aid; you shan't be
scolded for what isn't your fault," said Ruth with her pretty smile.
Bates touched his cap and walked off, mollified, while the girls turned
sadly homeward. Jack and Victor offered their escort, but, finding it
impossible to disguise all traces of amusement, were promptly snubbed
and bidden to go and be superior by themselves.

"I do hate men! horrid, patronising creatures!" cried Mollie pettishly,
as she limped onwards. "They think themselves so grand because they are
stronger than we are, and have no tiresome skirts to hamper them. I
don't like riding half as much as I expected. I'm so stiff and sore, I
should like to go to bed for a month. I shall lie down this afternoon.
I'll get a nice book, and pull the sofa up to the window, and have tea
brought up to me; and I just hope it will rain and pour, and they will
have nothing to do and be bored to death, and then they will miss me,
and be sorry that they were so rude. Laughing, indeed, when I was in
danger of my life, before their very eyes!"

"You were safe enough before they laughed, and you did look funny
hanging in mid-air! You didn't think it was cruel to laugh at me, and I
was just as much frightened as you were!" retorted Ruth; and thereafter
a frigid silence was maintained until the Court was reached.

At lunch Mr Farrell appeared with a clouded brow, and vouchsafed only
monosyllabic replies when addressed. It was evident that something had
displeased him, and, though no reference was made to the adventures of
the morning, the young people had discovered by now that he possessed a
mysterious power of knowing all about their actions, in sight or out of
sight, and felt correspondingly ill at ease. When the meal was over and
the servants had left the room, the storm burst suddenly. The sunken
eyes gleamed with an angry light, and the tired voice sounded unusually
loud and threatening.

"Has neither of you two young men the sense or the prudence to prevent a
lady from running a foolish risk? I am informed that Ruth was in danger
of having a serious accident this morning. I am not personally able to
look after her safety, and she was possibly ignorant of her own folly in
attempting more than she could accomplish; but I had imagined that in my
absence she had two sufficient protectors--one of whom, at least, I
understand to be an accomplished horseman."

Victor flushed deeply, and the lids fell over his tell-tale eyes.

"No one re