Now and then a circumstance would happen which helped to keep inquiry alive.Good horsemanship was not so common among the young men of the place and its neighborhood that Maurice's accomplishment in that way could be overlooked.If there was a wicked horse or a wild colt whose owner was afraid of him,he would be commended to Maurice's attention.Paolo would lead him to his master with all due precaution,--for he had no idea of risking his neck on the back of any ill-conditioned beast,--and Maurice would fasten on his long spurs,spring into the saddle,and very speedily teach the creature good behavior.There soon got about a story that he was what the fresh-water fisherman called "one o'them whisperers."It is a common legend enough,coming from the Old World,but known in American horse-talking circles,that some persons will whisper certain words in a horse's ear which will tame him if he is as wild and furious as ever Cruiser was.All this added to the mystery which surrounded the young man.A single improbable or absurd story amounts to very little,but when half a dozen such stories are told about the same individual or the same event,they begin to produce the effect of credible evidence.If the year had been 1692and the place had been Salem Village,Maurice Kirkwood would have run the risk of being treated like the Reverend George Burroughs.
Miss Lurida Vincent's curiosity had been intensely excited with reference to the young man of whom so many stories were told.She had pretty nearly convinced herself that he was the author of the paper on Ocean,Lake,and River,which had been read at one of the meetings of the Pansophian Society.She was very desirous of meeting him,if it were possible.It seemed as if she might,as Secretary of the Society,request the cooperation of any of the visitors,without impropriety.So,after much deliberation,she wrote a careful note,of which the following is an exact copy.Her hand was bold,almost masculine,a curious contrast to that of Euthymia,which was delicately feminine.
PANSOPHIAN SOCIETY.
ARROWHEAD VILLAGE,August 3,18-.
MAURICE KIRKWOOD,ESQ.
DEAR SIR,--You have received,I trust,a card of invitation to the meetings of our Society,but I think we have not yet had the pleasure of seeing you at any of them.We have supposed that we might be indebted to you for a paper read at the last meeting,and listened to with much interest.As it was anonymous,we do not wish to be inquisitive respecting its authorship;but we desire to say that any papers kindly sent us by the temporary residents of our village will be welcome,and if adapted to the wants of our Association will be read at one of its meetings or printed in its records,or perhaps both read and printed.May we not hope for your presence at the meeting,which is to take place next Wednesday evening?
Respectfully yours,LURIDA VINCENT,Secretary of the Pansophian Society.
To this note the Secretary received the following reply:
MISS LURIDA VINCENT,ARROWHEAD VILLAGE,August 4,18-.
Secretary of the Pansophian Society:
DEAR MISS VINCENT,--I have received the ticket you refer to,and desire to express my acknowledgments for the polite attention.Iregret that I have not been and I fear shall not be able to attend the meetings of the Society;but if any subject occurs to me on which I feel an inclination to write,it will give me pleasure to send a paper,to be disposed of as the Society may see fit.
Very respectfully yours,MAURICE KIRKWOOD.
"He says nothing about the authorship of the paper that was read the other evening,"the Secretary said to herself."No matter,--he wrote it,--there is no mistaking his handwriting.We know something about him,now,at any rate.But why doesn't he come to our meetings?What has his antipathy to do with his staying away?Imust find out what his secret is,and I will.I don't believe it's harder than it was to solve that prize problem which puzzled so many teachers,or than beating Crakowitz,the great chess-player."To this enigma,then,The Terror determined to bend all the faculties which had excited the admiration and sometimes the amazement of those who knew her in her school-days.It was a very delicate piece of business;for though Lurida was an intrepid woman's rights advocate,and believed she was entitled to do almost everything that men dared to,she knew very well there were certain limits which a young woman like herself must not pass.
In the mean time Maurice had received a visit from the young student at the University,--the same whom he had rescued from his dangerous predicament in the lake.With him had called one of the teachers,--an instructor in modern languages,a native of Italy.Maurice and the instructor exchanged a few words in Italian.The young man spoke it with the ease which implied long familiarity with its use.
After they left,the instructor asked many curious questions about him,--who he was,how long he had been in the village,whether anything was known of his history,--all these inquiries with an eagerness which implied some special and peculiar reason for the interest they evinced.
