A STRANGER. 183
"Ah, madam, I am sure you must have suffered doubly on his account. Will the little man let me kiss him too?"
But there was something in the stranger's appearance that did not take Jack's fancy, and he shrank back timidly to his mother's side.
"You must excuse him, sir; he is very shy."
"Never mind," said Harris; "we shall be better acquainted by-and-by. When we get to my brother's, he shall have a nice little pony to ride."
But not even this tempting offer seemed to have any effect in coaxing Jack into a more genial mood. He kept fast hold of his mother's hand, and she, somewhat vexed at his behaviour, and anxious that no offence should be given to a man who appeared so friendly in his intentions, hastened to turn the conversation to another topic.
Meantime Dick Sands had been considering Harris's proposal. Upon the whole, the plan of making their way to the hacienda of San Felice seemed to commend itself to his judgment; but he could not conceal from himself that a journey of 200 miles across plains and forests, without any means of transport, would be extremely fatiguing. On expressing his doubts on this point, he was met with the reply, —
"Oh, that can be managed well enough, young man; just round the corner of the cliff there I have a horse, which is quite at the disposal of the lady and her son; and by easy stages of ten miles or so a day, it will do the rest of us no harm to travel on foot. Besides," he added, "when I spoke of the journey being 200 miles, I was thinking of following, as I usually do, the course of the river; but by taking a short cut across the forest, we may reduce the distance by nearly eighty miles."
Mrs. Weldon was about to say how grateful she was, but Harris anticipated her.
"Not a word, madam, I beg you. You cannot thank me better than by accepting my offer. I confess I have never crossed this forest, but I am so much accustomed to the pampas that I have little fear of losing my way. The only difficulty is in the matter of provisions, as I have only
