ate man drank and drank, and then threw
himself down among some heath to sleep off, if he could, the fumes of
alcohol that were clouding his brains.

And what of Mrs Franklin and Mary? Both had declined all the
stimulants, and had asked for water.

"Nonsense," cried Mark; "water! I've taken very good care that there
shall be no water drunk to-day; you must take some wine or ale, you must
indeed."

"We will manage without it, if you please," said Mrs Franklin quietly.

Mark pressed the intoxicants upon them even to rudeness, but without
effect. Mr Rothwell was evidently annoyed at his son's pertinacity,
and tried to check him; but all in vain, for Mark had taken so much as
just to make him obstinate and unmanageable. But, finding that he could
not prevail, the young man hurried away in anger, and plied the other
members of the company with redoubled vigour.

So engrossing had been the luncheon that few of the party had noticed a
sudden lull in the atmosphere, and an oppressive calm which had
succeeded to the brisk and cheery breeze. But now, as Mary rose from
her seat on the grass, she said to her mother:

"Oh, mamma, how close it has become! And look there in the distance:
what a threatening bank of clouds! I fear we are going to have a
storm."

"I fear so indeed, Mary; we must give our friends warning, and seek out
a shelter."

All had now become conscious of the change. A stagnant heat brooded
over everything; not a breath of wind; huge banks of magnificent storm-
cloud came marching up majestically from the horizon, throwing out
little jets of lightning, with solemn murmurs of thunder. Drop, drop,
drop, tinkled on the gathered leaves, now quicker, now quicker, and
thicker. Under a huge roof of overhanging rock the party cowered
together. At last, down came the storm with a blast like a hurricane,
and deluges of rain. On, on it poured relentlessly, with blinding
lightning and deafening peals of thunder. Hour after hour! Would it
never cease? At last a lull between four and five o'clock, and, as the
tempest rolled murmuring away, the dispirited friends began their
preparations for returning. Six o'clock before all had reached the inn.
Where were the driver and Mark? Another tedious hour before they
appeared, and each manifestly the worse for liquor. Past seven by the
time they had fairly started. And now the clouds began to gather again.
On they went, furiously at first, and then in unstead