The Argosy — page 287: what you’re looking at

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

268 The Amethyst Seal. commonplace one, but the way he gave utterance to it meant a great deal. ‘Then he sat down again and fell to staring into the fire, as though in the glowing embers he saw bodied forth some vision or picture projected from his own mental retina. He was still sitting thus when the first bell rang. This roused him. He rose and pushed back his chair, and as he did so he said aloud: “ [’ll do it and take the risk.” If Harold Dare had seemed dull and out of sorts in the afternoon no one could have complained of his lack of spirits at dinner that evening. He laughed and joked and talked enough nonsense for two men. But his gaiety had something forced and feverish about it, and he drank considerably more wine than was customary with him. Elinor looked at him once or twice with a little wonder, but the Captain thought to himself that he had never seen his cousin “ in better form.” After dinner there was time for a little music. Elinor sang a couple of songs. Dare turned over her music and hovered round her with the air and empressement of a devoted suitor. Miss Trenton neither encouraged nor repulsed him, but treated him precisely as she treated Captain Wenlock. She had often puzzled Harold before, and she puzzled him again this evening ; but just then he had other matters to occupy his thoughts. Presently the wheels of the dogcart were heard crunching the gravel on the drive. The time had come to say good-bye. It had been the captain’s intention to drive his cousin to the station, but Sir George having intimated his desire that his son should spare an hour or two after dinner to look through some business papers, a sroom had been deputed to take charge of the dogcart. Sir George—a fine specimen of an English country gentleman, but at present sadly out of health—bade his young kinsman a cordial farewell, told him not to fail to come and see them at Christmas, and then slipped an envelope into his unreluctant palm, which, on opening later on, he found to contain a cheque for a hundred guineas. : Next came Harold’s farewell to Elinor. He would fain have thrown a sort of veiled tenderness over their parting, and was desirous that an aroma of sentiment should cling to it. But the laughter in Miss Trenton’s eyes dismayed him from trying any such experiment. So, as it fell out, they parted gaily enough, like acquaintances who might or who might not meet again in a little while. A warm grip of the hand from Bruce Wenlock, and then Harold Dare climbed into the dogcart, and buttoned his ulster about him. His black bag was under the seat; his portmanteau was to follow him on the morrow. “To Barrowcliff station, I suppose, sir?” said Perkins, as they passed through the lodge gates. ‘No; to Thorndale station. That will suit me better.” CORMIELCOO KS. (E00)