Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: III A MILITARY MANCEUVRE I Had feigned to change my mind several times with regard to Bassishaw's garden- party, but Carrie had suddenly developed accentuated ideas on the subject of engagement-keeping. " We promised, you know, Rol," she said, " and it would look so bad to run off. I don't suppose it will be much fun," she added candidly. She was mistaken. It would be great fun. On the way thither I entertained her blandly on the subject of unmarried life. I pointed out to her the advantages of a brother and sister living happily together, as, say, in our own case. I argued on the holy bonds of kinship, and congratulated heron having a brother who would devote the whole ofIris life to making her comfortable. How happy we were ! Carrie moved uneasily in her seat. She endeavoured to change the subject. Her conscience wrought within her—she was a guilty traitor, and deceiving the kindest of brothers. Had she been less in love, she might have suspected something, as I continued in the same strain ; but such is not the way of youth. Her arts might have been transparent to me for months and months, yet she would at last break the great secret with most delicious gentleness, in stammers and blushes, and I would show a dramatic surprise and shock. We see other people's progress, but our own love affairs are always unguessed. It was a great relief to Carrie when we arrived at the Bassishaws'. The strain was getting embarrassing. A straight military young figure had evidently been on the look-out for our conveyance, for he made several false starts, and almost supplanted the more ceremonious reception due from his mother. This little formality through, he pounced on us at once. " How d 'ye do, Miss Butterfield ? " Do, Butterfield ?" he said warmly. " So glad you Ve... --This text refers to the Paperback edition.