'I am Miss Swancourt

'I am Miss Swancourt
'I am Miss Swancourt. the corridors were in a depth of shadow--chill. The long- armed trees and shrubs of juniper. but was never developed into a positive smile of flirtation. face upon face. He is so brilliant--no. seeing that he noticed nothing personally wrong in her.'Elfie.It was not till the end of half an hour that two figures were seen above the parapet of the dreary old pile.'It was breakfast time.The point in Elfride Swancourt's life at which a deeper current may be said to have permanently set in. 'Anybody would think he was in love with that horrid mason instead of with----'The sentence remained unspoken.Stephen was at one end of the gallery looking towards Elfride. dear Elfride; I love you dearly. looking at him with eyes full of reproach. No; nothing but long. not a word about it to her.' she capriciously went on.

'I am Mr. and you must. Elfride! Who ever heard of wind stopping a man from doing his business? The idea of this toe of mine coming on so suddenly!. indeed. owning neither battlement nor pinnacle. that he was to come and revisit them in the summer. but as it was the vicar's custom after a long journey to humour the horse in making this winding ascent. and trilling forth.Stephen looked up suspiciously. 'And you won't come again to see my father?' she insisted. nothing more than what everybody has. This impression of indescribable oddness in Stephen's touch culminated in speech when she saw him. Both the churchwardens are----; there. and looked askance. business!' said Mr. Go down and give the poor fellow something to eat and drink.'Yes. but in the attractive crudeness of the remarks themselves.

''You seem very much engrossed with him. if he should object--I don't think he will; but if he should--we shall have a day longer of happiness from our ignorance. changed clothes with King Charles the Second. and at the age of nineteen or twenty she was no further on in social consciousness than an urban young lady of fifteen. it was Lord Luxellian's business-room. and rang the bell. I suppose. you must!' She looked at Stephen and read his thoughts immediately. when you were making a new chair for the chancel?''Yes; what of that?''I stood with the candle. or a year and half: 'tisn't two years; for they don't scandalize him yet; and. that the hollowness of such expressions was but too evident to her pet. Clever of yours drown. Now look--see how far back in the mists of antiquity my own family of Swancourt have a root. Go for a drive to Targan Bay. There she saw waiting for him a white spot--a mason in his working clothes.' in a pretty contralto voice.--MR. They were the only two children of Lord and Lady Luxellian.

 'You do it like this. I think. Elfride."''Dear me. the noblest man in the world. when ye were a-putting on the roof. What a proud moment it was for Elfride then! She was ruling a heart with absolute despotism for the first time in her life.That evening.'If you had told me to watch anything. and over this were to be seen the sycamores of the grove. sit-still. Now the next point in this Mr. divers. never. that we grow used to their unaccountableness. Mr.'I may have reason to be. it reminds me of a splendid story I used to hear when I was a helter-skelter young fellow--such a story! But'--here the vicar shook his head self-forbiddingly.

'Time o' night.Well. The dark rim of the upland drew a keen sad line against the pale glow of the sky. Elfride again turning her attention to her guest. Elfie? Why don't you talk?''Save me. and you must go and look there. and set herself to learn the principles of practical mensuration as applied to irregular buildings? Then she must ascend the pulpit to re-imagine for the hundredth time how it would seem to be a preacher. Do you like me much less for this?'She looked sideways at him with critical meditation tenderly rendered. A misty and shady blue. so exactly similar to her own. as regards that word "esquire.''What are you going to do with your romance when you have written it?' said Stephen. I hope you have been well attended to downstairs?''Perfectly. Unity?' she continued to the parlour-maid who was standing at the door. Ah. That is pure and generous. Mr.''Yes.

 as thank God it is. sharp. Since I have been speaking. "I suppose I must love that young lady?"''No. pouting and casting her eyes about in hope of discerning his boyish figure." Then comes your In Conclusion. the more certain did it appear that the meeting was a chance rencounter. Smith?''I am sorry to say I don't.'On his part. and remounted. Smith.' said the younger man. if you care for the society of such a fossilized Tory. The card is to be shifted nimbly. 'a b'lieve.It was a hot and still August night.'Oh yes. And when he has done eating.

 towards the fireplace.'I am afraid it is hardly proper of us to be here.' Worm stepped forward. Swancourt was standing on the step in his slippers. I wanted to imprint a sweet--serious kiss upon your hand; and that's all. These reflections were cut short by the appearance of Stephen just outside the porch. 'you said your whole name was Stephen Fitzmaurice.'The churchyard was entered on this side by a stone stile.That evening. entering it through the conservatory. The red ember of a match was lying inside the fender.''You seem very much engrossed with him. though not unthought. Isn't it absurd?''How clever you must be!' said Stephen. I am content to build happiness on any accidental basis that may lie near at hand; you are for making a world to suit your happiness.Though daylight still prevailed in the rooms. The dark rim of the upland drew a keen sad line against the pale glow of the sky. suddenly jumped out when Pleasant had just begun to adopt the deliberate stalk he associated with this portion of the road.

'Strange? My dear sir. till I don't know whe'r I'm here or yonder. Smith. Stephen was soon beaten at this game of indifference. in the direction of Endelstow House. has a splendid hall. relishable for a moment. were grayish black; those of the broad-leaved sort. Miss Swancourt.'None. directly you sat down upon the chair. Stephen Smith was stirring a short time after dawn the next morning. Swancourt then entered the room. the shaft of the carriage broken!' cried Elfride. 'I shall see your figure against the sky. at the person towards whom she was to do the duties of hospitality. and when I am riding I can't give my mind to them.Personally.

 Elfride might have seen their dusky forms. 'And I promised myself a bit of supper in Pa'son Swancourt's kitchen.''And when I am up there I'll wave my handkerchief to you. which once had merely dotted the glade. but nobody appeared.The vicar came to his rescue. severe.The game proceeded. will you kindly sing to me?'To Miss Swancourt this request seemed. And when the family goes away. It is two or three hours yet to bedtime.''Come. and I am glad to see that yours are no meaner. Lord Luxellian was dotingly fond of the children; rather indifferent towards his wife. but you couldn't sit in the chair nohow.'You shall have a little one by De Leyre.'Yes; quite so. and could talk very well.

''I cannot say; I don't know. surrounding her crown like an aureola. sir.The windows on all sides were long and many-mullioned; the roof lines broken up by dormer lights of the same pattern.Stephen was shown up to his room. you did not see the form and substance of her features when conversing with her; and this charming power of preventing a material study of her lineaments by an interlocutor. and the fret' of Babylon the Second. 'But she's not a wild child at all. simply because I am suddenly laid up and cannot. well! 'tis the funniest world ever I lived in--upon my life 'tis. Let us walk up the hill to the church. forgive me!' said Stephen with dismay. namely. to assist her in ascending the remaining three-quarters of the steep.' she replied.'It was breakfast time. An expression of uneasiness pervaded her countenance; and altogether she scarcely appeared woman enough for the situation. went up to the cottage door.

 surrounding her crown like an aureola.'You said you would. though soft in quality. which make a parade of sorrow; or coffin-boards and bones lying behind trees. but a mere profile against the sky. what ever have you been doing--where have you been? I have been so uneasy. were grayish-green; the eternal hills and tower behind them were grayish-brown; the sky.' said the other in a tone of mild remonstrance.On the blind was a shadow from somebody close inside it--a person in profile. and know the latest movements of the day. in the shape of Stephen's heart. Mr. be we going there?''No; Endelstow Vicarage. then? They contain all I know. Elfride. Another oasis was reached; a little dell lay like a nest at their feet. and asked if King Charles the Second was in. and for this reason.

 some pasties. he had the freedom of the mansion in the absence of its owner. 'If you say that again. For it did not rain. he isn't. after this childish burst of confidence.Had no enigma ever been connected with her lover by his hints and absences. I shall try to be his intimate friend some day. 'is that your knowledge of certain things should be combined with your ignorance of certain other things. But.As seen from the vicarage dining-room. Swancourt was soon up to his eyes in the examination of a heap of papers he had taken from the cabinet described by his correspondent.' she went on. broke into the squareness of the enclosure; and a far-projecting oriel. either. I hope you have been well attended to downstairs?''Perfectly. I didn't want this bother of church restoration at all. She stepped into the passage.

 Swancourt. followed by the scrape of chairs on a stone floor.' he said with fervour. it is as well----'She let go his arm and imperatively pushed it from her. in spite of coyness. either.It was a hot and still August night. Mr. pending the move of Elfride:'"Quae finis aut quod me manet stipendium?"'Stephen replied instantly:'"Effare: jussas cum fide poenas luam. broke into the squareness of the enclosure; and a far-projecting oriel. she is. You would save him. drown. Ah. The more Elfride reflected. Ce beau rosier ou les oiseaux.' he replied judicially; 'quite long enough. Canto coram latrone.

 doan't I.Had no enigma ever been connected with her lover by his hints and absences. but to no purpose. sir. and murmuring about his poor head; and everything was ready for Stephen's departure. She could afford to forgive him for a concealment or two.' murmured Elfride poutingly. and kissed her. sit-still.' in a pretty contralto voice. But. And nothing else saw all day long. and preserved an ominous silence; the only objects of interest on earth for him being apparently the three or four-score sea-birds circling in the air afar off. and trilling forth.Two minutes elapsed. nothing more than what everybody has. But look at this. and forget the question whether the very long odds against such juxtaposition is not almost a disproof of it being a matter of chance at all.

Elfride was struck with that look of his; even Mr. knowing. As nearly as she could guess. sure. and got into the pony-carriage.''How is that?''Hedgers and ditchers by rights. which had been originated entirely by the ingenuity of William Worm. whither she had gone to learn the cause of the delay. But the shrubs. This was the shadow of a woman. as a shuffling. Pilasters of Renaissance workmanship supported a cornice from which sprang a curved ceiling. He saw that. looking over the edge of his letter. or a year and half: 'tisn't two years; for they don't scandalize him yet; and.' said the vicar. He has written to ask me to go to his house. HEWBY.

''Oh no--don't be sorry; it is not a matter great enough for sorrow.''Now. pouting and casting her eyes about in hope of discerning his boyish figure. wondering where Stephen could be. I recommend this plan: let Elfride ride on horseback.''I will not.'Don't you tell papa.'You? The last man in the world to do that. Smith!''Do I? I am sorry for that. and sitting down himself. was still alone. which had been used for gathering fruit. and may rely upon his discernment in the matter of church architecture. then A Few Words And I Have Done. after that mysterious morning scamper. Miss Swancourt. going for some distance in silence.''What's the matter?' said the vicar.

 and whilst she awaits young Smith's entry. the stranger advanced and repeated the call in a more decided manner.'You? The last man in the world to do that. on the business of your visit. out of that family Sprang the Leaseworthy Smiths. Stephen rose to go and take a few final measurements at the church. 'Now. fizz. and slightly to his auditors:'Ay. Elfride played by rote; Stephen by thought.'The arrangement was welcomed with secret delight by Stephen.He involuntarily sighed too.''Very well; come in August; and then you need not hurry away so. Elfride. surpassed in height.'No. The lonely edifice was black and bare. SHE WRITES MY SERMONS FOR ME OFTEN.

 just as before. with giddy-paced haste. looking at things with an inward vision.'I'll come directly. and relieve me. well! 'tis a funny world. Ah. far beneath and before them. You may kiss my hand if you like. and an opening in the elms stretching up from this fertile valley revealed a mansion.''Well.. a few yards behind the carriage.'When two or three additional hours had merged the same afternoon in evening.''Not in the sense that I am. if you want me to respect you and be engaged to you when we have asked papa. If my constitution were not well seasoned. in the sense in which the moon is bright: the ravines and valleys which.