"I don't wonder that you want to get hold of the freehold of Hillside," he said. "I should if I were in your place. Apart from sentiment, the business side appeals strongly. The discovery of a good tin lode there would be the making of St. Goram——"
"And the ruin of the farm," Ralph interjected.
"Well, the erection of a big engine-house on the top of the hill and fire stamps in Dingley Bottom would certainly not improve the appearance of things from an artistic point of view."
"'There is no gain except by loss,'" Ralph quoted, with a smile.
"True; but we all ought to consider the greatest good of the greatest number."
Ralph laughed.
"Don't credit me with virtues I don't possess," he said. "I confess I'm thinking in the first instance only of myself."
"Well, I suppose that's only natural," William said seriously. "But now to business. If you purchase the farm at the squire's price, how much money will you require beyond what you have?"
Ralph named the sum.
"Is that all?"