tiff-kneed gardener, who had observed his exit from the
house, attempted to follow him; but he might as well have chased a
northwest gale. Noddy reached the Glen, and no sound of pursuers could
be heard. The phantom court-house had been beaten in the race.

CHAPTER VI.

NODDY'S ENGAGEMENT.

When Noddy reached the Glen, he had time to stop and think; and the
consequences of the sudden step he had taken came to his mind with
tremendous force. He had fled from Miss Bertha, and all the comforts and
luxuries which had surrounded him at Woodville. He was a vagabond again.

It was a great deal better to be a vagabond than it was to be an inmate
of a prison, or even of a tinker's shop. He had committed no crime; the
worst that could be said of him was, that he was a victim of
circumstances. It was unfortunate for him that he had used those
petulant words, that he wished the boat-house was burned down, for they
had put the idea into Fanny's head. He did not mean to kindle the fire,
but he believed that he had been the cause of it, and that it was hardly
fair to let the young lady suffer for what he had virtually done.

He was sorry to leave Woodville, and above all, sorry to be banished
from the presence of Miss Bertha. But that had already been agreed upon,
and he was only anticipating the event by taking himself off as he did.
He would rather have gone in a more honorable manner than running away
like a hunted dog; but he could not help that, and the very thought of
the horrible court-house was enough to drive him from the best home in
the world.

He walked up to a retired part of the Glen, where he could continue his
retreat without being intercepted, if it became necessary, and sat down
on a rock to think of the future. He had no more idea what he should do
with himself, than he had when he was a wanderer before in these
regions. Undoubtedly his ultimate purpose was to go to sea; but he was
not quite ready to depart. He cherished a hope that he might contrive to
meet Bertha in some of her walks, and say good-bye to her before he
committed himself to his fortunes on the stormy ocean.

While he was deliberating upon his prospects, a happy thought, as he
regarded it, came to his mind. He could turn somersets, and cut more
capers than any man in the circus company which he had seen on the
preceding day. With a little practice, he was satisfied that he could
learn to stand up on the back of a horse. A field of glor