The buildings were substantial, commodious, and in fairly good condition, but the so-called stock was poor in the extreme. The farming utensils were ill-conditioned and of little value; and the household furniture, which scarcely included the barest necessities, was rudely constructed, of the roughest material, and possessed no features of attractiveness. Three horses, five steers, two dogs, and one cat, constituted the live stock. About thirty acres had been under cultivation, but nothing had been done since the late harvest to prepare the land for the next. Crowley—who originally had been asking three hundred pounds for the holding as it stood—was willing now to take almost any offer that would enable him to get away. Ranger was well satisfied with the position of the location, and the prospects it held out, and had no hesitation in advising Fellows to offer two hundred pounds down, which, after a very little demur, was accepted, with option of possession within a month. The farmer was pleased with the future which appeared to be opening for Fellows, notwithstanding it would be at some considerable sacrifice to himself. The services of Barton he could well dispense with, but those of Fellows, and Russell in addition, would be a serious depletion of his working staff, which it might be a work of time efficiently to replace. He, however, felt he had done no more than was his duty. It was the correct thing to do. And he had no fears that he would come out all right in the end. *CHAPTER XXXI.* *JOHN AND MARY.* "I will hereupon confess, I am in love." _Love’s Labours Lost_, Act I. sc. ii. Barton’s duties at the Ranch were of such a nature, that he was seldom to be seen in the neighbourhood of the house during the daytime; for the most part he was out on the prairie, attending to the cattle, of which Ranger had now a pretty considerable stock. Mary Truman’s attention was chiefly devoted to the dairy, which of late had quite outgrown the powers of Mrs. Ranger, and she was only too glad to avail herself of the assistance which Mary was very willing and quite competent to render. The two had but few opportunities of seeing each other; and during the week which was to elapse, according to arrangement, before the reply he had asked her for was to be given, they had seen nor heard nothing of one another. Mary had learned from Mrs. Ranger of the departure of Charles, and the circumstances which had brought that event about. Whatever may have been her feelings for John, she had no sympathy with Charles, and felt, in common with others, no pang of regret when told he had gone. With the exception of his brother, the man seemed to have left not a friend behind him. Mary kept herself as much in the house as possible, as though carefully bent upon putting obstacles in the way of any accidental meeting between herself and John.