ey
could both look down upon the nearly hidden shed.

"How are you now, Punch?" asked Pen, turning his head upwards.

There was no reply.

"Why, Punch," cried Pen, "you are not asleep, are you?"

"Asleep!" said the boy bitterly; and then, in a faint whisper, "set me
down."

Pen took a step forward to where he could take hold of a stunted
oak-bough whose bark felt soft and strange; and, holding tightly with
one hand, he held his burden with the other while he sank slowly, the
branch bending the while till he was kneeling. Then he slid his load
down amongst the undergrowth and quickly opened his water-bottle and
held it to the boy's lips.

"Feel faint, lad?" he said.

Again there was no answer; but Punch swallowed a few mouthfuls.

"Ah, that's better," he said. "Head's swimming."

"Well, you shall lie still for a few minutes till you think you can bear
it, and then I want you to get down to that hut."

Punch looked up at him with misty eyes, wonderingly.

"Hut!" he said faintly. "What hut?"

"The one I told you about. You will be able to see it when you are
better. There's a rough bed there where you will be able to lie and
rest till your wound heals."

"Hut!"

"Oh, never mind now. Will you have some more water?"

The boy shook his head.

"Not going to die, am I?" he said feebly.

"Die! No!" cried Pen, with his heart sinking. "A chap like you isn't
going to die over a bit of a wound."

"Don't," said the boy faintly, but with a tone of protest in his words.
"Don't gammon a fellow! I am not going to mind if I am. Our chaps
don't make a fuss about it when their time comes."

"No," said Pen sharply; "but your time hasn't come yet."

The boy looked up at him with a peculiar smile.

"Saying that to comfort a fellow," he almost whispered; "only, I say,
comrade, you did stick to me, and you won't--won't--"

"Won't what?" said Pen sharply. "Leave you now? Is it likely?"

"Not a bit yet," said the poor fellow faintly; "but I didn't mean that."

"Then what did you mean?" cried Pen wonderingly.

The poor lad made a snatch at his companion's arm, and tried to draw him
down.

"What is it?" said Pen anxiously now, for he was startled by the look in
the boy's eyes.

"Want to whisper," came in a broken voice.

"No; you can't have anything to whisper now," said Pen. "There, let me
give you a little more water."

The boy shook his head.

"Want to whisper," he murmured in a harsh, low voic