An Outback Marriage

house; she was anxious to see whether the girl exhibited any signs of her father's fiery temper and imperious disposition. The two servant-girls at the homestead-great herculean, good-natured b

atched for a sight of her. They exchanged opinions about her over their smoke at night by the huge open fireplace in the men's hut, where they sat in a semicircle, toasting their shins at the blaze till the

se as a rich man's wife who dispensed hospitality regally, and was presented at Court, and set the fashion in dress and jewels. At the back of all her dreams there was always a man-a girl's picture is never complete without a man-a strong, masterful man, whose will should crush down opposition, and whose abilities should make his name-and incidentally her name-famous all over the world. She herself, of course, was always the foremost figure, the handsomest woman, the best-dressed, the most admired; for Ellen Harriott, though only a girl, and a friendless governess at Kuryong, was not inclined to put herself second to anyone. Having learnt from her father's papers that he was of an old family, she considered herself anybody's equal. Her brain held a crazy enough jumble of ideas, no doubt; but given a s

d to interview all the station hands, and it had to be explained that the horse-driver was six miles out on the run with his team, drawing in a load of bark to roof the hay shed, and that Harry Warden was down at the drafting yards, putting in a new trough to hold an arsenical solution, through which the sheep had to tramp to cure their feet; and that everybody else was away out on some business or other. But the young lady stuck to her point, and had the groom and the wo

harp temper, and found Hugh standing by a cart, wh

went down in an hour or so, and the luggage on the top only got a lit

e. I will get you to take me round before I do another thing. It i

rse, but you can unpack

clothes and jewellery. The things had come fairly well out of the coach disaster. When an English firm makes a water-tight cover for a bag or box, it is water-tight;

fashionable short riding-habits, mannish-looking riding-boots, silk undergarments, beautiful jewellery, all were taken out of their packages and duly admired. As each successive treasure was produced, Ellen Harriott's eyes grew rounder wit

e had only dreamed of. The outfit was not anything extraordinary from a

siting to a country-house in England, do you always tak

wouldn't ride

ke a maid to l

u must ha

l on the Continent,

ays to

he Riviera?-Oh, do tell me about those places-is it like you read about in books?-all b

experience the Continent was merely a place where the Co

l you all I can about Paris some other time. Now you tell me," she went on, folding carefully a

wild lot. Very few strangers come that we can have in the house. They are nearly all cattle and sheep buyers, and they are either too nervous to say a word, or they talk horses. They always come just after mealtime, too, and we have to get everything laid o

?" said Miss Grant. "

t Ellen Harriott made when Blake's name was mentioned. She flashed a look of enquiry at t

over the dark eyes again, and wi

oo. I think he's nice, but Hugh and Mrs. Gordon won't ask him here because he belongs to the selectors, and his mother was a Miss Donoh

here," said Miss Gran

s dropped so as to hide

if you like

think he

o write and ask him, Peter could ride

any rate, of the Kuryong household w