rkness all round him. Frank was frightened without
knowing why; it was all so "unked," as he would have expressed it, and
as he stared about with terrified eyes he seemed to see mysterious forms
moving near. Then he looked up towards the sky; and there, through a
space between the tops of the trees, was one solitary beautiful star
shining down upon him like a kind bright eye. It was a comfort to see
it there, and by degrees, as he lay with his eyes fixed upon it, he
forgot his fears a little, and began to think of other things. First
there came into his head one line of a hymn which he had often sung in
the choir at Danecross church:

"Brightest and best of the sons of the morning," it began. From that he
went on to consider what a long time it was since he had said his
prayers, because he was always so sleepy and tired at night, and he
thought he would say them now. But before he had finished them he fell
into a quiet slumber, which lasted till morning, when the sun, peering
through the trees, pointed suddenly down at his face with a fiery finger
and woke him up.

CHAPTER TWO.

The first thought that came into Frank's head was that he should not
have to go to plough that day. The second was, that it was
breakfast-time, that he was very hungry, and that he had nothing to eat.
This was not so pleasant; but proceeding to "farm" his pockets, which
in Buckinghamshire dialect means to rummage, he discovered a small piece
of very hard bread. With this scanty meal he was obliged to be
satisfied, and presently continued his journey in a tolerably cheerful
frame of mind. Where he was going and how he was to earn his living he
did not know; but on one subject he was quite resolved, he would not go
back till he was too big and strong for father to "whop" him. It was
hard to leave mother, and she would be sorry; but he thought he would
manage somehow to write her a letter, and put a stamp upon it with the
first penny he earned.

So reflecting, and varying the gravity of such thoughts by chasing the
squirrels and the grey rabbits that scudded across his path, he
journeyed on, and by degrees reached a part of the wood quite unknown to
him. He began to wonder now what he should do if he did not soon come
to a cottage or some place where he could ask for food, for it was many
hours since he had eaten, and he was faint with exhaustion. Never in
his life had he felt so dreadfully hungry, and there were not even
berri