it the
grave of some great chieftain, with the remaining stones indicating the
graves of his relations and friends? Or was it the commemoration of some
battle in olden times, or the record of astronomical or geometrical
discoveries, or a temple once devoted to serpent-worship, or what?
Lavender, who knew absolutely nothing at all about the matter, was
probably as well qualified as anybody else to answer these questions,
but he forbore. The interest, however, that Sheila showed in such
things he very rapidly acquired. When he came to see the rows of stones
a second time he was much impressed by their position on this bit of
hill overlooking the sea. He sat down on his camp-stool with the
determination that, although he could not satisfy Sheila's wistful
questions, he would present her with some little sketch of these
monuments and their surroundings which might catch up something of the
mysterious loneliness of the scene.

He would not, of course, have the picture as it then presented itself.
The sun was glowing on the grass around him, and lighting up the tall
gray pillars of stone with a cheerful radiance. Over there the waters of
Loch Roag were bright and blue, and beyond the lake the undulations of
moorland were green and beautiful, and the mountains in the south grown
pale as silver in the heat. Here was a pretty young lady, in a rough
blue traveling-dress and a hat and feather, who was engaged in picking
up wild-flowers from the warm heath. There was a gentleman from the
office of the Board of Trade, who was sitting on the grass, nursing his
knees and whistling. From time to time the chief figure in the
foreground was an elderly gentleman, who evidently expected that he was
going to be put into the picture, and who was occasionally dropping a
cautious hint that he did not always wear this rough-and-ready sailor's
costume. Mackenzie was also most anxious to point out to the artist the
names of the hills and districts lying to the south of Loch Roag,
apparently with the hope that the sketch would have a certain
topographical interest for future visitors.

No: Lavender was content at that moment to take down the outlines of the
great stones and the configuration of lake and hill beyond, but by and
by he would give another sort of atmosphere to this wild scene. He would
have rain and darkness spread over the island, with the low hills in the
south grown desolate and remote, and the waters of the sea covered with
gloo