eated upon the bottom step of the
flight of stairs, awaiting our arrival--was almost indescribable.

He sank back upon his seat with a gasp, clutching at his hat with both
hands. He also disbelieved.

"Wash!" he exclaimed weakly. "Lord, no! Lord, no! Not Wash! Wash, he's
in North Cal-lina. Lord, no!"

"He is up-stairs," returned Clelie, "and Mademoiselle is with him."

During the recovery of Monsieur Wash, though but little was said upon
the subject, it is my opinion that the minds of each of our number
pointed only toward one course in the future.

In Mademoiselle's demeanor there appeared a certain air of new courage
and determination, though she was still pallid and anxious. It was as if
she had passed a climax and had gained strength. Monsieur, the father,
was alternately nervous and dejected, or in feverishly high spirits.
Occasionally he sat for some time without speak ing, merely gazing into
the fire with a hand upon each knee; and it was one evening, after a
more than usually prolonged silence of this description, that he finally
took upon himself the burden which lay upon us unitedly.

"Esmeraldy," he remarked, tremulously, and with manifest
trepidation,--"Esmeraldy, I've been thinkin'--it's time--we broke it to
mother."

The girl lost color, but she lifted her head steadily.

"Yes, father," she answered, "it's time."

"Yes," he echoed, rubbing his knees slowly, "it's time; an', Esmeraldy,
it's a thing to--to sorter set a man back."

"Yes, father," she answered again.

"Yes," as before, though his voice broke somewhat; "an' I dessay you
know how it'll be, Esmeraldy,--that you'll have to choose betwixt mother
and Wash."

She sat by her lover, and for answer she dropped her face upon his hand
with a sob.

"An'--an' you've chose Wash, Esmeraldy?"

"Yes, father."

He hesitated a moment, and then took his hat from its place of
concealment and rose.

"It's nat'ral,"'he said, "an' it's right. I wouldn't want it no other
way. An' you mustn't mind, Esmeraldy, it's bein' kinder rough on me, as
can't go back on mother, havin' swore to cherish her till death do us
part You've allus been a good gal to me, an' we've thought a heap on
each other, an' I reckon it can allers be the same way, even though
we're sep'rated, fur it's nat'ral you should have chose Wash, an'--an'
I wouldn't have it no other way, Esmeraldy. Now I'll go an' have it out
with mother."

We were all sufficiently unprepared for the ann