mother came and
asked him if he would n't come in and have supper. Of course, he
always would. After supper he would play some more. Then there would
be a dance.

A ball was to be held at Anderson's one Friday night, and only Kate and
Dave were asked from our place. Dave was very pleased to be invited;
it was the first time he had been asked anywhere, and he began to
practise vigorously. The evening before the ball Dad sent him to put
the draught horses in the top paddock. He went off merrily with them.
The sun was just going down when he let them go, and save the noise of
the birds settling to rest the paddock was quiet. Dave was filled with
emotion and enthusiastic thoughts about the ball.

He threw the winkers down and looked around. For a moment or two he
stood erect, then he bowed gracefully to the saplings on his right,
then to the stumps and trees on his left, and humming a tune, ambled
across a small patch of ground that was bare and black, and pranced
back again. He opened his arms and, clasping some beautiful imaginary
form in them, swung round and round like a windmill. Then he paused
for breath, embraced his partner again, and "galloped" up and down.
And young Johnson, who had been watching him in wonder from behind a
fence, bolted for our place.

"Mrs. Rudd! Mrs. Rudd!" he shouted from the verandah. Mother went out.

"Wot's--wot's up with Dave?"

Mother turned pale.

"There's SOMETHING--!"

"My God!" Mother exclaimed--"WHATEVER has happened?"

Young Johnson hesitated. He was in doubt.

"Oh! What IS it?" Mother moaned.

"Well" (he drew close to her) "he's--he's MAD!"

"OH-H!"

"He IS. I seen 'im just now up in your paddick, an' he's clean off
he's pannikin."

Just then Dave came down the track whistling. Young Johnson saw him
and fled.

For some time Mother regarded Dave with grave suspicion, then she
questioned him closely.

"Yairs," he said, grinning hard, "I was goin' through th' FUST SET."

It was when Kate was married to Sandy Taylor that we realised what a
blessing it is to be able to dance. How we looked forward to that
wedding! We were always talking about it, and were very pleased it
would be held in our own house, because all of us could go then. None
of us could work for thinking of it--even Dad seemed to forget his
troubles about the corn and Mick Brennan's threat to summon him for
half the fence. Mother said we would want plenty of water for the
people to