Even Puff Evans was left to hammer away at his new boat, all day, without the sign of a temptation to leave it and go fishing. In the afternoon, however, when the stage from the north came lumbering in, Bar Vernon and Val Manning had better been at home. George Brayton was, and he had no one to help him in with his mother and Sibyl. He seemed perfectly well satisfied about it, however, and spent all the rest of the time with them till the supper bell rang. Then, indeed, for the first time in his life, Bar Vernon found out what a genuinely bashful boy he could be. Of course he was glad to see Sibyl and her mother. So was Val Manning. But then Val seemed so altogether at ease and unconcerned about it, and did not once blush or stammer, while poor Bar did both. In fact, he felt altogether unsafe about his neck-tie, his shirt-collar, and the way his hair was brushed. He’d have given half his money on hand for a good look in his glass up-stairs. He was very sure, nevertheless, that there was not a prettier girl in all the world than Sibyl Brayton. He and Val did their best to amuse the newcomers during the evening, and it was very good of Effie Dryer to come in and help them, only Sibyl deemed her brother unnecessarily long in seeing the Doctor’s daughter home, at the end of it all. “The worst of it is,” said Bar to Val, when they were in their own room, “we are to have lots of ladies and other visitors at the chapel to-morrow.” “Yes,” replied Val, “but it doesn’t amount to anything. They never ask a fellow anything they aren’t sure he knows. It’s just for all the world like an examination-day.” “But that’s awful, ain’t it?” asked Bar. “Yes,” replied Val, “it’s an awful fraud, unless one of the teachers has a grudge against you. Then it’s a fraud, too, only there’s good fun in it, ’specially if they’re at work on Zeb Fuller.” The next day was destined to be an interesting one for Bar Vernon, however, for other reasons than the arrival of Sibyl Brayton and her mother. The increasing numbers of the people of all sorts, scholars included, compelled a transfer of the “exercises” to the “great hall” on the second floor of the Academy building. Bar rather liked that at first, but the stage from the South arrived before the bell had done ringing, and the next thing he knew there was an addition to the “distinguished guests,” as Mrs. Dryer would have described the highly respectable people on the “platform,” that not only deeply impressed “old Sol” himself, but sent all the blood in Bar’s body to his head. How he and the rest got through with the “opening” business he could scarcely have told, but he knew there was something unusual coming for him or Val, when he saw Judge Danvers waiting for them. “Very promising young gentlemen, your ward and the son of Dr. Manning,” he heard Dr. Dryer say, as they were edging their way through the crowd. “My assistant, Mr. Brayton, has them under his especial charge.”