ifferent to be natural.

"Are you angry with him?"

"Certainly not."

Jim was always simple and frank in his relations with women. He had
none of his brother's fluency of speech, with neither confidence,
boldness nor understanding of the intricate mazes of a woman's
moods.

"But--you are angry with--me?" he whispered.

Nell flushed to her temples, yet she did not raise her eyes nor
reply.

"It was a terrible thing for me to do," went on Jim, hesitatingly.
"I don't know why I took advantage--of--of your mistaking me for
Joe. If you only hadn't held up your mouth. No--I don't mean
that--of course you didn't. But--well, I couldn't help it. I'm
guilty. I have thought of little else. Some wonderful feeling has
possessed me ever since--since---"

"What has Joe been saying about me?" demanded Nell, her eyes burning
like opals.

"Why, hardly anything," answered Jim, haltingly. "I took him to task
about--about what I considered might be wrong to you. Joe has never
been very careful of young ladies' feelings, and I thought--well, it
was none of my business. He said he honestly cared for you, that you
had taught him how unworthy he was of a good woman. But he's wrong
there. Joe is wild and reckless, yet his heart is a well of gold. He
is a diamond in the rough. Just now he is possessed by wild notions
of hunting Indians and roaming through the forests; but he'll come
round all right. I wish I could tell you how much he has done for
me, how much I love him, how I know him! He can be made worthy of
any woman. He will outgrow this fiery, daring spirit, and
then--won't you help him?"

"I will, if he will let me," softly whispered Nell, irresistibly
drawn by the strong, earnest love thrilling in his voice.

Chapter X.

Once more out under the blue-black vault of heaven, with its myriads
of twinkling stars, the voyagers resumed their westward journey.
Whispered farewells of new but sincere friends lingered in their
ears. Now the great looming bulk of the fort above them faded into
the obscure darkness, leaving a feeling as if a protector had
gone--perhaps forever. Admonished to absolute silence by the stern
guides, who seemed indeed to have embarked upon a dark and deadly
mission, the voyagers lay back in the canoes and thought and
listened. The water eddied with soft gurgles in the wake of the
racing canoes; but that musical sound was all they heard. The
paddles might have been shadows, for all the splash they made