’I shall miss her so much, and be so lonely without her.  I hope you’ll call often,’ she said to him, when at last the drive was over, and Tom promised that he would, and kept his promise, too; for after Arthur left, he found Tracy Park so insupportably dull, with his father always in Maude’s room and his mother always in tears, that it was a relief to go to Le Bateau and be made much of as if he were a prince and treated to nice little lunches and suppers, even if old Peterkin did make one of the party and disgust him so at times that he felt as if he must snatch up his hat and fly.

And one night, when the old man had been more than usually disagreeable and pompous, he did start up abruptly and leave the house, mentally vowing never to enter it again.

’I’d rather saw wood and gather swill, as Hal used to, than listen to that infernal old brag,’ he was saying to himself, when he heard a wheezy sound behind him, and looking round saw the old brag in full pursuit and beckoning him to stop.

‘I’m goin’ to walk a spell with you,’ he said, locking his arm in Tom’s as he came up.  ‘I want to have a little talk.’

‘Yes,’ Tom faltered, with a dreadful sinking of the heart, while Peterkin went on: 

‘You see you’ve been a comin’ to Lubbertoo off and on for mighty nigh a month, and as the parents of a family it’s time I as’t your intentions.’

‘Intentions!’ Tom stammered, trying to draw his arm from Peterkin’s.

But he might as well have tried to wrench it from a vise, for Peterkin held it fast and went on: 

’Yes, intentions!  Thunderation, hain’t a chap ’sposed to have intentions when he hangs round a gal who has money like my Ann ’Liza!  I tell you what, Thomas,’ and his manner became very insinuating and frank, ’as nigh as I can kalkerlate I’m worth three millions, fair and square, and there’s three on ’em to divide it amongst—­May Jane, Bill, and Ann ‘Liza.  Now, s’posin’ we say three into three million, don’t it leave a million?’

Tom acknowledged that it did, and Peterkin continued: 

’Jess so.  Now I ain’t one of them mean skunks that wants his folks to wait till he’s dead afore they enjoys themselves; and the day my Ann ’Liza is married, I plank down a million in hard cash for her and her husband to do what they darned please with; cut a dash in Europe as Hal is doin’, if they like, or cut a splurge to hum, it’s all one to me.  I call that square, don’t you?’

Tom admitted that he did, and Peterkin went on: 

’Now, then, I ain’t goin’t to have Ann ’Liza’s affections trifled with, and if I catch a feller a doin’ on’t, d’ye know what I’ll do?’

Tom could not guess, and Peterkin continued: 

’I’ll lick him within an inch of his life, and then set the dogs on him, and heave him inter the river!  See?’

It was not a warm day, but Tom was perspiring at every pore as he saw presented to him the choice between a million or to be ’licked within an inch of his life and then dogged into the river.’  Naturally he chose the first as the lesser evil of the two, and began to lie as he had never lied in his life before.  He was very glad, he said, that Peterkin had broached the subject, as it made matters easier for him by showing him that his suit might not be rejected, as he had feared it might be.