“I am not at all offended at the inquiry,” was the kindly reply.  “The intimacy and confidences are not to be all on one side, my boy.

“I am quite willing you should know that am able now to do without the pay, some land belonging to me in the Far West having so risen in value as to afford me sufficient means for the proper support of my family, and education of my children.”

“Oh, that is good!” cried Max, clapping his hands in delight.  “And if it is used up by the time I’m grown and educated, I hope I’ll be able to take care of you, and provide for you as you do now for me.”

“Thank you, my dear boy,” the captain said with feeling; “the day may come when you will be the stay and staff of my old age; but, however that may be, you may be sure that nothing can add more to your father’s happiness than seeing you growing up to honorable and Christian manhood.”

“Yes, sir:  it’s what I want to do.”  Then, a little anxiously, after a moment’s thought, “Am I to be sent away to school, sir?”

“I have not quite decided that question, and your wishes will have great weight with me in making the decision.  I shall keep Lulu at home, and educate her myself,—­act as her tutor, I mean,—­and if my boy would like to become my pupil also”—­

“O papa! indeed, indeed I should!” exclaimed Max joyfully, as his father paused, looking smilingly at him; “and I’ll try hard to do you credit as my teacher as well as my father.”

“Then we will make the trial,” said the captain.  “If it should not prove a success, there will be time enough after that to try a school.”

“What about me, papa?” asked Grace wistfully, feeling as if she were being overlooked in the arrangements.

“You, too, shall say lessons to papa,” he answered with tender look and tone.  “Shall you like that?”

“Ever so much!” she exclaimed, lifting glad, shining eyes to his face.

“Now you may go back to your play,” he said, gently putting her off his knee.  “I must go to your mamma and our poor, suffering baby.”

He went; but the children lingered a while where they were, talking over this wonderfully good news.

“Now,” said Max, “if Lu had only controlled her temper yesterday, what a happy family we’d be!”

“Yes,” sighed Grace; “how I do wish she had!  Oh, I’m so sorry for her, that she doesn’t know this about papa going to stay with us all the time!  ’Sides, she’s ’specting to be sent away somewhere; and how dreadfully she must feel!  Papa’s punishing her very hard, and very long; but of course he knows best, and he loves her.”

“Yes, I’m sure he does,” assented Max:  “so he won’t give her any more punishment than he thinks she needs.  It’ll be a fine thing for her, and all the rest of us too, if this hard lesson teaches her never to get into a passion again.”

Capt.  Raymond had intended going to Lulu early in the day; but anxiety about the babe, and sympathy with Violet, kept him with them till late in the afternoon.