e asked, she could be kept
away by nothing short of an earthquake or a deluge. Yet--

"Thank you, Miss Smith, I shall be glad to look over the sketches."
And she added blandly: "Four o'clock, did you say? Very well, I will
come. It is one's moral duty to encourage men of talent."

"Whoop!" cried The Author, joyously, when I told him that. "Revenge
yourself, Morenas: sketch her, man! sketch her!"

Morenas laughed. "Put her in one of your books and make her talk,"
he suggested slyly. "You have a genius for making a woman talk like
an idiot."

"That's because he does the talking for her, himself," said Alicia,
impudently.

"It pays, it pays!" smiled The Author. "I draw from life."

"Nature-fakir!" Alicia mocked.

"My dear fellow, _I_ draw. _You_ draw and quarter," said Morenas.

The Author flung out his arms, grandiloquently.

You may as well try to change the course
Of yonder sun
To north, and south,
As to try to subdue by criticism
This heart of verse,
Or close this mouth!

he cried, thumping his chest. "Come on, Johnson: let's leave these
knockers to fate--and Miss Martha Hopkins!"

Miss Martha Hopkins came, she saw, and she had a perfectly beautiful
time. As a matter of fact, everybody that could come, did come. And
the very smartest and prettiest of the younger set served tea. Oh,
yes, decidedly the tables were turning!

Despite which, Alicia and I were not happy. It seemed to me that a
veil had fallen between us, for we were shy with each other. Both
suffered, and each dreaded that the other should know.

I was grateful that The Author's mind was too taken up with Hynds
House history to focus itself upon us. The Author spent his spare
hours rummaging through such dusty and musty records as might throw
some light upon the Hyndses. In the old office were many faded
plantation and household books, and he was able to glean enough from
these to confirm the methodical carefulness of Freeman Hynds. There
were, too, dry receipts for "monies Paid by Mr. Rich. Hynds" for
some old slave; or a brief notice that "By Orders Mr. Richd. Hynds,
no Women shall be Whipt"; or "Bought by Mr. R. Hynds & Charg'd to
his Acct., one Crippl'd Black Childe namd Scipio from Vanham's Sale,
& Given to Sukey his Mother." Another time it would be a list of
Christmas gifts: "One Colour'd Head Kerchief for Nancy. One Flute
for Blind Sam. One Shoulder Cape for Ki