ngaged in such a hopeless task as attempting to turn radishes into
sovereigns and cabbage-leaves into bank-notes. And does it follow that
he despises your boat-race because he prefers duty to pleasure?"

"Ah! that's just it," cried Walter, in a tone of mingled excitement and
displeasure. "Who's to know that it _is_ duty? I think one duty is
very plain, and I should have thought you would have agreed with me
here, and that is to give up your own way and pleasure sometimes, when
by doing so you may help to make other people happy."

"I quite agree with you in that, Walter," said his aunt. "It may be and
often does become a duty to surrender our own pleasure, but never surely
to surrender our duty."

"True, aunt, if it's really duty; but some people's duty means merely
their own fancy, and it's very convenient to call _that_ duty when you
don't want to be obliging."

"It may be so, Walter; but, on the other hand, if we have seen cause
even to impose upon ourselves something as a duty, we are bound to carry
it out, although others may not see it to be a duty and may call it
fancy; and certainly we should at least respect those who thus follow
what they firmly believe they _ought_ to do, even though we cannot
exactly understand or agree with their views of duty. So you must bear
with Amos; for I am certain that he would not say `No' to you about the
race if he were not persuaded that duty stands in the way of his taking
a part in it."

"Ah, well! happy Amos to have such a champion," cried Walter, laughing,
for he had now recovered his good-humour. "I suppose you are right, and
I must allow brother Amos to have his duty and his mystery all to
himself. But it's odd, and that's all I can say about it. Such short-
sighted mortals as I am can't see those duties which are up in the
clouds, but only those which lie straight before our eyes."

"And yet, Walter, there may be the truest and noblest heroism in
sacrificing everything to these self-imposed duties, which _you_ call
duties up in the clouds."

"O aunt, aunt!" exclaimed Walter, laughing, "are you going to be down
upon me again about moral courage? You have not crossed your hands this
time, and yet I daresay it will do us all good, my friends here as well
as myself, to have a lesson on moral courage from you; so listen all to
my dear aunt. She is teaching me moral courage by examples. Who is
your hero, dear auntie, this time?"

"Shall I go on?" said Miss H