""It's jolly to get you off by yourself,"" I said as we wandered away from the rest of the party. ""Then you are not afraid of an engaged girl,"" she observed ""Everybody else seems to be."" ""I am made of sterner stuff,"" I said. ""Besides, I am dying to know all about it."" ""All about what?"" ""What you found to like in Gerard Malcolm, and what Gerard Malcolm found to like in you, and what he said and what you said and what the Englishman said, and how it all happened generally."" ""What you want to know would fill a book."" ""You speak as if you mean it to be a sealed one.""

Frank Rignold had never been the favoured suitor, not at least so far as anything definite was concerned; but he had always been welcome at the little house on Commonwealth Street, and amongst the neighbours his name and that of Florence Fenacre were coupled as a matter of course and every old lady within a radius of three miles regarded the match as good as settled. It was not Frank's fault that it was not, for he was deeply in love with the widow's daughter and looked forward to such an end to their acquaintance as the very dearest thing fate could give him. But in these affairs it is necessary to carry the lady with you - and the lady, though she had never said "no," had not yet been prevailed upon to say "yes." In fact she preferred to leave the matter as it was, and boldly forestalling a set proposal, had managed to convey to Frank Rignold that it was her wish he should not make one. "Let us be good friends," she would say, "and as for anything else, Frank, there's plenty of time to consider that by and by. Isn't it enough already that we like each other?"

The Ebb-Tide (1894) is a novel by Robert Louis Stevenson and Lloyd Osbourne. Published the year of Stevenson's death from tuberculosis, the last of three collaborations between the legendary Scottish storyteller and his stepson is a story of adventure, friendship, and greed. Although less popular than other titles in Stevenson's body of work, the novel has been recognized for its pointed critique of British and American imperialism in the South Pacific. Tossed by the waves of fate, three beggars frequent the ports of Tahiti in search of money and food for survival. When a merchant schooner devastated by smallpox docks at Papeete in need of new officers, the only men willing to take the job are Davis, Herrick, and Huish. A former sea captain, Davis takes charge of the vessel filled with crates of champagne, but soon the men find their cargo too tempting to leave untested. As the crew descends into drunkenness, Huish-the only beggar born into poverty, the only one among them who understands the value of a job-takes control of the schooner. As they near their final destination, as the men begin to worry about the missing cargo and lack of food, a plot to overthrow the officers takes form. With a beautifully designed cover and professionally typeset manuscript, this edition of Robert Louis Stevenson and Lloyd Osbourne's The Ebb-Tide is a classic work of adventure fiction reimagined for modern readers.

The Ebb-Tide (1894) is a novel by Robert Louis Stevenson and Lloyd Osbourne. Published the year of Stevenson's death from tuberculosis, the last of three collaborations between the legendary Scottish storyteller and his stepson is a story of adventure, friendship, and greed. Although less popular than other titles in Stevenson's body of work, the novel has been recognized for its pointed critique of British and American imperialism in the South Pacific. Tossed by the waves of fate, three beggars frequent the ports of Tahiti in search of money and food for survival. When a merchant schooner devastated by smallpox docks at Papeete in need of new officers, the only men willing to take the job are Davis, Herrick, and Huish. A former sea captain, Davis takes charge of the vessel filled with crates of champagne, but soon the men find their cargo too tempting to leave untested. As the crew descends into drunkenness, Huish-the only beggar born into poverty, the only one among them who understands the value of a job-takes control of the schooner. As they near their final destination, as the men begin to worry about the missing cargo and lack of food, a plot to overthrow the officers takes form. With a beautifully designed cover and professionally typeset manuscript, this edition of Robert Louis Stevenson and Lloyd Osbourne's The Ebb-Tide is a classic work of adventure fiction reimagined for modern readers.