s it touches upon doctrine," Gunner replied
soothingly and half regretfully. "He approves of our using new
methods of caring for our cattle, and wants us to adopt the latest
agricultural machinery; but we are not allowed to know anything
about the new implements with which God's acres are now being
tilled."

Storm began to think that Bullet Gunner's bark was worse than his
bite. "Is it your meaning," he said, adopting a facetious tone,
"that we should preach a different doctrine here from the
Lutheran?"

"It is not a question of a new doctrine," roared Gunner, "but as to
who shall preach; and, as far as I know, Matts Ericsson is as good
a Lutheran as either the schoolmaster or the parson."

For the moment the schoolmaster had forgotten about the parson; but
now he glanced down at him. The clergyman sat quietly musing, his
chin resting upon the knob of his cane. There was a curious gleam
in his eyes, which were fixed upon Storm, never leaving him for a
second.

"After all, perhaps it would have been just as well if the parson
hadn't come to-day," thought the schoolmaster. What was then taking
place reminded Storm of something he had experienced before. It
could be just like this in school sometimes, on a bright spring
morning, when a little bird perched itself outside the schoolroom
window and warbled lustily. Then all at once the children would
tease and beg to be excused from school; they abandoned their
studies and made so much fuss and noise that it was almost
impossible to bring them to order. Something of the same sort had
come over the congregation after Hoek Matts's arrival. However, the
schoolmaster meant to show the pastor and all of them that he was
man enough to quell the mutiny. "First, I will leave them alone and
let the ringleaders talk themselves hoarse," he thought, and went
and sat down on a chair behind the table on which the water bottle
stood.

Instantly there arose against him a perfect storm of protests; for
by that time every one had become inflated with the idea that they
were all of them just as good as the schoolmaster. "Why should he
alone be allowed to tell us what to believe and what not to
believe!" they shouted.

These ideas seemed to be new to most of them, yet from the talk it
became evident that they had been germinating in their minds ever
since the schoolmaster had built the mission house, and shown them
that a plain, ordinary man can preach the Word of God.

After a bit S