"Why you have made good use of your time," Mrs. Scrimp said, now entirely mollified. "Bring your basket into the sitting-room, where Gracie is; and we'll look over its contents." Max was less fortunate to-day than his sister. His custodian was on the look-out for him, cowhide in hand, and seizing him roughly, as he entered the gate, with a fierce, "I'll teach you to disobey orders another time, you young vagabond! I told you to come home at noon, and you're over two hours behind time!" began to administer an unmerciful flogging. "Stop!" cried Max, trying to dodge the blows. "How could I tell the time? I came as soon as I thought it was noon." But his tormentor was in a towering passion and would not stay his hand to listen to any excuse. "Do you mean to kill me?" screamed Max. "You'll hang for it if you do. And my father----" "Your father believes in enforcing obedience to orders, sir; and I'll----" But at this instant there was an interference from a third party. At a little distance some men were at work hewing timber. They had been working there for weeks, in which Max had made acquaintance and become a great favorite with them, particularly one called by his companions, "Big Bill," because of his great size and strength. He was a rough, good-natured man, with nothing of the bully about him, but regarded with intense scorn and indignation any attempt on the part of the strong to tyrannize over the weak and defenceless. He and his comrades had seen and heard enough in these weeks of labor in the vicinity of Fox's residence to inspire them with contempt and dislike toward him on account of his treatment of Max. They had among themselves already pronounced him "a wolf in sheep's clothing, a hypocrite and a coward." They had seen him watching for the boy with his instrument of torture in his hand, and their wrath had waxed hot. When Max came in sight they dropped their tools and looked to see what would happen, and at the first blow "Big Bill" muttering between his clenched teeth, "I'll settle his hash for him," started for the scene of action. "Stop that!" he roared, "stop that, you old hypocritical scoundrel! You hit that boy another lick and I'll knock you as flat as a flounder!" The hand that held the whip dropped at Fox's side, and the other loosed its hold on Max as he turned and faced his assailant. "What do you mean by coming here to interfere in my business?" he demanded.