Chapter 27
COLONEL STANTON'S TALE. Two days after being brought to the plantation Colonel Stanton's fever went down, and the surgeon who came to attend him pronounced the officer much better. "But he must remain where he is for some time," said the medical man. "He can remain as long as he pleases," declared Mrs. Ruthven. "I have no wish to hurry his departure." She was anxious to learn the truth concerning the colonel's past, yet realized that she must move with caution, otherwise he might be thrown into another fever. "Colonel Stanton," she said, seating herself at his side, "were you ever in the neighborhood before--I mean some ten or eleven years ago?" At this question Colonel Stanton became immediately interested, and his wide-open eyes showed it. "I do not know if I was in this neighborh
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