"As if she could! Bess is the top, tail, and bottom of the house."
"That she is," cried Ida hugging her sister, "and I am jealous of Jim taking her away from us!" Then she gave Herrick a roguish glance. "Was I not right?" she asked.
"Perfectly right," he replied, and drew Bess down on the seat beside him. Ida went as by instinct to Stephen. Only the miserable Frank was left out in the cold, and said so. The quartette laughed heartlessly.
There was not a happier party in the whole three kingdoms than that seated before the fire in the house of wicked Colonel Carr. If the shade of the old man had been present in the room, he must--or rather _It_ must have sighed enviously at the sight of such happiness. Not during his reign had such truth and honour and clean delight prevailed in the old house. It was a merry evening. "Memory of the Golden Age," said Jim.
The next morning Dr. Herrick re-entered the work-a-day world. He walked over to Biffstead and found Bess just setting out for Beorminster on her bicycle. "You can leave that," he said after a kiss had been exchanged, "I will drive you over to Beorminster in the cart. I told the groom to put in the horse and bring it round here."
"You are going to Town?" asked Bess.
"Yes! On the track of those two scamps. You are going to see Bridge about that bullet?"
"Yes! I have the pistol in my pocket," she replied showing it.
"Very good. Can you drive the cart back?"
"Of course I can. Drive? Who ever heard of asking a country girl such a question. You do not know my accomplishments Jim."