gon, Mr. Larramie was telling me that he
would like me to inform Mrs. Chester that he would keep the bear until
it was reasonable to suppose that the owner would not come for it, and
that then he would either sell it or buy it himself, and make
satisfactory settlement with her.

I know I did not hear all that he said, for my mind was wildly busy
trying to decide what I ought to do. Should I jump down even now and
decline to go to the Holly Sprig, or should I go on and attend to my
business like a sensible man? There was certainly no reason why I
should do anything else, but when the impatient Percy started, my mind
was not in the least made up; I remained on the seat beside him simply
because I was there.

Percy was a good driver, and glad to exhibit his skill. He was also in
a lively mood, and talked with great freedom. "Do you know," said he,
"that Edith wanted to drive you over to the inn? Think of that! But it
had all been cut and dried that I should go, and I was not going to
listen to any such nonsense. Besides, you might want somebody to help
you take your machine apart and pack it up."

I was well satisfied to be accompanied by the boy and not by his
sister, and with the wheels and his tongue rattling along together, we
soon reached the inn.

Percy drove past it and was about to turn into the entrance of the
yard, but I stopped him. "I suppose your wheel is back there," he
said.

"Yes," said I, "but I will get out here."

"All right," he replied, "I'll drive around to the sheds."

At the open door of the large room I met Mrs. Chester, evidently on
her way out-of-doors. She wore a wide straw hat, her hands were
gloved, and she carried a basket and a pair of large shears. When she
saw me there was a sudden flush upon her face, but it disappeared
quickly. Whether this meant that she was agreeably surprised to see me
again, or whether it showed that she resented my turning up again so
soon after she thought she was finally rid of me, I did not know. It
does not do to predicate too much upon the flushes of women.

[Illustration: "THERE WAS A SUDDEN FLUSH"]

I hastened to inform her why I had come, and now, having recovered
from her momentary surprise, she asked me to walk in and sit down, an
invitation which I willingly accepted, for I did not in the least
object to detaining her from her garden.

Now she wanted to know how I had managed to get on with the bear, and
what the people at the Cheltenham said