THE GIANT WOLF OF BONAPLACE. 



L. J. Bates. 



(continued from page 160.) 



Three days Nelly stayed at her 

 rooms, awaiting Robert's coming, 

 not daring to go out lest he 

 should call in her absence. But he 

 came not. However, he could not long 

 avoid her in so small a place On the 

 fourth evening he was strolling along 

 the street, in the dusk, when she came 

 out of a house where she had been to 

 deliver a bonnet, leading her child, and 

 met him near the gate. Both stopped ; 

 but instead of greeting her, he stepped 

 aside, touching his cap, soldier-fashion, 

 as if to invite her to pass in silence. 



" Robert," she said sadly, " is this our 

 meeting, after four years of parting?" 



No answer. He stood embarrassed, 

 avoiding her eye. 



" Look at this child " — pushing the 

 boy toward him. " This is our boy. 

 See how strong and handsome he is ! 

 He has your ways, bright, brave and 

 full of mischief, the little man ! He 

 needs his father." 



The child looked up at him with such 

 a manly and pleasant grace of inquiry 

 and curiosity, standing sturdily upright, 

 with his little legs apart, that Rob could 

 not shut his heart. He lifted the boy 

 and kissed him, looking him over admir- 

 ingly. Villainy retreated for a moment. 

 He set down the child and offered to 

 kiss the mother. She recoiled, putting 

 up a warning hand. 



" No," she said, " not now. The 

 people here do not believe that I am 

 your wife. We must be married over 

 again before we can act as husband and 

 wife. When shall it be ? Will you go 

 with me now, at once, to the minister ? " 



Thus repulsed, villainy again resumed 

 its throne. 



"No," he said, hoarsely, "neither 

 now nor ever ! " and strode angrily 

 away, to escape further temptation. 



She looked after him until his form 

 was lost in the gloom, holding her child 

 with one hand and pressing the other to 

 her bosom. Presently she rallied her 

 -courage. She had borne so much and 



so long that further weight could not 

 crush her. Besides, in all these years, 

 her love, "by harsh evidence thrown 

 from his eminence," had also abated. 

 He was no longer the young god he 

 had seemed to her girlish imagination. 

 Gone were the spells of a manly form, 

 mere physical force, and a bold, un- 

 governed spirit. She knew now the 

 value of nobler qualities in men. For 

 herself she scarcely felt regret. But for 

 her boy — well, she could at least make 

 for him a tolerable future. The future 

 was not so dark as the past which she 

 had already braved. Her business was 

 secure and growing and she had con- 

 quered public respect, if esteem and 

 society were still denied. Thus brood- 

 ing, she led the child home. 



Months passed but these two did not 

 accost each other again. Bob carefully 

 avoided such a danger. But often he 

 met his child, playing with others in 

 the street, and always stopped to talk 

 with and pet the little fellow. He gave 

 the boy toys, sweets and pennies, and 

 taught him tricks of speech. He led 

 his horse for the child to ride. The 

 subtle power of nature drew him 

 to the little man, with an irresistible 

 charm. His parents did not object. 

 It was his child ; everybody knew it ; 

 and whatever he might do for the boy 

 would be, in some measure, expiation 

 to the wronged mother. 



During the war, the country being 

 stripped of its young men, all predatory 

 wild beasts and game multiplied greatly. 

 Along the valley of the little river, 

 above and below Bonaplace, there had 

 grown to be an intolerable plague of 

 wildcats, wolves, foxes and other de- 

 structive vermin. Now that the young 

 men had returned from the army they 

 exercised their acquired love of tramp- 

 ing and killing. In November the 

 people of the whole country assembled 

 for a grand battue, in the hope of quell- 

 ing, more especially, the wolf pest that 

 destroyed the sheep, calves, young \ 



