"Really, Nicholas, your offer was very irregular--extremely
irregular. It should have been made to me, as the administrator of
the late Mr. Gray, and not to a boy like Philip."

"Will you sell me the fiddle for dad's bill, squire?" asked Nicholas
eagerly.

"You are premature, Nicholas--"

"What's that?"

"I mean you must wait till the auction. Then you will have a chance
to bid on the instrument, if you want to secure it."

"Phil says it's his, and won't be for sale at the auction."

"Then Philip is mistaken. He is only a boy. The estate will be
settled by those who are older and wiser than he."

"I guess you'll find him hard to manage, squire," said Nick,
laughing.

"We shall see--we shall see," returned the squire.

And, with a dignified wave of the hand, he continued on his walk.

After the visit of Nicholas, Philip thought it most prudent to
convey the violin which he prized so much to the house of his
friend, Frank Dunbar, where he had been invited to take his meals.