ry fortunate in my choice to-day either,"
she said somewhat ruefully, as she descended.

He laughed. "We all trespass in these woods. It's a time-honoured custom,
isn't it, Mr. Fielding? The pheasants are quite used to it."

Juliet did not glance in the squire's direction. She felt that she had
done all that was necessary in that quarter, and that any further
overture would but meet with a churlish response.

But to her astonishment he took the initiative. "I am afraid I wasn't too
hospitable just now," he said. "It's this fellow's fault. Dick, it's up
to you to apologize on my behalf."

Juliet looked at him then in amazement, and saw that the dour visage was
actually smiling at her--such a smile as transformed it completely.

"If Miss Moore will permit me," said Mr. Green, with a bow, "I will
introduce you to her. You will then be _en rapport_ and in a position to
apologize for yourself."

"Pedagogue!" said the squire.

And Juliet laughed for the first time. "If anyone apologizes it should be
me," she said.

"I!" murmured Green. "With more apologies!"

The squire turned on him. "Green, I'll punch your head for you directly,
you unspeakable pedant! What should you take him for, Miss Moore? A very
high priest or a very low comedian?"

Juliet felt her breath somewhat taken away by this sudden admission to
intimacy. She looked at Green whose dark eyes laughed straight back at
her, and found it impossible to stand upon ceremony.

"I really don't know," she said. "I haven't had time to place him yet.
But it's a little difficult to be quite impartial as he saved my life
last night."

"What?" said the squire. "That sounds romantic. What made him do that?"

"Allow me!" interposed Green, pulling the bath-towel from his neck, and
rapidly winding it into a noose. "It happened yesterday evening. I was
having a quiet smoke in a favourite corner of mine on a ledge about
twenty feet down High Shale Cliff where it begins to get steep, when
Miss Moore, attracted by the scent of my cigarette,--that's right, isn't
it?"--he flung her an audacious challenge with uplifted brows--"when
Miss Moore attracted as I say, by the alluring scent of my cigarette,
fell over the edge and joined me. My gallantry consisted in detaining
her there, after this somewhat abrupt introduction, that's all. Oh yes,
and in bullying her afterwards to climb up again when she didn't want
to. I was an awful brute last night, wasn't I? Really, I think it'