It was on the second day of his watch, that Durant had the satisfaction of
noticing the arrival of a gentleman at the house of Mr. Walton, which was
followed on the succeeding day by a circumstance which at once gave him
fresh encouragement and sanguine hopes. Ellen made her appearance, leaning
on the gentleman's arm; they were out enjoying the pleasure of an excursion
into the quiet woods, and to his infinite gratification, wended their way
to his immediate neighborhood.
Fortune sometimes favors the wicked, and, in this instance, she smiled on
the villain; for the lovers, fancying the spot, seated themselves on the
trunk of a fallen tree, that lay close to the one in which he had ensconced
himself, and by placing his ear near the orifice, he could distinctly hear
what passed between them.
"It is so refreshing to sit in the shade of the 'gray old forest,'" said
Ellen. "I have not enjoyed such a treat these many months."
"Why, with your facilities, I should think you would recreate every day in
pleasant weather."
"That was my habit formerly; but the last time I ventured out alone, I met
with an unexpected streak of ill luck, which has deterred me ever since
from laying myself liable to a repetition of the same bad fortune."
"Indeed! You have not informed me of this before.
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