It was indeed a happiness to Stella, in her vacant, arid, unsuggestive life, to come in contact with a mind that responded to her own; and since this young man had so fortunately misunderstood the meaning of those mortifying tears shed long ago, why should she not enjoy his society as occasion offered? As long as her pleasure in his companionship was intellectual only, there was no reason against it; and if she should ever find there was the least danger of the lines being crossed by either of them (a thing that seemed in the region of the impossible) it would then be time enough to retreat; for of all the perils which Stella could conjure up as among the possible calamities the future might hold for her, there was not one that she would have recoiled from in such terror as that.
CHAPTER VI.
During the weeks and months that followed, there was a good deal of intercourse between the Grays and the young men at the ranch, and not uncommonly when the weather was fine two of the young men rode over to the school-house to the morning service. Mr. Hobart and Mr. Bertrand proved to be musical, and now whenever either of them came he would take his seat quite naturally in the choir and give Stella the support of a strong voice, which was a great help and pleasure.
But Stella had had a greater pleasure almost than this in the beautiful songs which Mr. Hobart had taken the trouble to teach to her. He was an accomplished musician, and took great pains with his pupil; and many an evening was delightfully whiled away, Hobart playing the accompaniments on the rather tuneless old piano, and sometimes joining with Stella's clear soprano his tender barytone. The young men knew the way between the two places now well enough to find it by moonlight or starlight, and although their chief had never been prevailed upon to join his juniors in their visits to Grassmere, it was known that he highly approved of them, and even encouraged the attendance of the young men at church.
"Unc. goes on the principle of the famous old Methodist preacher," Bertrand said, talking to Stella one evening on this subject, "who always told his people, 'Don't do as I do; do as I tell you to do.' He utterly eschews the society of ladies himself, and never goes to church, but he is perfectly delighted to find that these opportunities are open to us, and insists upon our availing ourselves of them as fully as possible. He does not permit any laxity in our work; but, on the other hand, he
