Puck — July 23, 1879 — page 11: what you’re looking at

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

PUCK. ARCHIE GASCOYNE, A ROMANCE OF SKYE. WRITIEN EXFRESSLY FOR PUCK, BY JOHN FRASER, Avior oF “Effie: a Tale of Two Worlds;” ‘Essays from the Westminster;” ‘Duncan Fenwick's Daughter; ” “Fair Fragoletta;” «Scottish Chapbooks;” “A Dream of a Life; “Legends of Lome;” « Lone Glengartney,” ete, etc., etc. (Continued.) OOD day, shentlemen,” she exclaimed, as they raised their hats, and the speaker blushed, probably at being caught in semi- deshabille—though who knows that it had not been carefully planned, for she had seen them enter the garden? “Good evening, Mademoiselle,” was the gravely courtcous reply, as the speakers passed on. “Well,” said the Doctor when they had d out of hearing, ‘‘is the resemblance as strong as you thought ?”” “Strong?” replied his friend, almost gasp- ing, “why, I’ll be hanged if it isn’t Zerbini herself; but that’s impossible.” “ There is nothing impossible,” was the sen- tentious reply. ‘¢ But let’s go in.” “This is, however,” responded Archie. “How could a ballet-dancer get admittance into a house like this and act as governess?” “Yes, and who would think to find the son and heir of a wealthy English baronet in Ar- chie Campbell, the humble tutor of a raw Highland cub?” “Nonsense; you talk rubbish, The cases are not parallel, and Mlle. Thollier is assuredly not Zerbini—and yet"”— “Exactly—and yet?” echoed his friend as, throwing away their cigar-stumps, they passed into the hall to find the Count engaged in an elaborate flirtation with the philosophical Flora, while Macleod, with animated gestures and heightened color, was relating some one of his many hunting adventures to Miss Maggie. “Othello and Desdemona, by Jove!” thought Archie to himself with a twinge of pain, but all he said was, with a smile: “Good evening, all; did not know you had returned, Captain Macleod; hope you and Mr, Alister have arranged things to your satis- faction.” When Archie addressed Macleod Maggic’s face flushed hotly as she gave a quick, uneasy, enquiring look at the two young men, but the friendly tone of the speaker reassured her, though a slightly puzzled look still lingered on her face as her cousin replied, with a laugh: “O yes, thank you. Alister and I are old hands ‘at that sort of thing; by the way, we shall be glad to have your company to-morrow, if you care to rough it.” «T should be only too glad,” replied Archie, “Sut the Doctor here is asad martyr to the gout, and I hardly care to leave him to his own very limited resources.” “You don’t—don't ye?” broke in Bob, “and it’s gouty I am, is it, ye imaginative spalpeen ? Not but the same’s a highly genteel disease, and one that has run in the blood of the Mic- donalds from pat-riarchal ages. But jist at prisint I haven’t the good fortune to be enjoy- ing it, and I’ll be delighted to accompany the Captain and take charge av ye all.” Macleod took the Doctor at his word. So it was finally arranged that Archie and the Doc- tor should accompany the two daring sports- men, that the ladies should convoy them as far as possible down the bay on their journey, and that the Doctor should be entrusted with the sole charge of the commissariat department. Nor was the charge a light one, as they had to camp out all night, and in addition to them- selves there would be four oarsmen and a boy. It may be doubted, however, if our hero was ticularly well pleased to have been drawn into the expedition, and it was with no very friendly tone that he bade Bob an abrupt and got “Goodnight ” as he passed on towards ‘is own room. “ Faith,” laughed the Doctor, turning round to Miss Maggie, who was nowalone beside him, the Captain and the rest having gone into the drawing-room, “he’s moighty polite, anyhow, and it’s meself that’s thinking Misther Camp- bell would sooner be stopping at home to-mor- row with the girls than philandering afther sea- gulls and cormorants and sich loike haythen.” And so Archie would, and Miss Maggie blushed to think so, for was it not to-morrow they had fixed for her first lesson in Chaucer? So her sweet face flushed guiltily under the searching and quizzical gaze of the irrepressi- ble Bob, and, though she would have given anything to prevent, she could not for her life help looking up at him quickly, and their eyes caught and she saw there an amused look of audaciously comical knowingness that called a second and deeper blush to the fair, sweet face. “How funny you Irishmen are!” she ex- claimed confusedly, as she rose hastily and brushed past him with an abrupt “Goodnight.” The Doctor stood transfixed as he watched the dainty graceful vision disappear. Then, witha low, prolonged “ P-h-e-ew!” thoughtfully proceeded in the direction of the billiard- room, to find consolation in the soothing “ night-cap” before retiring for the night. CHAPTER XV. “The little rift within the lute.” —TENNysON, Next day was an eventful one in many re- spects—eventful, that is, as far as concerns the personages of our little drama. The prepara- tions for the fishing and shooting expedition were on the most extensive scale. The Doctor in particular showed to advant- age. He was in his element. Instinctively every one, from the Captain to the gillic, gave way to Bob. Archie, on a former occasion, had dubbed him the “sandwich” Napoleon, and he did not belie the epithet. Everything was attracted to him. In the commissariat department he reigned supreme. From the leg of mutton and roast goose to the caviare and the lobster sauce, Bob's word was law. He tasted the whiskey and sampled the wine, selecting accordingly, and there was no going back on his judgment. Need we say that, under such generalship the commissariat department was a prodigious success—so much so that the ladies felt doubly aggrieved that they could only go a small. por- tion of the way, and consequently could not be in at the death—meaning thereby the sup- rT? Nor were Macleod and Alister behindhand in their special department. The “ trammel” and salmon nets were completely overhauled; the guns cleaned and polished into a condition of speckless purity; the ammunition was pro- vided in as much abundance as if they had been going to lay siege to Castle Dunvegan or attempt to batter down the Quirang; and gen- erally everything, down to the minutest detail, was attended to as only old and experienced Highland campaigners can. To complete the general satisfaction, the day was all that could be desired, the sun’s rays being tempered by a delightfully cooling breeze, just strong enough and no more to fill the bel- lying sails and streak with tiny flakes. of foam the flashing surface of the dark green water, So everyone was in the highest spirits; every- one, that is to say, but one, whom we were about forgetting. ‘The exception was Miss Maggie, who appeared to be ill at ease, and complained of having passed a sleepless night, resulting in a severe headache. It was abundantly evident to the most care- less observer that she was far from well, and her restless, nervous manner betokened mental uneasiness. Every now and then she would give a little start and look around in a strange, vague sort of way, as if afraid of some one, and so marked did this restlessness become that Mrs. Mac- donald was forced finally to interfere and pro- hibit her from accompanying the party. Nor, sooth to say, did Maggie seem particu- larly sorry to be left at home. On the contrary —and the thought was by no means a pleasant one to Archie, who had been watching her anx- iously all the morning—she was evidently re- lieved, and, for the first time that day, as she turned to retrace her steps and waved an au revoir to the party, her face wore something like its ordinary sweetness and happiness of ex- pression, Nor was our hero and Mrs. Macdonald the only ones to remark Miss Maggie's strangeness of ‘manner and remarkable pallor of face. Macleod himself, though so busy as to have little time to devote to any one, saw enough to convince him that something was wrong, and Mlle. Thollier, although keenly anxious to make one of the party, was so affected and touched by her ‘darling Mees Margaret's eel- ness” that she insisted on accompanying her home, thereby raising herself in the estimation of mother and daughter some hundred per cent., for hitherto they had not credited made- moiselle with much softness of heart, As for the Doctor, he “ marvelled exceed- ingly,” but, as he remarked to Archie and the Count afterwards, in his own simple but ex- pressive way, he “smelled a rat, and was re- solved to nip it in the bud.” Just as the boats were being shoved off from the little, old-fashioned and primitive looking pier, Maggie turned hastily and ran back to the boat in which her cousin was. He hap- pened to be engaged with an oar at the time, and the young girl called to the Doctor, who happened to be nearest her: “0 Doctor, I had quite forgotten. Would you kindly pass this note to Captain Macleod? It is from a friend of his.” At the sound of her voice Macleod looked round, and his eye caught hers. Archie was looking fixedly at both of them, and she knew it, and blushed hotly as, with a forced ‘Good- bye,” she turned confusedly and hurried up the beach after her mother and Mlle. Thollier. Archie was uncomfortably startled, as was also the Doctor, but neither said anything, and in another minute they were gliding swiftly over the water under full sail. Nothing could please us more than to follow comicbooks.com