i ie 
LE PE DE SE 
The next morning some of the 
young men of the county, Bud’s 
friends, came for me to go hunting 
with them. 1 got into some of Bud’s 
hunting togs and with his gun on my 
shoulder rode with them to the hunt- 
Ing lodge, from which point we scour- 
ed the country for many miles that 
day. The sport was new to me on ac- 
count of the game we found. I had 
Indifferent luck, however, though the 
others filled their bags with plover, 
robins, doves and larks. There were 
plenty of blackbirds, but we scorned 
shooting these, though I was told they 
make a good pie, which is a favorite 
dish with the colored hands on the 
farms. I saw something of each mem. 
ber of the party during the day and 
1 Rode With Them to the Hunting 
Lodge. 
found them all, to a greater or less 
degree, in love with Miss Ellen. Jim 
gave me much information about the 
others, but added: 
“She just laughs at them all and 
won’t even let them pay her compli- 
ments as they do to the other girls.” 
“And you?” I said. 
“Oh, me! She would not even look 
at me,” said the manly young fellow, 
looking me squarely in the face, not 
ashamed to confess the hopelessness of 
his love. I made up my mind that if 
it ever came in my way to do Jim a 
good turn, no matter how my own suit 
came out, for | was now intent upon 
winning Miss Hllen, 1 would do it for 
NORTH SHORE BREEZE 
his open and honest confession. 
We were a happy party as we 
lunched at the lodge. We barbecued 
our robins and some of the doves on 
little spits over a charcoal fire and 
stewed some with rice. We rode home 
early, however, more to see Miss 
Hllen, I think, than for any other rea- 
son. Each would have left all his 
game at her feet, but she would not 
have it so, but said she would take 
what I had killed in part payment for 
my board, which innocent remark 
brought a deep flush to my cheek, re- 
membering, as I did, my unhappy 
mistake when I first arrived at the 
Pines. We described our sport, and 
she showed interest in everything we 
said and all we had done. Presently, 
looking at the sun. she exclaimed: 
“Come; go home, you boys, for | am 
not going to ask you to stay to dinner, 
and be here early Thursday morning 
or I will not dance with any of you at 
the party.” It took them but a few 
minutes to get their horses and disap- 
pear down the road. 
“And you, sir.” she said, turning to 
me as we lost sight of the others— 
“what are you going to do in the way 
of reparation now that you and your 
friends have put me back in my work?” 
“Set the table and bring the wood,” 
I cried. 
“Come; you shall set the table, for 
the wood has been brought in already.” 
I followed to the dining room, where 
she threw me the tablecloth. 
“Be careful,’’ she laughed, “for it 
will not bear rough handling, though 
I dare say father would tell you that 
it has lasted since General Oglethorpe 
breakfasted off it and therefore will 
last after we are dead.” 
And so w: set the table, Miss Ellen 
running to the kitchen every now and 
then and coming back to straighten 
the knives and forks, telling me that 
men were no earthy good about 
house. Once our hands touched while 
placing the plates, and instantly, as if 
by instinct, we faced each other, and 
our eyes met. After that she kept on 
the other side of the table from me 
and later sent me upstairs to dress for 
dinner. When I! came down there 
seemed to be a glow on her cheek, and 
in her hair there was stuck a wild rose 
which I had brought her from the 
woods. 
The next three days all was bustle. 
The boys and girls came on Thursday. 
each bringing something in a basket 
So much cooking I had never seen 
One was put to beat the whites of the 
eggs and another the yolks. Some one 
was detailed to mix the cake and still 
another to watch it after it had been 
put into the oven. Margaret Robert- 
son was given a squad and ordered to 
decorate the hall with greens, The 
jelly was made, and some one was 
sent with it to the springhouse, where 
It was left to cool and harden. Every 
now and then the colonel would ap- 
pear at the kitchen door to tell us 
What times they used to have: before 
the war when he was a boy. 
That night when all were gone and | 
Bud had fallen asleep in a chair Miss | 
Pllien and I went on the lawn to look 
at the moon. 
“Miss Ellen,” I said. “I am happy 
here, and | hate to leave the Pines.” 
“Why do you talk of going?’ she 
said, her voice subdued and her face 
turned away. 
“Because I do not want to outlive 
my welcome.” I said. » 
“No one does that at the Pines As 
you see, there is not much to offer, 
but our friends are always welcome. 
Bud likes you, and father seems 
younger since you came.” 
“And you?” IT said, drawing a step 
nearer to her. 
“Oh, I!" She gave a little gasp and 
ended with a laugh. “It is as easy to 
cook for five as it is for four, so don’t 
think of leaving on my account.” 
“That is what bhurtsii i, said “If 
you did not have to do this or if I 
had only known you long enough to 
tell you all that is in my mind,” I 
ended bitterly. 
She held up her finger and. laughing 
in my face, said: “But you haven't, 
you know. So you must stay a long 
time and then come back some day 
and tell me,” she added roguishly. 
“Never!” I said. ‘I will tell you be- 
fore I leave if I have to stay the year 
yut.” 
“Bravely spoken!” she cried. “And 
[ will do what I can to make you take 
Christmas dinner with us. And now 
remember to be nice to all the homely 
girls you see tomorrow evening, and I 
promise not to get jealous even if you 
lance with the pretty ones as well.” 
Bud was still asleep when we got 
back to the house. We roused him, 
and all went quietly to bed. I did not 
sleep much that night, and somehow I 
flid not think Miss Ellen did either, for 
I did not feel as lonely as when every- 
body was unconscious in that spacious 
mansion. 
| [TO BE CONTINUED.) 
Corrected. 
The Doctor—But, my dear sir, you 
must masticate your food. What were 
your teeth given you for? ‘The Suf- 
ferer (calmly)—They weren’t given me. 
I bought ’em.—London Sketch. 
A Chinese Oath. 
“In China the oath of brotherhood is 
taken by breaking a cup.” 
“Tf that worked in this country our 
cook would be sealed to us for life.”— 
Louisville Courier-Journal, 
Again, 
Marte—:> heay that you are going to 
be married again. Edith—Again? Why, 
I’ve never been married yet. Marie— 
No, but I can’t recall] the number of 
times you were “going to be.” 
