"Now, then, forward march if you want something to eat."
Max marched. He dared not refuse, but he did rebel when he saw what was offered for his breakfast.
"I can't eat that!" he said angrily.
"All right! Forward, march! We'll let ye work on an empty stomach if ye really hanker to."
All sorts of tasks were set for him, and for the next few days he was kept exceedingly busy.
He learned to do as he was told, and to do it promptly; to eat what was given him without grumbling, and there was something else that he learned by his hard experience. He learned what a fortunate boy he had always been; to appreciate all the good things that had always been so freely given him, and above all these, he longed for his mother's love.
He thought what a good boy he'd be if ever he reached the shore, and he resolved never to run away, whatever happened that displeased him.
A happy boy was Max when a passing smack stopped long enough so that he could be taken on board, and then headed straight for Cliffmore.
Max thought nothing had ever looked so beautiful as the cliffs from which Cliffmore took its name, when in the early morning they sailed into the bay, and saw the warm sunlight kissing land and sea.
Ah, he would never run away again, for now he knew the value of home and love.