of the house of Durrisdeer. Mr. Henry had the chief part
of my affection. It was with him I worked; and I found him an exacting
master, keeping all his kindness for those hours in which we were
unemployed, and in the steward's office not only loading me with work,
but viewing me with a shrewd supervision. At length one day he looked up
from his paper with a kind of timidness, and says he, "Mr. Mackellar, I
think I ought to tell you that you do very well." That was my first
word of commendation; and from that day his jealousy of my performance
was relaxed; soon it was "Mr. Mackellar" here, and "Mr. Mackellar"
there, with the whole family; and for much of my service at Durrisdeer I
have transacted everything at my own time, and to my own fancy, and
never a farthing challenged. Even while he was driving me, I had begun
to find my heart go out to Mr. Henry; no doubt, partly in pity, he was a
man so palpably unhappy. He would fall into a deep muse over our
accounts, staring at the page or out of the window; and at those times
the look of his face, and the sigh that would break from him, awoke in
me strong feelings of curiosity and commiseration. One day, I remember,
we were late upon some business in the steward's room. This room is in
the top of the house, and has a view upon the bay, and over a little
wooded cape, on the long sands; and there, right over against the sun,
which was then dipping, we saw the free-traders, with a great force of
men and horses, scouring on the beach. Mr. Henry had been staring
straight west, so that I marvelled he was not blinded by the sun;
suddenly he frowns, rubs his hand upon his brow, and turns to me with a
smile.

"You would not guess what I was thinking," says he. "I was thinking I
would be a happier man if I could ride and run the danger of my life
with these lawless companions."

I told him I had observed he did not enjoy good spirits; and that it was
a common fancy to envy others and think we should be the better of some
change; quoting Horace to the point, like a young man fresh from
college.

"Why, just so," said he. "And with that we may get back to our
accounts."

It was not long before I began to get wind of the causes that so much
depressed him. Indeed, a blind man must have soon discovered there was a
shadow on that house, the shadow of the Master of Ballantrae. Dead or
alive (and he was then supposed to be dead) that man was his brother's
rival: his rival abroad, where t