ake her care for him, that the proud, dark eyes should
soften and brighten for him; and he gave his whole mind to the
conquest. As he walked along, one of the tall, white lilies bent over
the path; with one touch of the cane he beat it down, and Pauline gave a
little cry, as though the blow had pained her. She stopped, and taking
the slender green stem in her hand, straightened it; but the blow had
broken one of the white leaves.

"Why did you do that?" she asked, in a pained voice.

"It is only a flower," he replied, with a laugh.

"Only a flower! You have killed it. You cannot make it live again. Why
need you have cut its sweet life short?"

"It will not be missed from among so many," he said.

"You might say the same thing of yourself," she retorted. "The world is
full of men, and you would hardly be missed from so many; yet you would
not like----"

"There is some little difference between a man and a flower, Miss
Darrell," he interrupted, stiffly.

"There is, indeed; and the flowers have the advantage," she retorted.

The captain solaced himself by twisting his mustache, and relieved his
feelings by some few muttered words, which Miss Darrell did not hear. In
her quick, impulsive way, she judged him at once.

"He is cruel and selfish," she thought; "he would not even stoop to save
the life of the sweetest flower that blows. He shall not forget killing
that lily," she continued, as she gathered the broken chalice, and
placed it in her belt. "Every time he looks at me," she said, "he shall
remember what he has done."

The captain evidently understood her amiable intention, and liked her
accordingly. They walked on for some minutes in perfect silence; then
Pauline turned to him suddenly.

"Have you been long in the army, Captain Langton?"

Flattered by a question that seemed to evince some personal interest, he
hastened to reply:

"More than eight years. I joined when I was twenty."

"Have you seen any service?" she asked.

"No," he replied. "My regiment had been for many years in active service
just before I joined, so that we have been at home since then."

"In inglorious ease," she said.

"We are ready for work," he returned, "when work comes."

"How do you employ your time?" she asked; and again he was flattered by
the interest that the question showed. His face flushed. Here was a
grand opportunity of showing this haughty girl, this "proudest Darrell
of them all," that he was eagerly sought a