re?" said Tavish, staring hard at
Max.

"No, never. I was never in a boat alone before."

"She will never pe in a poat alone pefore!" said the forester.
"Wonterful!"

Long Shon looked as if he did not believe it.

"Wonterful! It was wonterful!" said Tavish again. "She will come town
here, and kill ta biggest fush; and she sails ta poat alone, and she
shall kill a stag soon, and all ta hares and grouse."

"Why wass she not town py ta blue hawk's nest wi' ta poys?" said Long
Shon suddenly and fiercely.

"I was holding the anchor," replied Max.

"She wass holting ta anchor, Shon. She tolt her pefore."

"Put she ought to have peen wi' ta poys!" cried Long Shon, giving the
side of the boat a slap with his great hand. "She wass afraid."

"Yes," said Max, flushing slightly, "I was afraid to go down. They did
want me to go."

"Put ta poy Scoodrach wass never afraid," cried Long Shon, looking hard
at Max as if he had ill-used him.

"Waugh!" ejaculated Tavish slowly, his voice sounding like the low, deep
growl of some wild beast.

"Ta Scoodrach wass never pe afraid," cried Long Shon defiantly.

"Waugh!" growled Tavish more loudly and deeply than before.

"Ta Scoodrach wass never pe afraid," cried Long Shon, striking the
gunwale of the boat again, and his face flushed with anger.

"Waugh!" roared Tavish; and the great forester's beard seemed to bristle
as he burst out into an angry speech in Gaelic, to which Long Shon kept
on edging in a word or two in the same tongue, but only with the effect
of making Tavish roar more loudly, till Long Shon seemed to give in,
completely mastered by his big companion.

What was said was a mystery to Max, but it sounded to him as if the big
forester was taking his part, and crushing down Long Shon till the
latter gave in, when Tavish's face cleared, and his eyes smiled at Max,
as he said,--

"She shall not do like Maister Ken and Scoodrach, or ta poat could not
come and say they are on the crag."

"No, of course not," said Max confusedly, for he could hardly follow the
great fellow's meaning.

Then, in comparative peace, the boat skimming rapidly over the smooth
sea, they sped on, with Max wondering that the ride could be so
different now that there was no danger, and he had the companionship of
two strong men. But all the same he could not help feeling something
like regret that he was no longer the crew and in full charge. He felt
something like pride, too, in hi