Poor little Wyn was always hoping that his master would be well enough to come into the wood; but the drives in the pony chaise had been very short of late, and often Edgar was only fit to lie quite still on the terrace, looking at the sky and the trees, still enjoying the sense of "out of doors," which was like life to him. One splendid afternoon, early in September, when the sky was one glorious sheet of blue, and the red creepers and purple clematis were covering the side of the old house with colour, Wyn came up the garden with a carefully constructed basket of lichens and wild flowers in his hand. He had brought it up to show it to Mr Edgar; and, by good luck, there lay Mr Edgar, alone on his couch, for once without Mr Alwyn by his side, to take up his attention. "Ha, Wyn!" he said; "what have you there? What splendid affair is that?" "Please, sir, Lady Carleton has offered a prize for the best wild-flower collection at the flower show to-morrow, and this is mine. There are grasses and lichens too, sir." "Yes. Capital! How well you have arranged it! All the three sorts of heath too!" "Yes, sir. Please, sir, last year we went right through the wood to see the heather in bloom." "Ah, yes; but, you see, just lately the pony chair seems to shake me, so I have to lie still." "When you're better, sir, there's a new bit of clearing that's very pretty. There'll be plenty of anemones there in the spring." "Yes, in the spring! We've had some very good times out with Dobbles, Wyn, haven't we? You must bring him up for me to look at some day, if I can't go out. Now tell me about all the creatures." Wyn began a long list of the various birds and beasts under his charge, as had often been his custom; but there was something in the intent way in which his young master looked at him that made it difficult for Wyn to go on. Edgar lay so still, and made so little comment. "Thank you," he said, when Wyn paused, which was not at all his usual way of receiving the reports, as he used to call them. "Alwyn, is that you at last?" he said, as a step sounded. "Yes; did you wonder where I was?" said Alwyn, standing over him. His colour was high and his look quite radiant. He held some letters in his hand. Edgar's attention was caught at once. "Your basket is first-rate, Wyn," he said; "I wish I could have helped you to get the flowers. Are you going to take it in now?" "Yes, sir, and to take some flowers to little Miss Lily, who wants to send up a bunch, `not for competition,' she says, sir, because she can't get them all herself." "Well, you must come and tell me about the show.--What is it, Alwyn?" he added eagerly, as Wyn went his way.