s to where his people had set a meal. Himself he mixed the
wine.

'"A year from now," he said, "you will remember that you have sat with the
Emperor of Britain--and Gaul."

'"Yes," said the Pater, "you can drive two mules--Gaul and Britain."

'"Five years hence you will remember that you have drunk"--he passed me the
cup and there was blue borage in it--"with the Emperor of Rome!"

'"No; you can't drive three mules; they will tear you in pieces," said my
Father.

'"And you on the Wall, among the heather, will weep because your notion of
justice was more to you than the favour of the Emperor of Rome."

'I sat quite still. One does not answer a General who wears the Purple.

'"I am not angry with you," he went on; "I owe too much to your Father----"

'"You owe me nothing but advice that you never took," said the Pater.

'"----to be unjust to any of your family. Indeed, I say you will make a good
officer, but, so far as I am concerned, on the Wall you will live, and on
the Wall you will die," said Maximus.

'"Very like," said my Father. "But we shall have the Picts _and_ their
friends breaking through before long. You cannot move all troops out of
Britain to make you Emperor, and expect the North to sit quiet."

'"I follow my destiny," said Maximus.

'"Follow it, then," said my Father pulling up a fern root; "and die as
Theodosius died."

'"Ah!" said Maximus. "My old General was killed because he served the
Empire too well. _I_ may be killed, but not for that reason," and he
smiled a little pale grey smile that made my blood run cold.

'"Then I had better follow my destiny," I said, "and take my men to the
Wall."

'He looked at me a long time, and bowed his head slanting like a Spaniard.
"Follow it, boy," he said. That was all. I was only too glad to get away,
though I had many messages for home. I found my men standing as they had
been put--they had not even shifted their feet in the dust,--and off I
marched, still feeling that terrific smile like an east wind up my back. I
never halted them till sunset, and'--he turned about and looked at Pook's
Hill below him--'then I halted yonder.' He pointed to the broken,
bracken-covered shoulder of the Forge Hill behind old Hobden's cottage.

'There? Why, that's only the old Forge--where they made iron once,' said
Dan.

'Very good stuff it was too,' said Parnesius, calmly. 'We mended three
shoulder-straps here and had a spear-head riveted. The forge was rented
f