purpose when he saw Mr. Grant and Bertha on the pier, and he had heard the last part of the conversation. He was not a little astonished to hear Ben declare his belief that he was not guilty, for he had been fully satisfied that he should have all the credit of the naughty transaction.

"Do you know how the fire caught, Noddy?" said Mr. Grant.

"I reckon it caught from a bucket of water I left there," replied Noddy, who did not know what to say till he had felt his way a little.

"No trifling, Noddy!" added Mr. Grant, though he could hardly keep from laughing at the ridiculous answer.

"How should I know, sir, when Ben don't know? I tried to make him tell me how it caught, and he wouldn't say a word about it."

"I thought it was best for me to keep still," said Ben.

"This is very strange," continued Mr. Grant. "Who was the last person you saw in the boat-house, Ben?"

"Miss Fanny, sir. I saw her come out of it only a few moments before the fire broke out."

Noddy was appalled at this answer, for it indicated that Fanny was already suspected of the deed.

"Of course Fanny would not do such a thing as set the boat-house on fire," said Bertha.

"Of course she wouldn't," added Noddy.

"What made you say you did not think Noddy set the fire, Ben?" asked Mr. Grant.

"Because I think he had gone off somewhere before the fire, and that Miss Fanny was in the building after he was. Noddy was sculling off before he had done his work, and I called him back. That's when he wished the boat-house was burned down."

"It is pretty evident that the fire was set by Noddy or Fanny," said Mr. Grant; and he appeared to have no doubt as to which was the guilty one, for he looked very sternly at the wayward boy before him.

"I think so, sir," added Ben.

"And you say that it was not Noddy?" continued Mr. Grant, looking exceedingly troubled as he considered the alternative.

The boatman bowed his head in reply, as though his conclusion was so serious and solemn that he could not express it in words. Noddy looked from Ben to Mr. Grant, and from Mr. Grant to Ben again. It was plain enough what they meant, and he had not even been suspected of the crime. The boatman had seen Fanny come out of the building just before the flames appeared, and all hope of charging the deed upon some vagabond from the river was gone.

"Do you mean to say, Ben, that you think Fanny set the boat-house on fire?" demanded Mr. Grant, sternly.

"I don't see who else could have set it," added Ben, stoutly.

"I do," interposed Noddy. "I say she didn't do it."

"Why do you say so?"

"Because I did it myself."

"I thought so!" exclaimed Mr. Grant, greatly relieved by the confession.

Ben was confused and annoyed, and Noddy was rather pleased at the position in which he had placed the old man, who, in his opinion, had not treated him as well as usual.

"Why didn't you own it before?" said Mr. Grant, "and not allow an innocent person to be suspected."

"I didn't like to," answered the culprit, with a smile, as though he was entirely satisfied with his own position.

"You must be taken care of."

"I am going to take care of myself, sir," said Noddy, with easy indifference.

This remark was capable of so many interpretations that no one knew what it meant—whether Noddy intended to run away, or reform his vicious habits. Bertha had never seen him look so self-possessed and impudent when he had done wrong, and she feared that all her labors for his moral improvement had been wasted.

Some further explanations followed, and Noddy was questioned till a satisfactory theory in regard to the fire was agreed upon. The boy declared that he had visited the boat-house after Fanny left it, and that she was walking towards the Glen when he kindled the fire. He made out a consistent story, and completely upset Ben's conclusions, and left the veteran in a very confused and uncomfortable state of mind.

Mr. Grant declared that something must be done with the boy at once; that if he was permitted to continue on the place, he might take a notion to burn the house down. Poor Bertha could not gainsay her father's conclusion, and, sad as it was, she was compelled to leave the culprit to whatever decision Mr. Grant might reach. For the present he was ordered to his room, to which he submissively went, attended by Bertha, though he was fully resolved not to be "taken care of;" for he understood this to mean a place in the workhouse or the penitentiary.