she would! Weren't the Sabine women glad afterward that the Roman
youth had carried them away?" argued Elva, fresh from her school history.
"And, Le, you could do it very easily!"

"Yes, I could, very easily," grimly assented the youth.

"And you will, won't you?"

"No, my precious! It would not do! Not in these days, darling! With all
the examples of romance, poetry and history to inspire me, I must not do
it! If I were to attempt such a feat, I would be a felon, not a hero, my
pet."

"Then I wish you were a felon!" was the astounding conclusion of Elva, as
she passed him by and entered the house.

From this day Le watched Odalite more closely, and he discovered that, on
all occasions when she was in company with Anglesea, she treated him with
open contempt, except when her father was present; then indeed she seemed
to put constraint upon herself and to treat her betrothed with decent
respect. Was this done to avert any suspicions of the real state of her
feelings from her father's mind?

From this day, also, Le was often absent on errands that took him from the
neighborhood and sometimes kept him over night. And when interrogated by
his uncle, or any member of the family, as to the business that called him
away, he would give evasive answers.

But all noticed that Le's spirits were much improved, so that he was more
like the ruddy, jubilant Le that he had been in the past, than at any
other time since his return home. He walked with a light step, spoke in a
brisk tone, sang snatches of sea songs and winked knowingly at the
wondering children.

Meantime the wedding came on apace.

CHAPTER XVII

ROSEMARY HEDGE

"Oldfield, December 20, 18--.

"Sukey: I saw Miss Sibby Bayard's Gad go by the house this morning on the
mule, with a bag of wheat before him, taking it to old Killman's mill to
be ground, and I know she is going to have hot biscuits for supper out of
the new wheat; so I want you to come and bring Rosemary with you, and we
will walk over there and take tea with her. You ride Jo, and take the
child up behind you, and let the boy walk. Dolly."

"Sukey" was Miss Grandiere, a tall, handsome and dignified maiden lady of
about forty years of age. She had a shapely head, regular features, fair
complexion, blue eyes and brown hair, brushed away from her forehead, and
twisted into a roll on the top of her head.

She wore a plain, dark, calico gown, made with a short waist, tight
sleeves, and long