ll, it was good enough, wasn't it? Bliss Matterson was keen on
letting you know at once, but couldn't get hold of any one coming out
this way, so I volunteered. I said I'd be the first to bring the news,
and I have," concluded this prince of good fellows quite delightedly.

"Now come inside and have some scoff," said Brian. "I'll send and have
your gee looked after. You must have ridden all night."

"So I did. What of it? You'd do as much for Miss Beryl, wouldn't you?
Man, but the nipper was jolly glad to get out of the _tronk_, I can tell
you. Shattuck had no business ever to have put him in. He bust out
howling when Miss Beryl went to fetch him."

"Who did? Shattuck?" I said.

"Eh? Oh, shut up, Holt. Don't you try to come the Trask," was the
chuckling retort. "By the way, Mr Matterson--what a blundering ass I
am--here's a _brievje_ from Miss Beryl. Oh, and I brought out your post
while I was about it."

Beryl's note was merely a repetition of the official intimation, and was
coupled with a request that some one should come in to Fort Lamport as
soon as possible to fetch them out. She judged it better to come home
at once.

No one thought of taking notice at that moment of anything so trivial as
the mere weekly post. The two or three letters for myself I put in my
pocket, hardly glancing at the addresses. Business, of course, but not
of urgent importance. On a day like this it could keep.

It was decided that Brian should start with the Cape cart soon after
breakfast. He would be at Fort Lamport early in the afternoon, and
could even come out nearly half way to-night, and if they did that, and
slept at a friend's farm, why, they would all be back by this time
to-morrow.

To these arrangements I listened as in a trance. Beryl would be with us
again. This time to-morrow! Why, it was hardly credible. It seemed a
year since we had been without her. Not even until this time to-morrow
would _I_ wait, however, for already I was busy formulating a little
scheme of my own for riding out at some perfectly ungodly hour of the
early morning to meet them. Ah, now everything was coming right. It
was like a story, by Jove it was; and now this time I would not let the
grass grow under my feet. Why should I, indeed? Everything had gone
well. Kuliso and his clan were satisfied with their compensation.
George was liberated. The only thing to do was to try and forget the
whole unfortunate affair all