The brown derby was stuck fast in the bare branches of an ancient lilac bush which some worshiper of former time had planted by the church door.
Galusha rose and limped over to rescue his truant property.
"It blew off," he began, but the masculine half of the pair who had witnessed his flight from the top to the bottom of the bank, came forward. He was a dark-haired young man, with a sunburned, pleasant face.
"Say, that was a tumble!" he declared. "I hope you didn"t hurt yourself.
No bones broken, or anything like that?"
Galusha shook his head. "No-o," he replied, somewhat doubtfully. "No, I think not. But, dear me, what a foolish thing for me to do!"
The young man spoke again.
"Sure you"re not hurt?" he asked. "Let me brush you off; you picked up a little mud on the way down."
Galusha looked at the knees of his trousers.
"So I did, so I did," he said. "I don"t remember striking at all on the way, but I could scarcely have acc.u.mulated all that at the bottom. Thank you, thank you!... Why, dear me, your face is quite familiar! Haven"t we met before?"
The young fellow smiled. "I guess we have," he said. "I put you aboard Lovetts" express wagon Friday afternoon and started you for Wellmouth Centre. I didn"t expect to see you over here in East Wellmouth."
Galusha adjusted his spectacles--fortunately they were not broken--and looked at the speaker.
"Why, of course!" he cried. "You are the young man who was so kind to me when I got off at the wrong station. You are the station man at--ah--at South Wellmouth, isn"t it?"
"That"s right."
"Dear me! Dear me! Well, I don"t wonder you were surprised to have me--ah--alight at your feet just now. We-ll," with his quiet smile, "I seem to have a habit of making unexpected appearances. I surprised Miss Phipps on Friday evening almost as greatly."
"Miss Phipps? Martha Phipps, Cap"n Jim"s daughter; lives over here by the light, do you mean?"
"Why--why, yes her name is Martha, I believe."
"But how in the world did you get--"
His companion interrupted him. "Why, Nelson," she cried, "he must be the one--the man who is staying at Martha"s. Don"t you know I told you Primmie said there was some one there who was sick?"
Galusha looked at her. She was young, not more than nineteen or twenty, slender, brown-haired and pretty. The young man spoke again.
"But Lulie," he said, "he isn"t sick. You aren"t sick, are you?"
addressing Galusha.
"My health has not been good of late," replied the latter, "and after my long walk on Friday evening I was rather done up. But I"m not ill at present, although," with a return of his faint smile, "I probably shall be if I continue to--ah--fly, as I did just now."
The young woman broke into an irresistible trill of laughter. The South Wellmouth station agent joined her. Galusha smiled in a fatherly fashion upon them both.
"I had quite a series of adventures after leaving you," he went on.
"Quite a series--yes."
He told briefly of his losing his way, of his meeting with Raish Pulcifer, of his tramp in the rain, and of his collapse in the Phipps"
sitting room.
"So that is--ah--my Odyssey," he concluded. "You see, we--ah--I beg your pardon, but I don"t know that I learned your name when we met the other day. Mine is Bangs."
"Pleased to meet you, Mr. Bangs. My name is Howard--Nelson Howard. And this is--"
He paused. The young woman was regarding him in a troubled way.
"Nelson," she said, "don"t you think, perhaps, we had better not--"
They were both embarra.s.sed. Galusha noticed the embarra.s.sment.
"Dear me! Dear me!" he said, hastily. "Please don"t trouble.
Ah--good-morning. I must go--really--yes."
He was on his way toward the bank, but the young woman called his name.
"Mr. Bangs," she said.
He turned. "Did you--did you wish to speak to me?" he asked.
"Why--why, yes, I--Mr. Bangs, I--I want to ask a favor of you. I know, Nelson, but what is the use, after all? We"ve done nothing to be ashamed of. Mr. Bangs, my name is Hallett. My father is the keeper of the lighthouse."
Galusha bowed. He had guessed her ident.i.ty. Primmie had spoken of Lulie Hallett in their conversation by the fence the day before.
"I am Lulie Hallett," she went on, "and--and Mr. Howard and I are--are--"
"We"re engaged to be married," broke in Howard. "The fact is, Mr. Bangs, I came over on my bicycle this morning to meet Lulie here where--where no one would see us. You see--well, Cap"n Jethro--her father, you know--is prejudiced against me and--and so to save her trouble and--and unpleasantness we--well, we--"
He was red and confused and stammering. Galusha was almost as much embarra.s.sed.
"Oh--oh, all right--ah--dear me, yes, of course," he said, hastily. "I am very sorry I--I interrupted. I beg your pardon. Ah--good-morning."
"But, Mr. Bangs," Lulie pleaded, earnestly, "you won"t misunderstand this, will you? We meet in this way on my father"s account. He is--you see, he is not very well, and rather prejudiced and--and stubborn, I"m afraid. Please don"t think that--that--"
"Of course he won"t," declared Howard. "Mr. Bangs won"t think anything that he shouldn"t."
"Oh, no--no," stammered Galusha, nervously. "I am--I am SO sorry I interrupted. I BEG your pardon."
"And Mr. Bangs," said Lulie, again, "I wonder if you will be kind enough not to tell any one you saw us? This is a small place, East Wellmouth, and people do talk--oh, dreadfully. If it got to father"s ears he--PLEASE don"t speak of it, will you, Mr. Bangs?"
"Oh, no; no, indeed, Miss Hallett. You may depend upon me."
"I shall tell Martha Phipps myself the next time I see her. She is my best friend, except--" with a becoming blush--"Nelson, and father, of course--and she understands. I never have any secrets from her."
Galusha began to climb the bank. As his head rose above its upper edge he stopped.
"Ah--dear me, there"s some one coming in this direction," he said.
Howard started forward. "Coming? Coming here?" he cried. He sprang up the bank beside Mr. Bangs and peered over its top.