The Standard Bearer

ain from the MS. of

of water, and more the extension of the river than, as it were, a lake of set intent, has yet many broad, still stretches

d of the loch. We saw, however, the rut which the prow of the boat had made in taking the pebbles, and the large stone to which it had been fas

knee, and told her that I must take her home to find her mother. And also that because

he asked, for from the first she

ot willingly nor yet trustingly as she had done to Anna, but rather wit

quite to the edge of the water, so that for the first quarter of a mile Mary Gordon

en moving cautiously through{44} the trees, and were indeed just about to emerge from the brushwood, when

Who goe

h the instinctive craft born of years of persecution and conce

it necessary to enter the wood-where, indeed, for all he knew

urs hail him from the next pos

the wood," he retu

rade higher up, cheerily. "There are many of them about.

spoken-as it were, in order to cl

voice caused me t

ted fugitive. What chance was there for a couple of children to pass the guarded line? By myself I might, indeed, have managed. I could well enough have rushed across the line when the

rew, taking care that no more rotten sticks should snap beneath our feet. For I knew th

he edge of the lake, we came upon a couple of sheepfolds. One of these belonged to our own

e home. You promis

ess and tears as she found herself going fur

soldier men would shoot us,

hing at my hand pettishly, and then throwing it from

es your Aunti

g way?" she answered. "It is in

yet longer and more difficult road than to the Earlstoun, and the line

lstoun, Gordonston, and even our own little farm town of Ardarroch were all manned and watched, but the half-ruinous block-house{47} of Lochinvar set in the midst of its moorland loc

dwelt there and we could find our way. Suddenly, as we looked about, an

heavy wooden gates swung upon posts driven deep into the ground. The gates lifted away easily from their hinges. Two or three of these would make a secure enough raft if I could only f

of failure. The man in the brown coat lying prone{48} on his face up there abov

"buchts" from end to end. I found three gates which could be easil

uld only break a limb from a tree and draw them down to the loch shore on that, even as I had often help

with all its wealth of rustling leaves upon it. But the snap I made in breaking it off from the tree would certai

d us we came again

49} Gordon a branch to tug at, which made her happier than anything I had done since Anna

corner of our own "buchts" my father kept some well-tarred hempen cord, which I had seen him place there only the day be

four blocks of stone split into faces. There was little enough of it when I rove it out, but

a trifle heavy. It was some time before I hit upon a plan of launching my top-heavy craft. With the loose "stob" of a gatepost{50} I managed to lever the

ater. With the end of the rope in my hand I climbed on board, but soon found that with my weight the top

ind a raft on a midsummer night. For among other ploys Hob and I would often play at a sort of tilting or tou

ft where I had placed her. Soon she had begun to take an interest in the adventure, and had forgotten her weariness. She did not, however,{51} again speak of her mother, but said that she w