much less the road along which he was driving, so he decided 'to trust to the instinct of the animal to guide them home aright. Accordingly he brought the horse to a walk, wrapped the lines about the guard, and then turned his attention to Miss Douglas. ‘‘l hope you are not uncomfortable,” he ventured to say. “Oh, no; not at all, thank you,” came in muffled tones from the mass of furs at his side. “ And you’re not frightened, I hope,” he pursued “Frightened! Well, I guess not,” she answered should I be frightened about, I’d like to know ? ” “ Well,” replied Percival, “to tell the truth we’re lost. I don’t know which way we are going. It is the horse that is guiding us, and if he should fail we might freeze to death before help could reach us.” And he thought he felt a slight shudder of Miss Douglas’s arm as he spoke. Her next words confirmed the suspicion. “Do yon really think there is any clanger, Percival?” she asked, in a tremulous voice, which he did not fail to notice “ Danger? Of what?” he asked. “Of freezing to death?” she replied, quickly “ Why, yes. It’s cold enough, isn’t it?” sarcastically. “ Oh, Percy, how can you talk so lightly when, as you say, our lives are in danger ?” And had it been lighter, he could have seen a tear sparkling in each dark eye. But he could not see them, and so he continued to taunt her. “ I would not care in the least if I should freeze,” he said. But she caught the ironical tone in his voice, and replied quickly,— “ Neither would I, Percy Weston. You’re a brute.” And then she regretted her words the moment after. 11 Maybe you wish young SpofFord was here now,” he said, sneeringly. That was one straw too much. In an instant she resented the words and the tone. ‘‘Yes, I do,” she cried passionately. “Anything would be better than with you, Percy Weston; I despise you. I wish some thing would happen this very minute to make you leave me. I’ll never speak to you again.” And happen something did. As if in answer to her wish, there was a sharp snap, and one side of the shafts fell to the snow. Per- The Free Lance , [January, “What And he laughed
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