gs too," continued she. "Here is Lance with his great
majestic face, and here Gertrude with her fine pointed nose and piercing
eyes, and here's little Spicer as saucy and pert as I can make him
without color; for one ought to have a little carmine for the corner of
his eye, and a slight tinge to accent the tip of his nose. Shall I
add all your 'emblems,' as they call them, and put in the fishing-rods
against the wall, and the landing-net, and the guns and pouches?"

She went on sketching with inconceivable rapidity, the drawing keeping
pace almost with her words.

But Tony no longer took the interest he had done before in the picture,
but seemed lost in some deep and difficult reflection.

"Shall we have a bridge--a mere plank will do--over the river here,
Tony? and then this zigzag pathway will be a short way up to the
cottage."

He never heard her words, but arose and left the room. He passed out
into the little garden in front of the house, and, leaning on the gate,
looked out into the dark still night.

Poor Tony! impenetrable as that darkness was, it was not more difficult
to peer through than the thick mist that gathered around his thoughts.

"Is that Tony?" cried his mother from the doorway.

"Yes," said he, moodily, for he wanted to be left to his own thoughts.

"Come here, Tony, and see what a fine manly letter your friend Mr.
M'Gruder writes in answer to mine."

Tony was at her side in an instant, and almost tore the letter in his
eagerness to read it. It was very brief, but well deserved all she
had said of it. With a delicacy which perhaps might scarcely have been
looked for in a man so educated and brought up, he seemed to appreciate
the existence of a secret he had no right to question; and bitterly
as the resolve cost him, he declared that he had no longer a claim on
Dolly's affection.

"I scarcely understand him, mother; do you?" asked Tony.

"It 's not very hard to understand, Tony," said she, gravely. "Mr.
M'Gruder sees that Dolly Stewart could not have given him her love and
affection as a man's wife ought to give, and he would be ashamed to take
her without it."

"But why could n't she? Sam seems to have a sort of suspicion as to the
reason, and I cannot guess it."

"If he does suspect, he has the nice feeling of a man of honor, and sees
that it is not for one placed as he is to question it."

"If any man were to say to me, 'Read that letter, and tell me what does
it infer,' I'd say