other,
'that wants to sneak into houses, and stir up differences between noble
gentlemen and their sons, are you, eh? Hold your tongue, sir.'

Joe made no effort to reply. It was the crowning circumstance of his
degradation. He extricated himself from his father's grasp, darted an
angry look at the departing guest, and returned into the house.

'But for her,' thought Joe, as he threw his arms upon a table in the
common room, and laid his head upon them, 'but for Dolly, who I couldn't
bear should think me the rascal they would make me out to be if I ran
away, this house and I should part to-night.'

It being evening by this time, Solomon Daisy, Tom Cobb, and Long Parkes,
were all in the common room too, and had from the window been witnesses
of what had just occurred. Mr Willet joining them soon afterwards,
received the compliments of the company with great composure, and
lighting his pipe, sat down among them.

'We'll see, gentlemen,' said John, after a long pause, 'who's the master
of this house, and who isn't. We'll see whether boys are to govern men,
or men are to govern boys.'

'And quite right too,' assented Solomon Daisy with some approving nods;
'quite right, Johnny. Very good, Johnny. Well said, Mr Willet. Brayvo,
sir.'

John slowly brought his eyes to bear upon him, looked at him for a long
time, and finally made answer, to the unspeakable consternation of his
hearers, 'When I want encouragement from you, sir, I'll ask you for
it. You let me alone, sir. I can get on without you, I hope. Don't you
tackle me, sir, if you please.'

'Don't take it ill, Johnny; I didn't mean any harm,' pleaded the little
man.

'Very good, sir,' said John, more than usually obstinate after his late
success. 'Never mind, sir. I can stand pretty firm of myself, sir, I
believe, without being shored up by you.' And having given utterance to
this retort, Mr Willet fixed his eyes upon the boiler, and fell into a
kind of tobacco-trance.

The spirits of the company being somewhat damped by this embarrassing
line of conduct on the part of their host, nothing more was said for a
long time; but at length Mr Cobb took upon himself to remark, as he rose
to knock the ashes out of his pipe, that he hoped Joe would thenceforth
learn to obey his father in all things; that he had found, that day, he
was not one of the sort of men who were to be trifled with; and that
he would recommend him, poetically speaking, to mind his eye for the
futu