anger, his anger to
complaint. Fretfully he muttered to himself that it was too bad that
after all these years of unchequered happiness a stranger should step in
and destroy everything at one blow; that he should be made to feel he
was no longer an element in his daughter's happiness. And his anger
increased as his sense of injury grew stronger, until he clenched his
fist and thundered to the empty room:

"May, you have turned against me; you have shown me you no longer want
me. Well, then, I will shew you I no longer want--"

Here he came to a sudden pause. His voice trembled, his anger wavered,
for, by a sudden wave of memory, he caught himself listening again to
the voice of his dying wife as she handed over to him the care of the
child whose advent they had welcomed so much in the long past. At the
magic touch of the dead woman's memory his rage disappeared, his heart
softened, and tears coursed down his cheeks, and he vowed not to forsake
his daughter yet, and prayed for a way out of his difficulty.

As if in answer to his unspoken wish, he heard footsteps approaching
and, with a glad cry of welcome, he grasped the hands of Hal and Reg.
They, in their turn, noticed his altered appearance, and asked if
anything had happened.

"I called on her to-day, and was given to understand I was not wanted,"
he said in a sad voice.

"We'll fix that all right, Mr. Goodchild," said Hal in his hearty way.
And then he told him all that had happened during their trip to Port
Arthur.

"Do you think he was referring to May when he spoke of a young lady
joining him?" asked Goody when Hal had finished.

"I do, sir."

"And what conclusion do you draw from that?"

"Only the worst, sir, I am afraid."

"And you have no idea where he has gone now?"

"None, whatever. We called at the telegraph office and asked the
shipping agent, but without result."

"I hope the scoundrel will be drowned."

"I hope not," chimed in Reg, emphatically.

"I don't think you need fear that," said Hal with light cynicism.
"Fellows of his stamp have nine lives. If he were a useful man in the
world then I should despair."

"What do you intend doing now?" asked Goody, anxiously.

"We intend going to Eastella and bringing your daughter to reason," said
Hal, with determination.

"I admire your perseverance, but I am afraid you will be doomed to
disappointment, for she always had a will of her own, but I never knew
how strong it was until now."