" She
paused a moment, looking into the water. "Anyhow, he died, and there was
nothing for me to do except to begin earning my living without any of the
necessary equipment."
"What about the brother-in-law?" asked Stefan.
"Oh, yes, I could have gone to them--I wasn't in danger of starvation.
But," she shook her head emphatically, "a poor relation! I couldn't have
stood that."
"Well," he turned squarely toward her, his elbow on the rail, "I can't
help asking this, you know; where were the bachelors of Lindum?"
She smiled, still in her friendly, unembarrassed way.
"I know what you mean, of course. The older men say it quite openly in
England.--'Why don't a nice gel like you get married?'--It's rather a
long story." ("Has she been in love?" Stefan wondered.) "First of all,
there are very few young men of one's own sort in Lindum; most of them
are in the Colonies. Those there are--one or two lawyers, doctors, and
squires' sons--are frightfully sought after." She made a wry face. "Too
much competition for them, altogether, and--" she seemed to take a plunge
before adding--"I've never been successful at bargain counters."
He turned that over for a moment. "I see," he said. "At least I should
do, if it weren't for it being you. Look here, Miss Elliston, honestly
now, fair and square--" he smiled confidingly at her--"you're not asking
me to believe that the competition in your ease didn't appear in the
other sex?"
"Mr.
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