red to think a partner or
two could be found for him. So they all got up and went away down to the
hall of the Mechanics' Institute--a tremendous big room that had been
built to use as a theatre, and to give lectures and concerts in. These
sort of things are very popular at diggings. Miners like to be amused,
and have plenty of money to spend when times are good. There was hardly
a week passed without some kind of show being on when we went there.

I walked down quietly an hour or so before most of the people, so as
to be in the way to see if Aileen came. We'd asked her to come on the
chance of meeting us there, but we hadn't got any word, and didn't know
whether she could manage it nor whether George would bring her. I had
a sort of half-and-half notion that perhaps Gracey might come, but I
didn't like to think of it for fear of being disappointed, and tried to
make believe I didn't expect her.

I gave in my ticket and walked in about eight o'clock, and sat down
pretty close to the door so that I could see the people as they came in.
I didn't feel much up to dancing myself, but I'd have ridden a thousand
miles to have had the chance of seeing those two girls that night.

I waited and waited while one after another came in, till the big hall
was pretty near filled, and at nine o'clock or so the music struck up,
and the first dance began. That left the seats pretty bare, and between
listening to the music and looking at the people, and thinking I was
back again at the old claim and passing half-an-hour at a dance-house,
I didn't mind the door so much till I heard somebody give a sort of
sigh not very far off, and I looked towards the door and saw two women
sitting between me and it.

They were Aileen and Gracey sure enough. My head almost turned round,
and I felt my heart beat--beat in a way it never did when the bullets
were singing and whistling all about. It was the suddenness of it, I
expect. I looked at them for a bit. They didn't see me, and were just
looking about them as I did. They were dressed very quiet, but Gracey
had a little more ornament on her, and a necklace or something round her
neck. Aileen was very pale, but her beautiful dark hair was dressed up a
bit with one rosebud in it, and her eyes looked bigger and brighter than
they used to do. She looked sad enough, but every now and then Gracey
said something that made her smile a bit, and then I thought she was the
handsomest girl in the room. Gracey h