e my voice speaking.

It was Mr Raydon's turn now, and he whispered to me--

"Lie quite still, Mayne. Are you in much pain?"

"No," I said. "I don't know. My shoulder aches."

"Don't talk; try and go to sleep again."

I looked up at him in a confused, puzzled way, and as I looked his face
began to grow misty, and the candle to burn more dimly, till both faded
slowly away, and all was dark once more.

I opened my eyes once more, and there was Mr Raydon standing by me with
a candle, and it was so faint that I could not be sure; and so it was
again and again as it seemed to me, and when I opened my eyes at last,
the bedroom window was wide, the sun shining in, and bringing with it
the sweet lemon-scented odour of the pines, and Esau was seated there
watching me.

"Hush!" he said, as I was opening my lips to speak. "Mustn't talk."

"Nonsense," I said; "I want to know."

I stopped there, for my voice puzzled me, and I lay wondering for a few
moments, till, like a flash of the sunshine coming into my darkened
brain, I recollected the blow, the report of the rifle, and Esau's cry,
and knew that the rifle had gone off when he fell, and I was lying there
badly wounded.

"Mr Raydon said you wasn't to speak a word," said Esau, softly; and he
stole out of the room so quietly that I knew he must be without his
boots.

A few minutes passed, and the door opened again, with Mr Raydon coming
in on tiptoe to advance and take my right hand within his left, and
place a couple of fingers on my wrist. I smiled as he played the part
of doctor like this, and he smiled back.

"Don't talk," he said; "I'll do that, my lad. Come, this is better.
Not so feverish as I expected. Just whisper when I ask a question.
Feel in much pain?"

"My shoulder aches and burns," I said.

"Yes; it will for a time; but that will soon go off. You remember now
about the accident? Yes? That's right. You were a little delirious
last night, and made me anxious, for we have no doctor hereabouts."

"Don't want one," said Esau, softly.

Mr Raydon asked me a few more questions, cautioned me not to speak
much, and to lie quite still, and then left us together.

Esau sat looking at me for a few minutes with his arms rested upon his
extended knees.

"I say, you're not to talk, you know, but I may. I say, I am so sorry.
Hush!--no! You mustn't say you know that, or anything else. I only
want to tell you it was an accident. You do know, don't