ave him the two letters and sent him away. Thora was still
"far off," or she would have remembered her letters but it was near
the noon of the next day when she asked her mother where they were.

"Thy father has them."

"I am sorry, so sorry!"

That was all she said but the subject appeared to distress her for she
closed her eyes, and Rahal kissed away the tears that slowly found
their way down the white, stricken face. However, from this hour she
rallied and towards night fell into a deep sleep which lasted for
fourteen hours; and it was during this anxious period of waiting that
Ragnor talked to his wife about the letters which were, presumably,
the cause of the trouble.

"Those letters I gave thee, Coll, did thou read both of them?"

"Both of them I read. Ian's was the happy letter of an expectant
bridegroom. Only joy and hope was in it. It was the other one that was
a death blow. Yes, indeed, it was a bad, cruel letter!"

"And the name? Who wrote it?"

"Jean Hay."

"Jean Hay! What could Jean have to do with Thora's affairs?"

"Well, then, her conscience made her interfere. She had heard some
evil reports about Ian's life and she thought it her duty, after yours
and Thora's kindness to her, to report these stories."

"A miserable return for our kindness! This is what I notice--when
people want to say cruel things, they always blame their conscience or
their duty for making them do it."

"Here is Jean's letter. Thou, thyself, must read it."

Rahal read it with constantly increasing anger and finally threw it on
the table with passionate scorn. "Not one word of this stuff do I
believe, Coll! Envy and jealousy sent that news, not gratitude and
good will! No, indeed! But I will tell thee, Coll, one thing I have
always found sure, it is this; that often, much evil comes to the good
from taking people out of their poverty and misfortunes. They are
paying a debt they owe from the past and if we assume that debt we
have it to pay in some wise. That is the wisdom of the old, the wisdom
learned by sad experience. I wish, then, that I had let the girl pay
her own debt and carry her own burden. She is envious of Thora. Yet
was Thora very good to her. Do I believe in her gratitude? Not I! Had
she done this cruel thing out of a kind heart, she would have sent
this letter to me and left the telling or the not telling to my love
and best judgment. I will not believe anything against Ian Macrae!
Nothing at all!"

"Mu