"
"As I'm in a hurry to see the old house, I'll go this way first, if you
will be kind enough to give my love to Mrs. Allen, and tell the Squire
Miss Celia is coming to dine with him. I wont say good-by, because I
shall see you again."
With a nod and a smile the young lady cantered away, and Ben hurried up
the hill to deliver his message, feeling as if something pleasant was
going to happen, so it would be wise to defer running away, for the
present at least.
[Illustration: BEN TAKES THE STONE FROM LITA'S FOOT.]
At one o'clock Miss Celia arrived, and Ben had the delight of helping
Pat stable pretty Chevalita; then, his own dinner hastily eaten, he
fell to work at the detested wood-pile with sudden energy, for, as he
worked, he could steal peeps into the dining-room, and see the curly
brown head between the two gray ones as the three sat round the table.
He could not help hearing a word now and then, as the windows were
open, and these bits of conversation filled him with curiosity, for the
names "Thorny," "Celia," and "George" were often repeated, and an
occasional merry laugh from the young lady sounded like music in that
usually quiet place.
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