ers' Castle. It was nearly midnight when the
two visitors reluctantly took leave of the ladies and stepped out into
the diffused light of the May moon.

"Pretty late," called out Burke Pierce familiarly from the stern of
the boat where he stood, ready to resume his piloting.

No tattling breeze carried to the ears of the ladies the comments
spoken by Burr as he stood in the moonlight on the roof of the vessel,
beside Arlington.

"Exceedingly fine women, are they not?"

The Virginian made no reply. He was pinning to the lapel of his coat a
tiny bunch of violets, and his face was turned from his
fellow-voyager.

"Both are ladies of decided individuality. They are amazingly
beautiful, too, and possess unusual force of character, especially the
captain's lady."

"Damn the captain."

"So say I. You stole a march on him in the Hesperian Garden, and we
both escaped the jaws of the absent Dragon."

Soon after their guests left the house Madam Blennerhassett and
Evaleen Hale, standing by an open window in a chamber upstairs, looked
out toward the wharf. They heard the voices of the watermen and the
noise made in shoving out from the gravel beach. Then came silence,
and they knew the ark was adrift, bearing away two passengers whom
they could not easily forget, but expected never to meet again.

"How delightful he is!" mused the madam, speaking more to herself than
to her friend.

"Do you think so?" returned Evaleen abstractedly.

"Perfectly captivating! A brilliant mind! I am charmed with him, are
not you?"

"He is pleasant enough, but too bold, too audacious, isn't he?"

"Not, I think, Evaleen, for a person of his age. We expect more
freedom in elderly men."

"Elderly! Why, he can't be more than twenty-five!

"Twenty-five! My dear child, he has a married daughter!"

"Oh, you are speaking of Colonel Burr! I _hate_ him."

VI. DOCTOR DEVILLE AND HIS LUCRECE.

"Behold this Ohio city of the Gauls. Volney's ruins of modern
date--new oldness--fresh decay--dilapidation to begin with! I am
proud of this consummation of American enterprise!"

This irony was uttered by Burr to Arlington as the two men stood
taking a first look at Gallipolis, a poor village, consisting of a
dozen miserable log houses patched with clay and occupied by a score
of wretched French families. The travellers had walked up a steep bank
to the natural terrace on which the forlorn dwellings stood.

"Shall we go back to our boat? Ha