, we'll have heaps of practices," said Miss Dewhurst brightly.

As he was going Bettine pressed a small apple into his hand.

"A present for you," she murmured. "I saved it from my dinner."

He was touched.

"I'll give you somethin' to-morrow," he said, adding hastily, "if I
can find anythin'."

They stood in silence till he had finished his apple.

"I've left a lot on the core," he said in a tone of unusual
politeness, handing it to her, "would you like to finish it?"

"No, thank you. William, you'll look so nice holding her train."

"I don't want to, an' I bet I _won't_! You don't _know_ the things I
can do," he said darkly.

"Oh, William!" she gasped in awe and admiration.

"I'd hold your train if you was goin' to be queen," he volunteered.

"I wouldn't want you to hold my train," she said earnestly.
"I'd--I'd--I'd want you to be May King with me."

"Yes. Why don't they have May Kings?" said William, stung by this
insult to his sex.

"Why shouldn't there be a May King?"

"I speck they _do_, really, only p'raps Miss Dewhurst doesn't know
abut it."

"Well, it doesn't seem sense not having May Kings, does it? I wun't
mind bein' May King if you was May Queen."

* * * * *

The rehearsal was, on the whole, a failure.

"William Brown, don't hold the train so high. No, not quite so low.
Don't stand so near the Queen, William Brown. No, not so far
away--you'll pull the train off. Walk when the Queen walks, William
Brown, don't stand still. Sing up, please, train bearer. No, not quite
so loud. That's deafening and not melodious."

In the end he was degraded from the position of train-bearer to that
of ordinary "swain." The "swains" were to be dressed in smocks and the
"maidens" in print dresses, and the Maypole dance was to be performed
round Evangeline Fish, who was to stand in queenly attire by the pole
in the middle. All the village was to be invited.

At the end of the rehearsal William came upon Bettine, once more
gazing wistfully at Evangeline Fish, who was coquetting (with many
tosses of the fair ringlets) before a crowd of admirers.

"Isn't it lovely for her to be May Queen?" said Bettine.

"She's a rotten one," said William. "I'm jolly glad _I've_ not to hold
up her rotten ole train an' listen to her narsy squeaky voice singin'
close to, an' I'll give you a present to-morrow."

He did. He found a centipede in the garden and pressed it into her
hand on the way