the trouble exactly?"

It was Stanley who answered: "That sort of agitation business is all
very well until it begins to affect your neighbors; then it's time it
stopped. You know the Mallorings who own all the land round Tod's. Well,
they've fallen foul of the Mallorings over what they call injustice
to some laborers. Questions of morality involved. I don't know all the
details. A man's got notice to quit over his deceased wife's sister;
and some girl or other in another cottage has kicked over--just ordinary
country incidents. What I want is that Tod should be made to see that
his family mustn't quarrel with his nearest neighbors in this way. We
know the Mallorings well, they're only seven miles from us at Becket. It
doesn't do; sooner or later it plays the devil all round. And the air's
full of agitation about the laborers and 'the Land,' and all the rest of
it--only wants a spark to make real trouble."

And having finished this oration, Stanley thrust his hands deep into his
pockets, and jingled the money that was there.

John said abruptly:

"Felix, you'd better go down."

Felix was sitting back, his eyes for once withdrawn from his brothers'
faces.

"Odd," he said, "really odd, that with a perfectly unique person like
Tod for a brother, we only see him once in a blue moon."

"It's because he IS so d--d unique."