and coolly
opened it. Silence fell upon us as we saw that purse. From it he took
a neatly-folded piece of paper, crumpled it into a ball, and flung it
into Jess's lap.

I cannot say whether Jess knew what it was. Her hand shook, and for a
moment she let the ball of paper lie there.

"Open't up," cried Leeby, who was in the secret.

"What 's't?" asked Hendry, drawing nearer.

"It's juist a bit paper Jamie flung at me," said Jess, and then she
unfolded it.

"It's a five-pound note!" cried Hendry.

"Na, na, oh keep us, no," said Jess; but she knew it was.

For a time she could not speak.

"I canna tak it, Jamie," she faltered at last.

But Jamie waved his hand, meaning that it was nothing, and then, lest
he should burst, hurried out into the garden, where he walked up and
down whistling. May God bless the lad, thought I. I do not know the
history of that five-pound note, but well aware I am that it grew
slowly out of pence and silver, and that Jamie denied his passions many
things for this great hour. His sacrifices watered his young heart and
kept it fresh and tender. Let us no longer cheat our consciences by
talking of filthy lucre. Money may always be a beautiful thing. It is
we who make it grimy.

CHAPTER XVII

A HOME FOR GENIUSES

From hints he had let drop at odd times I knew that Tammas Haggart had
a scheme for geniuses, but not until the evening after Jamie's arrival
did I get it out of him. Hendry was with Jamie at the fishing, and it
came about that Tammas and I had the pig-sty to ourselves.

"Of course," he said, when we had got a grip of the subject, "I dount
pretend as my ideas is to be followed withoot deeviation, but
ondootedly something should be done for geniuses, them bein' aboot the
only class as we do naething for. Yet they're fowk to be prood o', an'
we shouldna let them overdo the thing, nor run into debt; na, na.
There was Robbie Burns, noo, as real a genius as ever--"

At the pig-sty, where we liked to have more than one topic, we had
frequently to tempt Tammas away from Burns.

"Your scheme," I interposed, "is for living geniuses, of course?"

"Ay," he said, thoughtfully, "them 'at's gone canna be brocht back.
Weel, my idea is 'at a Home should be built for geniuses at the public
expense, whaur they could all live thegither, an be decently looked
after. Na, no in London; that's no my plan, but I would hae't within
an hour's distance o' London, say five mile fr