nd playfully planted the forefinger of
his right hand on the side of his upturned nose, saying "Walker!" Then
he relented, and, reapproaching his companion, said: "Honour bright,
now, you're no workin' geologist, lookin' out for the blunt? You're a
collector of Favosites Wilkinsoma, Stenopora fibrosa, Asaphus
Canadensis, Ambonychia radiata, Heliopora fragilis, and all that rot,
ain't you now?"

"I certainly seek to make no money out of science, and am a lover of the
fossil records of ancient life in our planet, but, above all, I assure
you that I would no more think of betraying your confidence than of
picking your pocket. If you have any doubts, do not make me your
confidant."

"Hall right, hold cock, I mean, my dear sir. You're safe has a church.
There's a 'undred hacre lot hup in the township of Flanders, has full
of grinstuns as a hegg's full of meat. It belongs to a Miss Do
Please-us, but who the dooce she is, I dunno. That's just wot I'm
a-goin' to find hout. If she hain't paid her taxes, bein' hon the
non-resident roll, I maybe hable to pick hup the land for less than ten
dollars, and it'll bring me hin tens of thousands. Then I'll skip back
to hold Hingland and cut it fat."

Coristine was not so taken up with Muggins that he failed to overhear
the conversation. He did not catch it all, but he learned that a lady, a
maiden lady, whose name mediated between Jewplesshy and Do Please, owned
valuable mineral lands, of which the working geologist intended to
deprive her by unfair means. Miss Do-Please-us was nothing to him, but
justice was something, and the man Rawdon was an unutterable cad. How
Wilkinson could take any pleasure in his society he could not
understand. He had a good mind to chuck the dominie's stick into the
next creek and let it float to Jericho. He did throw it away along the
road, but Muggins brought it back. Deserted by his bosom friend for a
common, low down cad like that; Oh, by Jove! He strode along in silence,
while Muggins, his only friend, came and rubbed himself against his leg.
No, he would not give in to fate in the shape of a Rawdon. He had
important secrets regarding the welfare of two women, that Providence
seemed to have thrown in his way, in his possession. If Wilks turned
traitor, he could break the pact, and make one of these women happy.
Pity he wasn't a Turk to take care of the pair of them. Night had
fallen, but the moon shone out and the stars, and it was very pleasant
walk