smile of
gentle subtlety. The captain shot an inquiring glance out of his
red-brown eyes, and in turn laughed a little uncomfortably.

"Nay now, thou 'rt laughing at me, Will. I claim no great meed of
humility to be sure, and yet thou knowest lad, that if I could serve
this emprise better by carrying a musket in the ranks"--

"Nay now, old friend, may not I smile at some jest between myself and my
pipe, but thou must tack more meaning to it than Brewster says hung on
Lord Burleigh's nod? And yet in sober sadness, Myles, 't is marvel to me
how thou, born to a great name and to such observance as awaits the
children of wealthy houses, and then, when hardly more than a boy,
placed in authority such as appertaineth to an English army officer in
time of war, how thou hast failed to become more arrogant and peremptory
than thou art. And as for a musket in the ranks, what were that to such
offices as not yet a year agone I saw thee fill around the beds of the
sick and dying in our first great plague? When had we a tenderer nurse,
a more patient watcher? What office was too loathly for thee, what
tendence too tiring?"--

"Will, an' thou holdst not thy tongue I'll leave thee to thyself."

"Thou 'lt never be so rude in thine own house, Myles. Such manners would
ill befit a Standish of Standish."

"Come now, Governor, do you disapprove of the salute, or of any other of
my military ordonnances?"

"I disapprove of naught, old comrade, but of a certain want of patience
beneath a friend's jest which I have sometimes marked, and haply it is I
who am at fault to try thee so; but Myles, there's enow to make the
governor of this colony sorry and sober, and thou shouldst not grudge
him a moment of merriment even at thine own cost."

"Nor do I, as well thou knowest, Will. 'T is only that I am as ever a
hot-headed fool and ill deserve a friend like thee. And now what thinkst
thou of Master Cushman's errand, and the chidings of those London
traders that we sent them not a cargo by the Mayflower? We who had much
ado to dig the graves of half our company and to find food for the rest,
to be rated like laggard servants because we laded not that old hulk
with merchandise for their benefit."

"Ay, Master Weston's letter was somewhat hard to bear, albeit we should
excuse much to his ignorance of our surroundings," said Bradford
placably, although the color rose to his cheek at thought of the
injustice he and his friends had suffered. "I h