"Did you do it?" queried the deacon, sharply.
"No, sir. I never fired a gun in my life."
"Who did it, then?"
"Must I tell, Mark?"
"Yes, Johnny; Deacon Miller has a right to know; even if it was not done on purpose, the one who did it ought to make good the loss."
"That's where you speak sense, Mark," said the deacon, approvingly.
"Then it was Jim Collins."
"James Collins—the squire's son!" repeated the deacon, astonished.
"Yes."
John proceeded to tell the story once more. The deacon, it is needless to say, listened very attentively.