A Bird of Passage Author:Bithia Mary Croker 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: not marry her, now that you have let me behind the sceres about her bewitching mother, and I'll promise you, that I'll go over and call to-morrow, and see if I c... more »an discover any traces of a Grecian ancestry in Miss Denis's face and figure." " You are incorrigible. I might as well talk to the wall there's only one hope for the girl, and that's a poor one." " Poor as it is, let us have it." " A chance that she may not be taken like twenty-three out of every two dozen, with fickle Jim Quentin's handsome face!" " Where has Lisle gone to ? " he added, looking round. " Into the verandah, or to bed, or out to sea ! The lattsr is just as likely as anything; he did not approve of the conversation, he thinks that ladies should never be discussed," and he shrugged his shoulders expressively. " Quite one of the old school, eh ?" said the elder gentleman, raisisg his eyebrows and pursing out his under-lip. " Quite," laconically. "By-the-bye, Quentin, I daresay you will think I'm as bad as Mrs. Creery, but who is this fellow Lisle, and what in the name of all that's slow is he doing down here ?—eh, who is he ? " leaning over confidentially. " Oh, he fishes, and shoots, and likes the Andamans awfully.—As to who he is—he is simply, as you see, a gentleman at large, and his name is Gilbert Lisle." Thus Dr. Parks, in spite of his superior opportunities, was foiled ; and returned to his own abode no wiser than any of his neighbours. CHAPTER III. FIRST IMPRESSIONS. "And I am something curious, being strange." Cymbeline. The morning after her arrival Helen Denis found herselfalone, as her father was occupied with drills and orderly- room till twelve o'clock, when they breakfasted. She went out into the verandah, and looked about her, in order to become be...« less