''Tis my necklace that you gave me,' she said; 'twas in my pocket at
the dancing. I was so afraid it would drop off.'

"And there it was hanging row under row, and the shells showing all
their colours in the bright moonlight. I don't know how can such
things be, Sara, but as sure as I'm here I saw Morva standing there,
just as I saw her that night when I gave her her necklace,