f her palm-leaf fan.

Brice was strangely excited. The novelty of the surroundings, the
wondrous, bright beauty of sea, and shore, and palm-grove that lay
within his range of vision were already beginning to weave their fetal
spell upon his susceptible nature. And then, again and again, his glance
would fall upon the sweet, oval face and scarlet lips of the girl that
sat in the doorway. Who was she? Not old Baldwin's wife, surely! for had
not the old fellow often told him that he was not married?... And what
a lovely spot to live in, this Rikitea! By Jove, he would like to stay a
year here instead of a few months only.... Again his eyes rested on
the figure in the doorway--and then his veins thrilled--Loise, lazily
lifting her long, sweeping lashes had caught his admiring glance.

*****

Brice was no fool with women--that is, he thought so, never taking
into consideration that his numerous love affairs had always ended
disastrously--to the woman. And his mother, good simple soul, had
thought that the best means of taking her darling son away from
unapproved-of female society would be a voyage to the islands with old
Tom Baldwin!

Dinner was finished, and the two men were sitting out on the verandah
smoking and drinking whisky, when Brice said, carelessly--

"I wonder you never married, Baldwin."

The old trader puffed at his pipe for a minute or two ere he answered--

"Did you notice that girl at all?" and he inclined his head towards the
door of the sitting-room.

The young man nodded.

Then the candid Baldwin told him her history. "I can't defend my own
position. I am no better than most traders--you see it is the custom
here, neither is she worse than any of these half-blooded Paumotuans. If
I married a native of this particular island I would only bring trouble
on my head. I could not show any preference for any particular girl for
a wife without raising the bitterest quarrels among some of the leading
chiefs here. You see, as a matter of fact, I should have married as soon
as I came here, twenty years ago; then the trouble would have been over.
But I didn't. I can see my mistake now, for I am getting old pretty
fast;... and now that the missionaries are here, and I do a lot of
business with them, I think us white men ought to show them some kind of
respect by getting married--properly married--to our wives."

Brice laughed. "You mean, Baldwin, they should get married according to
the rites of the Roman