She had really been afraid, that April evening in the orchard,

that she had hurt him terribly and that the wound would be



long in healing. Now she saw that she need not have worried.

Men have died and the worms have eaten them but not for love.



Gilbert evidently was in no danger of immediate dissolution.

He was enjoying life, and he was full of ambition and zest.



For him there was to be no wasting in despair because a woman

was fair and cold. Anne, as she listened to the ceaseless badinage



that went on between him and Phil, wondered if she had only imagined

that look in his eyes when she had told him she could never care for him.



There were not lacking those who would gladly have stepped into

Gilbert's vacant place. But Anne snubbed them without fear and



without reproach. If the real Prince Charming was never to come

she would have none of a substitute. So she sternly told herself



that gray day in the windy park.

Suddenly the rain of Aunt Jamesina's prophecy came with a swish



and rush. Anne put up her umbrella and hurried down the slope.

As she turned out on the harbor road a savage gust of wind tore



along it. Instantly her umbrella turned wrong side out. Anne

clutched at it in despair. And then -- there came a voice



close to her.

"Pardon me -- may I offer you the shelter of my umbrella?"



Anne looked up. Tall and handsome and distinguished-looking

-- dark, melancholy, inscrutable eyes -- melting, musical,



sympathetic voice -- yes, the very hero of her dreams stood

before her in the flesh. He could not have more closely



resembled her ideal if he had been made to order.

"Thank you," she said confusedly.



"We'd better hurry over to that little pavillion on the point,"

suggested the unknown. "We can wait there until this shower



is over. It is not likely to rain so heavily very long."

The words were very commonplace, but oh, the tone! And the smile



which accompanied them! Anne felt her heart beating strangely.

Together they scurried to the pavilion and sat breathlessly down



under its friendly roof. Anne laughingly held up her false umbrella.

"It is when my umbrella turns inside out that I am convinced of



the total depravity of inanimate things," she said gaily.

The raindrops sparkled on her shining hair; its loosened rings



curled around her neck and forehead. Her cheeks were flushed,

her eyes big and starry. Her companion looked down at her



admiringly. She felt herself blushing under his gaze.

Who could he be? Why, there was a bit of the Redmond white and



scarlet pinned to his coat lapel. Yet she had thought she knew,

by sight at least, all the Redmond students except the Freshmen.



And this courtly youth surely was no Freshman.

"We are schoolmates, I see," he said, smiling at Anne's colors.



"That ought to be sufficient introduction. My name is Royal Gardner.

And you are the Miss Shirley who read the Tennyson paper at the



Philomathic the other evening, aren't you?"

"Yes; but I cannot place you at all," said Anne, frankly.



"Please, where DO you belong?"

"I feel as if I didn't belong anywhere yet. I put in my Freshman



and Sophomore years at Redmond two years ago. I've been in

Europe ever since. Now I've come back to finish my Arts course."



"This is my Junior year, too," said Anne.

"So we are classmates as well as collegemates. I am reconciled



to the loss of the years that the locust has eaten," said her

companion, with a world of meaning in those wonderful eyes of his.



The rain came steadily down for the best part of an hour. But

the time seemed really very short. When the clouds parted and a



burst of pale November sunshine fell athwart the harbor and the

pines Anne and her companion walked home together. By the time



they had reached the gate of Patty's Place he had asked

permission to call, and had received it. Anne went in with



cheeks of flame and her heart beating to her fingertips. Rusty,

who climbed into her lap and tried to kiss her, found a very



absent welcome. Anne, with her soul full of romantic thrills,

had no attention to spare just then for a crop-eared pussy cat.



That evening a parcel was left at Patty's Place for Miss Shirley.

It was a box containing a dozen magnificent roses. Phil pounced



impertinently on the card that fell from it, read the name and

the poeticalquotation written on the back.

• minister [´ministə] n.部长；大臣 v.伺候 (初中英语单词)


• invisible [in´vizəbəl] a.看不见的；无形的 (初中英语单词)


• butterfly [´bʌtəflai] n.蝴蝶；蝶式 (初中英语单词)


• wretched [´retʃid] a.可怜的；倒霉的 (初中英语单词)


• deceive [di´si:v] vt.欺骗，欺诈 (初中英语单词)


• prince [´prins] n.王子；亲王；君主 (初中英语单词)


• knitting [´nitiŋ] n.编织(物)；接合；联合 (初中英语单词)


• domestic [də´mestik] a.家庭的；本国的 (初中英语单词)


• anywhere [´eniweə] ad.无论何处；任何地方 (初中英语单词)


• goodness [´gudnis] n.优良；美德；精华 (初中英语单词)


• existence [ig´zistəns] n.存在；生存；生活 (初中英语单词)


• laughter [´lɑ:ftə] n.笑，笑声 (初中英语单词)


• columbia [kə´lʌmbiə] n.哥伦比亚 (初中英语单词)


• seriously [´siəriəsli] ad.严肃；严重，重大 (初中英语单词)


• occasionally [ə´keiʒənəli] ad.偶然地；非经常地 (初中英语单词)


• contact [´kɔntækt] n.接触；联系 v.联络 (初中英语单词)


• disappointment [,disə´pɔintmənt] n.失望；挫折 (初中英语单词)


• terribly [´terəbli] ad.可怕地 (初中英语单词)


• evidently [´evidəntli] ad.明显地 (初中英语单词)


• ambition [æm´biʃən] n.雄心，野心；企图 (初中英语单词)


• despair [di´speə] vi.&n.绝望 (初中英语单词)


• vacant [´veikənt] a.空虚的，无表情的 (初中英语单词)


• charming [´tʃɑ:miŋ] a.可爱的；极好的 (初中英语单词)


• substitute [´sʌbstitju:t] n.代理人 v.代替，取代 (初中英语单词)


• savage [´sævidʒ] a.野蛮的 n.蛮人 (初中英语单词)


• instantly [´instəntli] ad.立即，立刻 (初中英语单词)


• forehead [´fɔrid] n.额，前部 (初中英语单词)


• companion [kəm´pæniən] n.同伴；同事；伴侣 (初中英语单词)


• introduction [,intrə´dʌkʃən] n.介绍；引言；引导 (初中英语单词)


• junior [´dʒu:niə] a.年少的 n.年少者 (初中英语单词)


• steadily [´stedili] ad.坚定地；不断地 (初中英语单词)


• sunshine [´sʌnʃain] n.日光，阳光 (初中英语单词)


• welcome [´welkəm] a.受欢迎的；可喜的 (初中英语单词)


• romantic [rəu´mæntik] a.传奇(式)的；浪漫的 (初中英语单词)


• parcel [´pɑ:sl] n.包裹；一批 vt.区分 (初中英语单词)


• magnificent [mæg´nifisənt] a.壮丽的；豪华的 (初中英语单词)


• pitiful [´pitifəl] a.可怜的；慈悲的 (高中英语单词)


• sermon [´sə:mən] n.说教；训诫；讲道 (高中英语单词)


• indoors [,in´dɔ:z] ad.在屋里 (高中英语单词)


• repeated [ri´pi:tid] a.反复的；重复的 (高中英语单词)


• umbrella [ʌm´brelə] n.伞 (高中英语单词)


• liable [´laiəbəl] a.易于…的；有责任的 (高中英语单词)


• crimson [´krimzən] a.&n.深(紫)红(的) (高中英语单词)


• passionate [´pæʃənit] a.易动情的；易怒的 (高中英语单词)


• sweeping [´swi:piŋ] a.掠过的 n.扫除；清除 (高中英语单词)


• recreation [,rekri´eiʃən] n.消遣；休养 (高中英语单词)


• crowded [´kraudid] a.充(拥)满了的 (高中英语单词)


• saying [´seiŋ, ´sei-iŋ] n.言语；言论；格言 (高中英语单词)


• correctly [kə´rektli] ad.正确地；恰当地 (高中英语单词)


• thankful [´θæŋkfəl] a.感激的；欣慰的 (高中英语单词)


• gladly [´glædli] ad.愉快地，高兴地 (高中英语单词)


• reproach [ri´prəutʃ] vt.&n.责备；指责；耻辱 (高中英语单词)


• sternly [´stə:nli] ad.严厉地；坚定地 (高中英语单词)


• prophecy [´prɔfisi] n.预言(能力) (高中英语单词)


• hurried [´hʌrid] a.仓促的，慌忙的 (高中英语单词)


• melancholy [´melənkəli] n.忧郁 a.忧郁的 (高中英语单词)


• pavilion [pə´viljən] n.大帐篷；亭子 (高中英语单词)


• quotation [kwəu´teiʃən] n.引用；引文；语录 (高中英语单词)


• seeming [´si:miŋ] a.表面上的 n.外观 (英语四级单词)


• insignificant [,insig´nifikənt] a.无意义的；无价值的 (英语四级单词)


• soberly [´səubəli] ad.严肃地；清醒地 (英语四级单词)


• harmonious [hɑ:məuniəs] a.协调的，悦耳的 (英语四级单词)


• rheumatism [´ru:mətizəm] n.风湿病 (英语四级单词)


• parting [´pɑ:tiŋ] a.&n.分离(的) (英语四级单词)


• divinity [di´viniti] n.神性，神；神学 (英语四级单词)


• wasting [´weistiŋ] a.&n.浪费(的) (英语四级单词)


• commonplace [´kɔmənpleis] a.平凡的；常见的 (英语四级单词)


• breathlessly [´breθlisli] ad.气喘吁吁地 (英语四级单词)


• starry [´stɑ:ri] a.星光照耀的，闪亮的 (英语四级单词)


• locust [´ləukəst] n.蝗虫 (英语四级单词)


• frivolous [´frivələs] a.轻佻的 (英语六级单词)


• horribly [´hɔrəbli] ad.恐怖地 (英语六级单词)


• fickle [´fikəl] a.轻浮的；多变的 (英语六级单词)


• restlessly [´restlisli] ad.不安定地；烦躁地 (英语六级单词)


• speaking [´spi:kiŋ] n.说话 a.发言的 (英语六级单词)


• courteously [´kə:tjəsli] ad.有礼貌地；殷勤地 (英语六级单词)


• ceaseless [´si:slis] a.不绝的，不停的 (英语六级单词)


• lacking [´lækiŋ] a.缺少的，没有的 (英语六级单词)


• beating [´bi:tiŋ] n.敲；搅打；失败 (英语六级单词)


• poetical [pəu´etikəl] a.理想化了的 (英语六级单词)