brother as would ‘ave been ‘is lordship, if ‘e’ ad lived. You ‘aven’t ‘appened to know a Samuel Cutter over there? ‘E went to Canada.”

“No, I never met any one by that name. I live a long way from Canada.”

“About ‘ow far do you think, ma’m?”

Cassandra had no idea of the distance, but she knew how long David and Hoyle were journeying there, so she answered as best she could. “It takes three or four days to get there from my home.”

The old man’s eyes opened wide, and his jaw dropped. “It’s a big country — America is. England may be a small place, but she ‘as tremendous big possessions.