“But how did he do it?”

“By cool courage and good feeling;—­so his lordship says.  But I wonder how he really did do it?”

“Whatever way it was, he’s torn all his clothes and lost his hat,” said Mary.

“I don’t care a bit about that,” said Mrs Eames.  “I wonder whether the earl has any interest at the Income-tax.  What a thing it would be if he could get Johnny a step.  It would be seventy pounds a year at once.  He was quite right to stay and dine when his lordship asked him.  And so Dr Crofts is there.  It couldn’t have been anything in the doctoring way, I suppose.”

“No, I should say not; because of what he says of his trousers.”  And so the two ladies were obliged to wait for John’s return.

“How did you do it, John?” said his mother, embracing him, as soon as the door was opened.

“How did you save the earl’s life?” said Mary, who was standing behind her mother.

“Would his lordship really have been killed, if it had not been for you?” asked Mrs Eames.

“And was he very much hurt?” asked Mary.

“Oh, bother,” said Johnny, on whom the results of the day’s work, together with the earl’s Falernian, had made some still remaining impression.  On ordinary occasions, Mrs Eames would have felt hurt at being so answered by her son; but at the present moment she regarded him as standing so high in general favour that she took no offence.  “Oh, Johnny, do tell us.  Of course we must be very anxious to know it all.”

“There’s nothing to tell, except that a bull ran at the earl, as I was going by; so I went into the field and helped him, and then he made me stay and dine with him.”

“But his lordship says that you saved his life,” said Mary.

“Under Providence,” added their mother.

“At any rate, he has given me a gold watch and chain,” said Johnny, drawing the present out of his pocket.  “I wanted a watch badly.  All the same, I didn’t like taking it.”

“It would have been very wrong to refuse,” said his mother.  “And I am so glad you have been so fortunate.  And look here, Johnny:  when a friend like that comes in your way, don’t turn your back on him.”  Then, at last, he thawed beneath their kindness, and told them the whole of the story.  I fear that in recounting the earl’s efforts with the spud, he hardly spoke of his patron with all that deference which would have been appropriate.

CHAPTER XXIII

Mr Plantagenet Palliser

A week passed over Mr Crosbie’s head at Courcy Castle without much inconvenience to him from the well-known fact of his matrimonial engagement.  Both George de Courcy and John de Courcy had in their different ways charged him with his offence, and endeavoured to annoy him by recurring to the subject; but he did not care much for the wit or malice of George or John de Courcy.  The countess had hardly alluded to