y.

The summons bidding William Van Beuren Portlaw of Camp Chickadee, town
of Pride's Fall, Horican County, New York, to defend a suit for damages
arising from trespass, tree-felling, the malicious diversion of the
waters of Painted Creek, the wilful and deliberate killing of game, the
flooding of wild meadow lands in contemptuous disregard of riparian
rights and the drowning of certain sheep thereby, had been impending
since the return from Florida to her pretty residence at Pride's Fall of
Mrs. Alida Ascott.

Trouble had begun the previous autumn with a lively exchange of notes
between them concerning the shooting of woodcock on Mrs. Ascott's side
of the boundary. Then Portlaw stupidly built a dam and diverted the
waters of Painted Creek. Having been planned, designed, and constructed
according to Portlaw's own calculations, the dam presently burst and the
escaping flood drowned some of Mrs. Ascott's sheep. Then somebody cut
some pine timber on her side of the line and Mrs. Ascott's smouldering
indignation flamed.

Personally she and Portlaw had been rather fond of one another; and to
avoid trouble incident on hot temper Alida Ascott decamped, intending to
cool off in the Palm Beach surf and think it over; but she met Portlaw
at Palm Beach that winter, and Portlaw dodged the olive branch and
neglected her so selfishly that she determined then and there upon his
punishment, now long overdue.

"My Lord!" said Portlaw plaintively to Malcourt, "I had no idea she'd do
such a thing to me; had you?"

"Didn't I tell you she would?" said Malcourt. "I know women better than
you do, though you don't believe it."

"But I thought she was rather fond of me!" protested Portlaw
indignantly.

"That may be the reason she's going to chasten you, friend. Don't come
bleating to me; I advised you to be attentive to her at Palm Beach, but
you sulked and stood about like a baby-hippopotamus and pouted and shot
your cuffs. I warned you to be agreeable to her, but you preferred the
Beach Club and pigeon shooting. It's easy enough to amuse yourself and
be decent to a nice woman too. Even I can combine those things."

"Didn't I go to that lawn party?"

"Yes, and scarcely spoke to her. And never went near her afterward. Now
she's mad all through."

"Well, I can get mad, too--"

"No, you're too plump to ever become angry--"

"Do you think I'm going to submit to--"

"You'll submit all right when they've dragged you twenty-eight mil