HELL SLEW, ALIAS VANDEMARK'S FOLLY That last night before I reached my "home town" of Monterey Centre, I had camped within two or three miles of the settlement.

I forgot all that day to inquire where I was: so absent-minded was I with all my botheration because of losing Virginia.

I was thinking all the time of seeing her again, wondering if I should ever see her alone or to speak to her, ashamed of my behavior toward her--in my thoughts at least--vexed because I had felt toward her, except for the last two or three days, things that made it impossible to get really acquainted and friendly with her.

I was absorbed in the attempt to figure out the meaning of her friendly acts when we parted, especially her coming back, as I was sure she had, against the will of Grandma Thorndyke; and that kiss she had given me was a much greater problem than making time on my journey: I lived it over and over again a thousand times and asked myself what I ought to have done when she kissed me, and never feeling satisfied with myself for not doing more of something or other, I knew not what.

It was well for me that my teams were way-wised so that they drove themselves.