d with an excited cry.

"Blake of the sappers! Want to cut your old friendsh? Whatsh you
doing here?"

"It's a mutual surprise, Benson," Blake replied, and the other, holding
on by a chair back, smiled at him genially.

"Often wondered where you went to after you left Peshawur, old man.
Though you got the sack for it, it wasn't your fault the ghazees broke
our line that night. Said so to the Colonel--can see him now, sitting
there, looking very sick and cut up, and Bolsover, acting adjutant,
blinking like an owl."

"Be quiet!" Blake said in alarm, for the man had been a lieutenant of
native infantry when they had met on the hill campaign.

Benson, however, was not to be deterred and addressed the rest: "This
gentleman old friend of mine; never agreed with solemn old Colonel, but
they wouldn't listen to me. Very black night in India; ghazees coming
yelling up the hill; nothing would stop them. Rifles cracking,
Nepalese comp'ny busy with the bayonet, and in the thick of it the
bugle goes----"

Raising a hand to his mouth, he gave a shrill imitation of the call
"Cease fire!" and then lost his balance and fell over the chair with a
crash.

"Leave him to me," said Gardner, who seized the fallen man and with
some difficulty lifted him to his feet. After he pushed him through
the door there were sounds of a scuffle and two or three minutes later
Gardner came back with a bruise upon his face.

"He's quiet now and the bartender will put him to bed," he said.

There was silence for the next few moments, for the group on the
verandah had been impressed by the scene; then a man came up the steps.
He was dressed in old brown overalls and carried a riding quirt, but
Harding recognized him as the man they had met at the _Windsor_ in
Montreal.

"Have you got Benson here?" he asked.

"Sure," said Gardner. "He's left his mark on my cheek. Why don't you
look after the fool? Anyhow, you must have come pretty quietly; I
didn't hear you until you were half way up the steps."

"Light boots," Clarke answered, smiling; "I bought them from you. I
don't know that I need hold myself responsible for Benson, but I found
he wasn't in when I rode past his place and it struck me that he might
get into trouble if he got on a jag."

He turned and nodded to Blake. "So you have come up here! I may see
you to-morrow, but if Benson's all right I'm going home now."

He went into the hotel and soon afterwards they heard him leave