o ride upon,
as well as other animals, lions and eagles and bulls, in more important
situations. The horses the angels ride, must be angel-horses, else the
angels couldn't ride upon them. Well, I'm one of them."

"You ain't."

"Did you ever know a horse tell a lie?"

"Never before. But you've confessed to shamming lame."

"Nothing of the sort. It was necessary I should grow fat, and necessary
that good Joseph, your master, should grow lean. I could have pretended
to be lame, but that no horse, least of all an angel-horse would do. So
I must be lame, and so I sprained my ankle--for the angel-horses have
ankles--they don't talk horse-slang up there--and it hurt me very much,
I assure you, Diamond, though you mayn't be good enough to be able to
believe it."

Old Diamond made no reply. He had lain down again, and a sleepy snort,
very like a snore, revealed that, if he was not already asleep, he was
past understanding a word that Ruby was saying. When young Diamond found
this, he thought he might venture to take up the dropt shuttlecock of
the conversation.

"I'm good enough to believe it, Ruby," he said.

But Ruby never turned his head, or took any notice of him. I suppose
he did not understand more of English than just what the coachman and
stableman were in the habit of addressing him with. Finding, however,
that his companion made no reply, he shot his head over the partition
and looking down at him said--

"You just wait till to-morrow, and you'll see whether I'm speaking the
truth or not.--I declare the old horse is fast asleep!--Diamond!--No I
won't."

Ruby turned away, and began pulling at his hayrack in silence.

Diamond gave a shiver, and looking round saw that the door of the stable
was open. He began to feel as if he had been dreaming, and after a
glance about the stable to see if North Wind was anywhere visible, he
thought he had better go back to bed.

CHAPTER XXXIII. THE PROSPECT BRIGHTENS

THE next morning, Diamond's mother said to his father, "I'm not quite
comfortable about that child again."

"Which child, Martha?" asked Joseph. "You've got a choice now."

"Well, Diamond I mean. I'm afraid he's getting into his queer ways
again. He's been at his old trick of walking in his sleep. I saw him run
up the stair in the middle of the night."

"Didn't you go after him, wife?"

"Of course I did--and found him fast asleep in his bed. It's because
he's had so little meat for the last six