"Then work ye shall have," cried the squire, hotly. "Peg,
show him the stable, and tell Tom--"

"One moment, Lambert," interjected his wife, and then she
asked, "Hast thou had breakfast, Charles?"

Fownes shook his head sullenly.

"Take him to the kitchen and give him some at once, Peg,"
ordered Mrs. Meredith.

For the first time the fellow looked away from Janice, fixing
his eyes on Mrs. Meredith. Then he bowed easily and gracefully,
saying, "Thank you." Apparently unconscious that for
a moment he had left the Somerset burr off his tongue and
the rustic pretence from his manner, he followed Peg to the
kitchen.

If he were unconscious of the slip, it was more than were his
auditors, and for a moment they all exchanged glances in silent
bewilderment.

"Humph!" finally growled the squire. "I like the look of
him still less."

"He holds himself like a gentleman," asserted Tabitha.

"This fellow will need close watching," predicted Mr. Meredith.
"He 's no yokel. He moves like a gentleman or a
house-servant. Yet he had to make his mark on the covenant."