shock of
her bereavement, was unable to leave her room, and the burden of the
care fell on the two inexperienced boys, who had to face it almost
single-handed.

For the Crudens had no near relatives in England, and those of their
friends who might have been of service at such a time feared to intrude,
and so stayed away. Blandford and Harker, the boys' two friends who had
been visiting at Garden Vale at the time of Mr Cruden's death, had left
as quietly and considerately as possible; and so great was the
distraction of those few sad days that no one even noticed their absence
till letters of condolence arrived from each.

It was a dreary week, and Reginald, on whom, as the elder son and the
heir to the property, the chief responsibility rested, was of the two
least equal to the emergency.

"I don't know what I should have done without you, old man," said he to
Horace on the evening before the funeral, when, all the preparations
being ended, the two boys strolled dismally down towards the river.
"You ought to have been the eldest son. I should never have thought of
half the things there were to be done if you hadn't been here."

"Of course, mother would have known what was to be done," said Horace,
"if she hadn't been laid up. She's to get up this evening."

"Well, I shall be glad when to-morrow's over," said Reginald; "it's
awful to have it all hanging over one like this. I can't believe father
was alive a week ago, you know."

"No more can I," said the other; "and I'm certain we shall not realise
how we miss him for long enough yet."

They walked on for some distance in silence, each full of his own
reflections.

Then Horace said, "Mother is sure to want to stay on here, she's so fond
of the place."

"Yes, it's a comfort she won't have to move. By the way, I wonder if
she will want us to leave Wilderham and stay at home now."

"I fancy not. Father wanted you to go to Oxford in a couple of years,
and she is sure not to change his plan."

"Well, I must say," said Reginald, "if I am to settle down as a country
gentleman some day, I shall be glad to have gone through college and all
that sort of thing before. If I go up in two years, I shall have
finished before I'm twenty-three. Hullo, here's mother!"

The boys ran forward to greet Mrs Cruden, who, pale but smiling, came
quietly down the garden towards them, and after a fond embrace laid her
hands on the arm of each and walked slowly on between the