charming girl. She seemed to him to be about twenty-six or seven,
and so frank, simple and graceful, one could not have resisted
liking her. Her hair and eyes were identical in colour and both were
beautiful; her expression was arch and some of her gestures almost
childish, but a certain dignity appeared at times and sat well upon
her. Her hands were destitute of any rings as Amherst soon discovered,
and were fine and small though brown. While she made the coffee,
Amherst threw himself down on the wonderful moss, the like of which
he had never seen before and looked out over the water. An
unmistakeable constraint had taken the place of the unaffected
hilarity of the first ten minutes. A reaction had set in. Amherst
could of course only answer to me in telling this for himself, but he
divined at the time a change in his companion's manner as well.
"I hope you like your eggs," she said presently.
"They are very nice, indeed, thank you," rejoined Amherst.
"And I have made your coffee as you like it?"
"Perfectly, thank you. But you--you are not eating anything! Why is
that?"
As he asked the question he turned quickly around, in order to rise
that he might help her with the ponderous kettle that she was about
lifting off the camp-fire, when a long strand of her hair again
escaping from its coil blew directly across his face. Amherst
uttered a radiant "Oh!", and taking it to his lips forgot himself so
far as to press kiss after kiss upon it. The lady stood as if
transfixed and did not move, even when Amherst actually swept all
her hair down over one arm and turning her face to his, pressed one
long long kiss on her forehead.
The moment he had done this his senses returned and he stepped back
in indignation with himself. But his companion was still apparently
transfixed. Amherst looked at her in dismay. She did not seem to see
him and had grown very pale. He touched her gently on the arm but
she did not show that she felt the touch. He retreated a few paces
and stood by himself, overcome with shame and contrition. What had
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