e, low, tremulous, but irresistible,
upon her listening ears.

"God knows I meant to hide as yet, until my life could have shown the
influence you and your blessed faith have had.--God knows I meant to
have striven to show myself worthy before coming to say what now I
cannot restrain; but to-night the truth came out that to you I owe my
pet, my Dandy. No; let me speak," he went on, impetuously, as for one
instant she raised her head as though to check him; he had seized her
hand, too, and held it down there under the folds of that happy cavalry
cape. "I ask nothing. I know I've no right to hope or expect anything as
yet. You have blessed me infinitely beyond my deserts already; but now I
could not go, I _could_ not go without giving you to do with as you will
the only thing on earth I have to offer,--my heart, Marion. Oh, my
darling, my darling, don't shrink from me! Listen, sweet one. There can
be no wrong, no shame in your knowing that I love you, love you beyond
any power of mine to tell you. Were I to go now, after all you have done
for me, and hide all this simply because I did not and could not hope
you would return it,--yet, I would hang my head in shame. The man who
loves as I do _must_ tell it, no matter what the answer be."

And then there was a moment's silence, through which she could plainly
hear the loud beating of his heart, in which she could not find words to
speak, and yet there lay her hand in his, since it was powerless to
check him.

"Have I startled you, Marion?" he whispered low. "Did you not read much
of this in my letter?"

She looked bravely up in his eyes. Her own were full of unshed tears.
Her sweet face was lovely in the pale moonlight, and as once more she
saw the worship in his eyes, the flush of joy, pride,--of what else
could it be?--again mantled her soft cheeks. She made no effort to
withdraw her hand.

"I have no right to be startled, Mr. Ray. I could not but see something
of this all in your letter, though that might have been attributed to a
very unnecessary gratitude. But I would not have you think anything
like--like this due to me because of my interest in all that has taken
place this summer. We all thought--Mrs. Stannard and Grace and I--that
you had been most outrageously wronged, and it did seem as though
everything had turned against you, and I made Mr. Blake buy Dandy
because that seemed the only way to save him, too, from being abused. I
couldn't bear it. Oh, Mr. Ray