"Never the Awkward Man himself!" I exclaimed incredulously.

"Yes, he did," said the Story Girl triumphantly. "I met him one
day last week back in the maple woods when I was looking for
ferns. He was sitting by the spring, writing in his brown book.
He hid it when he saw me and looked real silly; but after I had
talked to him awhile I just asked him about it, and told him that
the gossips said he wrote poetry in it, and if he did would he
tell me, because I was dying to know. He said he wrote a little
of everything in it; and then I begged him to read me something
out of it, and he read me the story of Ursula and Kenneth."

"I don't see how you ever had the face," said Felicity; and even
Cecily looked as if she thought the Story Girl had gone rather
far.

"Never mind that," cried Felix, "but tell us the story. That's
the main thing."

"I'll tell it just as the Awkward Man read it, as far as I can,"
said the Story Girl, "but I can't put all his nice poetical
touches in, because I can't remember them all, though he read it
over twice for me."



CHAPTER II

A WILL, A WAY AND A WOMAN