And with that he handed the disputed document to the schoolmistress, took off his hat with a flourish, and marched away quick time. Not so quick, however, but that a little petulant cry fell upon his ears, and, wheeling involuntarily, he saw that the letter had been flung upon the ground, and that Ruby Damory was leaning against the hedge with her face buried in her hands. Chris came back at the double. “There!” he cried penitently. “I’m a brute beast. I beg your pardon, my maid. I’m truly sorry--truly, I am.” “Oh,” sobbed Ruby, “how could you be so unkind?” “I’m sure I don’t know how I came for to forget myself like that,” he returned ruefully; “but I’ll never offend again, Miss Damory--never.” “To expect me--to--to do that,” faltered Ruby, “when you’d never said a word of love to me--when you’d never even asked to walk with me.” The postman’s brown face assumed a puzzled air; he drew a step nearer, and picked up the letter. “But,” said he; then paused, and once more tendered the document to the schoolmistress. “Oh, bother!” cried she irritably. “It’ll keep.” Chris’s countenance lit up suddenly. “Will it, indeed?” cried he. “That’s a tale--a very different tale. There, when I was comin’ along wi’ that letter, ’twas all I could do not to bury it or to drop it into a ditch. I mastered myself, ye know, but I were terr’ble tempted, and that was why,” he added with a sly glance, “I did look for some reward.” “But why did you want to destroy my aunt’s letter?” asked Ruby. “Your aunt!” exclaimed Chris. “Your _aunt_! Well, that beats all.” He took off his hat and waved it; he danced a kind of jig upon the footpath; he threw himself sideways against the hedge, laughing all the while, so that Ruby stared in amazement. Suddenly he composed himself. “That be another tale, indeed, my maid,” said he. “I were a-thinking all the time ’twas your young man you was expectin’ to hear from. But why was you always so eager on the look-out for me?” “I’m sure I wasn’t,” said Ruby, and she blushed to the roots of her hair. She dared not look at Chris for a full moment, but at last was constrained to raise her eyes to his face, and there, lo, and behold! he was blushing too. And looking at her--yes--with that very self-same expression which she had seen in his eyes on the morning when she had first hidden herself behind the blackboard. He came a step nearer, and his blue-coated arm began to insinuate itself between the hedge and her trim waist. “Then why, my maid,” he began gently--“that there game, ye know--why didn’t you let me finish?” “Why,” said Ruby, between laughing and crying, “because you hadn’t begun.” He whistled softly under his breath. “Shall us begin now?” said he. “You and me--we’ll do it proper this time.” “Begin courting?” said she innocently. “Yes, we’ll play the game right. Here’s a Fine Thing and a very Fine Thing--that’s you, my dear--now what’s the owner of this Fine Thing to do? The owner--that’s me--why--this----”