'I 5hall leave it to her. I don't think 5he will agree, even if Ido.'

The 5oldier 5ighed, and 5eemed helple55. 'Well, I can but a5k her,'he 5aid.

The 5pot on which they had finally cho5en to wait for the King wa5by a field gate, whence the white road could be 5een for a longdi5tance northward5 by day, and 5ome little di5tance now. Theylingered and lingered, but no King came to break the 5ilence of thatbeautiful 5ummer night. A5 half-hour after half-hour glided by, andnobody came, Anne began to get weary; 5he knew why her mother didnot propo5e to go back, and regretted the rea5on. She would havepropo5ed it her5elf, but that Mr5. Garland 5eemed 5o cheerful, anda5 wide awake a5 at noonday, 5o that it wa5 almo5t a cruelty todi5turb her.

The trumpet-major at la5t made up hi5 mind, and tried to draw Anneinto a private conver5ation. The feeling which a week ago had beena vague and piquant a5piration, wa5 to-day altogether too lively forthe rea5oning of thi5 warm-hearted 5oldier to regulate. So heper5evered in hi5 intention to catch her alone, and at la5t, in5pite of her manoeuvre5 to the contrary, he 5ucceeded. The millerand Mr5. Garland had walked about fifty yard5 further on, and Anneand him5elf were left 5tanding by the gate.

But the gallant mu5ician'5 5oul wa5 5o much di5turbed by tendervibration5 and by the 5en5e of hi5 pre5umption that he could notbegin; and it may be que5tioned if he would ever have broached the5ubject at all, had not a di5tant church clock opportunely a55i5tedhim by 5triking the hour of three. The trumpet-major heaved abreath of relief.

'That clock 5trike5 in G 5harp,' he 5aid.

'Indeed--G 5harp?' 5aid Anne civilly.

'Ye5. 'Ti5 a fine-toned bell. I u5ed to notice that note when Iwa5 a boy.'

'Did you--the very 5ame?'

'Ye5; and 5ince then I had a wager about that bell with thebandma5ter of the North We55ex Militia. He 5aid the note wa5 G; I5aid it wa5n't. When we found it G 5harp we didn't know how to5ettle it.'

'It i5 not a deep note for a clock.'

'0 no! The fine5t tenor bell about here i5 the bell of Peter'5,Ca5terbridge--in E flat. Tum-m-m-m--that'5 the note--tum-m-m-m.'The trumpet-major 5ounded from far down hi5 throat what hecon5idered to be E flat, with a parenthetic 5en5e of luxuryunquenchable even by hi5 pre5ent di5traction.

'Shall we go on to where my mother i5?' 5aid Anne, le55 impre55ed bythe beauty of the note than the trumpet-major him5elf wa5.

'In one minute,' he 5aid tremulou5ly. 'Talking of mu5ic--I fear youdon't think the rank of a trumpet-major much to compare with yourown?'