,
but ask me anything else and I think I can promise a reply. This one is
a secret not mine to tell."

Silence fell once more over them and the world about them. There was no
noise save the soft crush of the horses' feet in the snow and the crunch
of the wagon wheels. The silvery glow of the moon still fell across the
hills, and the trees stood motionless like white but kindly sentinels.

Prescott by and by took his flask from his pocket.

"Drink some of this," he said; "you must. The cold is insidious and you
should fend it off."

So urged she drank a little, and then Prescott, stopping the horses,
climbed back in the wagon-bed.

"It would be strange," he said, "if our good farmer prepared for a
twenty-mile drive without taking along something to eat."

"And please see that he is comfortable," she said. "I know these are war
times, but we are treating him hardly."

Prescott laughed.

"You shouldn't feel any remorse," he said. "Our worthy Elias was never
more snug in his life. He's still sleeping as sweetly as a baby, and is
as warm as a rabbit in its nest. Ah, here we are! Cold ham, light bread,
and cold boiled eggs. I'll requisition them, but I'll pay him for them.
It's a pity we can't feed the horses, too."

He took a coin from his pocket and thrust it into that of the sleeping
farmer. Then he spread the food upon the seat of the wagon, and the two
ate with hearty appetites due to the cold, their exertions and the
freedom from apprehension.

Prescott had often eaten of more luxurious fare, but none that he
enjoyed more than that frugal repast, in a lonely wagon on a cold and
dark winter morning. Thrilled with a strange exhilaration, he jested and
found entertainment in everything, and the girl beside him began to
share his high spirits, though she said little, but laughed often at his
speeches. Prescott never before had seen in her so much of feminine
gentleness, and it appealed to him, knowing how strong and masculine her
character could be at times. Now she left the initiative wholly to him,
as if she had put herself in his hands and trusted him fully, obeying
him, too, with a sweet humility that stirred the deeps of his nature.

At last they finished the crumbs of the farmer's food and Prescott
regretfully drove on.

"The horses have had a good rest, too," he said, "and I've no doubt they
needed it."

The character of the night did not change, still the same splendid white
silence, and just they t