ime, and then loosing me said, "Now, behave."

I flouted it now, so that his cars and eyes were endangered, and he was
forced to hold his hat on.

"I'll give you three minutes to behave, or I'll put you out," he said
with mock severity.

"Shure it's me wot's behavin' beautiful," I replied, continuing my
nonsense.

He pulled rein, seized me in one arm, and lifted me lightly to the
ground.

"Now, you can walk till you promise to conduct yourself like a
Christian!" he said, driving at a walk.

If you wait till I promise anything, you'll wait till the end of the
century. I'm quite capable of walking home."

"You'll soon get tired of walking in this heat, and your feet will he
blistered in a mile with those bits of paper."

The bits of paper to which he alluded were a pair of thin-soled white
canvas slippers--not at all fitted for walking the eight miles on the hard
hot road ahead of me. I walked resolutely on, without deigning a glance
at Harold, who had slowed down to a crawling walk.

"Aren't you ready to get up now?" he inquired presently.

I did not reply. At the end of a quarter of a mile he jumped out of the
buggy, seized upon me, lifted me in, and laughed, saying, "You're a very
slashing little concern, but you are not big enough to do much damage."

We were about half-way home when Barney gave a tremendous lurch, breaking
a trace and some other straps. Mr Beecham was at the head of the plunging
horse in a twinkling. The harness seemed to be scattered everywhere.

"I expect I had better walk on now," I remarked.

"Walk, be grannied! With two fat lazy horses to draw you?" returned Mr
Beecham.

Men are clumsy, stupid creatures regarding little things, but in their
right place they are wonderful animals. If a buggy was smashed to
smithereens, from one of their many mysterious pockets they would produce
a knife and some string, and put the wreck into working order in no time.

Harold was as clever in this way as any other man with as much bushman
ability as he had, so it was not long ere we were bowling along as
merrily as ever.

Just before we came in sight of Caddagat he came to a standstill, jumped
to the ground, untied Warrigal, and put the reins in my hand, saying:

I think you can get home safely from here. Don't be in such a huff--I was
afraid something might happen you if alone. You needn't mention that I
came with you unless you like. Goodbye."

"Good-bye, Mr Beecham. Thank you for being so