Sinclair's face had crimsoned at the sudden attention drawn to him and the frank admiration of the little maid. But he was too gallant to refuse:
"I couldn't resist that appeal. I'll promise. I'll not get my hair cut again until you give me leave."
"Oh, goody! I knew you would do it for me. You're lovely."
"I admire your courage, doctor, more than your good sense," laughed her father. "But it is always the way. A big man can be twisted around the fingers of the littlest maid."
But the one whose presence at this little scene had made the blood tingle in Sinclair's face more sharply than all the others thought to herself:
"It is a child's instinctive attraction to a true man."
That scene on the ramparts of the old Dutch fort became one of the most cherished treasures in the picture-gallery of her memory.
XXIII
IMPENDING STORMS
"Well, Mr. De Vaux, I see that the French fleet has arrived. Has the commander given any intimations of his intentions yet?"