"Yes."
The Schoolmaster's eyes dwelt on the girl for a moment.
"There are not enough children coming for schooling. We won't be here for much longer," he said. "We'll be going up to Steve's soon."
"Going up to Steve's?" Deirdre asked. "When?"
The Schoolmaster did not answer at once.
"When Conal gets back. I want to see him first," he said. "We'll just be staying a few weeks with Steve for a holiday and then be leaving the district again."
Mrs. Cameron sat talking to them of the every-day affairs of her life, a little longer. Then she got up to go.
"Is it true what they say—that he will lose his sight?" she asked Deirdre when they were outside.
Deirdre nodded. She could scarcely speak of the time when the light of the world would be blotted out for ever from Dan.
"We saw a doctor in Rane. He said so," she replied.