ded
approvingly.

"They are worth a lesson, and shall have it. Easy, now, till they pass;
then hard all, and give them a specimen of high art."

A sudden lull ensued on board the Kelpie while the blue shirts
approached, caught, and passed with a great display of science, as
Sylvia had prophesied, and as good an imitation of the demeanor of
experienced watermen as could be assumed by a trio of studious youths
not yet out of their teens. As the foam of their wake broke against the
other boat's side, Mark hailed them--

"Good morning, gentlemen! We'll wait for you above there, at the bend."

"All serene," returned the rival helmsman, with a bow in honor of
Sylvia, while the other two caused a perceptible increase in the speed
of the "Juanita," whose sentimental name was not at all in keeping with
its rakish appearance.

"Short-sighted infants, to waste their wind in that style; but they pull
well for their years," observed Mark, paternally, as he waited till the
others had gained sufficient advantage to make the race a more equal
one. "Now, then!" he whispered a moment after; and, as if suddenly
endowed with life, the Kelpie shot away with the smooth speed given by
strength and skill. Sylvia watched both boats, yearning to take an oar
herself, yet full of admiration for the well-trained rowers, whose swift
strokes set the river in a foam and made the moment one of pleasure and
excitement. The blue shirts did their best against competitors who had
rowed in many crafts and many waters. They kept the advantage till near
the bend, then Mark's crew lent their reserved strength to a final
effort, and bending to their oars with a will, gained steadily, till,
with a triumphant stroke, they swept far ahead, and with oars at rest
waited in magnanimous silence till the Juanita came up, gracefully
confessing her defeat by a good-humored cheer from her panting crew.

For a moment the two boats floated side by side, while the young men
interchanged compliments and jokes, for a river is a highway where all
travellers may salute each other, and college boys are "Hail fellow!
well met" with all the world.

Sylvia sat watching the lads, and one among them struck her fancy. The
helmsman who had bowed to her was slight and swarthy, with Southern
eyes, vivacious manners, and a singularly melodious voice. A Spaniard,
she thought, and pleased herself with this picturesque figure till a
traitorous smile about the young man's mouth betraye