And so they went on talking about the weather. 'Your boat is up in London, I know, Harry,' said Katie, with a voice of reproach, but at the same time with a look of entreaty. 'Yes, it's at Searle's,' said Norman. 'But the punt is here,' said Katie. 'Not this evening, Katie,' said he. 'Katie, how can you be such a tease?' said Mrs. Woodward; 'you'll make Harry hate the island, and you too. I wonder you can be so selfish.' Poor Katie's eyes became suffused with tears. 'My dear Katie, it's very bad of me, isn't it?' said Norman, 'and the fine weather so nearly over too; I ought to take you, oughtn't I? come, we will go.' 'No, we won't,' said Katie, taking his big hand in both her little ones, 'indeed we won't. It was very wrong of me to bother you; and you with--with--with so much to think of. Dear Harry, I don't want to go at all, indeed I don't,' and she turned away from the little path which led to the place where the punt was moored. They sauntered on for a while together, and then Norman left them. He said nothing, but merely stole away from the lawn towards the drawing-room window. Mrs. Woodward well knew with what object he went, and would have spared him from his immediate sorrow by following him; but she judged that it would be better both for him and for her daughter that he should learn the truth. He went in through the open drawing-room window, and found Gertrude alone. She was on the sofa with a book in her hand; and had he been able to watch her closely he would have seen that the book trembled as he entered the room. But he was unable to watch anything closely. His own heart beat so fast, his own confusion was so great, that he could hardly see the girl whom he now hoped to gain as his wife. Had Alaric been coming to his wooing, he would have had every faculty at his call. But then Alaric could not have loved as Norman loved. And so we will leave them. In about half an hour, when the short twilight was becoming dusk, Mrs. Woodward returned, and found Norman standing alone on the hearthrug before the fireplace. Gertrude was away, and he was leaning against the mantelpiece, with his hands behind his back, staring at vacancy; but oh! with such an aspect of dull, speechless agony in his face. Mrs. Woodward looked up at him, and would have burst into tears, had she not remembered that they would not be long alone; she therefore restrained herself, but gave one involuntary sigh; and then, taking off her bonnet, placed herself where she might sit without staring at him in his sorrow. Katie came in next. 'Oh! Harry, it's so lucky we didn't start in the punt,' said she, 'for it's going to pour, and we never should have been back from the island in that slow thing.'