gus's horsemanship, came rushing
home at a fierce gallop without him, having indeed left him in a
ditch by the roadside. The remark thereupon made by the men in his
hearing, that it was his own fault, led him to ask questions, when
he came gradually to know what they attributed to him, and was
indignant at the imputation of such an employment of his mornings to
one who had his studies to attend to--scarcely a wise line of
defence where the truth would have been more credible as well as
convincing--namely, that at the time when those works of
supererogation could alone be effected, he lay as lost a creature as
ever sleep could make of a man.

In the evening, Jean sought a word with Donal, and expressed her
surprise that he should be able to do everybody's work about the
place, warning him it would be said he did it at the expense of his
own. But what could he mean, she said, by wasting the good corn to
put devilry into the horses? Donal stared in utter bewilderment.
He knew perfectly that to the men suspicion of him was as
impossible as of one of themselves. Did he not sleep in the same
chamber with them? Could it be allusion to the way he spent his
time when out with the cattle that Mistress Jean intended? He was
so confused, looked so guilty as well as astray, and answered so far
from any point in Jean's mind, that she at last became altogether
bewildered also, out of which chaos of common void gradually dawned
on her mind the conviction that she had been wasting both thanks and
material recognition of service, where she was under no obligation.
Her first feeling thereupon was, not unnaturally however
unreasonably, one of resentment--as if Donal, in not doing her the
kindness her fancy had been attributing to him, had all the time
been doing her an injury; but the boy's honest bearing and her own
good sense made her, almost at once, dismiss the absurdity.

Then came anew the question, utterly unanswerable now--who could it
be that did not only all her morning work, but, with a passion for
labour insatiable, part of that of the men also? She knew her
nephew better than to imagine for a moment, with the men, it could
be he. A good enough lad she judged him, but not good enough for
that. He was too fond of his own comfort to dream of helping other
people! But now, having betrayed herself to Donal, she wisely went
farther, and secured herself by placing full confidence in him. She
laid open the whole matter,