yward to make its presence known to those within. And in the Minerva's cabin, set as it were in that softly rayed room of old gold and golden brown, Jenny was clinging to Keith, snatching once again at precarious happiness. Far off, in her aspirations, love was desired as synonymous with peace and contentment; but in her heart Jenny had no

presently. "I'm s

ld dear," he assured

for her, flinching at contact with the handkerchief, but aware all the time of some secret joy. When she could speak more calmly, she

beast," Keith said humbly. "T

miserable I shall think I've been a fool. But we'll cut out about forgiving. Because I s

dear," Keith told her.

n my bones. But you're going away. Wher

ecombe wants to keep out of England at the moment. He's safe on the yacht. He c

. "I can't understand if you

title-you know what a lord is.... Well, and she's chasing about

ught to stop them. They don't have countesses in America, do they? Why don't we have a republic, and

. "True. D'you lik

y hands nice, too." The hand

n most people," Keith presentl

busy times, stick at it till eight or later, for a few bob a week. And never have any time to myself except when I'm tired out! Wh

can't go anywhere they like unless it's 'the thing' to be done. They do everything because it's the right thi

ith! Who is i

y," he

only poor people ... jus

her and pretend that everybody's got to do the same for some reason or other. They call it the herd instinct, and all sorts of names. But there's nobody who's really free. Most of them don't want to b

at all if you've got to do everything wheth

part of a big complicated machine that's grinding us

at, Keith?" cried Jenny.

aughed

good talking about it. The only thing to do

is evening. 'They've' got every bit of the earth. Wherever you go 'they're' the

said Keith. "I'll te

kes it so? There must be some

ain, still more

. She still continued to re

ith. But then you said you we

asn't. I fell into the machin

get married?" Jenny

was set. "I've been there; a

ted to make him happy, and to make his home comfortable. She felt that to work for the man she loved was the way to be truly happy. Did he not think that he

want to get marr

ighbours and rates and duties and politicians and imitations of life.... And I want to set you down on virgin soil and mak

h exclaimed eagerly. He was a

ome?" he cri

he world?" Jenny

e, occupied-away from all the old cramping things. It was the life she had dreamed, away from men, away from stuffy rooms and endless millinery, away from regular hours and tedious meals, away from all that now made up her daily dullness. It was splendid! Her quick mind was at wor

he begged. "

"I couldn't leave him

with us!" cried Keith. Jenn

explained, and sighed de

i

esumed, after a moment. Jenny shook her head, and a wry smi

," she said quietly. "It's

think I meant that? Never! We'll manage somethi

oring over bits of straw and velvet to make hats for soppy women, and then going home to old Em and stew for dinner. There's not much fun in it, Keith.... No, I didn't mean to worry you by grizzling. It's too bad of me! But seeing you, and hearing that plan, it's made me remember how beastly I felt before your letter came this evening. I was nearly mad with it. I'd been mad before; but never as bad as this w

embling, her face against h

ut you do. So we'll be married when I come back in three months. That's all right, isn't it? And when we're married, we'll either take your father with us,

"I couldn't leave him to

Nothing-except that we're going to be apart for three months. Now, Jen: don't let's was

er once again to the settee and to begin

y Robinson; only you won't have everything growing outside as they did. And we'll go out in canoes if we go on the water at all; and see Indians-'Heap big man bacca' sort of business-and perhaps hear wolves (I'm not quite sure of that); and go about on sledges... with

it-over each other," Jenny said shrewdl

g busy and eloquent. I tell you: there'll be inconveniences. You'll find you'll want

, unsuspiciously.

es. Then he crushed her against him, laughing. It to

ried Keith. "Can't see bey

the sort of place for babies,"

that the Minerva seemed to sh

ny Jenny. I shouldn't think there wa

ead at the ghost of a faded vanity. "I'm afraid." She revived even

u're unique. The one an

amed. "Sounds nice," she

? I say!... how would you like it if I borrowed the yacht from Templecombe and ran you

," Jenny said breat

at she was forced to lower her lids. "When I come back from

d hardly the will to murmu

ng's out of the question. But we'll be back before the winter, any way. And then-darling Jenny-we'll be married as soon

hould no longer be checked and bounded by the fear of not having enough food. That was the thing, Jenny felt, that kept poor people in dread of the consequences of their own acts. And Jenny felt that if they might live apart from the busy world, enduring together whatever ills might come to them from their unsophisticated mode of life, they would be able to be happy. She thought that Keith would have no temptations that she did not share; no other men drawing him by imitativeness this way and that, out of the true order of his own character; no employer exacting in return for the weekly wage a servitude that was far from the blessed ideal of service. Jenny thought these things very simply-impulsively-and not in a form to be intelligible if set down as they occurred to her; but the no

.. With an effort she raised her lips again to his, kissing him in passion, so that when he as passionately responded it seemed as though she fainted in