himself thinking of them more and more as he passed
through the gate, and went along the road that late autumn morning,
kicking up the dead leaves which lay clustering beneath the trees.

"If his father sends him to sea he shall run away," said Sydney to
himself; and then he thought of how Pan Strake would be free, and have
no more boots and shoes or knives to clean, and not have to go into the
garden to weed the paths.

Then by a natural course he found himself thinking that if he, Sydney
Belton, were to leave home, he would escape being sent to sea--at all
events back to school--and he too would be free.

With a boy's wilful obstinacy, he carefully drew a veil over all the
good, and dragged out into the mental light all that he looked upon as
bad in his every-day life, satisfied himself that he was ill-used, and
wished that he had had a mother living to, as he called it, take his
part.

"I wonder what running away would be like?" he thought. "There would be
no Uncle Tom to come and bully and bother me, and father wouldn't be
there to take his side against me. I wonder what one could do if one
ran away?"

"Morning!"

Sydney started, for he had been so intent upon his thoughts that he had
not heard the regular trot, trot of a plump cob, nor the grinding of
wheels, and he looked up to see that it was Doctor Liss who had suddenly
drawn rein in the road.

"Going for a walk, Syd?"

"Yes; but--I--Where are you going, doctor?"

"Into the town. Just been called up. Poor fellow injured in the docks
last night."

"Take me with you."

"What?" cried the doctor, smiling down in the eager face before him.
"Didn't I get scolded enough last night, you young dog, for leading you
astray?"

"Oh, but father didn't mean it. Do take me. Is he much hurt?"

"Broken leg, I hear. No, no. Go home to breakfast. Ck! Sally. Good
morning."

The doctor touched the cob as he nodded to Sydney, and the wheels of the
chaise began to turn, but with a bound the boy was out in the road, and
hanging on to the back.

"No, no, Doctor Liss, don't leave me behind. I do so want to go, and
there's plenty of time for me to get back to breakfast."

"But Sir Thomas will declare I am leading you into the evil paths of
medicine and surgery."

"Uncle won't know. Do pull up; let me come."

"Well," said the doctor, smiling grimly, "I don't see that it can do you
any harm, Syd. Here, jump in."

There was no need for a second consent