thinks of marrying again."

"Is that so!" put in Dick, and then he wondered if Dora would be
pleased with her stepfather. "So that is the place?"

"Yes, sir; two hundred and fifty acres, and the fittest dairy in
these parts. If, the widder marries again, her husband will fall
into a very good thing. The dairy company at Ithaca once offered
fifty thousand dollars for the cattle and land."

"Gracious!" came from Tom. "We've been chumming with an heiress.
Are the Lanings rich, too?"

"Very well to do. That is their place, that side road. Here is
where we turn off to get to the Hall. Captain Putnam had this
road made when the Hall was first built."

The road was one of cracked stone, as smooth as a huge iron roller
could make it. They bowled along at a rapid rate, under the wide
spreading branches of two rows of stately maples. They were close
to the lake, and occasional glimpses of water could be caught
through the tree branches.

"It is certainly a splendid locality for a boarding academy," was
Dick's comment. "My, what pure air -- enough to make a sick boy
strong! Do you have much sickness at the Hall?"

"Very little, sir. The captain does not let a cast of sickness
stand, but calls in Dr. Fremley at once."