“Is it a happiness?” she asked, in a calm tone.
“Indeed it is,” he replied. “I heard that you had left England, but could not ascertain to what part of the world you had gone.”
What further passed between our friend and the young lady I cannot tell, as they lowered their voices, while they retired to a window at the other end of the room, Armitage forgetting all about his supper.
The ladies of the family, I should say, did not sit down to table, as they had already taken their evening meal, and insisted on waiting upon us.
Peter Praeger returned sooner than was expected with the doctor, whom he found on a visit to a family five or six miles off.
He gave a more favourable report of Dick and Charley than I expected, but young Mark, he said, would require the greatest possible care; a good constitution, however, he hoped, would enable him to pull through, though his hurts were of a most serious description.
I had no opportunity of speaking to Armitage before turning in, so I was unable to ascertain more about the young lady he had so unexpectedly met. The rest of the family were very nice and pretty girls, their manners much superior to what I had reasonably supposed would be found in the “Far West.”
Soon after breakfast the next morning, I saw Armitage and Miss Hargrave walking out together, he having asked her to show him a beautiful view she had spoken of at the other end of the estate. The rest of the young ladies being occupied, Story and I lit our pipes, and were sitting smoking them in the verandah, when we were joined by Mr Praeger.
“Your companion appears to be an old friend of my young relative,” he observed, as if apparently wishing to learn something about Armitage.
I replied that he was well known to Lieutenant Buntin, who spoke highly of him; and that he was evidently a man of some means, as we judged from his outfit and the number of his attendants, while we had found him a most excellent fellow in every respect.