he'll take it out of you when
she's your schoolmissis."

But the warning was received by the imp with a half growl, half jeer.
The prospect of that ultimate fate, which had already been dangled over
him, and which he only half realised, may have helped to prejudice him
against one whom he could not but regard as otherwise than his natural
enemy.

The unanimity wherewith the household of three voted against his
departure was more than gratifying to Hilary Blachland. Looking back
upon life since he had been Bayfield's guest, he could only declare to
himself that it was wholly delightful. The said Bayfield, with his
unruffled, take-us-as-you-find-us way of looking at things--well, the
more he saw of the man the more he liked him, and the two were on the
most easy terms of friendship of all, which may best be defined that
neither ever wanted the other to do anything the other didn't want to.
Even the small boy regarded him as an acquisition, while Lyn--well, the
frank, friendly, untrammelled intercourse between them constituted, he
was forced to admit to himself, the brightness and sunshine of the
pleasant, reposeful days which were now his. He had no reason to rate
himself too highly, even in his own estimation, and the last three or
four weeks spent in her daily society brought this more and more home to
him. Well, whatever he had sown, whatever he might reap, in short,
whatever might or might not be in store for him, he was the better now,
would be to the end of his days, the better for having known her.
Indeed it seemed to him now as though his life were divided into two
complete periods--the time before he had known Lyn Bayfield, and
subsequently.

Thus reflecting, he was pacing the stoep smoking an after-breakfast
pipe. The valley stretched away, radiant in the morning sunshine, and
the atmosphere was sharp and brisk with a delicious exhilaration. Down
in the camps he could see the black dots moving, where great ostriches
stalked, and every now and then the triple boom, several times repeated,
from the throat of one or other of the huge birds, rolled out upon the
morning air. The song of a Kaffir herd, weird, full-throated, but
melodious, arose from the further hillside, where a large flock of
Angora goats was streaming forth to its grazing ground.

"What would you like to do to-day, Blachland?" said his host, joining
him. "I've got to ride over to Theunis Nel's about some stock, but it
means the best par