White Wings, Volume III

ling cry of pain, and of the forced calm that followed it? They had their own sorrows. There was a gloom upo

oss the island again in the afternoon. Aye; begun already?" adds the Laird, as he goes up to the canvas, and regards the rough outlines in charcoal with a critical air. "Very good! very good!" he says, following the lines with his thumb, and apparently drawing in the air. "Excellent! The composeetion very clever indeed-simple, bold, striking. And a fine blaze of colour ye'll have on a da

rd is called awa

ge thing, with all you gentlemen on board, and with all those guns lying about, but we are drawing n

with certain bottles that ha

ns in the caves we passed this morn

e of the empty larder. "We cannot have H

pigeons won't find it a Hur

s, and larders, and pigeon-shooting. He

the young lady who, as usual,

at him with s

th. Never mind the picture: keep the faithful record. In after life ye will be able to get plenty of pictures;

"you don't give me much encouragement. You always speak as if I were to be c

the sale of Mary Avon's pictures as a most irresistible joke. He laughs and chuc

chuckle. "Ye will never sell them. Ye co

r subjection," says she, lightly,

ken her seat on a shelving piece of grey rock; and, if she is concerned about anything, it is about the safety of certain plates

ebb away from the golden-brown seaweed. Then, with many a caution as to patience and silence, they rise and get their guns and

says Miss Avon, pl

understood to be the most eager of the seal-hunters. And Mr. Smith, not having his answer pat, replies, "I hope so

ay, the bays were alive with seals, disporting themselves freely in full view of a large party of people who were staring at them, to-day, being Monday, finds not a seal visible anywhere, though ever

that newspaper-probably not more than a week old-just beneath his face. He had no need of spectacles: his eyes were almost touching the page. And then we knew that he was at rest; and the hard rock and the seals all forgotten. For we took it that this local paper was one which had written a most important leading article about the proposed public park for Strathgovan, calling upon the ratepayers to arise and assert their rights and put a check on the reckless extravagance of the Commissioners. The Laird himself was openly pointed at as one who would introduce the luxury of the later Romans into a sober Scotch community; and there were obscure references to those who seemed to consider that a man's dwelling-house should become nothing more nor less than a museum of pictu

away out there on the still, blue surface, a smooth round knob, shining and black. Without a muscle moving, eager eyes follow that distant object. The seal is not alarmed or suspic

Human nature gives in. The Youth gets up, and boldly displays himself on a promontory, his gun over his shoulder. Then the

e saints have taught the seals tricks. They k

pick our way through the long grass and the stones. And when it is found that Miss Avon has roughed in all that she requires of her present study, it is gl

p bang! bang! of the gun, that echoed into the great hollows. Hurlingham? That did not seem much of a Hurlingham performance. There were no birds standing bewildered on the fallen trap, wondering whether to rise or not; but there were things coming whizzing through the air that resembled nothing so much as rifle bullets with blue wings. The Youth, it is true, got one or two easy shots at the mouth of the cave; but when the pigeons

ver, our Doctor, though he was learned on the subject of flies and tackle, preferred to remain on board: he had some manuscript to send off to Lond

ion, as we afterwards heard

Angus Sutherland, to his hostess, without

he; not without a litt

d quickly, befor

her, lest there should be any unpleasant misapprehension, whether she had any reason to be offended with you. 'None in the least,' she said. She was most

ly, without saying any

ank with you. I am going to tell

" she said, quickly

eason to be ashamed of it. But, since you know, you will see that it would be very

, without looking at them; the hard-headed Doctor

to go, better that I should know at once. I-I have nothing to complain of-I mean I have nothing to repro

the west; or the moonlight walks on the white deck, with the red star of Ushinish lighthouse burning in the south; or the snug salo

curious fancies about such things sometimes. But I must admit-for you are my friend too-that I am not surprised y

the wrong she feels to be incompatible with her customa

e she has put anything before her as the proper thing to be done, she goes straight at it; and nothing will turn her aside. And although the

wer is 'No,' it will be better for me to leave you. Already I fancy my being on board the yacht is a tro

her excess of sympathy she caught his hand for a moment. "Oh, Angus, if Mary were to promise

of human happiness-sailing th

te. But anything is better than suspense. If it is a misfortune, as I say, there is

did

ared

a country house, we have to have our friends down in a staccato fashion, and always

her in London?

ld thin

: did she never

ainly

as a sort of familiar friend who was lik

mewhat; for she had no ri

he said, evasively. "It is quite be

But when, some little time thereafter, we returned from our brief fishing, the dark figure walking

t lu

two d

lit

f-a-dozen

thdrew her hand from his; but the words were uttered in a low voice; and she instantly crossed t

onate towards Mary. She made light of her foolish wish to go away to the south. She pointed out that this co

g to keep hold of Angus, too. He is not going away yet-no, no. We have something for him to