The child had turned over the pages to another picture, and now looked
up for the explanation of it. Griggs had finished his cigar and came
and sat down on Margaret's other side.




CHAPTER III


The _Leofric_ was three days out, and therefore half-way over the
ocean, for she was a fast boat, but so far Griggs had not been called
upon to hinder Mr. Van Torp from annoying Margaret. Mr. Van Torp had
not been on deck; in fact, he had not been seen at all since he had
disappeared into his cabin a quarter of an hour before the steamer had
left the pier. There was a good deal of curiosity about him amongst
the passengers, as there would have been about the famous Primadonna
if she had not come punctually to every meal, and if she had not been
equally regular in spending a certain number of hours on deck every
day.

At first every one was anxious to have what people call a 'good look'
at her, because all the usual legends were already repeated about her
wherever she went. It was said that she was really an ugly woman of
thirty-five who had been married to a Spanish count of twice that
age, and that he had died leaving her penniless, so that she had been
obliged to support herself by singing. Others were equally sure that
she was a beautiful escaped nun, who had been forced to take the veil
in a convent in Seville by cruel parents, but who had succeeded in