Malcolm was quietly seated on her head. She had ceased sprawling, and lay nearly motionless, but for the heaving of her sides with her huge inhalations. She knew from experience that struggling was useless. “I beg your pardon, my lady,” said Malcolm, “but I daren’t get up.” “How long do you mean to sit there then?” she asked. “If your ladyship wouldn’t mind riding home without me, I would give her a good half hour of it. I always do when she throws herself over like that.--I’ve gat my Epictetus?” he asked himself, feeling in his coat pocket. “Do as you please,” answered his mistress. “Let me see you when you get home. I should like to know you are safe.” “Thank you, my lady; there’s little fear of that,” said Malcolm. Florimel returned to the gentlemen, and they rode homewards. On the way she said suddenly to the earl, “Can you tell me, Liftore, who Epictetus was?” “I’m sure I don’t know,” answered his lordship. “One of the old fellows.” She turned to Lenorme. Happily the Christian heathen was not altogether unknown to the painter. “May I inquire why your ladyship asks?” he said, when he had told all he could at the moment recollect. “Because,” she answered, “I left my groom sitting on his horse’s head reading Epictetus.” “By Jove!” exclaimed Liftore. “Ha! ha! ha! In the original, I suppose!” “I don’t doubt it,” said Florimel. In about two hours Malcolm reported himself. Lord Liftore had gone home, they told him. The painter-fellow, as Wallis called him, had stayed to lunch, but was now gone also, and Lady Lossie was alone in the drawing-room. She sent for him. “I am glad to see you safe, MacPhail,” she said. “It is clear your Kelpie--don’t be alarmed; I am not going to make you part with her--but it is clear she won’t always do for you to attend me upon. Suppose now I wanted to dismount and make a call, or go into a shop?” “There’s a sort of a friendship between your Abbot and her, my lady; she would stand all the better if I had him to hold.” “Well, but how would you put me up again?” “I never thought of that, my lady. Of course I daren’t let you come near Kelpie.” “Could you trust yourself to buy another horse to ride after me about town?” “No, my lady, not without a ten days’ trial. If lies stuck like London mud, there’s many a horse would never be seen again. But there’s Mr Lenorme! If he would go with me, I fancy between us we could do pretty well.” “Ah! a good idea,” returned his mistress. “But what makes you think of him?” she added, willing enough to talk about him. “The look of the gentleman and his horse together, and what I heard him say,” answered Malcolm. “What did you hear him say?” “That he knew he had to treat horses something like human beings. I’ve often fancied, within the last few months, that God does with some people something like as I do with Kelpie.” “I know nothing about theology.”