ing which only causes
me the deepest regret."

"He be a pear-thief," grumbled Strammers from a distance. "Don't ye
take no word o' his, your la'ship, after me bringing 'im down from out
a tree."

"From out a tree?" said Lady Mary, and she looked at me, and I looked
at her.

"The man is right, Lady Mary," said I significantly. "I was in a tree
looking over the garden wall."

"Strammers," said she with decision, "wait for me in the rose-garden,
and speak no single word to anybody until I see you again. You have
made a great mistake."

The man obediently retired, after saluting me with an air of slightly
dubious apology. He was not yet convinced that I had not been after
his wretched French pears.

But with the withdrawal of this Strammers Lady Mary's manner changed.
She became frightened and backed away from me, still holding the
gardener's blunderbuss.

"O sir," she cried in a beautiful agitation, "I beg of you to leave at
once. Oh, please!"

But here I saw it was necessary to treat the subject in a bold Irish
way.

"I'll not leave, Lady Mary," I answered. "I was brought here by force,
and only force can make me withdraw."

A glimmer of a smile came to her face, and she raised the blunderbuss,
pointing it full at my breast. The mouth was still the width of a
water-jug, and in the fair inexperienced hands of Lady Mary it was
like to go off at any moment and blow a hole in me as big as a
platter.

"Charming mistress," said I, "shoot!"

For answer she suddenly flung the weapon to the grass, and, burying
her face in her hands, began to weep. "I'm afraid it's l-l-loaded,"
she sobbed out.

In an instant I was upon my knees at her side and had taken her hand.
Her fingers resisted little, but she turned away her head.

"Lady Mary," said I softly, "I'm a poor devil of an Irish adventurer,
but--I love you! I love you so that if I was dead you could bid me
rise! I am a worthless fellow; I have no money, and my estate you can
hardly see for the mortgages and trouble upon it; I am no fine suitor,
but I love you more than them all; I do, upon my life!"

"Here approaches Strammers in quest of his blunderbuss," she answered
calmly. "Perhaps we had better give it to him."

I sprang to my feet, and, sure enough, the thick-headed ninepin of a
gardener was nearing us.

"Don't ye trust 'im, your la'ship!" he cried. "I caught 'im in a tree,
I did, and he be a bad lot!"

Lady Mary quelled him, and he at once went awa