The Story of Louie

hot-water-pipe system, and Priddy had a frame making there. Half this frame, protected by a board with "Wet Paint" chalked upon it, leaned against the outside wall, and, with his

face was handsome and slightly vacuous; his eyes in particular had something of the blankness of the little terra-cotta head; and his mouth was full and classically curved, and had the slightest of smudges of dark moustache along the

e had got his explanation by rote. He was ther

t tea-time. Izzard wanted to send it to Mazzicombe, but I told him they'd ch

his filing again. Louie, who had come for a couple of boards that had been put aside for her, took them and went out. She w

uite beyond the orchard, at the foot of the hill between Chesson's and the sea. There,

past month-or, more fairly, what she had conceived to be

aten from the same plate with her by day and shared her bed at night had she been permitted-also had she not left for her vacation a fortnight before; but Burnett Major-Louie was not so sure about Burnett Major. Her atti

od as anybody else's father; for that matter, mother's grandfather was only a farmer-mother told us so herself; but nobody likes being treated as if they were snobs.

Minor as having sobbed, bold and unconvinced. "He didn

presentation and all t

as a Scarisbrick when all was said and done-was she going to be driven willy-nilly into the society of Richenda Earle as company good enough for her. She could look after herself, thank you. Coventry is no unpleasant place provided you have the putting of yourself there, and at any rate her

less desirable than his physique-a discontented and ill-conditioned nature. But that did not mend matters. It merely made her, if it did a

ould feel the night wind on her face, and see the stars, and in h

n, this time for a couple of tent-pegs and a piece of cord for the better securing of her blankets. The vacant young Ta

s of the colour of blue porcelain to Louie, "I

had the bad luck to catch her at her brooding

I mean-

he

name Chaffinger?"

N

O

relented

My name's Causton. I suppose yours

No. Mine's Lovenant-Smi

ou're right. We have met

eved at being rid of a perplexity that he

mildly. "You were Louie Chaf

ie asked, "are

ated si

shroud on the port side, and the centre-board was hitched up with a piece of old rope instead of a chain and down it came

is hands together and then

am and all the

That was a pity,"

use the shed, aunt said, but she told me it was a fixed

uie thought.) "Then I mus

t you into a row too," said R

demurely still. "They hav

Roy Lovenant-

uie le

en, and she felt herself to be far more than four years his senior now. He was the adjutant's son, she supposed. Well, he would hardly need Chaff's usual extenuation about his being a bad fellow at all: Louie would be very much surprised if he had wit enough to be very bad, or, fo

aches and their unvarying smell of tobacco to some girl of the kind she knew they accounted "pretty." They were quite different beings from the fairy prince of her childhood; and since her childhood's days she had grown gradually, she did not know how, to a fairly accurate estimate in retrospect of the "little party" to which Chaff had o

man had she ev

le coiffe déjà Sainte Catherine," the remorseless Pigou had said: oh, had she? Did she? Moreover, you cannot put yourself gloomily into Coventry; others mus

Richenda by the little green door of the espaliered wall that led to the orchards. Richenda had made an advance, willing, apparent

he had asked, as they had

replied. "I'd go right down to the sho

wanted anything d

hould I

ou don't have headaches

There's quite a jolly place here.

read," Richenda h

heaps bett

uts like this at herself) that both of their fathers were literary. But she

sorry for what I said that night-you know-when I snapped at

ished she hadn't said it, Earle'

ad broken out impulsively. "It was all mine. I ough

here," Louie had cut

ne on. "I was stupi

at you were. You

was,

, I don't think much

r head. Then, as Louie had thrown down her mattress, "

't sleep in

your thin

on't come up, then, and run down to th

ping on you yet!" Earle h

ithout t

shoul

she might find remedies for her headaches

tramp, sullying the air behind her, crept slowly up to Bristol; a single nodding grass-head near at hand shut her out almost completely. Mazzicombe, down under the hill, was hidden. Louie watched it all, thinking of not

perturbable voice behind

nt-Smith was returning with a ba

id not know whether she was gla

e," he repli

then: "I thought you hadn't t

how can I get over the stile when yo

et off on my proper side." S

eness, walked a few yards with his p

re. I don't think she's worth bothering about, but Izzard says she'll be q

return of h

zzard?"

about and leaving me to do all the work. He's away there somewhere now." He pointed vaguely across the Channel. "I suppose he'll

not tell him that she didn't care either

lace? Seems funny to me.... Mind yo

icombe. Louie stood aside from the stile. Priddy climbed over it and

cool! Don't those fellows

rned her clear grey eyes on h

.. What are you lookin

ich Louie replied dropped

sked, with his innocent

wn bowler hat was disappearing over the edge of

"You don't mean to say

ded. He

into a row for

may

oking apart?" he s

ps he

ok here, shall I go bac

ink I would," said Louie,

all! I say,

O

ot you into a row, o

eant sorry you stopp

t is, if it doesn't

f it d

ing people into rows. Look here

es. "I've been in ro

p. "Oh, I see! You mea

t the recollection of Mrs. Lovenant-Smith

ight with her," said Roy

n innocent! "You know what

ha

hat you wouldn'

ted on her hands

lf. "Oh, never mind ab

n't mind my calling you Louie, do you? I used

r not," she said, wi

llow can't get a girl into a mess

once again, to see whether

what I

t him to mean, but "Well, onc

about here, at th

can get away fr

t chap in Mazzicombe, ma

se do

not taking

ouble about that s

ll ought. All right,

od-

d again. At any rate, a lark with a pleasant image was better than a hole-in-corn

tand mute as a fish, and to have it assumed that you accept the bond, was the largior ether indeed. Louie did not even feel called upon to say that she declined to consider herself bound. Mrs. Lovenant-Smith might take her "off her honour" again. She

Louie found herself hoping that Izzard, whoever he was, would not return from "

he mere disregarding of Mrs. Lovenant-Smith was a pleasure she felt it incumbent upon herself not to forgo. Next, there was the instinctive courage with which she translated her sulks into carelessness and gaiety. Next-but allow what you will for the rest: pique, vanity, her deriv

plored her to tell them all, all about it; she talked about everything else, but not about that, and hearts and mouths watered. They offered to do things for her-to carry her mattress, to do her Sunday watering, even to clean her bicycle; and Louie let them-but told them nothing. Nay, s

ed Richenda. What was her Mr. Weston like? Well (Richenda said), some might think him an oddity-the Secretary Bird, his nickname was-but he was, oh, a soul so sensitive, so gentle! Was there any prospect of their marrying soon? Richenda sighed; it would be a long time; if she got her post at Chesson's he might apply for a country schoolma

a hundred here

ich means if I get my

be two hundred between them-tw

"I thought people got

idn't know," said

just to go through her engagements, opening bazaars and charities a

Moone," came fro

ifty pounds, and lived with them.

er said when he a

ren't paid at that rate! Why, some cooks g

came from th

ou strike an average, or

terrupted, soft

n't, don't,

There must be something wrong with Richenda, probably with her Weston too; she did not look quite right; she was very different from the rosy housemaids at Trant, for example. One hundred pounds a year!... She had forgotten all about Roy. When, presently, Richenda came as near to putting a question about him as she dar

d Moone behind

r and a public-house be

you think

g it all, long after Richenda h

stile again. She was restless, unsettled, she

you," she said; "that's twice I'

ll, and sat down under a gorse-bush. He made her move quite behind it, and even

t," he said. "How's

ow. I haven

te a fellow's h

e to-day.-No, I don'

he matter

ne I shall go. I didn't sl

cally. "I say, isn't it funny, Louie, when you come to think o

awake thinking of yo

" He put out h

"Oh, don't!" she snapped. "Really I

t him sulk, and watched the sea, always of a milky bloom, and the sky, still

get paid?" she

He spoke over

-you know w

(He was going into the army.) "What

those

expo

re wanted to charge me two pounds for patching up that centre-board, that

nt to

ardeners been g

N

putting a patch on a piece of wood!-I think it will hold all right," he continued na?vely; "we shall make a deuce of a lot of leeway if it doesn't. We're flat-bottomed, you se

Richenda's "grousing" was a little spo

et," she said. "Let's

ou do play the dickens

r the

to go just this minu

did not with

sing her. He had never kissed her yet. Wh

flected), especially

rhaps it was to summon up resolution to do so that he

most moments of perturbation only turned her paler; but at t

sign that she was Louie again was that she for

ntfully; "then we may as

ant to see

edn't be stuf

re distrac

t him with a fain

allenged him (but she had for a moment a faint

ocked; nevertheless it was with a rather

O

ined, "you did let

e saying presently that she had asked him to kiss her

u did," he a

"Out of the mouths of

ne can defeat guile! After all, it was too unpardonab

rmured, her face, even h

eam seemed to irradiat

th the newness of the idea, "you mean-do yo

should kiss her "properl

s too late now. You can't ve

ed. "Of cou

, R

wil

geous. She mad

very well you don't

aren't ugly

ens! She "w

ips whose degree of prettiness he estimated so nicely. "I'm going t

t and talk-sensibly-I don't know what mad

none to say "P

yacht now. They walked together back to the stile. T

aboard her to-m

y we

ourse she's a cutter, not a lugger. That'

all

girl is mine,' it is. And I say, you'd better put some ol

rig

ovey?" he ask

wn on a slate wh

"I-say!... You wouldn't t

y n

t-ch

y honour'-impuden

what fright

d-by

a mi

el

, "'

d-by

r name after

ha

d-by

oy--" She wa

isfaction, she had made him

the hall-slate: "Gone to Mazzicombe: L. Causton." Then