Sisters

es seem as if some folks were born unlucky. Here's that poor young fellow-first he loses a charming wife, before he's been marrie

ea-table, where she was hel

, worse luck! His ship's been wrecked, and onl

paper, pressed und

watched her face. Neither of them noticed Mary's pecu

t person, and as she spoke looked at the clock-a little after four-and laid the paper down. "I'll drive you to the station, daddy, and

, with the melancholy news confirmed. Since it happened to be the transition moment, when Mr Carey had ceased to be a mate, and was only a prospective commander, the authorities in Melbourne, consulting l

from their expedition, it was to hear from Frances an excited story of how the elder sister

word-not for hours and hours. I've been listening at her door since Miss Madden let me out of school. I shouldn't be s

!" sa

she ran to Mary's room in some concern. She tried

this door!" s

ck clicked. She marched in, to see Mary fling herself back

't you all l

ift the half-buried head to her breast-a signal for the pent-up

"Oh, Deb! oh, Deb! He was my all, and he's

SHE could not understand a woman falling in love with, and then breaking her heart for, a man who had never cared

s not mixed with contempt-"don't, don't! It doesn't matter about me, but don't let the others thin

like him, Deb, a

no, M

!" And wrapping her head in her arms aga

d eau de Cologne into a wash-basin. She returned with a fragrant spo

ittle pride, dear. You mustn't give way like thi

sion, lifting her distorted c

u have no business to sneer

a few acts and words, magnifying them through the spectacles that Nature and

ar, I know-

im and me." Feeling Deb's continued scepticism in the silence of her car

round to look in Mary's face. Mary covered

o that?" asked De

precious child that drew us together. You think he had gone away and forgotten, but I know he had not; he woul

issue-paper, like her father's valentine-and displayed it with a touching pride. Before handing it to Deb, she gazed at it with grotesquely distorted face, kissed it, pressed it to

square chin, that steady, good mouth; and he looked her straight in the eyes. Was it possible that a countenance could so deceive? No more tears from Deb fo

wing-room also when no guests were i

upset by this business. It appears there was something betwe

ose, waiting with Fra

hed Frances, "w

dickens! You don't say so. Poor little soul! Poor litt

her. Not fo

wasn't the straight thing to bind a girl of ours till he was in a better position-it'd be just like him. Well-but Mary, of all people!" (This was the puzzle to all.) "It must have been the baby. She certainly did dote on that child, and 'love me, love my dog'-eh? But to think of her keeping it so close all that time! Afraid I'd make a fuss, I suppose. You could have told her, D

uieter now, and I have given her something to send her to sleep. I will keep my door

death. Miss Keene excited as an old maid is over anybody's love affair, wanted to take over the house-keeping as well as the doing of the flowers, in order to leave the mourner free to enjoy the full luxury of her state. The governess, assumed to be above love affairs, was very strict with Frances, holding her to tasks set on purpose to prevent her from teasing her eldest sister. But Frances had informed the servants overnight that Mr Carey was

it was not a formal engagement. It was only"-defending herself against the puzzled stare a

ities called for by that graveside kiss would certainly have been observed. It seems incredible, but rampant sex does stranger things every day of the week. There is, at any rate

t have been found kneeling before it as at a shrine, and weeping her eyes out. And she put off her colours and ornaments, and wore black, and nobody made any objection. The hero of romance was given to her unquestioningly, and with him a respect and consideration such as she had never

g the shipping columns in the newspaper-their interest was supposed to be gone for ever; but Jim Urquhart glanced at them daily, looking for the arrival of a friend from overseas. And one day he saw a ship's name th

tunate DOVEDALE that was wrecked, and was lost with her. Odd that the captain of h

e told me of his narrow escape-was really going with her on her last voyage, and only prevented at the

o go with him, so as to "break it" with feminine skilfulness to Mary, whose reason might be destroyed by too sudden a gorge of joy, like the stomach of a starved man by clumsy feeding. But while they anxiously discussed what ought to be done, Frances

the family ci

m a captain, and he's here now. His ship came in last night, and there it is in the paper, and his name; and Mr Mills at Five Creeks saw him himself after t

r, and then seemed drained in three seconds of every drop of blood. She heard the words: 'Mr Carey is alive,' and instantly believed them; at the same moment her dream-palace vanished, and she saw the bare ground of her love affair exactly as it was-as

, it's all right. She has fainted, but she'll soon come round. Go and get a smelling-bottle, so

ng through the house with her great news, Deb and her fath

" said Deb, "and he has

s teeth-"I'll write to him!" It was the tone in whic

ntions, she implored him not to write-went on her knees,

o come-you would not drag him by force? And he never bound himself-he n

kiss a girl-a daughter of mine-and not mean anything! I'l

ycuick to fling herself at any man's head. Let him alone; we don't want him.

e as a heartless jilt, to Mary's extreme anguish. She tried to water down the concoction that she stood answerable for, to take blame

es. She was left with no outlook in life but to get through twenty, thirty, forty years somehow, and come to a little peace at last, when everything would be forgotte

olerable, and since nobody else would do it, she wrote to Guthrie Carey herself. She wrote, she said, to welcome him back to life and to Australia, and to congratul

gh unlike Deb in every way, people were beginning to compare them as rival beauties-Frances' private opinion being that there was no comparison. She had nea

tray. Mary knew, before looking at it-having heard nothing of the letter, and no sound of his arrival in his hired buggy-what name