him when he rested in the shade of the great beeches, nestling close in
the little stable at night, following him wherever he chose to go during
his liberty hours of the day, for thenceforth he was rarely confined to
the paddock.

Before the Empress was laid away Bud returned with the nursing bottle.
The rubber nipples were thrust into the Empress' mouth and thus getting
the mother scent all else was very simple. Roy tugged away at his bottle
like a well-conducted, well-conditioned baby, Tzaritza watching with
keen intelligent eyes. She soon knew the feeding hours as well as Peggy
or Mammy, and promptly to the minute led her charge to Mammy's door. If
Mammy happened to be elsewhere she sought Cynthia, and so had the
interest grown that there was not a man, woman or child upon the place
who would not have dropped anything in order to minister to the needs of
Tzaritza's charge.

And so passed the early springtide, Roy waxing fat and strong, Tzaritza
never relaxing her care, though at first it was a sore trial to her to
remain behind with her foster-son while her beloved mistress galloped
away upon Shashai. But that word "Guard" was sacred.

In the course of a few weeks, however, Roy was well able to follow his
half-brother, Shashai, and Tzaritza's freedom was restored. The trio was
rarely separated and to see Peggy in her hammock on the lawn, or on the
piazza, meant to see the colt and Tzaritza also, though Roy was rapidly
outgrowing piazzas and lawns, and Peggy was beginning to be puzzled as
to what was to be done with him when he could no longer come clattering
up the steps and across the piazza after his foster-mother.

With the summer came word that her father would come home on a month's