Of all this Rollo was but slightly aware.  Yet he did guess at part of it.  He had seen too much of both men and women not to know in a measure what must be the natural effect of circumstances.  And he would have saved Miss Kennedy the worst of it,—­only he could not.  He was sometimes at the entertainments where she met so much exasperation, and saw from a distance as it were the wild whirl of her gaiety.  Perhaps he guessed at the meaning of that too.  But he was only a man, and he could not be sure.  He never asked her to dance himself, and never joined a quadrille or reel when she was one of the set.  And that is nearly tantamount to saying he did not dance at all.  For reels and quadrilles were very much out of favour, and rarely adopted except just for Miss Kennedy.  And in truth Mr. Rollo in this state of affairs chose to be only now and then seen at evening entertainments.  When there he was rather Spanish in his manners, after the old Catskill fashion.  Very Spanish indeed Mrs. Coles found him at home; his lofty courtesy kept her at the extreme distance permitted in the grace of good manners.

Meanwhile, no tete-a-tete conversation had been practicable with Wych Hazel.  He had sought it; but she refused his invitations to ride, and while she was in that mood he did not choose either to risk being turned away again from the Chickaree door, or to encounter her in a drawing-room full of company.  However, when a good many days had come and gone in this state of estrangement, Rollo began to feel that it was getting unbearable.  So he rode up to Chickaree one day just at luncheon time.

Miss Kennedy was not at home.  Not at home in the honest sense of the words.  Mr. Rollo asked for Mrs. Bywank, and marched straight to the housekeeper’s room.  And Mrs. Bywank’s greeting made him feel that, for some reason, he had come at the right time.  She begged him to sit down, and ordered luncheon; asking if he was in haste, or if they might wait a little for Miss Wych?

‘She walked down to Mr. Falkirk’s a long time ago,’ said the housekeeper, ’but I am looking for her every minute.  Unless you cannot wait, Mr. Rollo?’

He would wait; and desired to have Mrs. Bywank’s report touching the health of her young mistress.  Mrs. Bywank looked perplexed.

‘She’s not herself, sir,’ she answered slowly.  ’And yet it would be hard to explain that.  I’ve been wanting to see you, Mr. Rollo, more than I can say; and now you are here I hardly know how to tell why.’

‘That makes me wish very much you would find out.’

‘Phoebe will have it she is sick,’ said the housekeeper, pondering,—­’and sometimes I think so myself.  I know she goes out too much.  And stays up too late.  Why, the last time she came from Governor Powder’s I was frightened half to death.’

‘That was two weeks ago?’

’Yes, Mr. Rollo.  I expected her early, and then Lewis brought word it would be late,—­and so it was.  Near morning, in fact.’