right now, Mr. Fenwick,"
the girl said.]

"I hope so too, Fanny. But you and your mother should keep an eye
on him, so that he may know that his goings and comings are noticed.
I dare say it will be all right as long as the excitement of these
changes is going on; but there is nothing so bad as that he should be
in and out of the house at nights and not feel that his absence is
noticed. It will be better always to ask him, though he be ever so
cross. Tell your mother I say so."

CHAPTER XII.

BONE'M AND HIS MASTER.

After leaving the mill Mr. Fenwick went up to the Squire, and, in
contradiction, as it were, of all the hard things that he had said
to Sam Brattle, spoke to the miller's landlord in the lad's favour.
He was hard at work now, at any rate; and seemed inclined to stick
to his work. And there had been an independence about him which the
parson had half liked, even while he had been offended at it. Gilmore
differed altogether from his friend. "What was he doing in your
garden? What was he doing hidden in Trumbull's hedge? When I see
fellows hiding in ditches at night, I don't suppose that they're
after much good." Mr. Fenwick made some lame apology, even for these
offences. Sam had, perhaps, not really known the extent of the
iniquity of the men with whom he had associated, and had come up the
garden probably with a view to the fruit. The matter was discussed at
great length, and the Squire at last promised that he would give Sam
another chance in regard to his own estimation of the young man's
character.

On that same evening,--or, rather, after the evening was over, for it
was nearly twelve o'clock at night,--Fenwick walked round the garden
and the orchard with his wife. There was no moon now, and the night
was very dark. They stopped for a minute at the wicket leading into
the churchyard, and it was evident to them that Bone'm, from the
farmyard at the other side of the church, had heard them, for he
commenced a low growl, with which the parson was by this time well
acquainted.

"Good dog, good dog," said the parson, in a low voice. "I wish we had
his brother, I know."

"He would only be tearing the maids and biting the children," said
Mrs. Fenwick. "I hate having a savage beast about."

"But it would be so nice to catch a burglar and crunch him. I feel
almost bloodthirsty since I hit that fellow with the life-preserver,
and find that I didn't kill him."

"I know, Frank, you're thinki