"
In gathering dusk the train thundered through the valley of the
Rhine while, above, the mountain summits melted upon the night. A
steward looked into the carriage.
"Dinner is served, gentlemen," he said. "I will, if you please, make
your beds while you are absent."
They rose and went together to the saloon carriage.
"I'm dry, son, and I've sure earned a drink," said Peter.
"You've earned a vast deal more than I or any man can ever pay you,
Ganns," said Brendon.
"Don't say it, or think it. I've done nothing that you wouldn't have
done if you had been free. And always remember this: I shall never
blame you, even when I think with dearest affection of my old
friend. I shall only blame myself, because the final, fatal mistake
was mine--not yours. I was the fool to trust you and had no excuse
for doing so. You were not to be trusted for a moment just then, and
I ought to have known it. 'Twas our limited capability that made you
err, that made me err, that made Michael Pendean err. The best laid
plans of mice and men--you know, Mark.
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