oblige me?"

She looked up. "Of course I do," she replied.

"And will you answer my question?" he continued.

She looked down. "What can he mean?" she said inly. The twilight
partly hid the deep blush that suffused her cheek.

He noticed her embarrassment and hastily spoke: "I was going to say
this. Some time ago, I heard that you were engaged to a young man
named Tom Soher. Would you be kind enough to explain me the riddle.
But, you need not do so, if you do not feel inclined to."

Her manner suddenly changed. She had imagined that he had something
of far greater importance to ask her. She replied: "I have never
been engaged to him; you must have heard false news."

"Probably," he said, "it was Old Jacques who told me so."

"Ah, I see," said she, "he saw my cousin coming home to visit us
rather often, and he invented that little piece of news. It was
he--Tom Soher--whom we met just now, and who scrutinized us so."
Then Adele told him all about her father's intentions. She tried to
look bright, but Frank saw what she endeavoured to conceal: a
painful contraction of the forehead at times. When she had finished,
she asked smilingly: "What do you think of my father's mode of
procedure?"

Frank looked at her anxiously. "I hope it will never be," he said.

"Indeed!"

"Because," he continued, "I should be extremely grieved to see you
forced into an union without love."

"How do you know that it would be such an one?" she asked.

"Because," responded he, "when you told me about your father's
plans, I saw your face. If there is any truth in physiognomy, you
recoil with horror at the prospect of one day marrying Tom Soher."

She changed the subject of the conversation and nothing more was
said about it that evening.

Going home; Frank thought of the difficulties that were rising
before him. He soliloquized: "It is always the same old story; a
greedy, avaricious, grasping father, sacrificing his daughter's
happiness for the sake of his pride. But it must not be. I can and
will save her from such a terrible fate."

He was full of indignant wrath against her father. "To think that
she shudders at the thought of it," he muttered.

Meanwhile, Tom Soher was pondering heavily. He was in a terrible
passion. When he entered his father's house, he wore an angry look.
He walked straight upstairs without even partaking of supper. His
mother and sister who were downstairs laughed. The young man was not
much of a favouri