n I will put in my prior claim and stop the marriage, send the
interloping foreigner back to his own country, and you and I will marry
and go to housekeeping at Greenbushes, according to our lifelong
engagement. That is, if the old love has revived, as of course it has," he
concluded, looking eagerly in her face.

She did not answer him. She could not.

Was the old, true love revived, indeed?

No! for the sweet, sacred love of childhood had never died, never failed,
but burned now a pure fire that wasted her life.

Was she sorry that she had engaged herself to that man?

So sorry, at least, stern necessity had compelled her to do so, that now
death would have been a welcome release.

But she could not tell Leonidas this.

He waited for her answer for a few moments, and then continued:

"Does that grave silence give consent, my Odalite? You are sorry? While
your sailor sweetheart was so far off and so long away that you had almost
forgotten what he looked like, you let your fancy be taken by this fine
foreigner, with his fine social position and his wealth. But now your
sailor lad has come home again, and you see him, and you know whom it is
you really love, you are sorry for what you were misled into doing. But
don't cry any more. You shall not be compelled to marry that man, since
you do not wish to, even though you did accept him of your own free will!
for you had no right to accept him, you know; you were engaged to me. But
to think that he has kissed you!" exclaimed the youth, with a jealous
pang, as he remembered the usual manner of sealing such an acceptance.

"Oh, no, no, Le! He has never kissed me--never, never kissed me--and he
never shall until I cease to be myself and become his property, a body
without a soul, which cannot help itself," said Odalite, with a woeful,
wintry smile of triumph and defiance breaking through the cold rain of her
tears.

"You--you--you have never let him kiss you--not even when you accepted
him!" exclaimed Le, in pleased surprise.

"No; not then; nor ever! No; nor ever shall, until I become his slave in
marriage!" exclaimed the girl, with a dangerous sparkle in her eyes.

"But that shall never be! Why, Odalite, you speak not only as if you do
not like the man, but as if you really hate him; and that being so, you
shall not marry him! I will put a stop to that at once! I have the first
right to you by a long distance--the only right to you, indeed--and--and
I'll throttle