It was well that Verty was interrupted as he essayed to speak; for we cannot tell what he would have said. He did not speak; for just as he opened his lips, a gruff voice behind him uttered the words: "Well, sir! where is your business?" CHAPTER LXIII. HOW VERTY AND MISS LAVINIA RAN A-TILT AT EACH OTHER, AND WHO WAS OVERTHROWN. The young man turned round: the gruff voice belonged to Judge Rushton. That gentleman had left his horse at the outer gate, and approached the house on foot. Absorbed by his own thoughts, Verty had not seen him--as indeed neither had Redbud--and the gruff voice gave the young man the first intimation of his presence. "Well," repeated the lawyer, leaning on his knotty stick, and scowling at the two young people from beneath his shaggy eyebrows, "what are you standing there staring at me for? Am I a wild beast, a rhinoceros, or a monster of any description, that you can't speak? I asked you why you were not in town at your work?" Verty pointed to the horizon. "The day has only begun," he said. "Well, sir--" "And I stopped for only one minute, Mr. Rushton," added Verty." "One minute! Do you know, sir, that life is made up of minutes?" "Yes, sir," said Verty. "Well, if you know that, why do you trifle away your minutes? Don't reply to me, young man," continued the shaggy bear, "I have no desire to argue with you--I hate and despise arguing, and will not indulge you. But remember this, Life is the struggle of a man to pay the debt he owes to Duty. If he forgets his work, or neglects it, for paltry gratifications of the senses or the feelings, he is disgraced--he is a coward in the ranks--a deserter from the regiment--he is an absconding debtor, sir, and will be proceeded against as such--remember that, sir! A pretty thing for you here, when you have your duty to your mother to perform, to be thus dallying and cooing with this baby--ough!" And the lawyer scowled at Redbud with terrible emphasis. Redbud knew Mr. Rushton well,--and smiled. She was rather grateful to him for having interrupted an interview which her woman-instinct told had commenced critically; and though Redbud could not, perhaps, have told any one what she feared, still this instinct spoke powerfully to her. It was with a smile, therefore, that Redbud held out her hand to Mr. Rushton, and said: "Please don't scold Verty--he won't stay long, and he just stopped to ask how we all were." "Humph!" replied the lawyer, his scowling brow relaxing somewhat as he felt the soft, warm little hand in his own,--"humph! that's the way it always is. He only stopped to say good morning to 'all;'--I suspect his curiosity was chiefly on the subject of a single member of the family." And a grim smile corrugated--so to speak--the rugged countenance. Redbud blushed slightly, and said: "Verty likes us all very much, and--"