med, in her exhilaration, to be losing weight; she would not have
been surprised, if she had found herself floating away to have a real,
close-hand look at the Southern Cross. She had no idea what was going on
in Louis's mind. No kindly angel whispered to her that she should go in,
now, for "swounds and vapours," and thus bolster up the protectiveness
that had come to birth within him that night. She knew nothing of
"swounds and vapours." The rather hard women on Lashnagar were never ill
and weak until they were ready to drop into death. Aunt Janet had never
been weak save in the matter of the acid drops. She certainly felt
thrilled rather than weak. She had something of contempt for the
weakness of women. She was very fond of Mrs. King, but her constant
complaints about Mr. King's badness and her aching back did not seem to
Marcella to be quite playing the game. Mrs. King had solemnly advised
her, several times, to make Louis think she was not well. When she had
seen her carrying pails of coal quite easily up the stairs she had said,
with a shudder:

"Oh, kid--you make my back ache to see you! Why don't you let him do
those jobs? You ought to lay down on the bed and tell him you feel
queer. Then he'll be all over you, trying to do all he can for you."

"I don't want him to, thanks," said Marcella concisely. "Why should he
do it any more than me?"

Mrs. King thought she was mad.

But now she felt that they must get away from Mrs. King, from everyone.
She began to shape her letter to her uncle in her mind, and as she did
so, realized that she and Louis would be alone together no longer. They
would join the communal life at Wooratonga. If he failed again--and she
felt that, perhaps, he might fail--there would be critics. It came to
her that it was quite impossible to go and live with her uncle and the
three daughters who were "rather hard." She was not ashamed of Louis
now; for that she was thankful, but she dreaded that less kindly eyes
than hers should see him when he was weak.

She touched him on the cheek with her lips. He wakened at once.

"What is it, my pet?" he asked anxiously, striking a match and holding
it close to her face.

"Louis, I can't let our baby come to live in Sydney," she said.

"Well, he isn't coming to Sydney to-night," he laughed.

"No. But I want it settled. Louis, I was thinking it would be a good
plan to ask uncle to let us go and work for him. But now I feel I can't
go among his peop