he has ever played a game of this sort at school? Do you
think he has, Jim?"

Jim thought it was doubtful.

"I believe they always play cricket in the summer term," he said. "But
this will be a splendid change for him."

"I hope it will," said Drusie, with a sigh. "But I am simply not going
to think what we shall do if, after all our trouble, Hal turns up his
nose at a fight on Tuesday."

[Illustration: Hal running]

At tea-time Hal did not put in an appearance at all.

"He ought to be hungry," nurse said, "for he did not eat much dinner.
I wonder where he can be?"

Tea was over, and they had all gone out into the garden again for a
last stroll before bed-time, when they saw him come running across the
field, which was separated from the lawn by a sunk fence. Leaping
this, he rushed towards them, looking brighter and happier than he had
done since his return.

"I say," he called out; "whom do you think I have met this afternoon?
I have had such a splendid time; just guess."

They shook their heads; they could form no guess at all.

"Well, you will hardly believe it, but Dodds is down here. Dodds
Major," he added, seeing that somehow his news did not produce as much
effect as he had anticipated.

"Who is Dodds Major?" Drusie asked.

"Oh, how stupid you are!" Hal cried; "Why, I have told you about him in
my letters lots of times. He is out and away the nicest fellow in our
school. A big fellow, too, thirteen and a half, and simply splendid at
cricket. He is leaving at Christmas, and going to the college."

"Does he live down here?" said Drusie.

"No; he is staying at the Grange with his uncle, Captain Grey. He is
going to be here the whole holidays. Isn't it splendid for me?"

"Why," said Drusie, with a sudden sinking of her heart, "will you be
much with him?"

"Rather," said Hal; "as much as ever he will have me. Of course," he
added, with an important air, "he is jolly glad, too, to find another
fellow down here. We are going fishing to-morrow in Captain Grey's
trout stream. Dodds says that it is simply packed with fish. Won't
that be jolly? I was playing cricket with him all this afternoon. He
is going to play in a match that some friends of his uncle's are
getting up next week, and he says that perhaps he can get me into it
too. Won't that be jolly?"

In short, Hal was brimming over with good spirits. When, soon
afterwards, nurse called Helen and Tommy to come to bed, Hal invit