is little laziness and selfishness out of him. He
also had received the D.S.O.

"I am sure, Colonel Houghton," he said one day, "that I owe a
tremendous lot to Lisle. He was always cheerful, and his unmerciful
chaffing kept me alive. I am quite sure I should never have got
through that time, when we were lost in the forest, if it hadn't
been for him. I was a confirmed grumbler, too; but he never let me
indulge my discontent. Altogether you have no idea, Colonel
Houghton, how much he did for me."

"Well, you know, Captain Hallett, how much he did for me."

"No, sir," Hallett said, in surprise; "he has often spoken to me of
you, and of your kindness to him; but he did not tell me about
anything he had done for you."

"Well, he saved my life at the risk of his own. If he has not told
you the story, I will."

And he related the manner in which Lisle had won his V.C.

"Why did you not tell me about it, Bullen? It was a splendid thing
to do. You did tell me, I remember, how you got the V.C. by helping
to get an officer out of the grasp of the Afridis, but you gave no
details."

"There was nothing to tell about it, Hallett. I only did what I am
sure you would have done, in my case."

"I am by no means sure of that," Hallett said. "I am always slow in
making up my mind about anything; and should never have thought of
putting a wounded officer on my horse, and sending him off, while I
remained to be cut to pieces. I hope I should have stood by him,
and been cut down with him; but I am certain that I should not have
thought of the other thing, with the Afridis rushing down upon me,
only thirty yards away.

"You ought to have let me know about it. You did bully me a great
deal, you know; and though it was all for my good, still I think I
should have put up with it better, if I had known that you had done
such a thing as that."

"I think you put up with it very well, Hallett. Chaffing you, and
getting you sometimes into a rage--which was pretended, rather than
real--did me a lot of good. I am sure I should have given in,
several times, had you not acted as a sort of tonic; and had I not
been sure that it did you as much good as it did me."

A month after Hallett's arrival, the colonel said, one morning:

"Good morning, Lisle! I am going out with the hounds, tomorrow.
They meet near here. As you are not great riders, I won't press you
to go with me but, at least, you will ride with me to the meet. It
is sure to be a