United States or Guam ? Vote for the TOP Country of the Week !
"Of course not," Ned replied, chuckling in his sleeves at the thought of waiting in an emergency for instructions from Manila. "I hope we shall be able to report good progress upon your return. Shall you go in the launch?" he added, hoping with all his strength that the officer would not take the motor boat with him. "Certainly," was the quick reply. "I must make progress, you know!"
Then it began inching forward with intent to attack the obstacle in its path. The latter maintained his stationary pose, but at sight of the beast stealthily creeping upon him, he raised his gun to his shoulder, took a quick aim and fired. The space was short and the shot sped true.
There was no escape. Either she must lie or tell the truth and to lie that meant death. "Quick!" he cried. "I do!" she whispered. "Then " He tried to draw her to him. "You made me tell you, Monte," she sobbed. "Oh, you made me tell the truth." "The truth," he nodded with a smile; "that was all that was necessary. It's all that is ever necessary." He had released her.
He seemed abstracted, and took a quick turn across the room; then gave me a surprised look, a pleased smile, and a cordial grasp of the hand. The next hour I was oblivious of all external things, in the delightful excitement of our conversation. I even forgot Susan.
At last, after a thousand dinnings at his brain, and a thousand splittings of his head, and saying "I tell you" and "I told you" day after day, she got him to go to the wood for a faggot, saying, "Come now, it is time for us to get a morsel to eat, so run off for some sticks, and don't forget yourself on the way, but come back as quick as you can, and we will boil ourselves some cabbage, to keep the life in us."
He learned many things of Crittenden and the Crittendens, and what great people they had always been and still were; but at a certain point Bob was evasive or dumb and the correspondent respected the servant's delicacy about family affairs and went no further along that line he had no curiosity, and was questioning idly and for fun, but treated Bob kindly and, in return, the fat of the ship, through Bob's keen eye and quick hand, was his, thereafter, from day to day.
They were single men, who came out to this country, not to make comfortable homes for wives and children, by hard and patient work, but to find gold and pearls, or to grow rich in some other quick and easy way, and then to go back and live in ease in England. It is a wonder that such men ever succeeded in planting a settlement at all.
James came up with a shout, and the man disappeared abruptly, with a quick backward glance at James, into the wood. The girl looked at James, and her little face under her brown plumed hat was very white. "Oh," she gasped, as if she had always known him, "I am so glad you are here! He frightened me terribly." She tried to smile at James, although her poor little mouth was quivering.
Then she, too, knew the impulse to get the tooth pulled "quick." She got up and went swiftly across the hall to the dining-room. It was empty, except for Harris, who was moving some papers from the table to set it for supper. "Oh, Harris," she said, with a gasp of relief, "she isn't here! Harris, I have got to tell her. You don't think she'll mind much, do you?"
The men, city bred, were silent, but the faces of some of them still expressed amazement and incredulity. Robert's quick and powerful imagination instantly projected itself into their minds, and he saw as they saw.
Word Of The Day