and ask him what he
means; and then it all seems so useless the very idea of expecting him
to feel anything. I want to know what you said to him last night."

"Not much--not half so much as I meant to have said. To see him
polluting your room!" cried the doctor, with a flush growing on
his face, and breaking off abruptly, not quite able to conclude the
sentence. Nettie gave him a shy upward glance, and grew suddenly crimson
too.

"Did you mind?" said Nettie, with a momentary timidity, against the
unexpected charm of which the unhappy doctor fell defenceless; then
holding out her tiny hand to him with shy frankness, "Thank you for
caring so much for me," said the dauntless little girl, resolute not to
perceive anything which could not be fully spoken out.

"Caring _so_ much! I must speak to you; we can't go on like this,
Nettie," cried the doctor, holding fast the little unfaltering hand.

"Oh, here is the place I am going to. Please don't; people might not
understand,--though we _are_ brother and sister in a kind of a way,"
said the little Australian. "Please, Dr Edward, we must get out here."

For a moment Edward Rider hesitated with a wild intention of urging his
horse forward and carrying her off anywhere, out of Carlingford, out of
duty and practice and responsibility, and all those galling restraints
of life which the noonday light and everyday sounds about brought in
with so entire a discord to break up this momentary hallucination. For
half a minute only the doctor lingered on the borders of that fairyland
where time and duty are not, but only one ineffable moment always
passing, never past. Then with a long sigh, the breath of which dispersed
a whole gleaming world of visionary delights, he got down doggedly on
the commonplace pavement. Ah, what a descent it was! the moment his foot
touched these vulgar flags, he was once more the hard-worked doctor at
everybody's command, with a fretful patient waiting for him a mile
beyond St Roque's; and all these dazzling moments, which had rapt the
unfortunate young fellow into another world, were so much time lost to
the prose figure that had to help Nettie down and let her go, and betake
himself soberly about his own business. Perhaps Nettie felt it a little
disenchanting too, when she was dropped upon the bare street, and went
into the common shop, and saw the doctor's drag flash off in the red
frosty sunshine with a darting movement of exasperation and impatience