The Island School — page 60: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

— —~ ' Ey me whole carefully. | Le Klaas 7 » FINDS 4 A Pao ke re ey Alas mS he ete | But ere was one on the pe: top, in ‘its envelope, which she remembered having _ seen on the day when Ji im. Gordon last brought the oa in from the sea. ‘ It bore the Minorca postmark, and the handwriting of the address was peculiar. A novice would have seen that it was disguised. Eveline hesitated once again, and then she took out yt se the letter and removed the inner portion from the _ envelope. Pres A glance at its contents compelled her to read the Here is the letter in its entirety: _“ Senor,—When you were last at Minorca, an offer was made you by Kspardo Reonardo for the hand of your daughter, who is; as you English look at women, little more than a girl. We Spaniards hold different views, and ‘our women, when they can, marry early. **Reonardo was willing to wait a year, or even two, pro- vided the regular form of betrothment was gone through. That showed he was better than most Spaniards. . You de-— clined the offer, and he angrily informed you, senor, that whether you willed it or not he would espouse your y é rN. ¢ f 6 at 4 yee 7 - i a" Te | _, who have a right to interfere. ma aeied in secret, So must you. a Fe), a kt is) daughter. ‘He is a man of his word, ee will do much to ain his end. ** Having waited awhile he has Ciaaeal himself by fooling with a woman who thought he loved her. She has recently learnt the truth, and writes to you this letter, that youmay ‘beware of Reonardo, for, having waited awhile tor you to _ sield, he is now preparing to move, you and yours in secret. He will stop at nothing to gain his ends. He will also make sure that he will not be inter- fered with by your Government at home, by destroying all He is an accursed, faithless ~ villain, and were it not for the love he has inspired me _ with, I would destroy him. Thatis not your task. As he” Wait and watch for him. Say nothing to anyone around you until the time comes. Then, if you area man, protect your child. But do not kill him, for he is loved by one who, while wronged, will —ptill | avenge him. He must neither be slain nor dishonoured nor disgraced by you. He must simplybe fozled. Youare -& great man, and should know how to act. Farewell.” ' That was all. There was no signature, and Eveline | aeadl it through twice in dumb amazement. She was still young, and although many of her age a on themselves the care of a household, the bare idea of marriage—and to a Spaniard, too—was repul- sive to her. _ She, however, understood the recently exhibited 7 «ouble of her father, and knowing his weak and vacillating nature, understood why he had kept this letter to himself instead of confiding its contents to others who might assist him to rid himself and her of the unwelcome attentions of the Spaniard. She was sorely puzzled and distressed, not knowing _svhat to do. Her mother would not help her. She Pig . a _ would in all probability do nothing more than shed a few tears, and express her wonder at “the rude _ audacity of the Spaniard, Reonardo.” There was only one other person in the house to whom Eveline would | Be care to show such a letter, and that was Jim. f: ce IS believed in Jim as keing as good in an emerger y as as Bike ne a in the louse. To sate tes A te ns NORE meat Mi Raat 4 A ; re Nie ke N : ‘ a tia Ah Me y aN me wan =f Me * 1 OFF ay a fA We ai told, and it flashed round the school. He will descend mpon | It was assumed, where the | that he was engaged Shes fore, when ye got an Pea des she would show | im this letter. — Bip? « Placing it in her pocket, she shifted the key to the other drawer—an artful move, intended to keep her father from examining the drawer from which she had _ - . taken the eteon lane finished her work. _ | : By this time the whole house was stirring, and — ¥ Macbeth and Hamlet were looking about for the Ce a missing Romeo. 7 ae gee Dat boy,” said Macbeth, “gone a-fishin’ ORV ‘ sumfin’ of dat sort. I reckon, Hamlet, dat we not ‘f : strick enuf wid him. He gettin’ into ways dat am on 3 de borders ob rebellion.” | a “Tf dere was any gals on de island,” said Hamlet, si “T should ‘spect him ob goin’ courtin’.” ‘Massy on us!” exclaimed Macbeth, aghast. “ He B ap nebber hab dat rordacity. A Pay like dat a-courtin’ po “He eer: or dereabouts,” said Harhlet. “Too young,” said Macbeth. “But hurry up wif _ de work, so dat when he do come back, we got three i minutes to spare to gib him a spankin’.” oe Meanwhile, as there was no further occasion for secrecy, the story of the night’s adventure had been | oe Jim 7 freely of a peril he now hoped was past, and made Morse the hero of the hour. | 7 “Na Morse was not, however, there to hear, for, i in spite i of a short night’s sleep, he had risen early, and, with | Jim’s key of the back part of the castle, had begun 4 to transfer some of his more precious mater to Hy that better place. | Me . As he honestly told the schoolmaster, he hada in his y possession compounds that he would trust nobody x but himself to move. They were made from materials — that alone were innocent enough, as charcoal and saltpetre are, but, like those main ingredients of gun- of 2 powder when combined, are terrible in their action. _ am Breakfast-time aeieead and no Romeo. It became necessary to report his absence, which was done by!) 4 "s Macbeth, to the schoolmaster, who expressed a hope — Fra ‘ that some big crab, or some other marine monster, ‘3 : had got hold of and made a meal of him. ee ny “Tf I have any more bother with any of you,” nO a : added, for Macbeth’s benefit, “I shall import some a , —r “4 ih pie Sa vw igh -more servants from Africa and give you the sack— Os you hear—the sack !” Mr. Farrell’s temper had not improved. contrary, a growing sense of security was developing - the overbearing nature of a testy, arrogant man, — and it arose from the fact that he was rather ashamed - ¥ of himself for the display he had recently made of something which might be called cowardice. ; Macbeth and Beet did as well as they ontlel without Romeo, who was missed but not inquired for. — oye was any assumption — ere in some other duty. ~, mic 00 Yr Ge nO il taste rip (