Kenneth had often wandered into these out-of-the-way places
when a half-forgotten, neglected lad, but had not visited them for
years. Now, however, with the spirit of loneliness upon him, he suddenly
thought of a glen that would make an interesting study for a picture; so
one morning he mounted his horse and rode away to pay the place a
preliminary visit.
The farmers along the road nodded at the young fellow good-naturedly as
he passed them. Everyone knew him well by sight, yet Kenneth could not
have named many of his neighbors, having held little intercourse with
them. It struck him, this morning, that they had little cause to be
interested in him. He had been an unsociable lad, and since he had
become master of Elmhurst had done little to cultivate acquaintance with
the people who lived around him.
One reason for this was that they held little in common with him. The
neighboring farmers were honest, thrifty souls, and among them were many
both shrewd and thoughtful; but they naturally would not force
themselves upon the society of the one really rich man in their
community, especially as that man had shown no desire to know them.
Kenneth was the subject of much speculation among them, and opinions
widely differed concerning his character.
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