ade no pretence of concealing his
liking. To her father, also, he was immediately drawn. As to Cornwall
Brand, between whom and the girl there seemed to exist a sort of
understanding, he was not so sure.

For half an hour or so they stood by the river exchanging their
experiences in these northern wilds, and their views upon life in the
wilderness and upon things in general. By a little skilful managing
the girl got the young man away from the others, and then proceeded to
dissect and classify him.

Through the open woods along the river bank they wandered, pausing here
and there to admire the view, until they came to an overhanging bank at
the entrance to a somewhat deep gorge, through which the river foamed to
the boiling rapids below. It was indeed a beautiful scene. The banks
of the river were covered with every variety of shrub and tree, except
where the black rocks broke through; between the banks the dark river
raged and fretted itself into a foam against its rocky barriers; over
them arched the sky, a perfect blue.

"What a lovely view!" exclaimed the girl, seating herself upon the edge
of the bank. "Now," she said, "tell me about yourself. You gave my pater
a fearful fright this morning. He was quite paralysed when I came on
him."

"I am very sorry," said the youth, "but I had no intention--"

"I know. I told him not to worry," replied the girl. "I knew you would
be all right."

"And how, pray?" said the young man, blushing at the memory of his
startling appearance upon that rock.

"I knew that any fellow who could take that dive wouldn't likely let
himself drown. I guessed, too, that if you heard me hoot--"

"I did," said the youth.

"You sure would get slippy right away."

"I did."

"I guess you were pretty well startled yourself, weren't you?" said the
girl, pursuing the subject with cool persistence.

"Rather," said the young man, blushing more violently, and wishing she
would change the subject. "You are going out?" he enquired.

"Yes."

"To-day?"

"Now--right away."

"Too bad," he said, his disappointment evident in his tone.

"When are you going out? But who are you, anyway?" asked the girl. "You
have to tell me that."

"My life story, so to speak?"

She nodded.

"It's very short and simple, like the annals of the poor," he replied.
"From England in infancy, on a ranch in northern Alberta for ten years,
a puny little wretch I was, terribly bothered with asthma, then"--the
boy