"Why didn't I do it at first?" he said; "and that isn't the worst of
it--that fellow will think I ran away because I was afraid of him."

This last thought formed the subject upon which Tom dwelt all the way
back, and he was still busy over an argument with himself as to whether
he had been afraid of the young poacher or no, when, after missing the
way two or three times among the firs, he caught sight of the church
clock pointing to a quarter to eight.

"Just time to get in," he said, as he increased his pace; and
then--"Yes, I suppose it was afraid of him, for he is a good deal bigger
and stronger than I am."

"Hullo, Tom! been for a walk?" saluted him, as he was hurrying at last
along the lane which divided his uncle's grounds from the new purchase.

Tom looked up quickly, and found that Uncle Richard was looking over the
wall of the mill-yard.

"That's right," continued his uncle. "What do you think of the place?"

"Glorious!" said Tom.

"Hungry?"

"Terribly, uncle."

"That's right. Come along, Mrs Fidler's waiting for us by now."

CHAPTER TEN.

Directly after breakfast Tom followed his uncle to the coach-house, and
from there up a ladder fastened to the side into the loft, where he
looked around wonderingly, while his companion's face relaxed into a
grim smile.

"It was originally intended for botanical productions, Tom," he said;
"for a sort of _hortus siccus_, if you know what that means."

"_Hortus_--garden; _siccus_--I don't know what that means, uncle, unless
it's dry."

"That's right, boy. Glad you know some Latin beside the legal. Dry
garden, as a botanist calls it, where he stores up his specimens. But
only a few kinds were kept here: hay, clover, oats, and linseed, in the
form of cake. Now, you see, I've turned it into use for another
science."

"Astronomy, uncle?"

"To be sure; but it's _very_ small and inconvenient. But wait till we
get the windmill going."

"Is this your telescope?" cried Tom.

"Yes, Tom; but it's too small. You'll have to work hard on my big one."

"Yes, uncle," said Tom, with quiet confidence, as he eagerly examined
the glass with its mounting, and the many other objects about the place,
one of which was a kind of trough half full of what seemed to be
beautifully clear water, covered with a sheet of plate-glass.

"There, as soon as you've done we'll go to the mill, for I don't want to
lose any time."

"I could stay here for hours, uncle," sai