Roy hesitated. He scarcely knew what to do. Then he remembered Sydney’s absence and reflected that the girls could not very well be left alone. He decided to stay himself till Monday, and to send word that Rex was all right now. He hurried off to the station to write his dispatch and came back as quickly to the Raynors’. He recollected that he had not yet seen the Miles of whom Rex spoke, the fellow who could tell him the continuation of his brother’s adventures. He asked Florence, whom he found on the lawn, where he could find Miles. “He’s out in the field now,” she replied, “digging potatoes. But it’s almost twelve. He’ll be in then for his dinner. He just adores that brother of yours.” “But who is he?” Roy persisted. “Well, he hasn’t told us his story yet. We took him on trust, and he’s turned out all right so far. But there he comes now.” “Excuse me,” said Roy. “I’ll go and see him.” And he hurried off around the corner of the house. The next minute he stood face to face with the youth who is destined to play a highly important part in the remainder of this tale. CHAPTER XXV MILES HARDING’S STORY Miles knew Roy at once. “This is Miles, isn’t it?” said Roy in his pleasant way, and he put out his hand. “Yes, but wait a minute.” Miles hurried to the pump near the kitchen door. He gave his hands a douse of water, dried them quickly on a roller towel in the woodshed, and then came back to greet the brother of the boy of whom he was so fond. “You got the telegram all right then?” he said. “Rex was so weak when he told me where to send it, I wasn’t sure I’d get it quite right.” “I want to thank you for all you did for him,” went on Roy. “He’s told me about it, except the details. He said you’d do that—about what happened to him after he got out of the train. But don’t let me keep you from your dinner.” “I’d rather talk to you than eat,” said Miles frankly. Mrs. Raynor appeared at this moment and compromised matters by bringing Miles’ dinner to him out on the side porch. Roy sat by and listened to the recital, most modestly given, of the facts with which the reader is already acquainted. It was time for Miles to return to his work when it was finished, and Florence came to summon Roy to their own dinner. “Isn’t he queer?” she said, referring to Miles. “He seems so quiet and talks so well for a man who was—well, a tramp. I don’t know what else you could call him. You ought to have seen the clothes he had on when he first came. Mamma made him burn them.” “He looks as if he might have an interesting story to tell,” commented Roy. “We’ll get him to tell it to-night if your brother is well enough,” said Mrs. Raynor. “He promised that we should hear it as soon as Rex was able to listen too.”