wenty proposed
to go, seventeen to the seat of war, and three to the post-office. As
those three were the young ladies of the house, all the warriors offered
to surrender their seats to them. They refused to accept any surrender,
preferring to walk, whereupon Messrs. Errol, Wilkinson and Coristine
thought an after-dinner walk the height of luxury. Mr. Bangs saw he was
not wanted as a fellow pedestrian, and mounted his horse instead of
having him trot behind a waggon. The vehicles, or at least one of them,
received instructions to wait at the post-office for the three members
of squad No. 1. The walk was strictly proper, Mr. Errol taking Miss
Carmichael, the dominie Miss Halbert, and the lawyer Miss Du Plessis.
"What a goose you are, Mr. Wilkinson," said his fair companion. "What a
goose you are to leave Cecile, whose footsteps you fairly worship, and
to come and walk with a girl for whose society you don't care a penny."

"I should care more for Miss Halbert's society if she did not say such
unjustifiable things."

"Cecile," called the young lady, "I want to change escorts with you; I
like pleasant society."

The dominie felt as if a big school-girl had declined to receive a
reprimand from the principal, and coloured with vexation, but Miss Du
Plessis calmly turned and said: "If Mr. Wilkinson is tired of you
already, Fanny, I suppose I must send Mr. Coristine to comfort you,"
whereat Mr. Errol and his companion exchanged a smile.

"Did the villain shoot Wordsworth at you, Miss Halbert, or was it Hans
Breitmann in the original, or a Spanish _cantinella_, or some such
rubbish? If I was Miss Du Plessis I'd wear a signboard over my ears, 'No
poetical rubbish shot here;' perhaps that might fix him."

"Cecile is sentimental: she dotes on poetry."

"Pardon me for saying I don't believe it. I offered to recite my
original poem on the Grinstun man to her, and she didn't seem to want to
hear it."

"How ungrateful and unsympathetic! You will favour me with it, will you
not?"

"With the greatest pleasure in the world. You know it's awful
balderdash, but here goes."

The original poem was recited with appropriate gestures, intended to
imitate the walk of the hero of the piece and his various features. The
people in front turned their heads to look at the performance and take
in the words. Not to laugh was almost an impossibility, but the dominie
succeeded in doing the impossible, and frowned heavily. He felt that his
unw