ich was as good as new, and then had stolen
it. The other said he did not carry off the cane till it had been so
much used that it was good for nothing, and he didn't call that
stealing."

"Well, sir," said Mr. Swan, observing a smile on the face of one and
another, "I think I'll leave that there magistrate to do the best he can
with that there case, and I'll abide by his decision."

"When ye come out in the character of Apollo," said Miss Christie to
Valentine, "ye should compose yourself into a grander attitude, and not
sit all of a heap while ye're drawing the long-bow. Don't ye agree with
me, Mrs. Melcombe?"

Mrs. Melcombe looked up and smiled uneasily; but the gardener had no
uncomfortable surmises respecting her, as she had respecting him, and
when he caught her eye he straightened himself up, and said with
pleasant civility, while putting on his hat on purpose to touch it and
take it off again, "'Servant, ma'am; my son Joseph has had a fine spell
of work, as I hear from him, at your place since I saw you last autumn,
and a beautiful place it is, I'm told."

Mrs. Melcombe answered this civil speech, and John Mortimer said, "How
is Joseph getting, on, Swan?"

"Getting on first-rate, thank you kindly, sir," replied Swan, leaning
down into his former easy attitude, and keeping his Sunday hat under his
arm.

"That boy, though I say it, allers was as steady as old Time. He's at
Birmingham now. I rather expect he'll be wanting to _settle_ shortly."

As he evidently wished to be asked a further question, Mrs. Henfrey did
ask one.

"No, ma'am, no," was the reply; "he have not told me nor his mother the
young woman's name; but he said if he got her he should be the luckiest
fellow that ever was." Here, from intense confusion and shyness, Laura
dropped the book, St. George picked it up for her, and nobody thought of
connecting the fall with the story, the unconscious Nicholas continuing.
"So thereby his mother judged that it would come to something, for
that's what a young chap mostly says when he has made up his mind; but I
shall allers say, sir," he went on, "that with the good education as I
gave him, it's a pity he took to such a poor trade. He airly showed a
bent for it; I reckon it was the putty that got the better of him."

"Ah," said John Mortimer, "and I only wonder, Swan, that it didn't get
the better of me! I used to lay out a good deal of pocket-money in it at
one time, and many a private smash have I