es remaining fixed upon his
grandson. "That's lucky, because one's all there is, just at present,
George. Old fat Tom does it all. Didn't you notice, when you took
Pendennis out, yesterday?"

"Oh, that will be all right, sir. My mother can lend me her man."

"Can she?" The old gentleman smiled faintly. "I wonder--" He paused.

"What, sir?"

"Whether you mightn't care to go to law-school somewhere perhaps. I'd be
glad to set aside a sum that would see you through."

This senile divergence from the topic in hand surprised George
painfully. "I have no interest whatever in the law," he said. "I don't
care for it, and the idea of being a professional man has never appealed
to me. None of the family has ever gone in for that sort of thing, to my
knowledge, and I don't care to be the first. I was speaking of driving a
tandem--"

"I know you were," the Major said quietly.

George looked hurt. "I beg your pardon. Of course if the idea doesn't
appeal to you--" And he rose to go.

The Major ran a tremulous hand through his hair, sighing deeply. "I--I
don't like to refuse you anything, Georgie," he said. "I don't know that
I often have refused you whatever you wanted--in reason--"

"You've always been more than generous, sir," George interrupted
quickly. "And if the idea of a tandem doesn't appeal to you, why--of
course--" And he waved his hand, heroically dismissing the tandem.

The Major's distress became obvious. "Georgie, I'd like to, but--but
I've an idea tandems are dangerous to drive, and your mother might be
anxious. She--"

"No, sir; I think not. She felt it would be rather a good thing--help to
keep me out in the open air. But if perhaps your finances--"

"Oh, it isn't that so much," the old gentleman said hurriedly. "I wasn't
thinking of that altogether." He laughed uncomfortably. "I guess we
could still afford a new horse or two, if need be--"

"I thought you said--"

The Major waved his hand airily. "Oh, a few retrenchments where
things were useless; nothing gained by a raft of idle darkies in the
stable--nor by a lot of extra land that might as well be put to work for
us in rentals. And if you want this thing so very much--"

"It's not important enough to bother about, really, of course."

"Well, let's wait till autumn then," said the Major in a tone of relief.
"We'll see about it in the autumn, if you're still in the mind for it
then. That will be a great deal better. You remind me of it, along in