And swiftly he drew everything as near the girl's plate as the dishes could find room. Bread plate and butter plate, cake basket, cheese, cream pitcher, water pitcher, and the wreck of the broiled chicken. Then seizing the berry bowl Magnus began to pile the sweet wild strawberries upon her plate, adding slowly and skilfully till they ran down to the very edge and rose up in the middle a red fragrant cone. "How will that do to begin?" he said. "Will you have some sugar?--but I suppose not, as you picked them yourself and put all the tartness into mine." The other three looked on, laughing and interested; but now Cherry was out of her depth. She looked down at the strawberry hill, at the dishes, then glanced round at Magnus. What did he mean? Was he really vexed? Could he really think? It was the fairest kind of a look, so earnest and questioning. What do you mean? it said. I think Cadet Kindred knew very promptly what he meant, and saw some things clearly which had been hanging about in a sort of uncertain haze. And thus in answer to her shy questioning, Cherry met a look so keen and merry and full of mischief, full of she hardly knew what, that her eyes fell and the pink flushes came hurrying over her face. Then Magnus laughed. He had the vantage now which belonged to him, and he felt better. "Cherry," he said, "you are a transparent humbug! Mother, will you give me a cup of tea?" "I think you are an extremely rude boy," said Mrs. Kindred, putting in an extra lump of sugar the while. "If these are your West Point manners, you will need a few terms at some other school." "West Point manners are all packed away with my dress coat. This is the original Magnus variety." "It is good to know," said Rose. "Here we have all been rubbing _our_ manners up, to receive you properly." "Oh, that's it, is it?" said Magnus, turning to gaze at Cherry. "Good to know, as you say. I did suspicion it was something got up for my express benefit." "Let her alone, and finish your supper," said Mrs. Kindred. "That is, if you ever intend to finish." "Emphatically I do!" said Magnus. "If I didn't, I could never begin again, and that would be a loss out here. Cherry, give me just a few berries off your plate. I am bashful about taking any more out of the dish. The sugar has given out, too," he added, dropping his voice; "and these will not want any." Poor Cherry!--she literally found not a word to say, but sat looking down at her plate in helpless silence, as the hands she remembered so well conveyed away part of its contents. Then Rose came with a replenished sugar-bowl and set it down by him. But Magnus waved it away. "Thank you, no," he said. "These are too sweet for sugar. How do you suppose Cherry worked it, to get them all on her plate?" "Crazy boy!" said Rose, "you put them there yourself. Magnus, is your dress coat here?"