" And again with his old half-lost formal way,
"I--I--you might have thought--I wasn't--quite honourable. I mean--I'll
never be able to forgive that blackguard until I can--can get even with
him. You see, sir?"

"Yes, I see," said Rivers, who did not see, or know for a moment what
to say. "Well, think it over, John. He is more a rough cub than a
blackguard. Think it over."

"Yes, sir," and John walked away.

The rector looked after the boy thinking--he's the Squire all over, with
more imagination, a gentleman to the core. But how wonderfully changed,
and in only eight months.

John was now, this July, allowed to ride with Leila when his uncle was
otherwise occupied. He had been mounted on a safe old horse and was not
spared advice from Leila, who enjoyed a little the position of mistress
of equestrianism. She was slyly conscious of her comrade's mildly
resentful state of mind.

"Don't pull on him so hard, John. The great thing is to get intimate with
a horse's mouth. He's pretty rough, but if you wouldn't keep so stiff,
you wouldn't feel it."

John began to be a little impatient. "Let us talk of something else than
horses. I got a good dose of advice yesterday from Uncle Jim. I am afraid
that you will be sent to school in the fall. I hate schools. You'll have
no riding and snowballing, and I shall miss you. You see, I was never
friends with a girl before."

"Uncle Jim would never let me go."

"But Aunt Ann?" he queried. "I heard her tell Mr. Rivers that you must
go. She said that you were too old, or would be, for snowballing and
rough games and needed the society of young ladies."

"Young ladies!" said Leila scornfully. "We had two from Baltimore year
before last. I happened to hit one of them in the eye with a snowball,
and she howled worse than Billy when he plays bear."

"Oh, you'll like it after a while," he said, with anticipative wisdom,
"but I shall be left to play with Tom. I want you to miss me. It is too
horrid."

"I shall miss you; indeed, I shall. I suppose I am only a girl, but I
won't forget what you did when that boy was rude. I used to think once
you were like a girl and just afraid. I never yet thanked you," and she
leaned over and laid a hand for a moment on his. "I believe you wouldn't
be afraid now to do what I dared you to do."

He laughed. There had been many such dares. "Which dare was it, Leila?"

"Oh, to go at night--at night to the Indian graves. I tried it once and
got half w