The Rise of Roscoe Paine ....................................................................................................................................1

Joseph C. Lincoln....................................................................................................................................1

CHAPTER I .............................................................................................................................................1

CHAPTER II ............................................................................................................................................8

CHAPTER III........................................................................................................................................17

CHAPTER IV........................................................................................................................................24

CHAPTER V.........................................................................................................................................34

CHAPTER VI........................................................................................................................................47

CHAPTER VII .......................................................................................................................................56

CHAPTER VIII.....................................................................................................................................66

CHAPTER IX........................................................................................................................................82

CHAPTER X.........................................................................................................................................90

CHAPTER XI......................................................................................................................................101

CHAPTER XII .....................................................................................................................................113

CHAPTER XIII...................................................................................................................................125

CHAPTER XIV...................................................................................................................................139

CHAPTER XV....................................................................................................................................152

CHAPTER XVI...................................................................................................................................165

CHAPTER XVII ..................................................................................................................................176

CHAPTER XVIII .................................................................................................................................185

CHAPTER XIX...................................................................................................................................200

CHAPTER XX....................................................................................................................................211

CHAPTER XXI...................................................................................................................................227

CHAPTER XXII ..................................................................................................................................238

CHAPTER XXIII .................................................................................................................................246

CHAPTER XXIV................................................................................................................................257

"I'm going up to the village," I told Dorinda, taking my cap from the hook behind the diningroom door.

"What for?" asked Dorinda, pushing me to one side and reaching for the dustcloth, which also was behind

"Umhm" is, I believe, good Scotch for "Yes." I have read that it is, somewherein one of Barrie's yarns, I

think. I had never been in Scotland, or much of anywhere else, except the city I was born in, and my college

town, and Bostonand Cape Cod. "Umhm" meant yes on the Cape, too, except when Dorinda said it; then

it might mean almost anything. When Mother asked her to lower the window shade in the bedroom she said

"Umhm" and lowered it. And, five minutes later, when Lute came in, loaded to the guards with explanations

as to why he had forgotten to clean the fish for dinner, she said it again. And the Equator and the North Pole

are no nearer alike, so far as temperature is concerned, than those two "Umhms." And between them she had

I opened the outside door. The warm spring sunshine, pouring in, was a pleasant contrast and made me

forget, for the moment, the glacier at my back. Come to think of it, "glacier" isn't a good word; glaciers move

"Work," snapped Dorinda, unfurling the dust cloth. "It's a good mornin' for that, too."

I went out, turned the corner of the house and found Lute sound asleep on the wash bench behind the kitchen.

His full name was Luther Millard Filmore Rogers, and he was Dorinda's husband by law, and the burden

which Providence, or hard luck, had ordered her to carry through this vale of tears. She was a good Methodist

and there was no doubt in her mind that Providence was responsible. When she rose to testify in

prayermeeting she always mentioned her "cross" and everybody knew that the cross was Luther. She carried

him, but it is no more than fair to say that she didn't provide him with cushions. She never let him forget that

he was a steerage passenger. However, Lute was well upholstered with philosophy, of a kind, and, so long as

he didn't have to work his passage, was happy, even if the voyage was a rather rough one.

Just now he was supposed to be raking the back yard, but the rake was between his knees, his head was

tipped back against the shingled wall of the kitchen, and he was sleeping, with the sunshine illuminating his

open mouth, "for all the world like a lamp in a potato cellar," as his wife had said the last time she caught him

in this position. She went on to say that it was a pity he wouldn't stand on his head when he slept. "Then I

Lute heard me as I passed him and woke up. The "potato cellar" closed with a snap and he seized the rake

"I was takin' a sort of observation," he explained hurriedly. "Figgerin' whether I'd better begin here or over by

the barn. Oh, it's you, Roscoe, is it! Land sakes! I thought first 'twas Dorindy. Where you bound?"

Lute sighed. "I was kind of cal'latin' to go there myself," he observed, regretfully. "Thoph Newcomb and

Cap'n Jed Dean and the rest of us was havin' a talk on politics last night up there and 'twas mighty interestin'.

Old Dean had Thoph pretty well out of the race when I hauled alongside, but when I got into the argument

'twas different. 'What's goin' to become of the laborin' men of this country if you have free trade?' I says.

Dean had to give in that he didn't know. 'Might have to let their wives support 'em,' he says, pompous as ever.

'That would be a calamity, wouldn't it, Lute?' That wasn't no answer, of course. But you can't expect sense of

a Democrat. I left him fumin' and come away. I've thought of a lot more questions to ask him since and I was

hopin' I could get at him this mornin'. But no! Dorindy's sot on havin' this yard raked, so I s'pose I've got to

He had dropped the rake, but now he leaned over, picked it up, and rose from the wash bench.

"I s'pose I've got to do it," he repeated, "unless," hopefully, "you want me to run up to the village and do your

"Well, then I s'pose I'd better start in. Unless there was somethin' else you'd ruther I'd do today. If there was

"Tomorrow would have one advantage: there would be more to rake then. However, judging by Dorinda's

"I'll bet you! And she dusted it yesterday and the day afore. Do you know" Lute sat down again on the

"Yes, I do. I think she works too hard. Seems's if sometimes it had kind of struck to her brainswork, I

mean. She don't think of nothin' else. Now take the dustin', for instance. Dustin's all right; I believe in dustin'

things. But I don't believe in wearin' 'em out dustin' 'em. That ain't sense, is it?"

"You bet it don't! And it ain't good religion, neither. Now take well, take this yard, for instance. What is it

that I'm slavin' myself over this fine mornin'? Why, rakin' this yard! And what am I rakin'? Why, dead leaves

from last fall, and straws and sticks and pieces of seaweed and such that have blowed in durin' the winter.

And what blowed 'em in? Why, the wind, sartin! And whose wind was it? The Almighty's, that's whose! Now

then! if the Almighty didn't intend to have dead leaves around why did he put trees for 'em to fall off of? If he

didn't want straws and seaweed and truck around why did He send them everlastin' no'theasters last

"No. Well, that's 'cause you ain't reasoned it out, same as I have. You've got the same trouble that most folks

have, you don't reason things out. Now, let's look at it straight in the face." Lute let go of the rake altogether

and used both hands to illustrate his point. "That finger there, we'll say, is me, rakin' and rakin' hard as ever I

can. And that fist there is the Almighty, not meanin' anything irreverent. I rake, same as I'm doin' this

mornin'. The yard's all cleaned up. Thenzing!" Lute's clenched fist swept across and knocked the offending

finger out of the way. "Zing! here comes one of the Almighty's no'theasters, same as we're likely to have

I looked at the yard. "It seems to be about as it was," I agreed, with some sarcasm. Lute was an immune, so

"Yup," he said, triumphantly. "Now, Dorindy, she's a good, pious woman. She believes the Powers above

order everything. If that's so, then ain't it sacrilegious to be all the time flyin' in the face of them Powers by

"But, according to that reasoning," I observed, "we should neither rake nor dust. Wouldn't that make our

"Sartin. But when they got uncomfortable then we could turn to and make 'em comfortable again. I ain't

arguin' against workneedful work, you understand. I like it. And I ain't thinkin' of myself, you know, but

about Dorindy. It worries me to see her wearin' herself out withwith dustin' and such. It ain't sense and

'tain't good religion. She's my wife and it's my duty to think for her and look out for her."

He paused and reached into his overalls pocket for a pipe. Finding it, he reached into another pocket for the

"Have you suggested to her that she's flying in the face of Providence?" I asked.

Lute shook his head. "No," he admitted, "I ain't. Got any tobacco about you? Dorindy hove my plug away

yesterday. I left it back of the clock and she found it and was maddustin' again, of course."

He took the pouch I handed him, filled his pipe and absently put the pouch in his pocket.

"Got a match?" he asked. "Thanks. No, I ain't spoke to her about it, though it's been on my mind for a long

spell. I didn't know but you might say somethin' to her along that line, Roscoe. 'Twouldn't sound so personal,

I shook my head. "Dorinda wouldn't pay much attention to my ideas on such subjects, I'm afraid," I answered.

Lute was plainly disappointed. "Well," he said, with a sigh, "maybe you're right. She does cal'late you're kind

of heathen, though she hopes you'll see the light some day. But, just the same," he added, "it's a good

argument. I tried it on the gang up to the postoffice last night. I says to 'em, says I, 'Work's all right. I

believe in it. I'm a workin' man, myself. But to work when you don't have to is wrong. Take Ros Paine,' I

"'Cause you're the best example I could think of. Everybody knows you don't do no work. Shootin' and sailin'

and fishin' ain't work, and that's about all you do. 'Take Ros,' says I. 'He might be to work. He was in a bank

up to the city once and he knows the bankin' trade. He might be at it now, but what would be the use?' I says.

'He's got enough to live on and he lives on it, 'stead of keepin' some poor feller out of a job.' That's right, too,

I didn't answer at once. There was no reason why I should be irritated because Luther Rogers had held me up

as a shining example of the donothing class to the crowd of hangerson in a country postoffice. What did I

care for Denboro opinion? Six years in that gossipy village had made me, so I thought, capable of rising

"Oh, nothin' much. They couldn't; I had 'em, you see. Some of 'em laughed and old Cap'n Jed he hove out

somethin' about birds of a feather stickin' up for each other. No sense to it. But, as I said afore, what can you

I turned on my heel and moved toward the back gate. "Ain't goin', be you?" asked Lute. "Hadn't you better set

"No, I'm going. By the way, if you're through with that tobacco pouch of mine, I'll take it off your hands. I

Lute coolly explained that he had forgotten the pouch; it had "gone clean out of his head." However, he

handed it over and I left him seated on the wash bench, with his head tipped back against the shingles. I

opened the gate and strolled slowly along the path by the edge of the bluff. I had gone perhaps a hundred

yards when I heard a shrill voice behind me. Turning, I saw Dorinda standing by the corner of the kitchen,

I walked on. The morning was a beautiful one. Beside the path, on the landward side, the bayberry and

beachplum bushes were in bud, the green of the new grass was showing above the dead brown of the old, a

bluebird was swaying on the stump of a wild cherry tree, and the pines and scrub oaks of the grove by the

Shore Lane were bright, vivid splashes of color against the blue of the sky. At my right hand the yellow sand

of the bluff broke sharply down to the white beach and the waters of the bay, now beginning to ebb. Across

the bay the lighthouse at Crow Point glistened with new paint and I could see a moving black speck, which I

knew was Ben Small, the keeper, busy whitewashing the fence beside it. Down on the beach Zeb Kendrick

was overhauling his dory. In the distance, beyond the grove, I could hear the carpenters' hammers on the roof

of the big Atwater mansion, which was now the property of James Colton, the New York millionaire, whose

rumored coming to Denboro to live had filled the columns of the country weekly for three months. The

quahaug boats were anchored just inside the Point; a clam digger was wading along the outer edge of the

sedge; a lobsterman was hauling his pots in the channel; even the bluebird on the wild cherry stump had a

straw in his beak and was plainly in the midst of nest building. Everyone had something to do and was doing

iteveryone except Lute Rogers and myself, the "birds of a feather." And even Lute was working now,

Ordinarily the sight of all this industry would not have affected me. I had seen it all before, or something like

it. The six years I had spent in Denboro, the six everlasting, idle, monotonous years, had had their effect. I

had grown hardened and had come to accept my fate, at first rebelliously, then with more of Lute's peculiar

kind of philosophy. Circumstances had doomed me to be a goodfornothing, a gentleman loafer without the

usual excuse moneyand, as it was my doom, I forced myself to accept it, if not with pleasure, at least

with resignation. And I determined to get whatever pleasure there might be in it. So, when I saw the majority

of the human race, each with a purpose in life, struggling to attain that purpose, I passed them by with my

gun or fishing rod on my shoulder, and a smile on my lips. If my remnant of a conscience presumed to rise

and reprove me, I stamped it down. It had no reasonable excuse for rising; I wasn't what I was from choice.

But, somehow, on this particular morning, my unreasonable conscience was again alive and kicking. Perhaps

it was the quickening influence of the spring which resurrected it; perhaps Luther's quotation from the

remarks of Captain Jedediah Dean had stirred it to rebellion. A man may know, in his heart, that he is no

good and still resent having others say that he is, particularly when they say that he and Luther Rogers are

birds of a feather. I didn't care for Dean's good opinion; of course I didn't! Nor for that of any one else in

Denboro, my mother excepted. But Dean and the rest should keep their opinions to themselves, confound

The path from our housethe latter every Denboro native spoke of as the "Paine Place"wound along the

edge of the bluff for perhaps three hundred yards, then turned sharply through the grove of scrub oaks and

pitch pines and emerged on the Shore Lane. The Shore Lane was not a public road, in the strictest sense of

the term. It was really a part of my land and, leading, as it did, from the Lower Road to the beach, was used

as a public road merely because mother and I permitted it to be. It had been so used, by sufferance of the

former owner, for years, and when we came into possession of the property we did not interfere with the

custom. Land along the shore was worth precious little at that time and, besides, it was pleasant, rather than

disagreeable, to hear the fish carts going out to the weirs, and the wagons coming to the beach for seaweed,

or, filled with picnic parties, rattling down the Lane. We could not see them from the house until they had

passed the grove and emerged upon the beach, but even the noise of them was welcome. The Paine Place was

a good halfmile from the Lower Road and there were few neighbors; therefore, especially in the winter

I strode through the grove, kicking the dead branches out of my way, for my mind was still busy with Luther

and Captain Dean. As I came out into the Lane I looked across at the Atwater mansion, now the property of

the great and only Colton, "Big Jim" Colton, whose deals and corners in Wall Street supplied so many and

such varied sensations for the financial pages of the city papers, just as those of his wife and family supplied

news for the society columns; I looked across, I say, and then I stopped short to take a longer look.

I could see the carpenters, whose hammers I had heard, at work upon the roof of the barn, now destined to do

double duty as a stable and garage. They, and the painters and plumbers, had been busy on the premises for

months. The establishment had been a big one, even when Major Atwater owned it, but the new owners had

torn down and added and rebuilt until the house loomed up like a palace or a Newport villa. A Newport villa

in Denboro! Why on earth any one should deliberately choose Denboro as a place to live in I couldn't

understand; but why a millionaire, with all creation to select from, should build a Newport villa on the bluff

overlooking Denboro Bay was beyond comprehension. The reason given in the Cape Cod Item was that Mrs.

Colton was "in debilitated health," whatever that is, and had been commanded by her doctors to seek sea air

and seclusion and rest. Well, there was sea air and rest, not to mention seclusion or sand and mosquitoes, for

a square mile about the new villa, and no one knew that better than I, condemned to live within the square.

But if Mrs. Colton had deliberately chosen the spot, with malice aforethought, the place for her was a home

for the feeble minded. At least, that was my opinion on that particular morning.

It was not the carpenters who caused me to pause in my walk and look across the lane and over the stone wall

at my new neighbor's residence. What caught my attention was that the place looked to be inhabited. The

windows were openfifty or so of themsmoke was issuing from one of the six chimneys; a maid in a

white cap and apron was standing by the servants' entrance. Yes, and a tall, bulky man with a yachting cap on

the back of his head and a cigar in his mouth was talking with Asa Peters, the boss carpenter, by the big door

I had not been up to the village for two days, having been employed at our boathouse on the beach below

the house, getting my motor dory into commission for the summer. But now I remembered that Lute had said

something about the Coltons being expected, or having arrived, and that he seemed much excited over it. He

would have said more, but Dorinda had pounced on him and sent him out to shut up the chickens, which gave

him the excuse to play truant and take his evening's trip to the postoffice. It was plain that the Coltons HAD

arrived. Very likely the stout man with the yachting cap was the mighty "Big Jim" himself. Well, I didn't

Possibly the fact that I could pity some one other than myself helped to raise my spirits. At any rate I

managed to shake off a little of my gloom and tramped on up the Lane, feeling more like a human being and

less like a yellow dog. Less as I should imagine a yellow dog ought to feel, I mean, for, as a matter of fact,

most yellow dogs of my acquaintance seem to be as happy as their brown or white or black relatives. I

walked up the Lane, turned into the Lower Road, and headed for the village. The day was a gorgeous one, the

air bracing as a tonic, and my thirtieth birthday was not yet so far astern as to be lost in the fog. After all,

there were some consolations in being alive and in a state of health not "debilitated." I began to whistle.

A quarter of a mile from the junction of the Shore Lane, on the Lower Road, was a willowshaded spot,

where the brook which irrigated Elnathan Mullet's cranberry swamp ran under a small wooden bridge. It was

there that I first heard the horn and, turning, saw the automobile coming from behind me. It was approaching

at a speed of, I should say, thirty miles an hour, and I jumped to the rail of the bridge to let it pass. Autos

were not as common on the Cape then as they have become since. Now the average pedestrian of

However, I jumped in time, and stood still to watch the car as it went by. But it did not go bynot then. Its

speed slackened as it approached and it came to a halt on the bridge beside me. A big car; an aristocratic car;

a machine of pomp and price and polish, such as Denboro saw but seldom. It contained three personsa

capped and goggled chauffeur on the front seat, and a young fellow and a girl in the tonneau. They attracted

my attention in just that orderfirst the chauffeur, then the young fellow, and, last of all, the girl.

It was the chauffeur who hailed me. He leaned across the upholstery beside him and, still holding the wheel,

Now my name doesn't happen to be Bill and just then I objected to the rechristening. At another time I

might have appreciated the joke and given him the information without comment. But this morning I didn't

feel like joking. My dissatisfaction with the world in general included automobilists who made common folks

Then the young man in the tonneau took charge of the conversation. He was a very young man, with blond

hair and a silky mustache, and his clothes fitted him as clothes have no right to fiton Cape Cod.

I was not his man, and wouldn't have been for something. The chauffeur had irritated me, but he irritated me

more. I didn't like him, his looks, his clothes, and, particularly, his manner. Therefore, because I didn't feel

"What's the matter?" he demanded, impatiently. "Are you deaf? I say we want to go to Bayport."

A newspaper joke which I had recently read came to my mind. "Very well," I said, "you have my

It was a rude thing to say, and not even original. I don't attempt to excuse it. In fact, I was sorry as soon as I

had said it. It had its effect. The young man turned red. Then he laughed aloud.

"Well, by Jove!" he exclaimed. "What have we here? A humorist, I do believe! Mabel, we've discovered a

The girl in the tonneau swept aside her veil and looked, as directed. And I looked at her. The face that I saw

was sweet and refined and delicate, a beautiful young face, the face of a lady, born and bred. All this I saw

and realized at a glance; but what I was most conscious of at the time was the look in the dark eyes as they

surveyed me from head to foot. Indifference was there, and contemptuous amusement; she didn't even

condescend to smile, much less speak. Under that look my selfimportance shrank until the yellow dog with

which I had compared myself loomed as large as an elephant. She might have looked that way at some

The young man laughed again. "Isn't it a wonder, Mabel?" he asked. "The native wit on his native heath!

Reubenpardon me, your name is Reuben, isn't it?now that you've had your little joke, would you

condescend to tell us the road which we should take to reach Bayport in the shortest time? Would you oblige

I agreed with her. Idiot was one of the terms, the mildest, which I should have applied to that young man. I

wanted very much to remove him from that car by what Lute would call the scruff of the neck. But most of

all, just then, I wanted to be alone, to see the last of the auto and its occupants.

"Thank you, Reuben," vouchsafed the young man. "Here's hoping that your vegetables are fresher than your

The chauffeur threw in the clutch and the car buzzed up the road, turning the corner at full speed. There was a

loose board projecting from the bridge just under my feet. As a memberthough an inactive oneof the

Village Improvement Society I should have trodden it back into place. I didn't; I kicked it into the brook.

Then I walked on. But the remainder of my march was a silent one, without music. I did not whistle.

The postoffice was at Eldredge's store, and Eldredge's store, situated at the corners, where the Main Road

and the Depot Road which is also the direct road to South Denborojoin, was the mercantile and social

center of Denboro. Simeon Eldredge kept the store, and Simeon was also postmaster, as well as the town

constable, undertaker, and auctioneer. If you wanted a spool of thread, a coffin, or the latest bit of gossip, you

applied at Eldredge's. The gossip you could be morally certain of getting at once; the thread or the coffin you

I scarcely know why I went to Eldredge's that morning. I did not expect mail, and I did not require Simeon's

services in any one of his professional capacities. Possibly Lute's suggestion had some sort of psychic effect

and I stopped at the postoffice involuntarily. At any rate, I woke from the trance in which the encounter

The mail was not yet due, to say nothing of having arrived or been sorted, but there was a fairsized crowd

on the settees and perched on the edge of the counter. Ezra Mullet was there, and Alonzo Black and Alvin

Baker and Thoph Newcomb. Beriah Doane and Sam Cahoon, who lived in South Denboro, were there, too,

having driven over behind Beriah's horse, on an errand; that is, Beriah had an errand and Sam came along to

help him remember it. In the rear of the store, by the frame of letter boxes, Captain Jedediah Dean was

"Here's Ros Paine," he exclaimed. "He'll know more about it than anybody else. Hey, Ros, how many hired

help does he keep, anyhow? Thoph says it's eight, but I know I counted more'n that, myself."

"It's eight, I tell you," broke in Newcomb, before I could answer. "There's the two cooks and the boy that

"The idea of having anybody wait on a cook!" interrupted Mullet. "That's blame foolishness."

"I never said he waited on the cooks. I said he waited on themon the family. And there's a coachman"

"Why do they call them kind of fellers coachmen?" put in Thoph. "There ain't any coach. I see the carriages

when they cometwo freight cars full of 'em. There was a open twoseater, and a buckboard, and that

Beriah Doane laughed uproariously. "Land of love!" he shouted. "Does the dog have a cart all to himself?

That's a good one! You and me ain't got no dog, Sam, but we might have a couple of cat carts, hey? Haw!

Thoph paid no attention to this pleasantry. "There was the dog cart," he repeated, "and another thing they

"Don't make no difference," declared Alvin; "there was a man along that SAID he was the coachman,

anyhow. And a big ministerlookin' feller who was a butler, and two hired girls besides the cooks. That's

"And that don't count the chauffeur, the chap that runs the automobiles," said Alonzo Black. "He's the tenth.

The group looked at me in amazement. Thoph Newcomb voiced the general astonishment.

"Why should you!" he repeated. "Why shouldn't you, you mean! You're livin' right next door to 'em, as you

"No doubt you would, Thoph. But I don't. I didn't know the Coltons had arrived until I came by just now.

Arrived! There was no question of the arrival, nor of its being witnessed by everyone present, myself and the

South Denboro delegates excepted. Newcomb and Baker and Mullet and Black began talking all together. I

learned that the Colton invasion of Denboro was a spectacle only equaled by the yearly coming of the circus

to Hyannis, or the opening of the cattle show at Ostable. The carriages and horses had arrived by freight the

"I see 'em myself," affirmed Alonzo. "I was as nigh to 'em as I be to you. Mrs. Colton is sort of fleshy, but as

handsome a woman as you'd want to see. I spoke to her, too. 'It's a nice day,' I says, 'ain't it?'"

"She didn't say nothin'. Engine was makin' such a noise she didn't hear, I presume likely."

"Humph!" sniffed Baker, evidently envious; "I guess she heard you, all right. Fellers like you make me tired.

Grabbin' every chance to curry favor with rich folks! Wonder you didn't tell her you drove a fishcart and

wanted her trade! As for me, I'm independent. Don't make no difference to me how welloff a person is.

They're human, just the same as I am, and _I_ don't toady to 'em. If they want to talk they can send for me. I'll

"Hope you've got lots of patience, Alvin," observed Mullet drily. During the hilarity which followed, and

while the offended apostle of independence was trying to think of a sufficiently cutting reply, I walked to the

Our letter box was Number 218, in the center of the rack, and, as I approached, I glanced at it involuntarily.

To my surprise there was a letter in it; I could see it through the glass of the box door. Lute had, as I knew,

got the mail the previous evening and the morning's mail had not yet arrived. Therefore this letter must have

been written by some one in Denboro and posted late the night before or early that morning. It was not the

custom for Denboro residents to communicate with each other through the medium of the post. They

preferred to save the two cents stamp money, as a general thing. Bills sometimes came by mail, but this was

I reached into my pocket for my keys, unlocked the box and took out the letter. The envelope was square, of

an expensive quality, and eminently aristocratic. It was postmarked Denboro, dated that morning, and

addressed in a sharp, clear masculine hand unfamiliar to me, to "Roscoe Paine, Esq." The "Esq." would have

settled it, if the handwriting had not. No fellowtownsman of my acquaintance would address me, or any one

It was a Denboro custom, when one received a mysterious letter, to get the fullest enjoyment out of the

mystery before solving it. I had known Dorinda Rogers to guess, surmise and speculate for ten minutes before

opening a patent medicine circular. But, though mysteries were uncommon enough in my life, I think I

should have reached the solution of this one in the next secondin fact, I had torn the end from the

It was Captain Dean who interrupted me. He had evidently concluded his conversation with the postmaster

and now was bearing down majestically upon me, like a ten thousand ton steamer on a porgie schooner.

"Hey, youRos!" he roared. He was at my elbow, but he roared just the same. Skipper of a coaster in his

early days, he had never outgrown the habit of pitching his voice to carry above a fifty mile gale. "Hey, Ros.

I did not want to talk with any one, particularly with him. He was the individual who, according to Lute, had

bracketed Mr. Rogers and myself as birds of a feather, the remark which was primarily responsible for my ill

humor of the morning. If he had not said that, and if Lute had not quoted the saying to me, I might have

behaved less like a fool when that automobile overtook me, I might not have given that young idiot, whose

Christian name it seemed was Victor, the opportunity to be smart at my expense. That girl with the dark eyes

might not have looked at me as if I were a worm or a June bug. Confound her! what right had she to look at

me like that? Victor, or whatever his name was, was a cub and a cad and as fresh as the new paint on Ben

No, I did not want to talk with Jedediah Dean. However, he wanted to talk to me, and what he wanted he

Captain Dean was one of Denboro's leading citizens. His parents had been as poor as Job's turkey, but

Jedediah had determined to get money and now he had it. He was reputed to be worth "upwards of thirty

thousand," owned acres and acres of cranberry swamps, and the new house he had just built was almost as

big as it was ugly, which is saying considerable. He had wanted to be a deacon in the church and, though the

church was by no means so eager, deacon he became. He was an uncompromising Democrat, but he had

forced himself into the Board of Selectmen, every other member a Republican. He was director in the

Denboro bank, and it was town talk that his most ardent desire at the present time was to see his daughter

HelenNellie, we all called hermarried to George Taylor, cashier of that bank. As George and Nellie

were "keeping company" it seemed likely that Captain Jed would be gratified in this, as in all other desires.

He was a born boss, and did his best to run the town according to his ideas. Captain Elisha Warren, who lived

over in South Denboro and was also a director in the bank, covered the situation when he said: "Jed Dean is

one of those fellers who ought to have a big family to order around. The Almighty gave him only one child

He led the way to the settee by the calico and dress goods counter. I put the unread letter in my pocket and

"How's your mother?" he asked. "Matilda was cal'latin' to go down and set with her a spell this afternoon, if

Matilda was his wife. In her husband's company she was as dumb as a broken phonograph; when he was not

with her she talked continuously, as if to get even. A call from Matilda Dean was one of the additional trials

"Course she may not come," Jedediah hastened to say. "She's pretty busy these days. But if she don't have

"Mother will be charmed," I said. Captain Jed was no fool and he looked at me sharply.

I was not expecting this. I murmured something to the effect that I was delighted, of course.

"Sartin. Well, that's all right. I didn't get you on this settee to charm you. I want to talk business with you a

"Yup. Or it may be business later on. I've been thinkin' about that Shore Lane, the one that runs through your

land. Us town folks use that a whole lot. I cal'late most everybody's come to look at it as a reg'lar public road

"Why, yes, I suppose they have," I said, puzzled to know what he was driving at. "It is a public road,

"No, 'tain't, neither. It's a private way, and if you wanted to you could shut it off any day. A good many folks

"I guess yes. I'd shut it off myself. I wouldn't have Tom, Dick and Harry drivin' fish wagons and tip carts full

"I don't know as it does any. But because a tramp sleepin' on my front piazza might not harm the piazza,

I laughed. "The two cases aren't exactly alike, are they?" I said. "The land is of no value to us at present.

Mother and I are glad to have the Lane used, if it is a convenience, as I suppose it is."

"It's that, sartin. Ros, who owns that land the Lane runs through you or your mother?"

"Oh, nothin', nothin'! Well, you just think it over. If you decide you would sell it and get so fur as fixin' a

"Captain, what in the world do you want of that land? See here! you don't want to shut off the Shore Lane, do

"What in time would I want to shut it off for? I use it as much as anybody, don't I?"

"Maybe there ain't nothin' TO see. Only, if you decide to sell, let me know. Yes, and don't sell WITHOUT

"Well, you understand enough, I cal'late. All I want you to do is to promise not to sell that land the Lane's on

I considered for a moment. "Yes," I said, "I'll promise that. Though I can't imagine what you're driving at."

"You don't need to. Maybe I'm just drivin' blind; I hope I am. That's all I wanted to talk about," rising from

the settee. "Oh, by the way," he added, "your neighborhood's honored just now, ain't it? The King of New

"I met him when he was down a month ago. Sim Eldredge introduced me right here in the store. 'Mr. Colton,'

says Sim, proud but humble, so to speak, 'let me make you acquainted with one of our selectmen, Cap'n

Dean. Cap'n, shake hands with Mr. Colton of New York.' We shook, and I cal'late I'd ought to have kept that

"Oh, all right of his kind, I guess. In amongst a gang of high financers like himself he'd size up as a pretty

good sport, I shouldn't wonder. And he was polite enough to me, I suppose. But, darn him, I didn't like the

way he looked at me! He looked as if as ifwell, I can't tell you how he looked."

"You do, hey? He ain't looked at you, has he? No, course he ain't! You said you hadn't met him."

"Yes. Well, I'm a hayseed and I know it. I'm just a countryman and he's a millionaire. He'll be the big show in

this town from now on. When he blows his nose seveneighths of this community 'll start in workin' up a

He looked back over his shoulder. "I ain't subject to colds much," he snapped. "But YOU better lay in a

I smiled. I knew what was troubling him. A little tin god has a pleasant time of it, no doubt, until the coming

of the eighteen carat gold idol. Captain Jed had been boss of Denboroself appointed to that eminent

position, but holding it nevertheless and to be pushed from his perch by a city rival was disagreeable. If I

knew him he would not be dethroned without a fight. There were likely to be some interesting and lively

I could understand Dean's dislike of Colton, but his interest in the Shore Lane was a mystery. Why should he

wish to buy that worthless strip of land? And what did he mean by asking if I had chances to sell it? Still

pondering over this puzzle, I walked toward the front of the store, past the group waiting for the mail, where

the discussion concerning the Coltons was still going on, Thoph Newcomb and Alvin Baker both talking at

"You ask Ros," shouted Alvin, pounding the counter beside him. "Say, Ros, Newcomb here seems to think

that because a feller comes from the city and is rich that that gives him the right to order the rest of us around

I laughed and went on without replying. I left the store and strolled across the road to the bank, intending to

make a short call on George Taylor, the cashier, my most intimate acquaintance and the one person in

But George was busy in the directors' room, and, after waiting a few moments in conversation with Henry

Small, the bookkeeper, I gave it up and walked home, across the fields this time; I had no desire to meet more

Dorinda had finished dusting the dining room and was busy upstairs. I could hear the swishswish of her

broom overhead. I opened the door leading to Mother's bedroom and entered, closing the door behind me.

The curtains were drawn, as they always were on sunny days, and the room was in deep shadow. Mother had

"Is that you, Boy?" she asked. If I had been fifty, instead of thirtyone, Mother would have called me "Boy"

Her only way of knowing that the morning was a beautiful one was that the shades were drawn. She had not

seen the sunlight on the bay, nor the blue sky; she had not felt the spring breeze on her face, or the green

grass beneath her feet. Her only glimpses of the outside world were those which she got on cloudy or stormy

days when the shades were raised a few inches and, turning her head on the pillow, she could see beneath

them. For six years she had been helpless and bedridden in that little room. But she never complained.

I said that I had met Captain Dean and Newcomb and the rest. I said nothing of my encounter with the motor

"Captain Jed graciously informed me that his wife might be down to sit with you this afternoon," I said.

"Provided she didn't have anything else to do; he took pains to add that. You mustn't see her, of course."

She smiled. "Why not?" she asked. "Matilda is a little tiresome at times, but she means well."

"Humph! Mother, I think you would make excuses for the Old Harry himself. That woman will talk you to

"Oh, no! Not as bad as that. And poor Matilda doesn't talk much at home, I'm afraid."

"Her husband sees to that; I don't blame him. By the way, the Captain had a queer bee in his bonnet this

I told her of Jedediah's interest in the Shore Lane and his hint concerning its possible purchase. She listened

"It seems to me that I shouldn't sell, at least until I knew his reason for wanting to buy. It would be different if

"No. But the Denboro people need that Lane. They use it a great deal. If it were closed it would put many of

them to a great inconvenience, particularly those who get their living alongshore. Every one in Denboro has

"No one could help being kind to you, Mother. Oh! I have another piece of news. Did you know that our new

"Dorinda says Mrs. Colton is an invalid. Poor woman! it must be hard to be ill when one has so much to

I made no comment. I was not interested in pretty daughters, just then. The memory of the girl in the auto

"Did you go to the postoffice, Roscoe?" asked Mother. "I suppose there were no letters. There seldom are."

I took the envelope from my pocket and drew out the enclosure. The latter was a note, very brief and very

"It appears to be a summons from what Captain Jed called the King of New York. A summons to appear at

I should like to see you at my house thisThursdayforenoon, on a matter of business. I shall expect you at

"Mother, did you ever hear such a cool, nervy proposition in your life? He wants to see me and he orders me

"I suppose he didn't think of it. He is a big man in New York and he has been accustomed to having people

"Then I don't like the way. This is Denboro, not New York. He will expect me at any time after ten, will he?

Well, as Mullet said to Alvin Baker just now at the postoffice, I hope he has lots of patience. He'll need it."

"I don't know. Wants to look over his nearest jay neighbor, I should imagine, and see what sort of a curio he

"Roscoe, don't be narrowminded. Mr. Colton's ways aren't ours and we must make allowances."

Dorinda came in just then to ask Mother some questions concerning dinner, for, though Mother had not seen

the dining room since that day, six years ago, when she was carried from it to her bedroom, she kept her

interest in household affairs and insisted on being consulted on all questions of management and internal

"What is the matter? Something has gone wrong; I knew it as soon as you came in. What is it?"

"Nothing. That is, nothing of any consequence. I'm a little out of sorts today and that man's letter irritates

I went out through the dining room and kitchen, to the back yard, where, seating myself on Lute's favorite

resting place, the wash bench, I lit my pipe and sat thinking, gloomily thinking.

It is a dreadful thing to hate one's own father; to hate him and be unable to forgive him even though he is

dead, although he paid for his sin with his life. Death is said to pay all debts, but there are some it cannot pay.

To my father I owed my present ambitionless, idle, goodfornothing life, my mother's illness, years of

Paine was my mother's maiden name; she was christened Comfort Paine. My own Christian name is Roscoe

and my middle name is Paine. My other name, the name I was born with, the name that Mother took when

she married, we dropped when the disgrace came upon us. It was honored and respected once; now when it

was repeated people coupled it with shame and crime and dishonor and broken trust.

As a boy I remember myself as a spoiled youngster who took the luxuries of this world for granted. I attended

an expensive and select private school, idled my way through that somehow, and entered college, a

happygolucky young fellow with money in my pocket. For twothirds of my Freshman yearwhich was

all I experienced of University lifeI enjoyed myself as much as possible, and studied as little. Then came

the telegram. I remember the looks of the messenger who brought it, the cap he wore, and the grin on his

young Irish face when the fellow sitting next me at the battered black oak table in the back room of Kelly's

asked him to have a beer. I remember the song we were singing, the crowd of us, how it began again and then

stopped short when the others saw the look on my face. The telegram contained but four words: "Come home

I presume I shall never forget even the smallest incident of that night journey in the train and the

homecoming. The lawyer's meeting me at the station in the early morning; his taking care that I should not

see the newspapers, and his breaking the news to me. Not of the illness or death which I had feared and

dreaded, but of something worsedisgrace. My father was an embezzler, a thief. He had absconded, had run

away, like the coward he was, taking with him what was left of his stealings. The banking house of which he

had been the head was insolvent. The police were on his track. And, worse and most disgraceful of all, he had

not fled alone. There was a woman with him, a woman whose escapades had furnished the papers with

I had never been well acquainted with my father. We had never been friends and companions, like other

fathers and sons I knew. I remember him as a harsh, redfaced man, whom, as a boy, I avoided as much as

possible. As I grew older I never went to him for advice; he was to me a sort of walking pocketbook, and

not much else. Mother has often told me that she remembers him as something quite different, and I suppose

it must be true, otherwise she would not have married him; but to me he was a source of supply coupled with

a bad temper, that was all. That I was not utterly impossible, that, going my own gait as I did, I was not a

complete young blackguard, I know now was due entirely to Mother. She and I were as close friends as I

would permit her to be. Father had neglected us for years, though how much he had neglected and illtreated

her I did not know until she told me, afterward. She was in delicate health even then, but, when the blow fell,

it was she and not I who bore up bravely and it was her pluck and nerve, not mine, which pulled us through

And it was dreadful. The stories and pictures in the papers! The rumors, always contradicted, that the

embezzler had been caught! The misrepresentation and lies and scandal! The loss of those whom we had

supposed were friends! Mother bore them all, wore a calm, brave face in public, and only when alone with

me gave way, and then but at rare intervals. She clung to me as her only comfort and hope. I was sullen and

wrathful and resentful, an unlicked cub, I suspect, whose complaints were selfish ones concerning the giving

up of my college life and its pleasures, and the sacrifice of social position and wealth.

Mother hador so we thought at the timea sum in her own name which would enable us to live; although

not as we had lived by a great deal. We took an apartment in an unfashionable quarter of the city, and thanks

to the lawyerwho proved himself a real and true friendI was given a minor position in a small bank.

Oddly enough, considering my former life, I liked the work, it interested me, and during the next few years I

was made, by successive promotions, bookkeeper, teller, and, at last, assistant cashier. No news came from

the absconder. The police had lost track of him, and it seemed probable that he would never be heard of

again. But over Mother and myself hung always the dread that he might be found and all the dreadful

business revived once more. Mother never mentioned it, nor did I, but the dread was there.

Then came the first breakdown in Mother's health which necessitated her removal to the country. Luther and

Dorinda Rogers were distant relatives of our friend, the lawyer. They owned the little house by the shore at

Denboro and the lawyer had visited them occasionally on shooting and fishing trips. They were in need of

money, for, as Dorinda said: "We've got two mouths in this family and only one pair of hands. One of the

mouths is so big that the hands can't fill it, let alone the mouth that belongs to THEM." Motheras Mrs.

Paine, a widowwent there first as a boarder, intending to remain but a few months. Dorinda took to her at

once, being attracted in the beginning, I think, by the name. "They call you Comfort Paine," she said, "and

you are a comfort to everybody else's pain. Yet you ain't out of pain a minute scurcely, yourself. I never see

anything like it. If 'twan't wicked I'd say that name was give you by the Old Scratch himself, as a sort of

divilish joke. But anybody can see that the Old Scratch never had anything in common with you, even a hand

Dorinda was very kind, and Lute was a neverending joy in his peculiar way. Mother would have been

almost happy in the little Denboro home, if I had been with her. But she was never really happy when we

were separated, a condition of mind which grew more acute as her health declined. I came down from the city

once every month and those Sundays were great occasions. The Denboro people know me as Roscoe Paine.

For a time Mother seemed to be holding her own. In answer to my questions she always declared that she was

"She must be kept absolutely quiet," he said. "She must not be troubled in any way. Worry or mental distress

is what I fear most. Any sudden bad news or shock mightwell, goodness knows what effect it might have.

She must not be worried. Ros" after one has visited Denboro five times in succession he is generally called

I had worries, plenty of them. Our little fortune, saved, as we thought, from the wreck, suffered a severe

shrinkage. A considerable portion of it, as the lawyers discovered, was involved and belonged to the

creditors. I said nothing to Mother about this: she supposed that we had a sufficient income for our needs,

even without my salary. Without telling her I gave up our city apartment, stored our furniture, and took a

room in a boarding house. I was learning the banking business, was trusted with more and more

I saw the news in the paper when I went out to lunch. "Embezzler and His Companion Caught in Rio Janeiro.

He Commits Suicide When Notified of His Arrest." These headlines stared at me as I opened the paper at the

restaurant table. My father had shot himself when the police came. I read it with scarcely more than a vague

feeling of pity for him. It was of Mother that I thought. The news must be kept from her. If she should hear of

it! What should I do? I went first of all to the lawyer's office: he was out of town for the day. I wandered up

and down the streets for an hour. Then I went back to the bank. There I found a telegram from Doctor

Quimby: "Mrs. Paine very ill. Come on first train." I knew what it meant. Mother had heard the news; the

I reached Denboro the next morning. Lute met me at the station. From his disjointed and lengthy story I

gathered that Mother had been "feelin' fustrate for her" until the noon before. "I come back from the

postoffice," said Lute, "and I was cal'latin' to read the newspaper, but Dorindy had some everlastin' chore or

other for me to doI believe she thinks 'em up in her sleepand I left the paper on the dinin'room table

and went out to the barn. Dorindy she come along to boss me, as usual. When we went back to the house

there was Mrs. Comfort on the dinin'room floordead, we was afraid at fust. The paper was alongside of

her, so we judge she was just agoin' to read it when she was took. The doctor says it's a paralysis or

appleplexy or somethin'. We carried her into the bedroom, but she ain't spoke sence."

She did not speak for weeks and when she did it was to ask for me. She called my name over and over again

and, if I left her, even for a moment, she grew so much worse that the doctor forbade my going back to the

city. I obtained a leave of absence from the bank for three months. By that time she was herself, so far as her

reason was concerned, but very weak and unable to bear the least hint of disturbance or worry. She must not

be moved, so Doctor Quimby said, and he held out no immediate hope of her recovering the use of her limbs.

"She will be confined to her bed for a long time," said the doctor, "and she is easy only when you are here. If

you should go away I am afraid she might die." I did not go away. I gave up my position in the bank and

At the end of the year I bought the Rogers house and land, moved a portion of our furniture down there, sold

the rest, and resigned myself to a period of idleness in the country. Dorinda I hired as housekeeper, and when

Dorinda accepted the engagement she threw in Lute, so to speak, for good measure.

And here I have been ever since. At first I looked upon my stay in Denboro as a sort of enforced vacation,

which was to be, of course, only temporary. But time went on and Mother's condition continued unchanged.

She needed me and I could not leave her. I fished and, shot and sailed and loafed, losing ambition and

selfrespect, aware that the majority of the village people considered me too lazy to earn a living, and caring

little for their opinion. At first I had kept up a hit or miss correspondence with one or two of my associates in

the bank, but after a while I dropped even this connection with the world. I was ashamed to have my former

acquaintances know what I had become, and they, apparently, were quite willing to forget me. I expected to

The summer people, cottagers and boarders, I avoided altogether and my only friend, and I did not consider

him that, was George Taylor, the Denboro bank cashier. He was fond of saltwater and outdoor sports and

Thanks to the lawyer, our names had been scarcely mentioned in the papers at the time of my father's death.

No one in the village knew our identity or our story. And, because I knew that Mother would worry if she

were told, I kept from her the fact that our little income was but half of what it had been. Our wants were few,

and if my clothes were no longer made by the best tailors, if they were readymade and outofdate and

lacked pressing, they were whole, at all events, because Dorinda was a tiptop mender. In fact, I had

forgotten they were outofdate until the sight of the immaculately garbed young chap in the automobile

But now, as I sat on the washbench, thinking of all this, I looked down at my baggy trousers and faded

waistcoat with disgust. One of the surest signs of the loss of selfrespect is a disregard of one's personal

appearance. I looked like a hayseednot the independent countryman who wears old clothes on week days

from choice and is proudly conscious of a Sunday suit in the closetbut that other variety, the postoffice

and billiardroom idler who has reached the point of utter indifference, is too shiftless to care. Captain Jed

was not so far wrong, after allLute Rogers and I were birds of a feather in more ways than one.

No wonder that girl in the auto had looked at me as if I were something too contemptible for notice. Yet I

hated her for that look. I had behaved like a boor, of course. Because I was a failure, a country loafer with no

prospect of ever being anything else, because I could not ride in automobiles and others could these were

no good reasons for insulting strangers more fortunate than I. Yet I did hate that girl. Just then I hated all

I took the letter from my pocket and read it again. "I should like to see you . . . on a matter of business." What

business could "Yours truly, James W. Colton" have with me? And Captain Jed also had talked business. I

supposed that I had given up business long ago and for good; now, all at once, it seemed to be hunting me.

At another time I might have treated the great Colton's "summons to court" as a joke. I might, like Mother,

have regarded the curtness of the command and its general tone of taking my prompt obedience for granted as

an expression of the Wall Street magnate's habit of mind, and nothing more. He was used to having people

jump when he snapped his fingers. But now it made me angry. I sympathized with Dean and Alvin Baker.

The possession of money did not necessarily imply omnipotence. This was Cape Cod, not New York. His

Majesty might, as Captain Jed put it, have blown his Imperial nose, but I, for one, wouldn't "lay in a supply of

I heard a rustle in the bushes and, turning my head, saw Lute coming along the path. He was walking

fastfast for him, that is and seemed to be excited. His excitement, however, did not cause him to forget

prudence. He looked carefully about to be sure his wife was not in sight, before he spoke.

"Dorindy ain't been here sence I've been gone, has she?" was his first question.

"I guess not," said I. "She has been in the house since I got back. But I don't know how long you've been

"Only a few minutes. II just stepped over 'cross the Lane for a jiffy, that's all. Say, by time; them Coltons

"Hey? What do you mean by that? If they didn't have money they couldn't be millionaires, could they? How'd

"By time! I'D like to try a spell. I've been over lookin' 'round their place. You never see such a place! Why,

"Give it up! But it does seem to me that I have heard of raking a yard. I think Dorinda mentioned that, didn't

Lute looked at me: then he hurried over and picked up the rake which was lying near the barn, a pilea very

"A week ago, I think, was the first time. She has referred to it occasionally since. She was mentioning it to

Lute looked relieved. "Oh, THEN!" he said. "I thought you meant lately. Well, I'm rakin' it, ain't I? Say,

Ros," he added, eagerly, "did you go to the postoffice when you was uptown? Was there a letter there for

"Asa Peters' boy, the bowlegged one, told me. The chauffeur, the feller that pilots the automobiles, asked

him where the postoffice was and he see the address on the envelope. He said the letter was for you. I told

"What in the world did you tell him that for?" I interrupted. I had known Lute a long time, but he sometimes

"'Cause he is, nine times out of ten," replied Lute, promptly. "You never see such a youngone for dodgin'

"Said 'twas for you. And the chauffeur said Mr. Colton told him to mail it right off. 'Twan't for you, was it,

Among his other lackings Lute was conspicuously short of tact. This was no time for him to ask me such a

"Well, it's a good thing Dorindy didn't hear you; she's down on swearin', heathen or any other kind. But what

"No, I'm tolerably sane. There! there! don't look at me like that. Here's his letter. Read it, if you want to."

Lute's fingers were so eager to grasp that letter that they were all thumbs. He dropped it on the grass, picked

it up with as much care as if it was a diamond, and holding it a foot from his nose he had broken his

spectacles and was afraid to ask Dorinda for the money to have them repairedhe spelt it out to the last

"Well, by time!" he exclaimed, when he had finished. "He wants to see you at his house this forenoon!

"Well, I thought I should enjoy watching you rake the yard. It is a pleasure deferred so far."

"Watchin' me! Roscoe Paine, you are out of your head! Ain't you goin' to see him?"

"Darn ain't swearin'. Dorindy herself says that once in a while. I mean Alvin Baker, and Jed Dean and the rest

of 'em. They was goin' on about Mr. Colton last night; said THEY wan't goin' to run at his beck and call. I

told 'em, says I, 'You ain't had the chance. You'll run fast enough when you do.'"

"Noo. I said it to Alvin, but old Jed's just as bad. He's down on anybody that's got more'n he has. But Ros,

you ain't foolish enough to side with Jed Dean. Just think! Here's Mr. Colton, richer'n King Solomon and all

his glory. He's got servants and butlers and bonds and cowpons and horses and teams and automobiles

"He hasn't got menot yet. If he wants to see me he may. I expect to be at home for the next day or two."

"You don't mean you expect a millionaire like him to come cruisin' after YOU! Well, by time! I think I see

"Well,bytime!" said Lute, by way of summing up. I ate dinner with Dorinda. Her husband did not join

us. Dorinda paid a visit to the back yard and, seeing how little raking had been done, announced that until the

job was finished there would be "no dinner for some folks." So she and I ate and Lute raked, under protest,

and vowing that he was so faint and holler he cal'lated to collapse 'most any time.

After the meal was finished I went down to the boathouse. The boathouse was a little building on the beach at

the foot of the bluff below the house. It was a favorite resort of mine and I spent many hours there. My

eighteen foot motor launch, the Comfort, the one expensive luxury I allowed myself and which I had bought

secondhand two years before, was jacked up in the middle of the floor. The engine, which I had taken apart

to clean, was in pieces beside it. On the walls hung my two shot guns and my fishing rod. Outside, on the

beach, was my flatbottomed skiff, which I used for rowing about the bay, her oars under the thwarts. In the

boathouse was a comfortable armchair and a small shelf of books, novels for the most part. A cheap clock

and a brokendown couch, the latter a discard from the original outfit of the cottage, made up the list of

My idea in coming to the boathouse was to continue my work with the engine. I tried it for a half hour or so

and then gave it up. It did not interest me then. I shut the door at the side of the building, that by which I had

enteredthe big double doors in front I had not opened at alland, taking a book from the shelf, stretched

The book I had chosen was one belonging to the Denboro Ladies' Library; Miss Almena Doane, the librarian,

had recommended it highly, as a "real interesting story, with lots of uplifting thoughts in it." The thoughts

might be uplifting to Almena, but they did not elevate my spirits. As for the storywell, the hero was a

young gentleman who was poor but tremendously clever and handsome, and the heroine had eyes "as dark

and deep as starlit pools." The poor but beautiful person met the pooleyed one at a concert, where he sat,

"his whole soul transfigured by the music," and she had been "fascinated in spite of herself" by the look on

After that I must have fallen asleep. What awakened me was a knock on the door. It was Lute, of course.

Probably mother wanted me for something or other, and Dorinda had sent her husband to hunt me up.

The door opened and in came, not Lute, but a tall, portly man, with a yachting cap on the back of his gray

head, and a cigar in his mouth. He looked at me as I lay on the couch and I lay on the couch and looked at

I sat up on the couch. Mr. Colton knocked the ashes from his cigar, waited an instant, and then repeated his

"No, I got it. Won't youerwon't you sit down?" He pulled the armchair toward him and sat down. I

noticed that he had a habit of doing things quickly. His sentences were short and to the point and he spoke

and acted like one accustomed to having his own way. He crossed his knees and looked about the little

"It is a pleasant day," I observed, for the sake of saying something. He did not seem to hear me, or, if he did,

he was not interested in the weather. For my part I found the situation embarrassing. I knew what his next

"I wrote you to come over to my place this forenoon," he said. "You didn't come."

Here was the issue joined. Here, if ever, was the opportunity to assert my independence a la Jed Dean and

Alvin Baker. But to assert it now, after he had done the unexpected, after the mountain had come to

"I see. Well, I waited until two o'clock and then I decided to hunt you up. I called at your house. The woman

"No." My answer was prompt and sharp enough this time. It was natural, perhaps, that he should presume

He paid absolutely no attention to the tone of my reply or its curtness. He did not refer to Dorinda again. She

"This your workshop?" he asked, abruptly. Then, nodding toward the dismembered engine, "What are you? a

"What's the price of a boat like that?" indicating the Comfort with a kick in her direction.

He did not refer to the boat again; apparently forgot it altogether. His next move was to rise and turn toward

the door. I watched him, wondering what was going to happen next. He had a habit of jumping from one

"Tell him to call at my house next time you see him. And for heaven's sake tell him to come to the servants'

door. Don't you people down here have any servants' doors to your houses? There have been no less than fifty

peddlers on my porch since yesterday and my butler will die of apoplexy if it keeps on. He's a good one, for a

I made no reply to this observation and he did not seem to expect any. He watched Zeb rake for a moment

"Can you?" he went on. "I've got a business deal to make with you and I'd rather make it there. I've got a lot

of carpenters and painters at work and they ask me ten questions a minute. They are unnecessary questions

but if I don't answer them the fellows are sure to make some fool mistake or other. They need a governess. If

you'll come over with me I'll be in touch with them and you and I can talk just as well. Can come, can't you?"

I did not know what to say. I wanted to say no, that if he had any business with me it could be discussed in

that boathouse. I did not like his manner, yet I had a feeling that it was his usual one and that he had not

I remembered the position he had found me in and I rather think I had turned red. He did not smile, but there

He led the way and I followed, rebellious, and angry, not so much with him as with myself. I wished now that

I had gone over to the Colton place when I first received the summons to court, instead of making

proclamations of defiance to mother and Lute Rogers. This seemed such a complete backdown. As we passed

the house I saw Lute peering from the barn. I devoutly hoped he might not see me, but he did. His mouth

opened and he stared. Then, catching my eye, he winked triumphantly. I wanted to punch his head.

The King of New York walked briskly on in silence until we were just at the edge of the grove by the Shore

I admitted that the view was good. At that particular point it embraced nearly the whole of the bay in front,

"There are eighteen hundred people in this town, they tell me," he said. "Permanent residents, I mean. What

"Yes. How do they get a living? They must get it somehow. In the regular summer resorts they squeeze it out

of the city people, I know that. But there aren't so many cottagers and boarders here. What do you all do for a

"You might call it that. Is this a part of the business you wished to see me about, Mr. Colton?"

I was boiling inwardly and a little of the heat was expressed in my tone. I don't know whether he took the hint

or merely lost interest in the subject. At any rate his reply was a brief "No," and we continued our walk.

As we reached the Shore Lane he paused again, and I thought he was about to speak. He did not, however,

and we crossed the boundary line of my property and entered the Colton grounds. As we drew nearer to the

house I was surprised to see how large it was. When the Atwaters owned it I was an occasional caller there,

for old Major Atwater was fond of shooting and sometimes borrowed my decoys. But, since it changed

hands, I had not been nearer to it than the Lane. With the new wing and the other additions it was enormous.

It fairly reeked of money, though, so far as I was a judge, the taste shown in rebuilding and decorating was

good. We turned the corner, where Asa Peters, the head carpenter, came hurrying up. Asa looked surprised

enough to see me in company with his employer and regarded me wonderingly. "Mr. Colton," he said, "I

wanted to ask you about them skylights." I stepped back out of hearing, but I inferred from Colton's actions

that the question was another one of the "unnecessary" ones he had so scornfully referred to in the boathouse.

"Jackass!" he exclaimed, as he rejoined me. I judged he was classifying Asa, but, if so, he did not trouble to

lower his voice. "Come on, Paine," he added, and we passed a long line of windows, hung with costly

The doors were opened by an imposing personage in dark blue and brass buttons, who bowed profoundly

before Colton and regarded me with condescending superiority. This personage, whom I recognized, from

Alvin's description, as the "ministerlookin'" butler, led us through a hall about as large as our sittingroom,

diningroom and kitchen combined, but bearing no other resemblance to these apartments, and opened

another door, through which, bowing once more, he ushered us. Then he closed the door, leaving himself, to

my relief, outside. It had been a long time since I was waited upon by a butler and I found this specimen

The room we were in was the library, and, though it was bigger and far more sumptuous than the library I

remembered so well as a boy, the sight of the books in their cases along the walls gave me a feeling almost of

homesickness. My resentment against my millionaire neighbor increased. Why should he and his have

Colton seated himself in a leather upholstered chair and waved his hand toward another.

I was a confirmed smoker, but I was not going to smoke one of his cigarsnot then.

"No thank you," said I. He did not comment on my refusal, but lit the cigar himself, from the stump of his

former one. Then he crossed his legs and proceeded, with characteristic abruptness, to his subject.

"Paine," he began, "you own this land next to me, you say. Your property ends at the fence this side of that

"And it IS your land? It belongs to you, personally, all of it, free and clear?"

"Whyyes; it does." I could not see what business of his my ownership of that land might be.

"All right. I asked that because, if it wasn't yours, if it was tied up or mortgaged in any way, it might

"Good! Then we can get down to brass tacks and save time. I want a piece of that land."

"I want a strip of your land. Want to buy it, of course. I don't expect you to give it to me. What's it worth, by

I did not answer. All at once I was beginning to see a light. Captain Jed Dean's mysterious conversation at the

"By the way, before you name a figure, answer me one more question. That roador lane, or whatever it

"I don't care how you figure it. Here, let's get down to a business proposition. I want to buy a strip of that land

from the Lower Roadthat's what you call the one above here, isn't it?to the beach. The strip I want is

about three hundred feet wide, for a guess. It extends from my fence to the other side of that grove by the

"I thought I had, but it seems I haven't. Well, what's your price for that strip?"

"Never mind that. I suppose you're afraid you'll make the price too low. Now, see here, I'm a busy man. I

haven't time to do any bargaining. Name your price and, if it's anywhere within reason, we won't haggle. I

expect to pay more than anyone else would. That's part of my fine for being a city man and not a native. Gad!

"For reasons of my own, I tell you. They haven't anything to do with your selling."

"You don't care to sell!" he repeated, slowly. "What the devil do you mean by that?"

"No use? Why There! there! sit down. It's none of my business how rich you are, and I beg your pardon.

I sat down, reluctantly. He threw his cigar, which had gone out, into the fireplace and lit another.

"Say," he said, "you surprise me, Paine. What do you mean by saying you won't sell that land? You don't

"Then how do you know you won't sell it? I never had anything yet except my wife and familythat I

wouldn't sell for a price. Look here! I haven't got time to do any DownEast horsejockeying. I'll make you

an offer. I'll give you five hundred dollars cash for that strip of land. What do you say?"

I didn't say anything. Five hundred dollars was a generous offer. I couldn't help thinking what Mother and I

I answered, Yankee fashion, with another question. "Mr. Colton," I asked, "why do you want to close that

"That Lane has been used by Denboro people for years. It is almost a public necessity."

He puffed twice on his cigar before he spoke again. When he did it was in a different tone.

"I see," he said. "Humph! I see. Paine, does the town pay you rent for the use of that road?"

"You THINK not. That means you're not sure. You've had a bite somewhere. Somebody has been nibbling at

your hook. Well, they've got to bite quick and swallow some to get ahead of me. I want that road closed and

"Tell 'em to wait," he ordered. "I can't see any one now, Johnson. If it is that damned carpenter he can wait."

"It isn't the carpenter, sir," explained Johnson. "It's Mrs. Colton, sir. She wishes to know if you have bought

that road. She says three of those 'orrid fishcarts have gone by in the last hour, sir, and they are making her

"You heard that, Paine," he said. "That's my reason, the principal one. I bought this place principally on

account of Mrs. Colton's health. The doctors said she needed quiet and rest. I thought she could have them

hereGod knows the place looked forsaken enough but it appears she can't. Whenever she or I sit on the

veranda or at a window we have to watch a procession of jays driving smelly fish carts through that lane of

yours, or be stared at by a gang of countrymen hanging over the fence. It's a nuisance. It is bad enough for me

or my daughter and our guests, but it will be the ruination of my wife's nerves, and I can't stand for that. You

see the position I'm in. You heard what I told that butler. I said I had bought the road. You wouldn't make me

a liar, would you? I'll give you five hundred for that bunch of sand. You couldn't get more for it if you sold it

"I understand your position, Mr. Colton," I said, "but I can't say yes. Not now, at any rate."

"Because, if I were certain that I wanted to sell, I could not accept any offer just now."

"Why not? See here! are you afraid the town will be sore because the road is closed?"

"It's a greater one to me as it is. Can you afford to be a philanthropist? Are you one of those publicspirited

He was sneering now, and my anger, which had lessened somewhat when he spoke of his wife's ill health,

"I don't know as to that. But, as I said a while ago, Mr. Colton, I couldn't sell that land to you now."

"Because, if there were no other reason, I promised not to sell it without telling another person first."

"I see," he said, with sarcasm. "I knew there was something beside public spirit. You think, by hanging off

and playing me against this other sucker, you can get a higher price. Well, if that's the game, I'll keep him

"I've wasted time enough over this fool thing," he declared. "Now that I know what the game is we'll talk to

the point. It's highway robbery, but I might have expected to be robbed. I'll give you six hundred for that

I did not answer. I was holding my temper by main strength and I could not trust myself to speak.

"Well?" he sneered. "That shakes your public spirit some, hey? What do you say?"

"What!" he could hardly believe his ears. "By the Lord Harry! the fellow is crazy. Six hundred and fifty then,

"I mean that you may go to the devil," I retorted, and reached for the door knob.

But before my fingers touched it there was the sound of laughter and voices in the hall. The knob was turned

from without. I stepped back and to one side involuntarily, as the door opened and into the library came, not

the butler, but a young lady, a girl in an automobile coat and bonnet. And, following her, a young man.

"Father," said the young lady, "Johnson says you've bought that horrid road. I'm so glad! When did you do

"Congratulations, Mr. Colton," said the young man. "We just passed a cart full of somethingseaweed, I

believe it wasas we came along with the car. Oscar had to slow down to squeeze by, and we certainly were

"Hush, Victor," she said. "I beg your pardon, Father. I thought you were alone. Victor, we're intruding."

The open door had partially screened me from the newcomers. But Colton, red and wrathful, had not ceased

to glare in my direction and she, following his gaze, saw me. She did not recognize me, I thinkprobably I

had not made sufficient impression upon her mind even for casual remembrancebut I recognized her. She

was the girl with the dark eyes, whose look of contemptuous indifference had so withered my selfesteem.

And her companion was the young chap who, from the tonneau of the automobile that morning, had inquired

The young man turned lazily. "Are we?" he said. "I What! Why, Mabel, it's the humorist!"

Then she recognized me. I could feel the blood climbing from my toes to the roots of my hair. I was too

astonished and chagrined to speak or even move, though I wanted to move very much indeed. She looked at

But Victor was his own blase self. It took more than a trifle to shake his calm. He laughed.

But I had recovered my powers of locomotion. I was on my way out of that library.

I did not stop. Feeling as I did at that moment it would have been distinctly unpleasant for the person who

tried to stop me. The girl was in my way and, as I approached, she drew her skirts aside. No doubt it was my

imagination which made her manner of doing it seem like an insult, but, imagination or reality, it was the one

thing necessary to clench my resolution. Now when she looked at me I returned the look with interest. I

strode through the doorway and across the hall. The butler would have opened the outer door for me, but I

opened it myself to the imminent danger of his dignified nose. As I stepped from the portico I heard behind

I walked home at top speed. Only once did I look back. That was just as I was about to enter the grove on the

other side of the Shore Lane. Then I turned and saw, at the big window at the end of the "Newport villa," a

group of three staring in my direction: Colton, his daughter and that cub Victor. The distance was too great to

see the expression of their faces, but I knew that two of them, at least, were laughinglaughing at me.

Lute was waiting for me by the gate and ran to meet me. He was wild with excitement.

"He came after you, didn't he?" he cried, grabbing at my coat sleeve. "You went over to his house with him,

didn't you! I see you and at fust I couldn't scurcely believe it. What did he want? What did he say?"

"What did he want?" he repeated. "What did he say to you? What did you say to him? Tell a feller, can't

"Youyou By time, you're stark loony!" he gasped; and collapsed against the gate post.

So she was his daughter. I might have guessed it; would have guessed it if I had possessed the commonest of

commonsense. I might have known that the auto was Colton's. No other machine was likely to be traveling

on the Lower Road at that season of the year. She was the pretty daughter of whom Dorinda had spoken to

Mother. Well, she was pretty enough; even I had to admit that. But I admitted it grudgingly. I hated her for

her beauty and fine clothes and haughty arrogance. She was the incarnation of snobbishness.

But to be made twice ridiculous even by the incarnation of snobbishness was galling. She was to be my

nextdoor neighbor; we were likely to meet almost anywhere at any time. When I thought of this and of the

two meetings which had already taken place I swore at the blue and white waterpitcher on my bureau

because it did not contain water enough to drown me. Not that I would commit suicide on her account. She

would not care if I did and certainly I did not care whether she would care or not; but if I were satisfactorily

dead I probably should not remember what a fool I had made of myself, or Fate had made of me.

Why had I not got out of that library before she came? Oh, if not, why hadn't I stayed and told her father, in

her hearing, and with dignity, just what I thought of him and his remarks to me? But no; I had run away.

Sheor that Victorwould tell of the meeting at the bridge, and all my independence and the rest of it

would be regarded as of a piece with that, just the bigheaded "smartness" of a country boor. In their eyes I

was a nuisance, that was all. A disagreeable one, perhaps, like the Shore Lane, but a nuisance, one to laugh at

Why had I gone with Colton at all? Why hadn't I remained at the boathouse and there told the King of New

York to go to the mischief? or words to that effect. But I had, at all events, told him that. In spite of my

chagrin I could not help chuckling as I thought of it. To tell Big Jim Colton to go to the devil was, in its way,

I imagined, a privilege enjoyed by few. It must have shaken his selfsatisfaction a trifle. Well, after all, what

did I care? He, and his whole familyincluding Victorhad my permission to migrate in that direction and

Having derived this much satisfaction from my reflections, I went downstairs. Dorinda was setting the table

"Been visitin', I hear," she observed, wiping an imaginary speck from the corner of a plate with her

"Out in the barn, beddin' down the horse. That is, I told him to do that, but his head was so full of you and

what you told him you said to Mr. Colton that I shouldn't be surprised if he's bedded down the hens and was

"Umhm. He was all for fetchin' the doctor right off, but I told him I cal'lated we could bear with your ravin's

"I thought not. I never saw any good come from profane language yet; and, besides, judgin' from what I hear

about the way that Colton man lives, and what he does on Sundays and all, he'll make the port you sent him

I laughed, and she began sorting the plated spoons. We had silver ones, but Dorinda insisted on keeping those

to use when we had company. In consequence we used them about twice a year, when the minister came.

"Of course," she said, "I ain't askin' you what happened over there or why he wanted to see you. But I give

you fair warnin' that, if I don't, Lute will. Lute's so stuffed with curiosity that he's li'ble to bust the stitches

"Umhm," said Dorinda. "Well, I can wait, and Lute'll have to. By the way," she added, seeing me about to

enter Mother's room, "if it's anything too unpleasant I wouldn't worry Comfort with it. She'll want to know, of

Mother did want to know, and I told her, "smoothing the edges" all I could. I omitted my final order to "Big

Jim" and I said nothing whatever about his daughter. Mother seemed to think I had done right in refusing to

"Poor woman," she said, "I suppose the noise of the wagons and all that are annoying to any one with weak

She meant it, too. But I, remembering the Colton mansion, what I had seen of it, and contrasting its splendor

with the bare necessity of that darkened bedroom, found it hard to spare pity for the sufferer from "nerves."

"You needn't be," I said, bitterly. "I imagine she wouldn't think of you, if the conditions were reversed. I

"I have met the rest of the family. No, Mother, I think you needn't he sorry for that woman. She has

"Hush! hush! There is one thing she hasn't got. She hasn't a son like you, Boy."

"Humph! That must be a terrible deprivation. There! there! Mother, I won't be disagreeable. Let's change the

"No. I presume she was too busy. But, Roscoe, it is plain enough why Captain Dean spoke to you about the

Lane at the office this morning. He must have heard, somehow, that Mr. Colton wished to buy it."

"Yes. Or, if he didn't hear just that, he heard enough to make him guess the rest. He is pretty shrewd."

"You promised him you wouldn't sell without telling him beforehand. Shall you tell him of Mr. Colton's

"I wonder what he will do then. Do you suppose he will try to persuade the Selectmen to buy the Lane for the

"Yes. Although the town can't afford to pay Colton's prices. I believe that man would have raised his bid to a

thousand, if I had let him. As a matter of business and nothing else, I suppose I am foolish not to push the

"I know. But this isn't just a matter of business, is it? And we DON'T need the money. We're not rich, but we

"No. No, of course not. But, Mother, just see what I could do for youwith a thousand dollars. Why,

"I had rather not get them that way. No, Roscoe, I wouldn't sell to Mr. Colton. And I think I wouldn't sell to

"Well, because we don't have to sell, and selling to either party would make illfeeling. I shouldof course

I'm only a woman; you are a man and know much more about such things than Ibut why not let matters

stay just as they are? The townspeople can use the Lane, just as they have always done, and, as I told you

before, every one has been so kind to us that I like to feel we are doing a little in return. Let them use the

"Perhaps they don't understand the real situation. The next time you see Mr. Colton you could explain more

fully; tell him what the Lane means to the town, and so on. I'm sure he would understand, if you told him

that. And then, if the sight of the wagons was too annoying, he could put up some kind of a screen, or plant a

I imagined the great man's reply to such a suggestion. However, I did not express my thoughts. I told Mother

not to worry, I was sure everything would be all right, and, as Dorinda called me to supper, I went into the

Lute was waiting for me at the table, and Dorinda, after taking the tray into Mother's room, joined us. Lute

was so full of excitement and curiosity that he almost forgot to eat, a miracle of itself and made greater by the

fact that he did not ask a single question until his wife asked one first. Then he asked three in succession.

Dorinda, who was quite as curious as he but would not have shown it for the world, stopped him at the

"There! there!" she said, sharply, "this is supposed to be a meal, not a parrot shop, and we're humans, not a

passel of birds on a telegraph wire all hollerin' at once. Drink your tea and stop your cawin', Lute Rogers.

I told them as much of the interview at the Coltons' as I thought necessary they should know. Lute kept

remarkably quiet, for him, until I named the figure offered by the millionaire. Then he could hold in no

"Sshh! shh!" cut in Dorinda. "You sound like Sim Eldredge sellin' somethin' at auction. DO be quiet! And

"Umhm. I ain't forgot it. Be quiet, Lute. Well, Roscoe, I cal'late you know your own affairs best, but, judgin'

from some hints Matildy Dean hove out when she was here this afternoon, I don't believe you've heard the

"Umhm. Well, she was here, though Comfort didn't know it. I took pains she shouldn't. Matildy come about

three o'clock, in the buggy, along with Nellie. Nellie was doin' the drivin', of course, and her mother was

tellin' her how, as usual. I don't wonder that girl is such a meek, softspoken kind of thing. Between her pa's

bullyin' and her ma's tongue, it's a wonder she's got any spirit left. It would be a mercy if George Taylor

should marry her and take her out of that house. Matildy had a new book on Spiritu'lism and she was figgerin'

to read some of it out loud to Comfort, but I headed her off. I know _I_ wouldn't want to be all stirred up

about 'tests' and 'materializations' and such, and so I told her Comfort was asleep."

"She wasn't asleep, neither," declared Lute. "What did you tell such a whopper as that for? You're always

sailin' into me if I stretch a yarn the least mite. Why, last April Fool Day you give me Hail Columby for

jokin' you about a mouse under the kitchen table. Called me all kinds of names, you didafter you got down

His wife regarded him scornfully. "It's pretty hard to remember which IS that partic'lar day with you around,"

she said. "I'd told Comfort she'd ought to take a nap and if she wan't takin' it 'twan't my fault. I wan't goin' to

have her seein' her granddad's ghost in every corner. But, anyhow, Matildy made a little call on me, and,

amongst the million other things she said, was somethin' about Cap'n Jed hearin' that Mr. Colton was cal'latin'

to shut off that Lane. Matildy hinted that her husband and the Selectmen might have a little to say afore 'twas

closed. If that's so I guess you may hear from him as well as the Colton man, Roscoe."

"Perhaps," I said. I could see no use in repeating my conversation with Captain Jed.

"Humph! Well," with some sarcasm, "it must be fine to be in a position where money's no object. I never

"Umhm," she said. "Well, anyhow it looks to meLute, you keep stillas if there was goin' to be two

parties in Denboro afore this Lane business is over. One for the Coltons and one against 'em. You'll have to

"If it's the right kind of a fence, maybe 'tis," she observed. "Otherwise the pickets are liable to make you

I went out soon after this, for my evening smoke and walk by the bluff. As I left the diningroom I heard

Lute reiterating his belief that I had gone crazy. Colton had said the same thing. I wondered what Captain

Whether it was another phase of my insanity or not, I don't know, but I woke the next morning in pretty good

spirits. Remembrance of the previous day's humiliations troubled me surprisingly little. They did not seem

nearly so great in the retrospect. What difference did it make to me what that crowd of snobs did or said or

However, there was just enough bitterness in my morning's review of yesterday's happenings to make me a

little more careful in my dress. I did not expect to meet my aristocratic neighborsI devoutly wished it

might be my good luck never to meet any of them againbut in making selections from my limited

wardrobe I chose with more thought than usual. Dorinda noticed the result when I came down to breakfast.

"Humph! I don't see what you put those blue pants on for. They're awful things to show water spots. Did you

leave your brown ones upstairs? Umhm. Well, I'll get at 'em some time today. I noticed they was wearin' a

I had noticed it, too, and this reminder confirmed my suspicions that others had made the same observations.

"I'll try and mend 'em this afternoon," went on Dorinda, "if I can find time. But, for mercy's sake, don't spot

those all up, for I may not get time, and then you'd have to wear your Sunday ones."

I promised, curtly, to be careful, and, after saying good morning to Mother, I went down to the boathouse and

set to work on the engine. It was the only thing in the nature of work that I had to do, but, somehow or other,

I did not feel like doing it any more than I had the day before. A little of my good spirits were wearing off,

like the legs of my "other" trousers, and after an hour of intermittent tinkering I threw down the wrench and

decided to go for a row. The sun was shining brightly, but the breeze was fresh, and, as my skiff was low in

the gunwale and there was likely to be some water flying, I put on an old oilskin "slicker" and souwester

I had determined to row across the bay over to the lighthouse, and ask Ben Small, the keeper, if there were

any signs of fish alongshore. The pull was a long one, but I enjoyed every stroke of it. The tide was almost

full, just beginning to ebb, so there was scarcely any current and I could make a straight cut across, instead of

following the tortuous channel. My skiff was a flat bottomed affair, drawing very little, but in Denboro bay,

Small was busy whitewashing, but he was glad to see me. If you keep a lighthouse, the average lighthouse,

you are glad to see anybody. He put his brush into the pail and insisted on my coming to the house, because

"the old woman," his wife, would want to hear "all the sewin' circle news." "It's the biggest hardship of her

life," said Ben, "that she has to miss sewin' circle when the bay ices in. Soon's it clears she's at me to row her

acrost to the meetin's. I've took her to two this spring, but she missed the last one, on account of this

whitewashin', and she's crazy to know who's been talked about now. If anything disgraceful has happened for

I had nothing disgraceful to tell, but Mrs. Small was glad to see me, nevertheless. She brought out doughnuts

and beachplum jelly and insisted on my sampling both, the doughnuts because they were just made and she

"mistrusted" there was too much flour in them, and the jelly because it was some she had left over and she

wanted to see if I thought it was "keepin'" all right. After this, Ben took me out to see his hens, and then we

walked to the back of the beach and talked fish. The forenoon was almost gone when I got back to the skiff.

The tide had ebbed so far that the lightkeeper and I had to pull the little boat twenty feet to launch her.

"There!" said Ben, "now you're afloat, ain't you. Cal'late you'll have to go way 'round Robin Hood's barn to

keep off the flats. I forgot about the tide or I wouldn't have talked so much. Hello! there's another craft about

your size off yonder. Somebody else out rowin'. Two somebodys. My eyes ain't as good for pickin' em out as

I looked over my shoulder, as I sat in the skiff and saw, out in the middle of the bay, another rowboat with

"That ain't a dory or a skiff," shouted Ben, raising his voice as I pulled away from him. "Way she sets out of

water I'd call her a lapstreak dingy. If that feller's takin' his girl out rowin' he'll have to work his passage

I nodded a goodby, and settled down for my long row, a good deal longer this time on account of the ebb.

There was water enough on this side of the bay, but on the village side the channel made a wide detour and I

should be obliged to follow it for nearly a mile up the bay, before turning in behind the long sand bar which

The breeze had gone down, which made rowing easier, but the pull of the tide more than offset this

advantage. However, I had mastered that tide many times before and, except that the delay might make me

late for dinner, the prospect did not trouble me. I swung into the channel and set the skiff's bow against the

current. Then from the beach I had just left I heard a faint hail. Turning my head, I saw Ben Small waving his

arms. He was shouting something, too, but I was too far away to catch the words.

The lightkeeper continued to shout and wave. I lifted an oar to show that he had my attention. He recognized

the signal, and began pointing out over the water astern of me. I looked where he was pointing. I could not

see anything out of the ordinary. Except for my own skiff and the gulls, and the row boat with the two

persons in it there was nothing astir on the bay. But Ben kept on waving and pointing. At last I decided that it

The row boat was a good distance off and its occupants were but specks. Now one of the specks stood up and

waved its arms. So far as I could see, the boat was drifting; there were no flashes of sunlight on wet blades to

show that the oars were in use. No, it was drifting, and, as I looked, it swung broadside on. The standing

Those people must be in trouble of some sort, I decided, and it was evident that Small thought so, too. There

could no imminent danger threaten for, on a day like this, with no sea running, there was nothing to fear in

the bay. If, however, they should drift out of the bay it might be unpleasant. And they certainly were drifting.

I resigned myself to the indefinite postponement of my dinner, swung the skiff about, and pulled as hard as I

With the tide to help me I made good progress, but, even at that, it took me some time to overtake the drifting

craft. She was, as Ben had said, a lapstreaked, keelbottomed dingygood enough as a yacht's tender or in

deep water, but the worst boat in the world to row about Denboro bay at low tide. Her high rail caught what

breeze there was blowing and this helped to push her along. However, I got within easy hailing distance after

"We've lost an oar," he shouted. "We're drifting out to sea. Lend us a hand, will you?"

Within the minute I was almost alongside. Then I turned, intending to speak again; but I did not. The two

I was wearing the oilskin slicker and had pulled down the brim of my sou'wester to keep the sun from my

eyes; therefore they had not recognized me before. And I, busy at the oars and looking over my shoulder only

occasionally, had not recognized them. Now the recognition was mutual. Miss Colton spoke first.

I did not answer. Luck was certainly against me. No matter where I went, on land or water, I was fated to

Victor, apparently, was thinking the same thing. "By Jove!" he observed; "Mabel, we seem destined to . . .

The most provoking part of it was that, if I had known who was in that rowboat, I could have avoided the

encounter. Ben Small could have gone to their rescue just as well as I. However, here I was, and here they

were. And I could not very well go away and leave them, under the circumstances.

"What are you waiting for?" he demanded. "Aren't you going to help us? We'll pay you for it."

I pulled the skiff a little closer and, drawing in my oars, turned and picked up the slack of my anchor rope.

I think he had not thought of the anchor, but he did not deign to explain. Instead he began pulling on the rope

I untied the rope, where it was made fast to the skiff's bow, and with it and the anchor in my hands,

"Now," I said, "you can pull in the slack until you get to the end. Then make it fast to your bow somewhere."

I suppose he did his best to follow instructions, but the rope was a short one, the end jerked loose suddenly

and he went backward in a heap. I thought, for an instant, that he was going overboard and that mine would

Miss Colton gave a little scream, which changed to a ripple of laughter. I might have laughed, too, under

different circumstances, but just now I did not feel like it. Besides, the rope, having flown out of his hands,

"What did you do that for?" demanded the fallen one, scrambling to his knees. I heard a sound from the

dingy's stern as if the young lady was trying to stifle her merriment. Victor, doubtless, heard it, too.

I gave it to him, literally gave it, for I pulled alongside and put the end in his hands.

"Tie it in the bow of your boat," I said. He did so. I drew in the slack until a fair towing length remained and

made it fast. While he was busy I ventured to glance at Miss Colton. Her eyes were snapping with fun and

she seemed to be enjoying the situation. But, catching my look, her expression changed. She turned away and

Victor answered. "Back to Mr. Colton's landing," he said. "Get as much of a move on as you can, will you?

I was as anxious to get there as he was. I did not care for a quarrel, and I knew if he continued to use that tone

in his remarks to me I should answer as I felt. I pulled with all my strength, but against the tide towing was

Victor sat on the amidships thwart of the dingy, with his back to me. But Miss Colton, seated in the stern,

was facing me and I could not help looking at her. She did not look at me, or, if she did, it was as if I were

She was beautiful; there was no doubt of that. Prettier even, in the blue and white boating costume and

roughandready white felt hat, than she had seemed when I saw her in the auto or her father's library. She

represented the world that I had lost. I had known girls like her. They had not as much money as she, perhaps,

but they were just as wellbred and refined, and almost as pretty. I had associated with them as an equal. I

wondered what she would say, or think, if she knew that. Nothing, probably; she would not care enough to

think at all. It did not matter to me what she thought; but I did wish I had not put on those fool oilskins. I

If I had any doubts about it they were dispelled when I had rowed the two boats up the bay until we were

abreast the Colton mansion. Then Victor, who had been talking in a low tone with his fellow passenger in the

"I know," I answered. "But we shall have to go around that flat. We can't cross here."

"Nonsense!" he said. "There's plenty of water. I can't see any flat, or whatever you call it."

"It's there, though you can't see it. It is covered with eelgrass and doesn't show. We shall have to go a half

"A half mile! Why, confound it! it's past one o'clock now. We haven't any time to waste."

"I'm sorry, but we can't cross yet. And, if I were you, I shouldn't stand up in that boat."

"There are half a dozen boats, bigger than these, by the landing," he declared. "There is water enough for

I did not answer. Silence, on my part, was the safest thing just then. I continued rowing up the bay.

Miss Colton spoke to him and he sat down, a proceeding for which I was thankful. They whispered together

"See here," he said; "this lady and I have an appointment. We must get ashore. Go straight in. If you're afraid

"Hush, Mabel! This is ridiculous. You and I saw two boats go straight out from the beach this morning. We

went out that way ourselves. Here youPaine, or whatever your name iswe've had enough of this. I've

hired you to take us ashore, and I want to go there and not a half mile in another direction. Will you do as I

When the dingy and the other boats crossed the flat the tide had been hours higher, of course; but I was in no

There were only two oars in the skiff, but I could get on perfectly well with one. And it would serve him

"Give me that oar," he repeated, angrily. "You won't? Then, by Jove, I'll do without it. Stop! Stop where you

"I know what I'm doing. Can't you see this fellow's game? The longer the row the higher his price, that's all.

He can't work me. I've seen his kind before. Don't be frightened. If we can't do anything else we can anchor

Idiot! At that point the channel was deep and the bottom soft mud. I doubted if his anchor would touch and, if

it did, I knew it would not hold. I backed water and brought the skiff alongside the dingy, the rail of which I

"Keep off!" ordered Victor, still fumbling with the rope. "We don't want your help."

"Miss Colton," I said, "will you listen to me, please. You can't anchor here because your anchor will not hold.

And you can't cross that flat at this stage of the tide. I can give you an oar, of course, but it won't do any

good. My oars are too light and small for your boat. Unless you wish to drift back where you were, or

I don't know what answer she might have made. None, perhaps; although I am sure she was listening. But

"Mabel," he warned, "don't pay any attention to him. Didn't your father tell us what he was? There!" throwing

the end of the rope overboard and addressing me; "now, you may clear out. We've done with you.

I looked at Miss Colton. But I might as well have looked at an iceberg. I slid one of my oars over into the

I let go of the rail and the boats fell apart. Victor seized the borrowed oar with a triumphant laugh.

"Your bluff wouldn't work, would it, Reuben," he sneered. "I'll send you the oar and your pay later. Now,

He began rowing toward the weedcovered flat. I said nothing. I was furiously angry and it was some

moments before I recovered selfpossession sufficiently to get my remaining oar over the skiff's stern and, by

It was not a long wait. Victor was in difficulties almost from the beginning. The oar belonging to the dingy

was a foot longer than the one I had given him and he zigzagged wildly. Soon he was in the edge of the

eelgrass and "catching crabs," first on one side, then on the other. The dingy's bow slid up on the mud. He

stood up to push it off, and the stern swung around. Getting clear, he took a fresh start and succeeded only in

fouling again. This time he got further into the tangle before he grounded. The bow rose and the stern settled.

There was a mighty splashing, as Victor pushed and tugged, but the dingy stuck fast. And there she would

I did not want to help. In fact, I looked all up and down the bay before I made a move. But it was dinner time

and there was not another soul afloat. More than that, I noticed, as I had not noticed before, that brown

cloudswind cloudswere piling up in the west, and, if I was anything of a prophet, we would have squalls

and dirty weather long before those four hours were over. And the dingy, in that position, was not safe to face

a blow. No, as the small boys say, it was "up to me." I wished it was not, but it was.

So again I went to the rescue, but this time in an entirely different frame of mind. My anger and resentment

had settled to a cold determination, and this trip was purely business. I was not at a disadvantage now, as I

had been when I first met that girl and her friend, in "Big Jim" Colton's library. I was master of this situation

I sculled the skiff straight in to the edge of the flat, at a point where the bank sloped sharply to deep water. I

threw over my anchor, shortened the rope and made it fast. Then I stepped out into water above my shoe tops

and waded toward the dingy. The water was icy cold, but I did not know it at the time.

I splashed through the eelgrass. Victor saw me coming and roared an angry protest. He was still trying to

I did not care what he wanted. I splashed alongside the dingy and looked at her and the position she was in.

"You'll never get her off if you both stay aboard," I said. "Let the lady move amidships and you get out and

He glared at me as if I were as crazy as Colton or Lute had declared me to be. Then he laughed

"Yes, I've noticed that. Now I'll state the facts as plainly as I can. This boat is fast aground in the mud, the

tide is still going out, and there are squalls coming. She must be got off or there may be danger. You can't get

He did not answer; instead he continued to push with the oar. I turned to the girl.

"You must stand up," I repeated, firmly. "Either yourthis gentlemanmust get out, as I tell him to, or I

She gazed at me in blank astonishment. Then the color flamed in her cheeks and her eyes flashed.

Victor whirled on me, the oar in his hands. I thought for an instant he was going to strike me with it.

I looked at him and then at her. It had to be done, and my mind was made up to do it. I waded in until the

I stooped, lifted her in my arms, and ploughed through the weeds and water. The mud was soft and my feet

She gasped, but she stopped struggling. From behind me I heard a roar of rage from Victor.

I carried her to the anchored skiff and, plunging in still deeper, seated her on the stern thwart.

"Sit there, please, and don't move," I said. "I shall be back as soon as I've got your boat afloat."

I waded back to the dingy. Victor was frantic, but he did not disturb me. The worst of my unpleasant job was

"Because if you don't sit down," I continued serenely, "you're likely to tumble overboard. I'm going to push

The first push helped to make up his mind. He sat, involuntarily. I pushed with all my might and, slowly and

jerkily, the dingy slid off the shoal. But there were others all about. With one hand on the bow I guided her

between them and to the edge of the channel. Then, wading along the slippery bank, I brought her to the skiff.

My passenger had been making remarks in transit, but I paid no attention to them.

I made the rope fast for towing, took my oar from the dingy, pulled up the skiff's anchor and climbed aboard.

"Sit where you are," I said to Victor. "Miss Colton, please keep as still as possible."

I ventured to look at her as I said this, but I looked but once. All the way home I kept my gaze fixed on the

I made the landing just in time. In fact, the squall struck before I was abreast the Colton place. The channel

beyond the flat, which we had so lately left, was whipped to whitecaps in a moment and miniature breakers

Under the high bluff it was calm enough. The tide was too low to make use of the little wharf, so I beached

the skiff and drew the towed boat in by the line. I offered to assist Miss Colton ashore, but she, apparently,

did not see my proffered hand. Victor scrambled out by himself. No one said anything. I untied the rope and

I looked up. He was standing at the edge of the water, with one hand in his pocket. Miss Colton was behind

"What do you mean?" I asked. I knew, of course, but it pleased me to make him say it.

"Here!" he shouted. "Stop! hold on! Confound you! do you suppose we don't intend to pay you for this?"

I rowed off, but all the way down to my boathouse I smiled contentedly. I had seen the look on Mabel

Colton's face. I rather thought I had evened the account between us; at least I had reduced the balance a trifle.

"My soul and body!" she exclaimed. "LOOK at them pants! LOOK at 'em! And I ain't had time to put a

The rain, which I expected would follow the squall, did not come until late that night, and it was still falling

heavily the next morning. It was a warm rain, however, and, after breakfast, I walked up to the village. I said

nothing, even to Mother, about the happenings in the bay, and Dorinda, who had asked many sarcastic

questions concerning the state of my blue trousersif I had "mistook 'em for a bathin' suit" and the

likeseemed satisfied with my hurried explanation that I had gotten overboard. "Though how you fell in feet

fust," she observed, "I don't see." She had mended my brown pair, sitting up until after two to do so.

Lute informed me that he had been up to the postoffice. "Everybody's talkin' about them Coltons," he

declared. "I see their automobile last night, myself. The Colton girl, she come into the store. My! she's a

stunner, ain't she! Sim waited on her, himself, and gave her the mail. She wanted to buy some cheesefor a

"Nor nobody else, but her! I guess," continued Lute, "likely she was just jokin'. Anyhow, Sim was all out of

cheese, but he had some nice print butter, just in. She didn't want no butter, though."

"Humph!" sniffed Dorinda. "Did Sim Eldredge cal'late she wanted to feed the rabbit butter? Was the Colton

"No. There was a young feller with her; the one that's visitin' 'em. Carver his name isVictor Carver. Did

"Umhm. Well, I wouldn't waste time worryin' about that, if I was you. Look here, Lute Rogers, you didn't

"Yes. 'Taint likely I would, would I? Cap'n Jed was on hand, as usual, and he was full of questions, but he

didn't get anything out of me. 'What did Colton say to Ros?' he says. 'How do I know what he said?' says I. 'I

wan't there, was I?' 'Where was you that forenoon?' he says. 'Forenoon!' says I, 'that shows how much you

know about it. 'Twas three o'clock in the afternoon.' Oh, I had the laugh on him!"

"It's too bad, Roscoe," she said. "But I was afraid of it as soon as I found he'd sneaked off to the postoffice. I

"What do you mean by that?" Lute's dignity was outraged. "All over town! I never told him nothin'."

"No. Only that Ros and Mr. Colton were together and 'twas three o'clock in the afternoon. And goodness

knows how much more! DO be quiet! Seems sometimes as if I should lose patience with you altogether. Is

"I don't know. I guess he's keepin' company with her, by the looks. I got as nigh to 'em as I could, but I didn't

hear much they said. Only, just as they was goin' out, he said somethin' about goin' for a little spin in the car.

She said no, her father would want his letters. Carver, he said, why not send Oscar home that's the

chauffeur, you knowwith the letters, and he'd run the car himself. She kind of laughed, and said she

guessed not, she'd taken one trip with him already that day and she didn't believe she cared for another. He

I had been feeling rather provoked at Lute for giving Captain Jed the information concerning my interview

with Colton; but, somehow, this other bit of news restored my good humor. When I started for the village I

did not take the short cut across the fields, but followed my regular route, the path by the bluff and the Shore

Lane. I was no longer fearful of meeting my new neighbors. The memory of the happenings in the bay was a

delightful solace to my wounded selfrespect. I chuckled over it as I walked through the dripping pines of the

little grove. No matter how contemptuously indifferent that girl might pretend to be she would not forget

what had taken place; that she had been obliged to obey my orders; that I had carried her to that skiff; that I

had saved her from a dangernot a great danger, and against her will, of coursebut saved her

nevertheless. She was under an obligation to me; she could not help herself. How that must gall her. I

remembered the look on her face as I rowed away. Sweet was revenge. And Victor Victor was a joke.

When I reached the Lane I looked over at the Colton mansion. The rain had given the carpenters and painters

an enforced holiday, and, except for the chauffeur, whom I could see through the open door of the garage,

there was no one in sight. I think I was a little disappointed. If "Big Jim" had appeared and hailed me with

another offer for the land I should not have dodged. I was ready for him. But neither he, or any one else,

I did not want to see him. I had intended avoiding the postoffice altogether. But I crossed to the platform.

"Why, you know, don't you? He come to see you and you went to see him over to his house. You had a

"Why, nobody told me, exactly. Lute Rogers and Cap'n Jed was here last night and they got agoin' as usual.

The Cap'n does love to stir up Lute, and he commenced hintin' about somethin' of the kind. I don't know as

"I suppose he'd say he never said a word, but after he'd gone there was a kind of general sentiment that

Colton wanted to buy the Shore Lane land off you, and that you and he had some words about it. Anyhow,

"Why, nothin', nothin'. Only, I tell you, Ros" he looked carefully about to make sure no one was listening;

"I tell you; it's just this way. I can understand how you feel about it. You know Dean and some of the others

are sore on Mr. Colton 'cause he's got more money than they have, and they want to make all the trouble for

him they can. Jed's got an idea that he's after that Lane, to close it off, and he's stirrin' up sentiment against its

bein' closed. He's talkin' about the town buyin' it. Now of course I know your position. You want to get just

"It would be the position of any sensible man, wouldn't it? I don't blame you. Now, what I wanted to say was

this." He bent forward and lowered his voice to a whisper. "Why don't you let me handle this thing for you? I

can do it better'n you. I see Cap'n Jed every night, you might say. And I see consider'ble of Mr. Colton. He

knows I'm postmaster in this town and sort of prominent. All the smart folks ain't in the Board of Selectmen.

I'll keep you posted; see? You just set back and pretend you don't want to sell at all. Colton, he'll bid and Jed

and his gang'll bid. I'll tell each what the other bids, and we'll keep her jumpin'. When we get to the last jump,

"What makes me think so? Don't be foolish. Ain't he a millionaire? How can Denboro stand up against a

millionaire? I tell you, Ros, it's money counts in this world, and it pays to stand in with them that's got it. I'm

goin' to stand in with Mr. Colton. But I'll pretend to stand in with Dean just as much. I can help a whole lot.

Why, I shouldn't wonder if, between us, we could getererI don't know how much, for that land. What

I smiled. "It's very kind of you, Sim, to be willing to go to so much trouble on my account," I observed. "I

Sim seemed a bit put out. "Why," he stammered, "IIof course I presumed likely you'd be willin' to pay

me a little commissionor orsomethin'. I thought I might be a sort oferagent for you. I've handled

"Yes," I said, drily; "I see. Well, Sim, if I decide to engage an agent I'll let you know. Good morning."

I did not "hold on." I walked across the road and entered the bank. Alvin Baker met me in the vestibule. He

"I declare," he exclaimed, "it does me good to shake hands with a feller that's got the grit you have. It does

"You know why, all right," he whispered. "Wouldn't sell him the land, would you? Tell me: Did he make you

For a person who had told nothing, Lute seemed to have "as much as said" a good many things. I shook my

"Course you shouldn'tnot to him. Ain't there such things as public spirit and independence? But I'll tell you

somethin' more, Ros," mysteriously. "You may have a chance to sell it somewhere else."

"Yes, siree! indeed! There's other publicspirited folks in Denboro as well as you. I know who they be and I

"No, 'tain't. . . Hold on a minute, Ros. Don't go. As I say, I'm goin' to work tooth and nail to get the town to

buy that Lane property of yours. I'll stick out for you're gettin' a good price for it. I'll use all my influence."

"You needn't thank me. It's a matter of principle. We'll show these city folks they ain't the whole ship, cargo

and all. . . . Hold on a second more. Ros, IerI wonder if you'd do a little favor for me."

"Why, it's this way. I've got a note here in the bank; put it there when I bought the power engine for my

catboat. Hundred and fifty dollars, 'tis. You're a pretty good friend of George Taylor, cashier here, and I was

wonderin' if you'd mind puttin' in a word with him about my gettin' it renewed when it comes due. Just tell

"George thinks consider'ble of you," he said. "And Captain Jed he's one of the directorshe will, too, now

that you've stood up to Colton. Just put in a word for me, will you? And don't forget I'm a friend of yours, and

I'm strong for your gettin' a good, fair price from the town. Remember that, won't you?"

I left him and went into the bank. Henry Small, the bookkeeper, was at his desk. I walked over to speak to

him, but he, looking up from his figures, spoke first. There was, or so it seemed to me, a different note in his

greeting. It was more hearty, I thought. Certainly he regarded me with a new and curious interest.

He winked. "I guess you know, if anybody does," he observed. "All right, you'll have good friends on your

He winked again. I walked back to the cashier's window. Taylor had, evidently, seen me talking with the

George Taylor was a type of smart country boy grown to manhood in the country. His tone, like his manner,

was sharp and quick and businesslike, but he spoke with the DownEast twang and used the Cape phrases

and metaphors. He was younger than I, but he looked older, and, of late, it had seemed to me that he was

"Glad to see you," be said again. "I was hoping you'd drift in. I presumed likely you might. Sit down."

I took the proffered chair. He looked at me with much the same curious interest that Small had shown.

"We've been hearing about you," he said. "You've been getting yourself talked about."

He laughed. "Don't do that yet awhile," he said. "The market is in bad enough shape as it is. If his neck was

"Lute! Oh, I see! Yes, Lute's been doing considerable talking, but it ain't his neck I mean. Say, Ros, what did

"Why, Colton. He was in here yesterday. Opened what he called a household account; that was his main

This explained some things. It was clear now why Small had appeared so interested. "Oh!" I said.

"You bet he did. Wanted to know if I knew you, and what you were, and so on. I told him I knew you pretty

well. 'What sort of a fellow is he? A damn fool?' he asked. I strained the truth enough to say you were a pretty

good fellow and a long ways from that kind of a fool, according to my reckoning. 'Umph!' says he. 'Is he

rich?' I told him I guessed you wan't so rich that you got round shouldered lugging your money. 'Why?' says

I, getting curious. 'Have you met him, Mr. Colton? If you have you ought to have sized him up yourself. I

always heard you were a pretty fair judge.' He looked at me kind of funny. 'I thought I was,' says he, 'but you

seem to raise a new variety down here.' Then I guess he thought he'd said enough. At any rate, he walked off.

I did not answer immediately. When I did the answer was non committal. "Oh, we had a business

He nodded. "Well," he observed, "I suppose it's your affair and not mine. But, I tell you this, Ros: if it's what

"I know so. Cap'n Jed's a fighter and he is on the war path. The two sides are lining up already. Whichever

I shrugged my shoulders. The prospect of enemies, more or less, in Denboro, did not trouble me.

"Can you afford to do that? There'll be moneya whole lot of moneyin this before it's over, if I know the

leaders on both sides. You've got the whiphand. There'll be money in it. Can you afford to let it slip?"

I did not answer. Suddenly his expression changed. He looked haggard and careworn.

"By the Almighty," he said, between his teeth, and without looking at me, "I wish I had your chance."

"By the way," he said, "I've got some news for you. Nothing surprising. I guess all hands have seen it

"Good!" said I, with as much heartiness as I could answer; marriage did not interest me. "Congratulations,

"Humph! Yes, I should think you might hope as much as that. Why shouldn't it go well?"

"Hey? Oh, of course it will!" He laughed and rose from his chair as several men came into the bank. "I'll have

to leave you, Ros," he said. "There's a directors' meeting this morning. They're coming now."

As I passed out of the gate and through the group of directors I noticed that they also regarded me with

interest. Two, men from neighboring towns whom I scarcely knew, whispered to each other. Captain Elisha

Warren shook hands with me and inquired concerning Mother. The last of the group was Captain Jedediah

"I heard about it," he whispered. "Ase Peters said the Grand Panjandrum was cranky as a shark with the

toothache all day yesterday. You must tell me the yarn when we get together. I missed you when I called just

now, but I'll be down again pretty soon. You won't lose nothin' by this. So long."

In all my period of residence in Denboro I had never before been treated like this. People had never before

gone out of their way to shake hands with me. No one had considered it worth while to ask favors of me. Sim

and Alvin were not to be taken seriously, of course, and both were looking after their own pocketbooks, but

their actions were straws proving the wind to be blowing in my direction. I thought, and smiled scornfully,

But my scorn was not entirely sincere. There was a certain gratification in the thought. I might pretendI

had pretended that Denboro opinion, good or bad, was a matter of complete indifference to me. I had

assumed myself a philosopher, to whom, in the consciousness of right, such trifles were of no consequence.

But, philosophy or not, the fact remained that I was pleased. People might dislike meas that lofty Colton

girl and her father disliked me, though they could dislike me no more than I did them but I could compel

them to respect me. They already must think of me as a man. And so onas I walked home through the wet

grass. It was all as foolish and childish and ridiculous as it well could be. I deserved what was coming to

For, as I came down the Lane, I met Oscar, the chauffeur, and a companion, whom I judged to be a fellow

servantthe coachman, I learned afterwardswalking in the direction of the village. The rain had ceased,

but they wore natty raincoats and caps and had the city air of smartness which I recognized and envied, even

in them. The footpath was narrow, but they apparently had no intention of stepping to one side, so I made

way for them. They whispered together as they approached and looked at me curiously as we passed. A few

steps further on I heard them both burst out laughing. I caught the words, from Oscar, "fool Rube" and "the

old man'll make him look" I heard no more, but as I turned into the grove I saw them both looking after me

Somebody has said that there is nothing harder to bear than the contempt and ridicule of servants. For one

thing, you cannot resent it without a loss of dignity, and, for another, you may be perfectly sure that theirs is

but the reflection of their employers' frame of mind. This encounter shook my selfsatisfaction more than a

little. It angered me, but it did more than that; it brought back the feeling I had when I left the Colton library,

that my defiance was not, after all, taken seriously. That I was regarded by Colton as just what Oscar had

termed me, a "fool Rube." When George Taylor told me of the great man's questions concerning my

foolishness, I accepted the question as a tribute to my independence. Now I was not so sure.

"One of 'em was Cap'n Jed. He drove down just after you left. He come to see you about that land, I cal'late."

"Umhm. Him and me had a little talk. He seemed to know consider'ble about your rumpus with Mr.

"He wouldn't say, but I wouldn't wonder if he got a lot from Ase Peters. Ase and he are pretty thick; he's got a

mortgage on Ase's house, you know. And Ase, bein' as he's doin' the carpenterin' over to Colton's, hears a lot

from the servants, I s'pose likely. Leastways, if they don't tell all their bosses' affairs they're a new breed of

hired help, that's all I've got to say. Cap'n Jed says Mr. Colton cal'lates you're a fool."

"Seemed to think 'twas a pretty good joke. He said he didn't care how big a fool you was so long's you was

So there it was again. My imagined importance in the eyes of the townspeople simmered down to about that.

I was an imbecile, but they must pretend to believe me something else because I owned something they

"Of course," continued Dorinda, "I didn't tell him you was figgerin' not to sell the land at all. If I had, I s'pose

She had said enough. I could guess the rest. I walked to the window and stood, looking out. The clouds were

breaking and, as I stood there, a ray of sunlight streamed through a rift and struck the bay just at the spot

where the dingy had grounded. The shallow water above the flat flashed into fire. I am not superstitious, as a

general thing, but the sight comforted me. It seemed like an omen. There was the one bright spot in the

outlook. There, at least, I had not behaved like a "fool Rube." There I had compelled respect and been taken

"Umhm. I told you there was two. After Cap'n Jed left that chauffeur feller from the big house come here.

I took the note. It was addressed to me in a man's handwriting, not that of "Big Jim" Colton. I opened the

"Umhm," she said, drily. "Well, Iwell, a fivedollar bill may be a joke to you, but _I_ ain't familiar

enough with one to laugh at it. You don't laugh as if 'twas awful funny, either. Who's the joke on?"

"Umhm. I'd be willin' to be joked ten times a day, at that price. And I'd undertake to laugh heartier than

"Umhm. I see. Somethin' belongin' to the Coltons, I s'pose likely. Why won't you do it again? Ain't they

Again I laughed. "They have paid me too much," I said, bitterly. "What I picked up wasn't worth the money."

And that, in the end, was the answer I sent to Carver with his five dollars. I spent an hour in my room trying

to compose and write a sarcastic reply to his note, but I finally gave it up. Then I put the money in an

envelope, addressed the latter, and sent it to the big house by Lute. Lute was delighted with the errand.

"You'll explain to Dorindy, will you?" he asked. "She cal'lates I'm goin' to clean the henhouse. But I can do

"Do you know" Lute leaned against the clothes post and prepared to philosophize. "Do you know," he

"You're surprised 'cause you ain't thought it out. That's my way; I always think things out. Most folks are

selfish. They want to do what they want to do, and they want others to want the same thing. If the others don't

want it, then they like to make 'em have it; anyhow. Dorindy is crazy on cleanin'. She wouldn't live in a dirty

house no more'n she'd live in a lobster pot. It's the way she's made. But a hen ain't made that way. A hen

LIKES dirt; she scratches in it and digs holes in it to waller in, and heaves it over herself all day long. If you

left it to the hens would THEY clean their house? I guess not! So, I say what's the use of cruelizin' 'em by

"Wait a minute," I interrupted. "Lute, you're wasting your breath. It is Dorinda you should explain all this to,

not to me. And you're wasting my time. I want you to take that envelope to Mr. Carver; and I want you to go

"Say it when you come back. And if Mr. Carver asks you why I sent that envelope to him be sure and give

"All right. I'll remember. But what did you save, Ros? Dorindy says 'twas somethin' you found afloat in the

bay. If it was somethin' belongin' to them Coltons I'd have took the money, no matter what the thing was

I had my reward and I believed it worth much more than five dollars. I had learned my lesson. I knew now

exactly how I was regarded by the occupants of the big house and by the townspeople as well. I should

cherish no more illusions as to my importance in their eyes. I meant to be really independent from that time

on. I did not carereally did not carefor anything or anybody outside my immediate household. I was

back in the position I had occupied for years, but with one difference: I had an ambition now. It was to make

both sides in the Shore Lane controversy realize that George Taylor was right when he said I had the

My first opportunity to crack it came a day or two later, when Captain Dean called upon me. He had a

definite proposition to make, although his Yankee shrewdness and caution prevented his making it until he

had discussed the weather and other unimportant trifles. Then he leaned against the edge of my

workbenchwe were in the boathouseand began to beat up to windward of his proposal.

"Ros," he said, "you remember I told you you was all right, when I met you at the bank t'other day."

"I presume," I replied, "that you meant I was right in not selling that strip of land to Mr. Colton."

"That's what I meant. You kept your promise to me and I shan't forget it. Nor the town won't forget it, neither.

"Not at all. He said he wanted to buy the Shore Lane strip and I refused to sell it to him. He said I was crazy

Captain Jed slapped his knee and shouted in delight. He insisted on shaking hands with me.

"By the great and everlastin'!" he declared, between laughs, "you're all right, Ros Paine! I said you was and

now I'll swear to it. Told old Colton to go to the devil! If that ain'toh, I wish I'd been there!"

I went on sandpapering a valve plug. He walked up and down the floor, chuckling.

"Well," he said, at last, "you've made yourself solid in Denboro, anyhow. And I told you you shouldn't lose

nothin' by it. The Selectmen held a meetin' last night and they feel, same as me, that that Shore Lane shan't be

"You don't! It means the town's decided to buy that strip of land of yours. Definitely decided, practically

"I mean that I have decided not to sell it, for the present, at least. Neither to Colton nor any one else."

He could not believe it. Of course I would not sell it to Colton. Colton was a stuckup, selfish city aristocrat

who thought all creation ought to belong to him. But the town was different. Did I realize that it was the town

I lived in that was asking to buy now? The town of which I was a citizen? Think of what the town had done

It hadit hadwell, it had done a whole lot. As a citizen of that town I owed it aa

"Look here, Captain Dean," I interrupted, "there's no use in our arguing the matter. I have decided not to

"Ros, I ain't got any authority to do it, but I shouldn't wonder if I could get you three hundred dollars for that

"This isn't. If it was I probably should have accepted Mr. Colton's offer of six hundred and fifty."

"Six hun! Do you mean to say he offered you six hundred and fifty dollars for that little mite of land, and

"Well, you must be a . . . Humph! Six hundred and fifty! The town can't meet no such bid as that, of course."

He regarded me in silence. He was chagrined and angry; his florid face was redder than ever; but, more than

"Well," he observed, after a moment, "this beats me, this does! Last time we talked you was willin' to

consider sellin'. What's changed you? What's the reason you won't sell? What business reason have you got

I had no business reason at all. Except for Mother's counsel not to sell, which was based upon sentiment and

nothing else, and my own stubbornness, I had no reason at all. Yet I was, if anything, more firm in my

"I know what you say it means. The townspeople can continue to use the Lane, just as they always have, so

long as they behave themselves. There is no use of our talking further, Captain. I've made up my mind."

"Will you do this much for me?" he asked. "Will you promise me not to sell the land to Colton?"

"Oh," with a scornful sniff, "I see. I'm on to you. You're just hangin' out for a big price. I might have known

"I told you price had nothing to do with it," I said, sharply. "I am on no one's side. The town is welcome to

"I don't make many mistakes," he observed, slowly; "but I guess I've made one. You're a whole lot deeper'n I

So much for the proletariat. I heard from the plutocrats next day. Sim Eldredge dropped in on me. After much

wriggling about the bush he intimated that he knew of Captain Jedediah's call and what had taken place.

"You done just right, Ros," he whispered. He had a habit of whispering as the Captain had of shouting. "You

done just right. Keep 'em guessin'; keep em guessin'. Jed's all upsot. He don't know whether he's keel down or

on his beam ends. He'll be makin' a higher bid pretty soon. Say," with a wink, "I see Colton last night."

"Yup. Oh, I give him a jolt. I hinted that the town had made you a fine offer and you was considerin' it."

"Sshh! Don't holler. Somebody might be listenin'. I come through the woods and round the beach so's I

"You will when I tell you. He as much as offered a thousand dollars for that land. My crimps! a thousand!

I tried to make that statement firm and sharp enough to penetrate even his wooden head; but he merely

"All right," he whispered, hastily, "all right. I guess perhaps you're correct in hangin' on. Still, a thousand is a

lot of money, even after you take out my little commission. But you know best. You put your trust in me. I'll

He went out hurriedly, and, though I shouted after him, he only waved and ducked behind a beachplum

bush. He did not believe me serious in my refusal to sell; neither did Dean, or Colton, or, apparently, any one

else. They all thought me merely shrewd, a sharp trader driving a hard bargain, as they would have done in

my place. They might think so, if they wished; I should not explain. As a matter of fact, I could not have

Yet this very attitude made a difference, a perceptible difference, in my position in Denboro. I noticed it each

time I went up to the village. I saw the groups at the postoffice and at the depot turn to watch me as I

approached and as I went away. Captain Jedediah did not mention the Lane againat least for some

timebut he always hailed me cordially when we met and seemed anxious to be seen in my company.

Eldredge, of course, was effusive; so was Alvin Baker. And other people, citizens of consequence in the

town, who had heretofore merely bowed, now stopped to speak with me on the street. Members of the sewing

circle called on Mother more frequently, and Matilda Dean, Captain Jed's wife, came regularly once a week.

Sometimes she saw Mother and sometimes she did not, depending upon Dorinda's state of mind at the time.

"Everybody's talkin' about you, Ros," he declared. "They cal'late you're a pretty smart feller. They don't just

"Well, they don't know exactly, but they cal'late you must be. Oh, I hear things. Cap'n Jed said t'other night

"Yup. He as much as hinted that to me; wondered if you'd take the nomination provided he could fix it for

you. Sim Eldredge and Alvin and some more all said they'd vote for you if they got a chance. ARE you

"Nothin', only some of the fellers wondered if you was. You see, you won't sell, and so"

"I see. That's a brilliant suggestion, Lute. When I adopt it I'll appoint you tollkeeper."

"By time! I wish you would. I'd make Thoph Newcomb pay up. He owes me ten cents; bet it one time and

Yes, my position in Denboro had changed. But I took no pride in the change, as I had at first; I knew the

reason for this sudden burst of popularity. The knowledge made me more cynical than ever cynical, and

lonely. For the first time since I came to the Cape I longed for a real friend, not a relative or an acquaintance,

but a friend to trust and confide in. Some one, with no string of his own to pull, who cared for me because I

And all the time I had such a friend and did not realize it. The knowledge came to me in this way. Mother had

one of her seizures, one of the now infrequent "sinking spells," as the doctor called them, on an evening when

I was alone with her. Dorinda and Lute had gone, with the horse and buggy, to visit a cousin in Bayport. They

I was alone in the diningroom when Mother called my name. There was something in her tone which

"Boy," she said, weakly, "I am afraid I am going to be ill. I have tried not to alarm you, but I feel faint and I

I told her not to worry and not to talk. I hurried out to the kitchen, got the hot water and the brandy, made her

swallow a little of the mixture, and bathed her forehead and wrists with vinegar, an oldfashioned restorative

which Dorinda always used. She said she felt better, but I was anxious and, as soon as it was safe to leave

her, hurried out to bring the doctor. She begged me not to go, because it was beginning to rain and I might get

It was not raining hard when I started, but there was every sign of a severe storm close at hand. It was pitch

dark and I was weary from stumbling through the bushes and over the rough path when I reached the corner

of the Lane and the Lower Road. Then a carriage came down that road. It was an open wagon and George

I hailed the vehicle, intending to ask for a ride, but when Taylor discovered who his hailer was he insisted on

my going back to the house. He would get the doctor, he said, and bring him down at once. I was afraid he

would be caught in the storm, and hesitated in accepting the offer, but he insisted. I did go back to the house,

found Mother in much the same condition as when I left her, and had scarcely gotten into the kitchen again

"I brought Nellie along to stay with your mother," he said. "The Cap'n and the old lady"meaning

Matilda"were up at the meeting house and we just left a note saying where we'd gone. Nellie's all right.

Between you and me, she don't talk you deaf, dumb and blind like her ma, and she's good company for sick

He drove off and Nellie Dean went into Mother's room. I had always considered Nellie a milkandwatery

young female, but somehow her quiet ways and soft voice seemed just what were needed in a sick room. I

But they did not come. The storm was under full headway now, and the wind was dashing the rain in sheets

"She's quiet now," she whispered. "I think she's asleep. Where do you suppose George is?"

"I'm afraid you couldn't stop him if his mind was made up. He's dreadful determined when he sets out to be."

"He's a good fellow," I said, to please her. She worshipped the cashier, a fact of which all Denboro was

"He thinks a lot of you," she observed. "He's always talking to me about you. It's a good thing you're a man or

"Are you? Oh, you mean about the Shore Lane. Yes, Pa can't make you out about that. He says you've got

something up your sleeve and he hasn't decided what it is. I asked George what Pa meant and he just laughed.

He said whatever you had in your sleeve was your affair and, if he was any judge of character, it would stay

there till you got ready to shake it out. He always stood up for you, even before the Shore Lane business

"Oh, of course. If that wasn't excepted I should REALLY be jealous. Then," more seriously, "Roscoe, does it

I thought of Taylor's sudden change of expression that day in the bank, and of his remark that he wished he

"The prospect of marriage is enough to make any man worried, isn't it?" I asked. "I imagine he realizes that

There was sarcasm in this remark, sarcasm of which I should have been ashamed. But she took it literally and

"Good enough for me!" she exclaimed. "He! Sometimes I wonder if it is right for me to be so happy. I feel

I did not answer. To tell the truth, I was envious. There was real happiness in the world. This country girl had

found it; that Mabel Colton would, no doubt, find it some dayunless she married her Victor, in which case

Nellie did most of the talking thereafter; principally about George, and why he did not come. At last she went

in to see if Mother needed her, and, twenty minutes later, when I looked into the bedroom, I saw that she had

fallen asleep on the couch. Mother, too, seemed to be sleeping, and I left them thus.

It was almost eleven o'clock when the sound of carriage wheels in the yard brought me to the window and

then to the door. Doctor Quimby had come at last and Taylor was with him. The doctor, in his mackintosh

"Sorry I'm so late, Ros," said the doctor. "I was way up to Ebenezer Cahoon's in West Denboro. There's a

new edition of Ebenezer, made port this morning, and I was a little bit concerned about the missus. She's all

"Better, I think. She's asleep now. So is Nellie. I suppose George told you she was with her."

"Yes. George had a rough passage over that West Denboro road. It's bad enough in daylight, but on a night

like thiswhew! I carried away a wheel turning into Ebenezer's yard, and if George hadn't had his team

"You're soaked through," I declared. "Come out to the kitchen stove. What in the world made you drive way

up to that forsaken place? It's a good seven miles. Come out to the kitchen. Quick!"

He sat down by the stove and put his wet boots on the hearth. I mixed him a glass of the brandy and hot water

"Why did you do it, George?" I said. "I never would have thought of asking such a thing."

"I know it," he said. "Course you wouldn't ask it. There's plenty in this town that would, but you wouldn't.

"I am almost sorry you did. It is too great a kindness altogether. I'm afraid I shouldn't have done as much for

"No, you don't," I answered. "Captain Jedyour prospective fatherinlawsaid the other day that he had

"I imagine he meant he wasn't sure whether I was the fool he had believed me to be, or just a sharp rascal."

"Ros," he said, "I don't know for sure what the Cap'n meant, though if he thinks you're either one of the two

he's the fool. But _I_ know youbetter, maybe, than you know yourself. At least I believe I know you better

"Wouldn't it? Well, maybe not. But whose fault is it? It's yours, the way I look at it. Ros, I've been meaning

to have a talk with you some day; perhaps this is as good a time as any. You make a big mistake in the way

"I mean just that. Your whole attitude is wrong, has been wrong ever since you first came here to live. You

never gave any of us a chance to know you and like youanybody but me, I mean, and even I never had but

half a chance. You make a mistake, I tell you. There's lots of good folks in this town, lots of 'em. Cap'n Elisha

Warren's one of 'em and there's plenty more. They're countrymen, same as I am, but they're good, plain,

sensible folks, and they'd like to like you if they had a chance. You belong to the Town Improvement Society,

I shrugged my shoulders. "I guess my mixing wouldn't be very welcome," I said. "And, besides, I don't care

"Nonsense! George, I'm not blind, or deaf. Don't you suppose I know what Warren and Dean and the rest

think of me? They consider me a loafer and no good. I've heard what they say. I've noticed how they treat

"How you treat them, you mean. You are as cold and freezing as a cake of ice. They was willing to be friends

but you wouldn't have it. And, as for their calling you a loaferwell, that's your own fault, too. You

OUGHT to do something; not work, perhaps, but you'd be a whole lot better off if you got really interested in

something. Get into politics; get into town affairs; get out and know the people you're living with."

"Yes, they do. I understand how you feel. In this Shore Lane matter now: you think Cap'n Jed and Colton,

because they pretend to call you a fool, don't respect you for taking the stand you have. They do. They don't

understand you, maybe, but they can't help respecting you and, if they knew you even as well as I do, they'd

like you. Come! I ain't throwin' any bouquets, but why do you suppose I'd be willing to drive to West

"I would. I like you, Ros. I took a shine to you the first time I met you. I don't know why exactly. Why does

anybody like anybody else? But I think a whole lot of you. I know this sounds foolish, and you don't feel that

I was amazed. I had always liked George Taylor, but I never felt any strong affection for him. I was a little

less indifferent to him than to others in Denboro, that was all. And I had taken it for granted that his liking for

me was of the same casual, lukewarm variety. To hear him declare himself in this way was astonishing he,

"I don't know why; I told you that. It's because I can't help it, I suppose. Or because, as I said, I know you

I could not answer. I am not certain whether I attempted to speak or move. I do remember that the pressure of

"It's all right, Ros," he said, earnestly. "Nobody knows but me, and nobody ever shall know if I can help it."

"Why, pretty much all, I guess. I've known ever since your mother was taken sick. Some things I read in the

paper, and the pictures ofof your father, put me on, and afterwards I got more certain of it. But it's all right.

"Certain sure. There was one time when it might have all come out. A reporter fellow from one of the Boston

papers got on the track somehow and came down here to investigate. Luckily I was the first man he tackled,

and I steered him away. I presume likely I lied some, but my conscience is easy so far as that goes."

I remembered afterwards that he sighed as he said this and took his hand from my knee; but then my agitation

"George! George!" I cried. "II can't say to you what I should like. But whyWHY did you shield me?

He sighed. "Don't know," he answered. "I never could quite see why a man's sins should be visited on the

widows and fatherless. And, of course, I realized that you and your mother changed your name and came

down here to get away from gossip and talk. But I guess the real reason was that I liked you, Ros. Love at

"George," I said, chokingly, "I did not believe I had a real friend in the world, except Mother and Dorinda

and Lute, of course. I can't thank you enough for shielding us all these years; there's no use in my trying. But

"There's one thing you can do right now," he said. "That's get out and mix. That'll please me as much as

anything. And begin right off. Why, see here, the Methodist society is going to give a strawberry festival on

the meetinghouse lawn next Thursday night. About everybody's going, Nellie and I included. You come,

I hesitated. I had heard about the festival, but I certainly had not contemplated attending.

"Come!" he urged. "You won't say no to the first favor I ask you. Promise me you'll be on hand."

Before I could answer, we heard the door of Mother's room open. George and I hastened into the

diningroom. Doctor Quimby and Nellie Dean were there. Nellie rushed over to her lover's side.

"Your ma's getting on all right," he declared. "About all that ails her now is that she wants to see you."

"Got to leave you now, Ros," he said. "Cap'n Jed and Matildy'll think we've eloped ahead of time.

"Why" I answered, "I suppose Yes, Mother, I'm coming Why, yes, George, I'll promise, to please you."

I have often wondered since what my life story would have been if I had not made that promise.

The Methodist church stood on the slope of a little hill, back from the Main Road, and the parsonage was

next door. Between the church and the parsonage was a stretch of lawn, dotted with shrubs and cedars and

shaded by two big silverleaf poplars. It was on this lawn that, provided the night was fair, the strawberry

festival was to be held. If the weather should be unpropitious the festival was to be in the church vestry.

All that day Dorinda was busy baking and icing cake. She was not going to the festivalpartly because I was

going and she could not leave Motherbut principally because such affairs were altogether too frivolous to

fit in her scheme of orthodoxy. "I don't recollect," she said, "that the apostles did much strawberry festivalin';

they had other things to attend to." Lute, however, was going and if he had been invited to a Presidential

reception he could not have been much more excited. He was dressed and ready at supper time, although the

"Think I'm all right, Dorindy, do you?" he queried, anxiously turning himself about for his wife's inspection.

Dorinda looked him over with a critical eye. "Umhm," she observed, "that end of 'em seems to be all right.

But I cal'late the upper end ain't been introduced to your vest yet. Anyhow, the two don't seem to be well

Lute bent forward to inspect the hiatus between trousers and waistcoat. "By time!" he exclaimed, "I told Sim

Eldredge they was too short in the waist. He said if they was any longer they'd wrinkle under the arms. I don't

know what to do. If I hist 'em up they'll be what the fellers call highwater, won't them?"

"Humph! I'd ruther have 'em highwater than shoal in the middle of the channel. You'll have to average up

somehow. I ought to have known better than to trust you to buy anything all by yourself."

She condescended to approve of my appearance when, an hour later, I came downstairs, garbed in my best.

"Humph!" she vouchsafed, after a long look. "I declare! I'd hardly know you, Roscoe. You look more as you

"Thanks," I answered, drily. "I'm glad to see that you respect old age. This suit is venerable enough to

"'Tain't the suit, though that's all right enough. It's the way you wear it, I guess. You look BETTER than you

used to. You're browned up and broadened out and it's real becomin'. But," she added, with characteristic

caution, "you must remember that good looks don't count for much. My father used to say to me that

handsome is that handsome does. Not that I was so homely I'd scare the crows, but he didn't want me to be

"Why, Roscoe!" she exclaimed. "You must consider this strawberry festival very important."

"It did not require a great deal of pains. I merely put on what Dorinda calls my Sunday clothes. I don't know

"I am glad you did. I have been a little troubled about you of late, Boy. It has seemed to me that you were

growingwell, not careless, exactly, but indifferent. As if you were losing interest in life. I don't blame you.

Compelled to waste your time here in the country, a companion to a bedridden old woman like me."

"Yes, yes, Boy, I know what you would say. But it does trouble me, nevertheless. I ought to bid you go back

into the world, and take your place among men. A hundred times I have been upon the point of telling you to

"Yes, I AM selfish and I know it. I am growing stronger every day; I am sure of it. Just a little longer,

"There, there!" she stroked my hand. "We won't be sad, will we. It pleases me to see you taking an interest in

affairs. I think this Shore Lane matter may be a good thing, after all. Dorinda says that Luther tells her you

are becoming very popular in town because of your independent stand. Everyone recognizes your public

"Not in those words. You know Dorinda. But what amounts to that. I am sure the Denboro people are very

I thought of my "popularity" and the admiration of my "public spirit" as manifested in the attentions of

Captain Jed and Eldredge and their followers, and I turned my head away so that she might not see my face.

"And I am glad you are going to the strawberry festival. I can't remember when you attended such a function

"I meanwell, you are young and I did not know but, perhaps, some one else was going, some one you were

"There! there! I haven't noticed that my beauty is so fascinating as to be dangerous. No, Mother, there is no

I was by no means so sure of the good time. In fact, I loitered on my way to the village and it was well past

eight o'clock when I paid my fifteen cents admission fee to Elnathan Mullet at the gate of the church grounds

and sauntered up the slope toward the lights and gaiety of the strawberry festival.

The ladies of the Methodist society, under whose management the affair was given, were fortunate in their

choice of an evening. The early risen moon shone from a cloudless sky and there was so little breeze that the

Japanese lanterns, hung above the tables, went out only occasionally. The "beauty and elite of

Denboro"see next week's Cape Cod Itemwere present in force and, mingling with them, or, if not

mingling, at least inspecting them with interest, were some of the early arrivals among the cottagers from

South Denboro and Bayport. I saw Lute, proudly conscious of his new lavender trousers, in conversation with

Matilda Dean, and I wondered who was the winner in that wordy race. Captain Jedediah strutted arm in arm

with the minister. Thoph Newcomb and Alvin Baker were there with their wives. Simeon Eldredge had not

yet put in an appearance but I knew that he would as soon as the evening mail was sorted.

I found Nellie Dean in charge of a table, and George Taylor seated at that table. I walked over and joined

He shook my hand heartily. "I see you are," he said. "Good boy! How does it seem to splash into society?"

"Oh, trying the feel of the water, hey? Guess you won't find it very chilly. As a preparatory tonic I'd

recommend strawberries and cream. Nellie, get Ros a saucer of those genuine homeraised berries, why don't

Nellie laughed. "Roscoe," she said, "isn't he dreadful! He knows we bought these berries in Boston. It's much

too early for the native ones. But they really are very nice, though he does make such fun of them."

She went into the vestry to get the berries and I sat down at the table beside Taylor and looked about me.

"Most everybody's here," he observed. "And they'll be glad to see you, Ros. Get out and shake hands and be

"Mother is herself again, I am glad to say. George, I have scarcely thought of anything except what you told

"Then it's time you did. That's one reason why I wanted you to come here. You've been thinking too much

"It isn't of myself, but of Mother. If you had dropped a hint when that Boston reporter came"

"Now, look here, Ros, would YOU have dropped hints if things had been the other way around?"

"I know you wouldn't. What's the use of giving the Denboro gossip mill a chance to run over time? Great

"Well, as I said before, if ever I have an opportunity to do as much for younot that I ever will."

"How do you know you won't? Anybody's liable to be gossiped about some time or other."

"Not you. You are Denboro's shining light. The mothers and fathers here point you out as an example of what

"Shut up!" He said it almost savagely. "There!" he added, quickly, "let's change the subject. Talk about

something worth while. Humph! I guess they must be opening another crate of those Boston 'homegrowns,'

"Oh, so, so. Don't know a good man who wants a job, do you? Henry Small's going to leave the middle of

"Got a better chance up to the city. I don't blame him. Don't tell anybody yet; it's a secret. Say, Ros, DO you

I smiled. "Is it likely?" I asked. "How large is my acquaintance among sharp, experienced fellows down

"It's no joke. You've had a lot of banking experience. I've heard about it among my city friends, who don't

know I know you. Course I realize the place is way beneath what you ought to have, but"

"All right, if you say so. But I meant it. You don't need the salary, I know. ButRos, do you mind if I talk

"Well then, I tell you, as a friend, that 'twould be a good thing for you if you did take that job, or some other

one. Don't make much matter what it is, but you ought to do something. You're too clever a fellow to be

"No, it wasn't. But it will be if you don't change pretty soon. I tell you you ought to get interested in

"That's enough of that. I have a name already. You know it, and you know what was made of it."

"YOU didn't make it that kind of a name, did you? And you're young enough to make it something altogether

different. You ought to. You owe it to your mother and you owe it to yourself. As it is, if you keep on,

"George, you've said enough. No one but you would have been permitted to say as much. You don't

"I don't care a continental what they call me. I don't want them to know who I am, but for public opinion

He leaned back in his chair. His face was in shadow and I could not see it, but his tone was grave enough.

"You think you don't," he said, slowly, "but there may come a time when you will. There may come a time

when you get so interested in something, or some person, that the thought of what folks would say ifif

anything went wrong would keep you awake night after night. Oh, I tell you, Ros Hello, Nellie! thought

you'd gone South to pick those berries yourself. Two saucers full! Well, I suppose I must eat the other to save

I said one would be quite sufficient for the present, and we three chatted until Mrs. Dean came over and

"Don't go, Roscoe," protested the matron. "The Cap'n's here and he'll want to talk to you. He's dreadful

interested in you just now. Don't talk about nobody else, scurcely. You set still and I'll go fetch him."

But I refused to "set." I knew the cause of Captain Jedediah's interest, and what he wished to talk about. I rose

and announced that I would stroll about a bit. Taylor spoke to me as I was leaving.

I saw a group of people hurrying toward the entrance of the grounds and I followed them, curious as to the

cause of the excitement. An automobile had stopped by the gate. Sim Eldredge came hastening up and seized

"Gosh! it's Ros," he exclaimed, in his mysterious whisper. "I hadn't seen you afore; just got here myself. But

"Why, Mr. Colton. Didn't you know? Yes, sir, that's his car. He's come and so's his daughter and that young

Carver feller. I believe they've come to take in the sociable. There they be! See 'em! See 'em!"

I saw them. Colton and Victor had already alighted and Miss Colton was descending from the tonneau. There

"I don't know," whispered Sim, excitedly. "Stay where you be and I'll find out. I'll be right back, now. Don't

I did not move, not because he had ordered me to stay where I was, but because I was curious. The spot

Colton and his daughter were talking with Victor, who remained by the step of the auto.

"Well, Mabel," observed "Big Jim," "here we are, though why I don't know. I hope you enjoy this thing more

"Of course I shall enjoy it, Father. Look at the decorations. Aren't they perfectly WONDERFUL!"

"Especially the color scheme," drawled Victor. "Mabel, I call your attention to the red, blue and purple

lanterns. Some class? Yes? Well, I must go. I'll be back in a very short time. If Parker wasn't starting for

Europe tomorrow I shouldn't think of leaving, but I'm sure you'll forgive me, under the circumstances."

"No, don't," added her father. "I promised Mrs. Colton that I should not be away more than an hour. She's

"No fear of that. I'll be back long before you are ready to go. I wouldn't miss thiseraffair myself for

"Proud to see you amongst us, sir," said Sim, with unction. "The Methodist folks are havin' quite a time

"How d'ye do, Eldredge," was the great man's salutation, not at all effusive. "Where does all this crowd come

"'Most everybody's out tonight. Church'll make consider'ble money. Good evenin', Miss Colton. Mr. Carver,

The young lady merely nodded. Victor, whose foot was on the step of the car, did not deign to turn.

"Thanks," he drawled. "I amerembalmed, I'm sure. All ready, Phil. Let her go, Oscar."

The auto moved off. Mr. Colton gave his arm to his daughter and they moved through the crowd, Eldredge

"It's all right, Elnathan," ordered Sim, addressing the gate keeper. "Don't bother Mr. Colton about the

admission now. I'll settle with you, myself, later. Now, Mr. Colton, you and the lady come right along with

me. Ain't met the minister yet, have you? He said you wan't to home when he called. And you let me get you

He led the way toward the tables. I watched the progress from where I stood. It was interesting to see how the

visitors were treated by the different groups. Some, like Sim, were gushing and obsequious. A few, Captain

Jed among them, walked stubbornly by, either nodding coldly or paying no attention. Others, like George

Taylor and Doctor Quimby, were neither obsequious nor cold, merely bowing pleasantly and saying, "Good

evening," as though greeting acquaintances and equals. Yes, there WERE good people in Denboro, quiet,

"Hello, Ros," said Captain Elisha Warren, "Sim's havin' the time of his life, isn't he?"

"Yes. Well, there's some satisfaction in havin' a thick shell; then you don't mind bein' stepped on. Yet, I don't

know; sometimes I think fellers of Sim's kind enjoy bein' stepped on, provided the boot that does it is patent

"Who? the Coltons? Why, for the same reason children go to the circus, I shouldn't wonderto laugh at the

clowns. I laugh myself sometimesthough 'tain't always at their kind of clowns. Speakin' of that, young

"Didn't you recognize them? One was Phil Somersson of the rich widow who owns the big cottage at

Harniss. 'Tother is a bird of the same flock down visitin' em. Carver's takin' 'em over to Ostable to say

goodby to another specimen, a college mate, who is migratin' to Europe tomorrow. The chauffeur told Dan,

my man, about it this afternoon. The chauffeur figgered that, knowin' the crowd, 'twas likely to be a lively

I knew young Somers by reputation. He and his friends were a wild set, if report was true.

Eldredge had hinted that he intended arranging an interview between Colton and myself. The prospect did not

appeal to me. At first I decided to go home at once, but something akin to Captain Dean's resentful

stubbornness came over me. I would not be driven home by those people. I found an unoccupied camp

chairone of Sim's, which he rented for funeralsand carried it to a dark spot in the shrubbery near the

border of the parsonage lawn and not far from the gate. There I seated myself, lit a cigar and smoked in

Elnathan Mullet, evidently considering his labors as doorkeeper over, was counting his takings by lantern

light. The moon was low in the west and a little breeze was now stirring the shrubbery. It was very warm for

I had smoked my cigar perhaps half through when a carriage came down the road and stopped before the

"Up yonder somewheres. There he is, by Sarah Burgess's table. Mr. Colton! Mr. Colton! Somebody wants

"What in blazes did you yell like that for?" protested the coachman, springing from the carriage. "Stop it, d'ye

"I beg your pardon, sir," he said; "this man started yelling before I could stop him. I was coming to tell you.

Colton turned with a shrug to his daughter. "We might have expected it, Mabel," he said. "Come."

But the young lady seemed to hesitate. "I believe I won't go yet, Father," she said. "Mother doesn't need both

of us. Victor will be here very soon, and we promised to wait for him, you know."

"We can leave word. You'd better come, Mabel. Heavens and earth! you don't want any MORE of this, do

It was evident that he had had quite enough of the festival. She laughed lightly.

"I'm finding it very entertaining," she said. "I never saw so many quaint people. There is one girl, a Miss

Dean, whom I am really getting acquainted with. She's as country as can be, but she's very interesting."

"Humph! she must be. Dean, hey? Daughter of my particular friend, the ancient mariner, I suppose. I don't

"Humph! I can imagine how respectable she'll think it is. Well, I know it's useless to urge if you have made

"It isn't from your dad. Now do be careful, won't you? If Victor doesn't come soon I shall send the carriage."

"Oh, he will come. It's all right, Father, dear. I am quite able to take care of myself."

Her father shook his head. "Yes," he observed, "I guess you are. All right, Jenkins."

He got into the carriage and was driven off. Miss Colton turned and walked back to the tables. I relit my

Mullet finished his counting, took up his money box and lantern and left the gate unguarded. Groups of

homegoing people began to come down the hill. Horses, which had been standing under the church sheds or

hitched in neighboring yards, appeared and the various buggies and twoseaters to which they were attached

were filled and driven away. Captain Warren and Miss Abbie Baker, his housekeeper, were among the first to

leave. Abijah Hammond, the sexton, began taking down the lanterns. The strawberry festival was almost

I rose from my camp chair and prepared to start for home. As I stepped from behind the shrubbery the

moonlight suddenly went out, as if it had been turned off like a gas jet. Except for the few remaining lanterns

and the gleams from the church windows and door the darkness was complete. I looked at the western sky. It

was black, and low down along the horizon flashes of lightning were playing. My prophecy of showers was

The ladies of the Methodist Society, assisted by their husbands and male friends, were hurrying the tables and

chairs indoors. I picked up and folded the chair I had been occupying and joined the busy group. It was so

dark that faces were almost invisible, but I recognized Sim Eldredge by his voice, and George Taylor and I

"Hello, Ros!" exclaimed the cashier. "Thought you'd gone. Going to have a tempest, ain't we."

"Hold on till I get this stuff into the vestry," continued Taylor, "and I'll drive you home. I'll be ready pretty

I declined the invitation. "I'll walk," I answered. "You have Nellie to look after. If you have a spare umbrella

"Oh, she's over yonder with Miss Colton. They have been making each other's acquaintance. Say, Ros, she's a

"Oh, I know you're down on the whole lot of 'em," he added, laughing; "but she is, just the same. Kind of

toplofty and condescending, but that's the fault of her bringingup. She's all right underneath. Too good for

that Carver cub. By the way, if he doesn't come pretty soon I'll phone her pa to send the carriage for her. If I

was Colton I wouldn't put much confidence in Carver's showing up in a hurry. You saw the gang he was with,

didn't you? They don't get home till morning, till daylight doth appear, as a usual thing. Hello! that's the

Sure enough, there were the lights of a carriage at the gate, and I heard the voice of Jenkins, the coachman,

shouting. Nellie Dean called Taylor's name and he hurried away. A few moments later he returned.

"She's off, safe and sound," he said. "I judged she wasn't any too well pleased with her Victor for not showing

"Right on top of us, ain't it!" exclaimed George. "Sure you don't want me to drive you home? All right; just as

He borrowed an umbrella from the parsonage. I took it, thanked him, and hastened out of the church grounds.

I looked up the road as I passed through the gate. I could have seen an auto's lamps for a long distance, but

there were none in sight. With a malicious chuckle I thought that my particular friend Victor was not taking

the surest way of making himself popular with his fiancee, if that was what she was.

The storm overtook me before I was halfway down the Lower Road. A few drops of rain splashed the

leaves. A lightning stroke so near and sharp that I fancied I could hear the hiss was accompanied by a savage

thunderclap. Then came the roar of wind in the trees by the roadside and down came the rain. I put up my

umbrella and began to run. We have few "tempests" in Denboro, those we do have are almost worthy of the

I had reached the grove of birches perhaps two hundred yards from the Shore Lane when out of the wet

darkness before me came plunging a horse drawing a covered carriage. I had sprung to one side to let it go by

when I heard a man's voice shouting, "Whoa!" The voice did not come from the carriage but from the road

I jumped back into the road. The horse saw me appear directly in front of him, shied and reared. The carriage

lamps were lighted and by their light I saw the reins dragging. I seized them and held on. It was all

He continued to rear and plunge. I, clinging to the reins, found myself running alongside. I had to run to

avoid the wheels. But I ran as slowly as I could, and my one hundred and ninety pounds made running, on the

The voice from the rear continued to shout and, in another moment, a man seized the reins beside me.

Together we managed to pull the horse into a walk. Then the man, whom I recognized as the Colton

coachman, vented his feelings in a comprehensive burst of profanity. I interrupted the service.

"Oh, this blessed"or words to that effect"horse is scared of thunder; that's all. He's a new one; we just

bought him before we came down here and I hadn't learned his little tricks. Whoa! stand still, or I'll break

your dumb neck! Say," turning to me, "go back, will you, and see if she's all right."

"Miss Coltonthe old man's daughter. She got out when he began to dance and I was holding him by the

bridle. Then came that big flash and he broke loose. Go back and see to her, will you? I can't leave this

For just a moment I hesitated. I am ashamed of my hesitation now, but this is supposed to be a truthful

chronicle. Then I went back down the road. By another flash of lightning I saw the minister's umbrella upside

down in the bushes where I had dropped it, and I took it with me. I was about as wet as I well could be but I

"He is attending to the horse. Pardon me, Miss Colton, but won't you take this umbrella?"

This seemed to strike her as a trifle absurd. "Why, thank you," she said, "but I am afraid an umbrella would

I was interrupted by another flash and terrific report from directly overhead. The young lady came closer to

I had an idea. The flash had made our surroundings as light as day for an instant and across the road I saw

Sylvanus Snow's old house, untenanted, abandoned and falling to decay. I took Miss Colton's arm.

"Just across the road to that old house. On the porch we shall be out of the rain."

She made no further objections and together we stumbled through the wet grass and over Sylvanus's

weedgrown flower beds. I presume I shall never again smell the spicy fragrance of "old maids' pinks"

I found the edge of the piazza by the direct process of barking my shins against it, and helped her up on to the

creaking boards. My sanguine statement that we should be out of the rain proved not quite true. There was a

roof above us, but it leaked. I unfurled the wet umbrella and held it over her head.

For some moments after we reached the piazza neither of us spoke. The roar of the rain on the shingles of the

porch and the splash and gurgle all about us would have made conversation difficult, even if we had wished

I listened, or tried to. I was wondering myself what had become of the coachman.

I was wondering that very thing. That particular thunder clap was louder and more terrifying than those

But he did not come. The storm seemed to be passing over. The flashes were just as frequent, but there was a

longer interval between each flash and its thunder peal. The rain was still a steady downpour.

"Don't be frightened," I urged. "He is all right. I'll go and look him up, if you don't mind being left alone."

"We could, of course, but there is no use in your getting wetter than you are. If you are willing to stay here I

I pressed the handle of the umbrella into her handit was as steady as mineand darted out into the flood. I

think she called me to come back, but I did not obey. I ran up the road until I was some distance beyond the

point where I had stopped the runaway, but there were no signs of horse, carriage or coachman. I called

repeatedly, but got no reply. Then, reluctantly, I gave it up and returned to the porch.

"No," I answered. "He seems to have gone on. He cannot have gone far. It is only a little way to the Corners."

"No nearer than your house, Miss Colton. We seem to have chosen the most forsaken spot in Denboro to be

"I am not frightened for myself. But I know my father and mother will be alarmed if I don't come soon. I am

I had thought of that, too. Only an accident could explain the coachman's nonappearance or, at least, his not

"If you are really not afraid to remain here, Miss Colton," I said, "I will go to your house myself."

"Oh no! Some one will come soon. I can't understand where Victor Mr. Carvercan be. He was to have

I did not answer. Knowing Mr. Carver's associates and the errand upon which he had gone, I imagined I

"The storm is not as severe just now," I said. "I can get to your house in a little while, if you are willing I

I still hesitated. She took her hand from my arm and stepped out into the rain. "Are you coming?" she said.

I joined her, still protesting. We splashed on through the mud and water, she clinging lightly to my arm and I

holding the perfectly useless umbrella over her head. The rain was descending steadily and the sky overhead

was just black, but along the western horizon, as I caught a glimpse of it between the trees, I fancied the

But before it passed it gave us one goodby salute. We had about reached the point on the Shore Lane where I

first met her and Carver in the auto. The shaky bridge over Mullet's cranberry brook was just ahead. Then,

without warning, the black night split wide open, a jagged streak of fire shot from heaven to earth and seemed

to explode almost in our faces. I was almost knocked off my feet and my fingers tingled as if I had been

holding the handles of an electric battery. The umbrella flew out of my hands and, so far as I was concerned,

vanished utterly. I believe Elnathan picked up the ruin next day, but just then I neither knew nor cared what

But for a moment I could not think at all. I was conscious of a great crashing and rustling and splintering

directly in front of me and then I realized that the young lady was no longer clinging to my arm. I looked

She neither answered nor moved. My brain was still numb from the electric shock and I had a dazed fear that

she might be dead. I shook her gently and she moaned. I spoke again and again, but she did not answer, nor

try to rise. The rain was pouring down upon us and I knew she must not lie there. So once more, just as I had

done in the dingy, but now under quite different circumstances and with entirely different feelings, I stooped

My years of outdoor life in Denboro had had one good effect at least; they had made me strong. I carried her

with little effort to the bridge. And there I stopped. The bridge was blocked, covered with a mass of wet leafy

branches and splintered wood. The lightning bolt had missed us by just that much. It had overthrown and

demolished the big willow tree by the brook and to get through or over the tangle was impossible.

So again history repeated itself. I descended the bank at the side of the bridge and waded through the waters

with Mabel Colton in my arms. I staggered up the opposite bank and hurried on. She lay quiet, her head

against my shoulder. Her hat had fallen off and a wet, fragrant strand of her hair brushed my cheek. Once I

stopped and bent my head to listen, to make sure that she was breathing. She was, I felt her breath upon my

face. Afterwards I remembered all this; just then I was merely thankful that she was alive.

"Nothing," I answered, with a sigh of relief. "It is all right. We shall be there soon."

"Oh yes, I remember. Did I faint? How ridiculous! Please let me walk now. I am all right. Really I am."

I set her gently on her feet. She staggered a little, but she was plucky and, after a moment, was able to stand

We moved on more rapidly. As we turned in at the Colton walk she said, "Why; it has stopped raining."

It had, though I had not noticed it. The flash which smashed the willow had been the accompaniment of what

We stepped up on the portico of the big house and I rang the bell. The butler opened the door. His face, as he

saw the pair of dripping, bedraggled outcasts before him, was worth looking at. He was shocked out of his

"Eh? What?" he exclaimed. "By George! Mabel, where have you been? I have been raising heaven and earth

to locate you. The 'phone seems to be out of order and Great Scott, girl! you're wet through. Jenkins,

The fact that his daughter's escort was not the coachman had just dawned upon him. He stared at me in irate

bewilderment. Before he could ask a question or his daughter could speak or explain there came a little shriek

from the stairs, a rustle of silken skirts, and a plump, whitefaced woman in an elaborate house gown rushed

"Mabel!" she cried, "where HAVE you been. You poor child! I have been almost beside myself, and"

Miss Colton laughingly avoided the rush. "Take care, Mother," she warned. "I am very wet."

"Wet? Why! you're absolutely drenched! Jenkins Mabel, where is Jenkins? And who is

"Good night, Miss Colton," I said, and stepped toward the door. But "Big Jim" roared my name.

I think his daughter was about to explain, when there came another interruption. From the driveway sounded

the blare of an auto horn. Johnson threw open the door just as the big car whirled up to the porch.

"Here we are!" laughed Carver, emerging from behind the drawn curtains of the machine. "Home again from

a foreign shore. Come in, fellows, and have a drink. We've had water enough for one night. Come in."

He stumbled as he crossed the sill, recovered his balance, laughed, and then all at once seemed to become

aware of the group in the hall. He looked about him, swaying a little as he did so.

"Ah, Mabel!" he exclaimed, genially. "Got here first, didn't you? Sorry I was late, but it was all old Parker's

fault. Wouldn't let us say goodby. But we came some when we did come. The bridge is down and we made

Oscar run her right through the water. Great ex experience. Hello! Why, what's matter? Who's this? What?

"Mr. Paine," she said, "I am very grateful for your kindness. Both for what you have done tonight and for

"Thank you," she said, again. I murmured something or other and went out. As I stepped from the porch I

I looked back. He was standing by the door. She went past him without replying or even looking at him.

From the automobile I heard smothered chuckles and exclamations. The butler closed the door.

I walked home as fast as I could. Dorinda was waiting up for me. What she said when she saw the ruin of my

Sunday suit had better not be repeated. She was still saying it when I took my lamp and went up to bed.

The strawberry festival and the "tempest" were, of course, the subjects most discussed at the breakfast table

next morning. Lute monopolized the conversation, a fact for which I was thankful, for it enabled me to dodge

Dorinda's questions as to my own adventures. I did not care to talk about the latter. My feelings concerning

them were curiously mixed. Was I glad or sorry that Fate had chosen me to play once more the role of rescuer

of a young female in distress? That my playing of the role had altered my standing in Mabel Colton's mind I

felt reasonably sure. Her words at parting with me rang true. She was grateful, and she had shaken hands with

me. Doubtless she would tell her father the whole story and he, too, in common decency, would be grateful to

me for helping his daughter. But, after all, did I care for gratitude from that family? And what form would

that gratitude take? Would Colton, like Victor Carver, offer to pay me for my services? No, hardly that, I

thought. He was a man of wide experience and, if he did offer payment, it would be in some less crude form

But I did not want payment in any form. I did not want condescension and patronizing thanks. I did not want

anythingthat was it. Up to now, the occupants of the big house and I had been enemies, open and

confessed. I had, so far as possible, kept out of their way and hoped they would keep out of mine. But now

the situation was more complicated. I did not know what to expect. Of course there was no chance of our

becoming friends. The difference in social position, as they reckoned it, made that too ridiculous to consider

as a possibility, even if I wished it, which I distinctly did not. But something, an interview, awkward and

disagreeable for both sides, or a patronizing note of thanks, was, at the very least, certain to follow the

happenings of the previous night. I wished I had gone home when the Coltons first came to the festival. I

wished I had not promised Taylor that I would attend that festival. I wishedI wished a great many things.

The thought of young Carver's public snubbing before his friends was my one unmixed satisfaction. I rather

Lute crowed vaingloriously over his own good judgment in leaving for home early.

"I don't know how 'twas," he declared. "Somethin' seemed to tell me we was in for a turrible tempest. I was

"SECOND sasser?" interrupted Dorinda, sharply. "Where'd you get money for two sassers? I gave you thirty

cents when you started for that festival. It cost you fifteen to get inside the gate, and Matildy Dean told me

the church folks was cal'latin' to charge fifteen for a helpin' of berries and cream. And you had two sassers,

Her husband swallowed half a cup of coffee before replying. Then his reply had nothing to do with the

"I don't know how 'twas," he went on. "I just had the feelin', that's all. Sort of a presentpresentuary, I guess,

come over me. I looked up at the sky and 'twas gettin' black, and then I looked to the westard and I see a

flash of lightnin'. 'Nothin' but heat lightnin',' says Alvin. 'Heat lightnin' nothin'!' says I, 'I tell you"

"Who paid for 'em? If 'twas Alvin Baker you ought to be ashamed of yourself, spongin' on him for your

"Alvin! Good land! did you ever know him to pay for anything he didn't have to?"

"Never mind what I know. Did you get trusted for 'em? How many times have I told you"

"I never got trusted. I ain't that kind. And I didn't sponge 'em, neither. I paid cash, right out of my own

"You did! Umhm. I want to know! Well thenMAN, where did the cash in that pocket come from?"

"Wellwell, Dorindy, you seewhen you sent me up to the store t'other day after the brown sugar

andand number 50 spool cotton you give me seventyfive cents. You remember you did, yourself."

"Yes, and I remember you said there was a hole in your pocket and you lost the change. I ain't likely to forget

"I didn't forget. By time! my ears ain't done singin' yet. But that shows how reckless you talk to me. I never

lost that change at all. I found it afterwards in my vest, so all your jawin' was just for nothin'. Ros, she ought

"Umhm!" she observed, dryly. "Well, I'll beg my own pardon instead, for bein' so dumb as not to go through

your vest myself. So THAT'S where the other fifteen cents come from! I see. Well, you march out to the

"But, Dorindy, I've got one of my dyspepsy spells. I don't feel real good this mornin'. I told you I didn't."

"Folks that make pigs of themselves on stolen berries hadn't ought to feel good. Exercise is fine for dyspepsy.

Lute marched, and I marched with him as far as the back yard. There I left him, groaning before the

The Comfort's overhauling was complete and I had launched her the week before. Now she lay anchored at

the edge of the channel. For the want of something more important to do I took down my shot gun and began

Try as I might I could not get the memory of my adventure in the "tempest" out of my head. I reviewed it

from end to end, thinking of many things I might have done which, in the light of what followed, would have

been better and more sensible. If, instead of leaving the coachman, I had remained to help him with the

frightened horse, I should have been better employed. Between us we could have subdued the animal and

Miss Colton might have ridden home. I wondered what had become of Jenkins and the horse. I wondered if

the girl knew I carried her through the brook. Victor had said the bridge was down; she must know. I

wondered what she thought of the proceeding; probably that splashing about with young ladies in my arms

I told myself that I did not care what she thought. I resolved to forget the whole affair and to focus my

attention upon cleaning the gun. But I could not forget. I waded that brook a dozen times as I sat there. I

remembered every detail; how still she lay in my arms; how white her face looked as the distant lightning

flashes revealed it to me; how her hair brushed my cheek as I bent over her. I was using a wad of cotton

waste to polish the gun barrel, and I threw it into a corner, having the insane notion that, in some way, the

association of ideas came from that bunch of waste. Itthe wastewas grimy and anything but fragrant, as

different from the dark lock which the wind had blown against my face as anything well could be, but the

hurry with which I discarded it proves my imbecility at that time. Confound the girl! she was a nuisance. I

wanted to forget her and her family, and the sulphurous personage to whose care I had once consigned the

head of the family apparently took a characteristic delight in arranging matters so that I could not.

The shot gun was, at last, so spotless that even a pretense of further cleaning was ridiculous. I held it level

I lowered the gun, turned and looked. "Big Jim" Colton was standing there, cigar in mouth, cap on the back

of his head and both hands in his pockets, exactly as he had appeared in that same doorway when he and I

first met. The expected had happened, part of it at least. He had come to see me; the disagreeable interview I

"Good morning," said I, guardedly. I wondered how he would begin the conversation. Our previous meeting

had ended almost in a fight. We had been fighting by proxy ever since. I was prepared for more trouble, for

haughty condescension, for perfunctory apology, for almost anything except what happened. His next remark

might have been addressed to an acquaintance upon whom he had casually dropped in for a friendly call.

I was too astonished to answer. "Let's look at it," he repeated, holding out his hand.

Mechanically I passed him the gun. He examined it as if he was used to such things, broke it, snapped it shut,

"Anything worth shooting around here?" he asked, pulling the armchair toward him and sitting.

I think I did not let him see how astonished I was at his attitude. I tried not to.

"Why yes," I answered, "in the season. Plenty of coots, some black duck, and quail and partridge in the

"That so! Peters, that carpenter of mine, said something of the sort, I remember, but I wouldn't believe him

under oath. I could shoot HIM with more or less pleasure, but there seems to be no open session for his

"Out yonder." I pointed to the Comfort at her moorings. He looked, but made no comment. I rose and put the

gun in the rack. Then I returned to my chair. He swung around in his seat and looked at me.

"Well," he said, grimly, but with a twinkle in his eye, "the last time you and I chatted together you told me to

This was quite true and I might have added that I was glad of it. But what would be the use? I did not answer

"I haven't gone there yet," he continued. "Came over here instead. Got dry yet?"

"Yes. You were anything but dry when I saw you last night. Have many such cloudbursts as that in these

"I hope not. I don't want another until I sell that horse of mine. The chap who stuck me with him is a friend of

mine. He warranted the beast perfectly safe for an infant in arms to drive and not afraid of anything short of

an earthquake. He is a lovely liar. I admire his qualifications in that respect, and hope to trade with him again.

He smiled as he said it. There was not the slightest malice in his tone, but, if I had been the "friend," I should

"Ran away again. Jenkins had just got back into the carriage when another one of those thunder claps started

more trouble. The horse ran four miles, more or less, and stopped only when the wheels got jammed between

"Oh, he lit on his head, fortunately, and wasn't hurt. Spent half the night trying to find a phone not out of

"Maybe I am, but I am obliged, just the same. Not only for the help you gave Mabelmy daughterlast

So she had told him the whole story. Remembering her last words, as I left her in the hall, I had rather

"Why, yes, it did. It might have amounted to a whole lot. I asked Peters some questions about the tides out

here and, from what he said, I judge that being stuck on the shoals in a squall might not be altogether a joke.

"How did young Carver enjoy playing second fiddle?" he asked. "From what I've seen of him he generally

"He isn't any too happy this morning," he went on. "That young man won't do. I never quoted him within

twenty points of par, but Mabel seemed to like him and her mother thought he was the real thing. Mrs. C.

couldn't forget that his family is one of the oldest on the list. Personally I don't gamble much on families;

know a little about my own and that little is enough. But women are different. However, family or not, he

won't do. I should tell him so myself, but I guess Mabel will save me the trouble. She's got a surprising

amount of commonsense, considering that she's an only childand who her parents are. By the way, Paine,

"Yes, I know that. I listened to his explanations last night. But did he say anything?"

"No, nobody told me. I'm only trying to find out whether or not I have lost all my judgment of human nature

"Yes," slowly, "I know you are. I've got that much judgment left. Sent you five dollars, did he. And you sent

I was tired of being catechized. I had not meant to tell him anything. Now I decided to tell him all. If it

To my amazement he was not angry. Instead he slapped his knee and laughed aloud.

"Ho! ho!" he shouted. "Humph! Well, that was. . . . I'd like to have seen his face when he got that message.

It was not for me to dispute this conclusion, even if I had disagreed with him, which I did not. I said nothing.

"How did you happen to be on the Lower Road at that time of the night?" he asked. "I'm mighty glad you

"Do you mean to tell me," he continued, "that you enjoy a thing like that? What in blazes made Mabel want

to go I don't see! She and Carver were set on going; and it would be the treat of a lifetime, or words to that

effect. I can't see it myself. Of all the wooden headed jays I ever laid eyes on this town holds the finest

This was more like what I expected from him and I resented it. It may seem odd that I, of all persons, should

have taken upon myself the defense of Denboro and its inhabitants, but that is what I did.

"They are no more narrow and stubborn in their way than city people are in theirs," I declared. "They resent

being ordered about as if their opinions and wishes counted for nothing, and I honor them for it."

"Yes, I do. Mr. Colton, I tell you that you are all wrong. Simply because a man lives in the country it does not

follow that he is a blockhead. No one in Denboro is rich, as you would count riches, but plenty of them are

"No, you can't. And if you want favors from men here you must ask for them, not try to bully."

"I don't want favors. I want to be treated decently, that's all. When I came here I intended doing things to help

the town. I should have enjoyed doing it. I told some of them so. Look at the money I've spent. Look at the

taxes I'll pay. Why, they ought to be glad to have me here. They ought to welcome me."

"So they would if you had not behaved as if you were what some of them call you'Emperor of New York'.

"So? Well, from what I've been able to learn about you, you haven't associated with many of them. You've

Chickens do come home to roost. My attitude of indifference and coldness toward my fellow citizens had

been misinterpreted, as it deserved to be. George Taylor was right when he said I had made a mistake.

"I have been foolish," I said, hotly, "but not for the reason you suppose. I don't consider myself any better

than the people here no, nor even the equal of some of them. And, from what I have seen of you, Mr.

"Say, Paine," he said, "what in the world are you doing down in a place like this?"

"Just that. You upset my calculations. I thought I spotted you and put you in the class where you belonged

when you and I first met. I can usually size up a man. You've got me guessing. What are you doing down

If he intended this as a compliment I was not in the mood to accept it as such. I should have told him that

what I was or was not was no business of his. But he went on without giving me the opportunity.

"You've got me guessing," he repeated. "You talk like a man. The way you looked out for my daughter last

night and the way, according to her story, you handled her and Victor the other afternoon was a man's job.

"Never mind. You're right; that's your affair, of course. But I hate to quit till I have the answer, and nobody

"You mean that? All rightall right. Say, Paine, I admire your nerve a good deal more than I do your

judgment. You must understand that I am going to close that fool Lane of yours some time or other."

"Possibly, but they'll agree before I'm through. I am going to close that Lane."

"I'm going to close it for two reasons. First, because it's a condemned nuisance and ought to be closed.

Second, because I make it a point to get what I go after. I can't afford not to. It is doing that very thing that

There was nothing to be said in answer to a statement like that. I did not try to answer it.

"Where you're holding down a job like mine," he continued, crossing his knees and looking out across the

bay, "you have to get what you go after. I'm down here and I mean to stay here as long as I want to, but I

haven't let go of my job by a good deal. I've got private wirestelegraph and telephonein my house and I

keep in touch with things in the Street as much as I ever did. If anybody tries to get ahead of the old man

because they think he's turned farmer they'll find out their mistake in a hurry."

This seemed to be a soliloquy. I could not see how it applied to me. He went on talking.

"Sounds like bragging, doesn't it?" he said, reading my thoughts as if I had spoken them. "It isn't. I'm just

trying to show you why I can't afford not to have my own way. If I miss a trick, big or little, somebody else

wins. When I was younger, just butting into the game, there was another fellow trying to get hold of a lead

mine out West that I was after. He beat me to it at first. He was a big toad in the puddle and I was a little one.

But I didn't quit. I waited round the corner. By and by I saw my chance. He was in a hole and I had the cover

to the hole. Before I let him out I owned that mine. It cost me more than it was worth; I lost money on it. But

I had my way and he and the rest had found out that I intended to have it. That was worth a lot more than I

lost in the mine. Now this Lane proposition is a little bit of a thing; it's picayune; I should live right along if I

didn't get it. But because I want it, because I've made up my mind to have it, I'm going to have it, one way or

I shrugged my shoulders. "This seems to me like wasting time, Mr. Colton," I said.

"Then your seeing is away off. Look here, Paine, I'm through fiddling with the deal. I'm through with that

undertaker postmaster or any other gobetween. I just wanted you to understand my position; that's why I've

told you all this. Now we'll talk figures. I might go on bidding, and you'd go on saying no, of course. But I

shan't bid. I'll just say this: When you are ready to selland I'll put you where you will be some day"

I rose. "Mr. Colton," I said, sharply, "you had better not say any more. I'm not afraid of you, and"

"There! there! there! who said anything about your being afraid? Don't get mad. I'm notnot now. This is a

"Sure. Business friends. I'm talking to you as I would to any other chap I intended to beat in a deal; there's

nothing personal about it. When I get you so you're ready to sell I'll give you five thousand dollars for that

"Yes. Oh, I know what it's worth. Five hundred is for the land itself. The other fortyfive hundred is payment

It took me some time to answer. "No," is a short and simple word, but I found it tremendously difficult to

pronounce. Yet I did pronounce it, I am glad to say. After all that I had said before I would have been

"All right," he said. "I'm not going to coax you. Just remember that the offer holds good and when you get

ready to accept it, sing out. Well!" looking at his watch, "I must be going. My wife will think I've fallen into

the bay, or been murdered by the hostile natives. Nerves are mean things to have in the house; you can take

my word for that. Goodby, Paine. Thank you again for last night and the rest of it. Mabel will thank you

He was on his way to the door when I recovered presence of mind sufficient to remember ordinary politeness.

"Your daughtererMiss Colton is well?" I stammered. "No ill effects from her wettingand the shock?"

"Not a bit. She's one of the kind of girls they turn out nowadays. Athletics and all that. Her grandmother

would have died probably, after such an upset, but she's as right as I am. Oh . . . er Paine, next time you go

shooting let me know. Maybe I'd like to go along. I used to be able to hit a barn door occasionally."

He stopped long enough to bite the end from a cigar and strolled away, smoking. I sat down in the armchair.

"Five thousand dollars!" . . . "Carver won't do." . . . "I will have the Lane some time or other" . . . "Five

thousand dollars!" . . . "Next time you go shooting." . . . "Friends!" . . . "Five thousand dollars!"

Mother was the only one to whom I told the whole story of my experience in the "tempest" and of Colton's

call. She and I had a long talk. She was as surprised to hear of the five thousand dollar offer as I had been, but

that I had refused it did not surprise her. She seemed to take my refusal as a matter of course, whereas I was

more and more doubtful of my sanity at the time. I knew well enough what the opinion of others would be

concerning that sanity and I wondered whether or not they might be right. In fact, I rather resented her calm

"Mother," said I, "you speak as if the offer had been five cents instead of five thousand dollars."

"What difference does it make, Boy?" she asked. "If it had been only a matter of price you would have sold

for six hundred and fifty. That is a good deal more than the land is worth, isn't it."

"I suppose so. But five thousand is a small fortune to us. I am not sure that we have the right to refuse it."

"Roscoe, if you were alone in this matterif I were not here to be considered at allwould you have sold

"I know you would not. And I know the only reason you feel the refusal may be wrong is because you are

thinking what the money might do for me. Do you suppose I will permit you to sacrifice a principle you

"No, I don't need one. So long as I have you I am perfectly happy. And it would not make me more happy to

know that you accepted a bribethat is what it is, a bribebecause of me. No, Boy, you did exactly right

"You should be. Can't you see how differently Mr. Colton regards you already? He does not condescend or

"Humph! he is grateful because I helped his daughter out of a scrape, that's all."

"It is more than that. He respects you because you are what he called you, a man. I fancy it is a new

experience to him to find some one, down here at any rate, to whom his millions make absolutely no

"Yes, I think it will. And what you told him about the townspeople may do him good, too. He will find, as

you and I have found, that there are no kinder, better people anywhere. You remember I warned you against

misjudging the Coltons, Roscoe. They, too, I am sure, are good people at heart, in spite of their wealth."

"Haven't you and I reason to be charitable? There! there! let us forget the land and the money. Roscoe, I

"I suppose poor Mr. Carver is in disgrace. Perhaps it was not his fault altogether."

I heard from him, or of him, next day. I met Captain Jed Dean at the bank, where I had called to see Taylor

and inquire concerning how he and Nellie got home from the festival. They had had a damp, though safe,

journey, I learned, and the Methodist ladies had cleared seventyfour dollars and eightyfive cents from the

"Ship ahoy, Ros!" hailed the captain, genially. "Make port safe and sound after the flood? I'd have swapped

my horse and buggy for Noah's Ark that night and wouldn't have asked any boot neither. Did you see Mullet's

bridge? Elnathan says he cal'lates he's got willow kindlin' enough to last him all summer. Ready split too

the lightnin' attended to that. Lute Rogers don't talk about nothin' else. I cal'late he wishes lightnin' would

"I understood Princess Colton was out in the wust of it," went on Captain Jed. "Did you hear how her horse

"Never stopped till it got half way to West Bayport. The coachman hangin' onto the reins and swearin' at the

top of his lungs all the time. 'Bije Ellis, who lives up that way, says the road smells like a match factory even

yetso much brimstone in the air. The girl got home somehow or other, they tell me. I cal'late her fine duds

got their nevergetover. Nellie says the hat she was wearin' come from Paris, or some such foreign place.

Well, the rain falls on the just and unjust, so scriptur tells us, and it's true enough. Only the unjust in this case

can afford new hats better'n the just, a consider'ble sight. Denboro's lost a promisin' new citizen; did you

"Hadn't you heard? That young Carver feller shook the dustthe mud, I meanof our roads off his shoes

"I should call it for good, for our good, anyhow. Yes, he's gone. Went to the depot in Colton's automobile.

His majesty went with him fur's the platform. The gang that saw the proceedin's said the goodbys wan't

affectin'. Colton didn't shed any tears and young Carver seemed to be pretty down at the mouth."

"Why, Alvin Baker was there, same as he usually is, and he managed to be nigh enough to hear the last

"Nothin' to amount to much. Nothin' about comin' back, anyhow. Colton said somethin' about bein'

remembered to the young feller's ma, and Carver said, 'Thanks,' and that was all. Alvin said 'twas pretty

chilly. They've got it all figgered out at the postoffice; you see, Carver was to come back to the meetin'

house and pick up his princess, and he never come. She started without him and got run away with. Some of

the folks paddlin' home from the festival saw the auto go by and heard the crowd inside singin' and laughin'

and hollerin'. Nobody's goin' to sing a night like that unless they've got cargo enough below decks to make

'em forget the wet outside. And Beriah Doane was over to Ostable yesterday and he says it's town talk there

that young Parkerthe boy the auto crowd was sayin' goodby to at the hotelhad to be helped up to his

room. No, I guess likely the Colton girl objected to her feller's gettin' tight and forgettin' her, so he and she

had a row and her dad, the emperor, give him his discharge papers. Sounds reasonable; don't you think so,

I imagined that the surmise was close to the truth. I nodded and turned away. I did not like Carver, I detested

him, but somehow I no longer felt triumph at his discomfiture. I wondered if he really cared for the girl he

had lost. It was difficult to think of him as really caring for any one except himself, but if I had been in his

place and had, through my own foolishness, thrown away the respect and friendship of such a girl. . . . Yes, I

was beginning to feel a little of Mother's charity for the young idiot, now that he could no longer insult and

"No," I answered, impatiently. "There's no use talking about that, Captain Dean."

"All right, all right. Humph! the fellers are gettin' consider'ble fun out of that Lane."

He laughed. "Oh, nothin'," he observed, with a wink, "only. . . . Heard any extry hurrahin' over to your place

"I don't mean nothin'. But I shouldn't wonder if the Great Panjandrum and his folks was reminded that that

I did not catch his meaning at the time. A few days later I discovered it by accident. I had been up to the

village and was on my way home by the short cut. As I crossed the field behind Sylvanus Snow's abandoned

house, the spot where Miss Colton and I had waited on the porch the night of the thunder shower, I heard the

rattle of a cart going down the Lane. There was nothing unusual in this, of itself, but with it I heard the sound

"Now, boys, start her up! Three cheers for the Star Spangled Banner and make 'em loud. Let her go!"

"Try it again," commanded the voice. "And keep her up all the way along. We'll shake up the 'nerves' I guess.

This was enough. I understood now what Dean had meant by the Coltons realizing that the Lane was still

open. I ran at full speed through the scrub and bushes, through the grove, and emerged upon the Lane directly

opposite the Colton estate. The wagonZeb Kendrick's weir cartwas approaching. Zeb was driving and

behind him in the body of the cart were four or five young fellows whom I recognized as belonging to the

"billiard room gang," an unorganized society whose members worked only occasionally but were responsible

for most of the mischief and disorder in our village. Tim Hallet, a sort of leader in that society, with the

reputation of having been expelled from school three times and never keeping a job longer than a fortnight,

was on the seat beside Kendrick, his back to the horse. Zeb was grinning broadly.

"Here!" I shouted. "Stop that! Stop it, do you hear! Kendrick, what is all this?"

The song stopped in the middle of the verse. Zeb jerked the reins and shouted "Whoa!" Hallet and his chorus

turned. They had been gazing at the big house, but now they turned and looked at me.

"Hello, Ros!" said Kendrick, still grinning, but rather sheepishly. "How be you? Got quite a band aboard, ain't

"Hello!" cried Hallet. "It's Ros himself! Ros, you're all RIGHT! Hi, boys! let's give three cheers for the feller

The cheering that followed was not quite as loud as the previous outburstsome of the "gang" may have

noticed my attitude and expressionbut it was loud enough. Involuntarily I glanced toward the Colton

mansion. I saw no one at the windows or on the veranda, and I was thankful for that. The blood rushed to my

Tim Hallet appeared to consider my silence and my crimson cheeks as acknowledgments of the compliment

"Cal'late they heard that over yonder," he crowed. "Don't you think so, Ros. We've showed 'em what we think

of you; now let's give our opinion of them. Three groans for old Colton! Come on!"

"Hold on, Tim!" he cautioned. "A joke's a joke, but that's a little too much; ain't it, Ros."

The groans were not given. I sprang into the road, seized the horse by the bridle and backed the wagon into

the bank. Tim, insecurely balanced, fell off the seat and joined his comrades on the cart floor.

I saved him the trouble by completing the turn. When I dropped the bridle the horse's head was pointing

"Butbut, Ros," protested Zeb, "I don't want to go back. I'm goin' to the shore."

"What's the matter with you?" he asked, angrily. "Didn't you say the town could use this Lane?"

"Yes. Any one may use it as long as he behaves himself. When he doesn't behave he forfeits the privilege.

"But I don't want to go back, Ros. If I do I'll have to go clear round by Myrick's, two mile out of my way."

"You should have thought of that before you brought that crowd with you. I won't have this Lane made a

Zeb turned to his passengers. "There!" he whined, "I told you so, Tim. I said you hadn't ought to act that

"Aw, what are you givin' us!" sneered Hallet. "You thought 'twas as funny as anybody, Zeb Kendrick. Look

here, Ros Paine! I thought you was down on them Coltons. We fellers are only havin' a little fun with 'em for

"Butbut can't I use the Lane NO more?" pleaded the driver. "I won't fetch 'em here agin."

Zeb reluctantly spoke to his horse and the wagon began to move. Hallet swore a string of oaths.

"I'm on to you, Paine!" he yelled. "You're standin' in with 'em, after all. You wait till I see Captain Jed."

"See him then," said I. "And tell him that if any one uses this Lane for the purpose of wilfully annoying those

living near it I'll not only forbid his using it, but I'll prosecute him for trespass. I mean that. Stop! I advise you

I did not intend to prosecute Jim, he was not worth it, but I should have thoroughly enjoyed dragging him out

of that wagon and silencing him by primitive methods. My anger had not cooled to any extent. He did not

speak to me again, though I heard him muttering as the cart moved off. I remained where I was until I saw it

I was very much annoyed and disturbed. Evidently this sort of thing had been going on for some time and I

had just discovered it. It placed me in a miserable light. When Colton had declared, as he had in both our

interviews, that the Lane was a nuisance I had loftily denied the assertion. Now those idiots in the village

were doing their best to prove me a liar. I should have expected such behavior from Hallet and his friends,

but for Captain Dean to tacitly approve their conduct was unexpected and provoking. Well, I had made my

position plain, at all events. But I knew that Tim would distort my words and that the idea of my "standing

in" with the Coltons, while professing independence, would be revived. I was destined to be detested and

misunderstood by both sides. Yes, Dorinda was right in saying that I might find sitting on the fence

I entered the grove and was striding on, head down, busy with these and similar reflections, when some one

I stopped short, came out of the day dream in which I had been giving Captain Jed my opinion of his

She was dressed in white, a light, simple summer gown. Her straw hat was simple also, expensive simplicity

doubtless, but without a trace of the horticultural exhibits with which Olinda Cahoon, our Denboro milliner,

was wont to deck the creations she prepared for customers. Matilda Dean would have sniffed at the hat and

gown; they were not nearly as elaborate as those Nellie, her daughter, wore on Sundays. But Matilda or

Nellie at their grandest could not have appeared as well dressed as this girl, no matter what she wore. Just

now she looked, as Lute or Dorinda might have said, "as if she came out of a band box."

"Good morning," she said, again. She was perfectly selfpossessed. Remembrance of our transit of Mullet's

cranberry brook did not seem to embarrass her in the least. Nellie Dean would have giggled and blushed, but

_I_ was embarrassed, I admit it, but I had sufficient presence of mind to remove my hat.

"Good morning," said I. There flashed through my mind the thought that if she had been in that grove for any

length of time she must have overheard my lively interview with Kendrick and Tim Hallet. I wondered if she

"I suppose," she said, soberly, but with the same twinkle in her eye which I had observed once or twice in her

father's, "that I should apologize for being here, on your property, Mr. Paine. I judge that you don't like

I was more nettled at Zeb and his crowd than ever. "So you saw that performance," I said. "I'm sorry."

"I saw a little of it, and I'm afraid I heard the rest. I was walking here by the bluff and I could not help seeing

"Humph! Well, I hope you understand, Miss Colton, that I did not know, until just now, this sort of thing was

She smiled. "Oh, I understand that," she said. "You made that quite plain. Even those people in the wagon

"I did not know you could be so fierce, Mr. Paine. I had not expected it. You almost frightened me. You were

"I am not always so mild, Miss Colton. However, if I had known you were within hearing I might not have

"Then I am glad you didn't know. I think those ruffians were treated as they deserved."

"Not half as they deserved. I shall watch from now on and if there are any more attempts at annoying you or

"Thank you. They have been troublesomeof late. I am sure we are very much obliged to you, all of us."

"Oh yes, we are. Not only for this, but forall the rest. For your help the other night especially; I want to

"You may consider rescuing shipwrecked young ladies, afloat and ashore, nothingperhaps you do it so

often that it is of little consequence to you; but I am not so modest. I estimate my safety as worth something,

"I did not mean that, of course, Miss Colton. You know I did not. I meant thatthat what I did was no more

than any one else would have done under the same circumstances. You were in no danger; you would have

been safe enough even if I had not happened along. Please don't say anything more about it."

"Very well. But I am very glad you happened along, nevertheless. You seem to have the faculty of happening

This sounded like a reference to the episode in the bay, and I did not care to discuss that.

"YouI believe your father said you were not ill after your experience," I observed hastily.

"Oh, I was all right. Rather wet, but I did not mind that. I sail and fish a good deal, and water, fresh or salt,

This was an unlucky remark, for it led directly to the subject I was trying to avoid.

"So I should imagine," she answered. "And that reminds me that I owe you another debt of thanks for helping

mehelping us out of our difficulty in the boat. I am obliged to you for that also. Even though what you

I looked up at her quickly. She was biting her lips and there was a smile at the corners of her mouth. I could

not answer immediately for the life of me. I would have given something if I had not told Colton of Victor's

"Your father misrepresented my meaning, I'm afraid," I stammered. "I was angry when I sent that message. It

"Thank you. Father seemed inclined to agree with your estimate part of it, at least. He is very much

"You are quite distinctive, in your way," she said. "You may not be aware of it, but I have never known father

"No, you are not. From what I have learned about you, from him, I think you enjoy it. You must. It is great

She hesitated. "Well," she answered, more slowly, "to be perfectly frankI presume that is what you want

me to beI think Mother blames you somewhat. She is not well, Mr. Paine, and this Lane of yours is her pet

bugbear just now. Shelike the rest of us cannot understand why you will not sell, and, because you will

"I see. I'm not sure that I blame her. I presume she has blamed me for these outrageous disturbances in the

She hesitated again. "Why yes," she said, more slowly still; "a little, I think. She is not well, as I said, and she

may have thought you were, if not instigating them, at least aware of what was going on. But I am sure father

"Because, from what I have seen of you, you did not seem to me like that kind of a man. You kept your

temper that day in the boat, though you had a good reason for losing it. All this," with a gesture toward the

Lane, "the shouting and noise and petty insults, was so little and mean and common. I did not believe you

would permit it, if you knew. And, from what I have learned about you, I was sure you would not."

"From your friends. From that Mr. Taylor and Miss Dean and the others. They spoke of you so highly, and of

your mother and your care of her. They described you as a gentleman, and no gentleman would countenance

Her manner changed. Possibly she thought I was presuming on our chance acquaintance, or that she made a

mistake in admitting even a casual interest; I might consider that interest to be real, instead of merely

perfunctory. At any rate, I noticed a difference in her tone. It was as if she had suddenly withdrawn behind

"Oh," she said, carelessly, "I did not crossquestion, of course. Puzzles are always interesting, more or less.

And a puzzle which perplexed my father was certainly unique. So I was a trifle curious, that's all."

"I see," I said, curtly. "Well, I presume I should thank my friends for the testimonials to my character. And I

"Thank you. I told you I was walking by the bluff; that is true, but it isn't the whole truth. I was trying to

"Yes, I have heard a great deal about your mother, and nothing except the very best. I think I should like to

know her. Do you think she would consider me presuming and intrusive if I did call?"

"Please be frank about it, Mr. Paine. And please believe that my call would not be from idle curiosity. I

should like to know her. Of course, if this disagreement about the land makes a difference, if she feels

resentful toward us, I will not think of such a thing. Does she? Why do you smile? I am in earnest."

"I did not mean to smile, Miss Colton. The idea of Mother's feeling resentment toward any one seemed

"Oh, Mother has long ago given up trying to solve me. I am a greater puzzle to her than you seem to be to

everyone, Mr. Paine. I have spoken to my father about it and he is quite willing. His difference with you is

Some of the "business" had been oddly conducted, but I did not raise the point. I could not reason just then.

That this spoiled, citybred daughter of "Big Jim" Colton should wish to know my mother was beyond

She said good morning and we parted. I walked home, racking my brains to find the answer to this new

conundrum. It was a whim on her part, of course, inspired by something George or Nellie had told her. I did

not know whether to resent the whim or not, whether to be angry or indifferent. If she intended to inspect

Mother as a possible object of future charity I should be angry and the first call would be the last. But Mother

herself would settle all questions of charity; I knew that. And the girl had not spoken in a patronizing way.

She had declared that idle curiosity had no part in her wish. She seemed in earnest. What would Mother say

Lute was just coming through the gate as I approached it. He was in high good humor.

"I'm goin' up street," he declared. "Anything you want me to fetch you from the store, Ros?"

"Up street?" I repeated. "I thought you were slated to wash windows this forenoon. I heard Dorinda give you

"No," with a broad grin, "I ain't finished 'em. Fact is, I ain't begun 'em yet."

"Umhm. She knows. Anyhow, she knows I'm goin' somewheres. She told me to go herself."

"Don't ask ME. I was all ready to wash the windows; had the bucket pumped full and everything. But when I

come into the dinin'room she sung out to know what I was doin' with all that water on her clean floor. 'Why,

Dorindy!' I says, 'I'm agoin' to wash them windows same's you told me to.' 'No, you ain't,' says she. 'But

what will I do?' says I. 'I don't care,' says she. 'Clear out of here, that's all.' 'But where'll I clear out to?' I

wanted to know. 'I don't care!' she snaps again, savage as a settin' hen, 'so long's you clear out of my sight.' So

here I be. Don't ask me why she changed her mind: _I_ don't know. Nothin' you want to the store?"

"Well, I think this is a strange world and the strangest thing in it is a woman. You never can tell what they'll

"Philosophy or not, it's the livin' truth. And when you're as old as I be you'll know it."

I went in through the diningroom, steering clear of Dorinda, who scarcely looked up from her floor

"Mother," said I, entering the darkened bedroom, "I just met the Colton girl and what do you suppose she told

"That, of course. But she told me something else. She said she was coming to call on you. On YOU, Mother!"

I don't know what answer I expected. I flung the announcement like a bombshell and was ready for almost

"Did she?" observed Mother, placidly. "I am very glad. I have no doubt I shall like her."

"Well, by George!" I exclaimed, with emphasis. "Lute IS a philosopher, after all. I take off my hat to him."

I met Mabel Colton several times during the following week. Once, at the place where I had met her before,

in the grove by the edge of the bluff, and again walking up the Lane in company with her father. Once also on

the Lower Road, though that could scarcely be called a meeting, for I was afoot and she and her father and

Only at the meeting in the grove were words exchanged between us. She bowed pleasantly and commented

"I am trespassing again, you see," she said. "Taking advantage of your goodnature, Mr. Paine. This spot is

"Almost, but not quite," she said. "These pines shut off the inlet below, and all the little fishing boats. One of

"He was mistaken, if he said that. I am not clever enough to build a boat, Miss Colton. I bought the Comfort,

I don't know why I added the "secondhand." Probably because I had not yet freed my mind from the

bitternessyes, and envywhich the sight of this girl and her people always brought with it. It is

comparatively easy to be free from envy if one is what George Taylor termed a "neverwas"; for a "has been"

The boat's name was the only portion of my remark which attracted her attention.

"Is it? Why, I remember now. Miss Dean told me. I beg your pardon, Mr. Paine. It is a pretty name, at all

"I must have misunderstood Father. I was sure he said that boat building was your business."

"No. He saw me overhauling the engine, and perhaps that gave him the impression that I was a builder. I told

I think she was surprised. She glanced at me curiously and her lips opened as if to ask another question. She

did not ask it however, and, except for a casual remark or two about the view and the blueness of the water in

the bay, she said nothing more. I rather expected she would refer to her intention of calling on Mother, but

she did not mention the subject. I inferred that she had thought better of her whim.

On the other occasions when we met she merely bowed. "Big Jim" nodded carelessly. Mrs. Colton, from her

seat in the auto, nodded also, though her majestic bow could scarcely be termed a nod. It was more like the

acknowledgment, by a queen in her chariot, of the applauding citizen on the sidewalk. She saw me, and she

But when I inferred that her daughter had forgotten, or had decided not to make the call at our house, I

misjudged the young lady. I returned, one afternoon, from a cruise up and down the bay in the Comfort, to

find our small establishmentthe Rogers portion of it, at leastin a high state of excitement. Lute and

Dorinda were in the kitchen and before I reached the back door, which was open, I heard their voices in

"Why wouldn't I say it, Dorinda?" pleaded Lute. "You can't blame me none. There I was, with my sleeves

rolled up and just settin' in the chair, restin' my arms a jiffy and thinkin' which window I'd wash next, when

there come that knock at the door. Thinks I, 'It's Asa Peters' daughter's youngone peddlin' clams.' That's

"Found plenty of room when it got there, I cal'late," snapped Dorinda. "Must have felt lonesome."

"That's it! keep on pitchin' into me. I swan to man! sometimes I get so discouraged and wore out and

recklesshello! here's Ros. You ask him now! Ros, she's layin' into me because I didn't understand what"

"Roscoe," broke in his wife, "I never was more mortified in all my born days. He"

"Let me tell you all about it, Ros. I went to the doorthinkin' 'twas a peddler, you know; had this old suit on,

all sloshed up with soapsuds and water, and a wet rag in my hand; and there she stood, styled up like the

Queen of Sheby. Well, sir! I'll leave it to you if 'tain't enough to surprise anybody. HER! comin' HERE!"

"Hold on! you let me finish tellin' Roscoe. 'Good afternoon,' says she. 'Is Mrs. Paine in?' Said it just like that,

she did. I was so flustered up from the sight of her that I didn't sense it right off and I says, 'What ma'am?' 'Is

"Are you goin' to let me tell this or ain't you? 'In?' says I; hadn't sensed it yet, you see. 'Is Mrs. Paine to

home?' she says. Now your ma, Ros, ain't never been nowheres else BUT home sence land knows when, so I

supposed she must mean somebody else. 'Who?' says I, again. 'Mrs. Comfort Paine,' says she. She raised her

"If she'd guessed you was dumb she wouldn't have been fur off," commented Dorinda. I had not seen her so

"No, you didn't. You said, 'In where?' And she had all she could do to keep from laughin'. I see her face as I

got to the door, and it's a mercy I got there when I did. Land knows what you'd have said next!"

"YOU thought! I know what SHE must have thought. That she'd made a mistake and run afoul of an asylum

"Umph! I should have GOT feebleminded if I'd had any more of that kind of talk. What made her ask if a

sick woman like Comfort was 'in' and 'to home'? Couldn't be nowheres else, could she?"

"Oh, my soul and body! She was tryin' to ask if she might make a call on Comfort."

"Humph! Do tell! Well, I ain't tony, myself. Don't have no chance to be in this house. Nothin' but work, work,

work! tongue, tongue, tongue! for me around here. I'm disgusted, that's what I am."

I had listened to as much of this little domestic disagreement as I cared to hear.

"Umhm," Dorinda nodded emphatically. "She stayed in your ma's room 'most an hour."

"'Twas fiftythree minutes," declared Lute. "I timed her by the clock. "And she fetched a great, big bouquet.

I waited to hear no more, but went into Mother's room. The little bed chamber was fragrant with the perfume

of flowers. A cluster of big Jacqueminot roses drooped their velvety petaled heads over the sides of the blue

and white pitcher on the bureau. Mother loved flowers and I frequently brought her the old fashioned posies

from Dorinda's little garden or wild blossoms from the woods and fields. But roses such as these were beyond

my reach nowadays. They grew in greenhouses, not in the gardens of country people.

Mother did not move as I entered and I thought she was asleep. But as I bent over the roses she turned on the

"Well," I asked, after a moment, "what did she say? Did she condescend to pity her pauper neighbors?"

"Did she express horrified sympathy and offer to call your case to the attention of her cousin in charge of the

Poor Ward in the City General Hospital, like that woman from the Harniss hotel last summer?"

"Oh, well; I am a jealous beast, Mother; I admit it. But I have not been able to bring you flowers like that and

it galls me to think that others can. They don't deserve to have all the beautiful things in life, while the rest of

"But it isn't her fault that she has them, is it? And it was kind to share them with us."

"I suppose so. Well, what did she say to you? Dorinda says she was with you nearly an hour. What did you

"Do you think I should have accepted it, if she had? Roscoe, I have never seen you so prejudiced as you are

against our new neighbors. It doesn't seem like you, at all. And if her father and mother are like Miss Mabel,

"I did not have to try to like her. And I was a little prejudiced, too, at first. She was so wealthy, and an only

"No, not really. At first she seemed a trifle distant, and I thought her haughty; but, afterward, when her

strangeness and constraint had worn away, she was simple and unaffected and delightful. And she is very

"She told me a great deal about herself. She has been through Vassar and has traveled a great deal. This is the

first summer since her graduation which she has not spent abroad. She and I talked of Rome and Florence.

"Pardon me, Mother. Of course you didn't. Did she tell you why she called on uson you, I mean?"

"Yes, in a way. I imaginethough she did not say sothat you are responsible for that. She and Nellie Dean

seem to be well acquainted, almost friendly, which is odd, for I can scarcely think of two girls more different.

But she likes Nellie, that is evident, and Nellie and George have told her about you and me."

"I see. And so she was curious concerning the interesting invalid. Probably anything even mildly interesting

"Yes. Although I mentioned it first. It was plain that she could not understand your position in the matter,

Roscoe, and I explained it as well as I could. I told her that you felt the Lane was a necessity to the

townspeople, and that, under the circumstances, you could not sell. I told her how deeply you sympathized

"She said she thought she understood better now. I told her about you, Boy, and what a good son you had

been to me. How you had sacrificed your future and your career for my sake. Of course I could not go into

"I think it was. She told me of your helping her home through the storm, and of something else you had not

told me, Boy: of your bringing her and Mr. Carver off the flat in the boat that day. Why did you keep that a

"She thought it was. She laughed about it; said you handled the affair in a most businesslike and

unsentimental way; she never felt more like a bundle of drygoods in her life, but that that appeared to be

your manner of handling people. It was a somewhat startling manner, but very effective, she said. I don't

"You don't mean to say, Mother, that you glorified me to her for an hour?" I demanded.

"No, indeed. We talked of ever so many things. Of books, and pictures, and music. I'm afraid I was rather

wearisome. It seemed so good to have some oneexcept you, of course, dearto discuss such subjects

"She is coming again, she says," continued Mother. "She has some new books she is going to lend me. You

must read them to me. And aren't those roses wonderful? She picked them, herself, in their conservatory. I

I judged that the young lady must have gone away with the idea that I was a combination of longshore lout

and effeminate dilettante, with the financial resources of the former. She might as well have that idea as any

other, I supposed, but, in her eyes, I must be more of a freak than ever. I should take care to keep out of the

sight of those eyes as much as possible. But that the millionaire's daughter had made a hit on the occasion of

her first call was plain. Not only had Mother been favorably impressed, but even the practical and unromantic

Dorinda's shell was dented. She deigned to observe that the young lady seemed to have "consider'ble

commonsense, considerin' her bringin' up." This, from Dorinda, was high praise, and I wondered what the

"By time!" he said, when he and I were together, "that girl's a smart one. I'd give somethin' to have her kind

of smartness. Dorindy was terrible cranky all the time she was in your ma's room and I didn't know what

would happen when she come out. But the fust thing she done when she come out was to look around the

dinin' room and say, 'Oh! what a pleasant, homey place! And so clean! Why, it is perfectly spotless!' Land

sakes! the old lady thawed out like a cranberry bog in April. After that they talked about housekeepin' and

cookin' and such, sociable as could be. Dorindy's goin' to give her her receipt for doughnuts next time she

comes. And I bet that girl never cooked a doughnut in her life or ever will. If I could think of the right thing

to say, like that, 'twould save me more'n one earache. But I never do think of it till the next day, and then it's

"I bet you ten cents she don't. No, I've been reasonin' of it out, same as I gen'rally do, and I've got some

notions of my own. You don't cal'late her pa sent her so's to sort of soft soap around toward his gettin' the

That supposition had crossed my mind more than once. I was ashamed of it and now I denied it, indignantly.

"Well, I don't think so, myself. But if 'tain't that it's another reason. She may be interested in Comfort; I don't

"Never mind. I ain't said nothin'. I'm just waitin' to see, that's all. I have had some experience in this world, I

have. There's different times comin' for this family, you set that down in your logbook, Ros Paine."

"Look here, Lute; if you are hinting that Miss Colton or her people intend offering us charity"

"Who said anything about charity? No; if she had that idee in her head, her talk with your ma would drive it

out. 'Tain't charity, I ain't sayin' what 'tis. . . . I wonder how 'twould seem to be rich."

"So Dorindy says; but she nor you ain't offered no proof yet. All right, you wait and see. And say, Ros, don't

mention our talk to Dorindy. She's more'n extry down on me just now, and if I breathe that Mabel Colton's

name she hops right up in the air. How'd I know that askin' if a woman who's been sick in bed six year or

Mother would have discussed the Coltons with me frequently, but I avoided the subject as much as possible.

The promised books arrivedbrought over by Johnson, the butler, who viewed our humble quarters with

lofty disdainand I read one of them aloud to Mother, a chapter each evening. More flowers came also and

the darkened bedroom became a bower of beauty and perfume. If I had yielded to my own wishes I should

have returned both roses and books. It was better, as I saw it, that we and our wealthy neighbors had nothing

to do with each other. Real friendship was out of the question; the memory of Mrs. Colton's frigid bow and

her reference to me as a "person" proved that. Her daughter might think otherwise, or might think that she

thought so, but I knew better. However, I did not like to pain Mother by refusing offerings which, to her,

were expressions of sympathy and regard, so I had no protest and tried to enthuse over the gifts and loans.

After all, what did they amount to? One tearose bred from Dorinda's carefully tended bush, or one gushful

story book selected by Almena Doane from the new additions to the town library and sent because she

thought "Mrs. Comfort might find it sort of soothin' and distractin'," meant more real unselfish thought and

kindly feeling than all the conservatory exotics and new novels which the rich girl's whim supplied from her

Behind all this, I think, and confirming my feeling, was the fact that Miss Colton did not repeat her call. A

week or more passed and she did not come. I caught glimpses of her occasionally in the auto, or at the

postoffice, but I took care that she should not see me. I did not wish to be seen, though precisely why I

could not have explained even to myself. The memory of that night in the rain, and of our meetings in the

grove, troubled me because I could not keep them from my mind. They kept recurring, no matter what I did

or where I went. No, I did not want to meet her again. Somehow, the sight and memory of her made me more

dissatisfied and discontented than ever. I found myself moodily wishing for things beyond my reach, longing

to be something more than I wasmore than the nobody which I knew I must always be. I remembered my

feelings on the morning of the day when I first saw her. Now they seemed almost like premonitions.

I kept away; not only from her, but from George Taylor and Captain Dean and the townspeople. I went to the

village scarcely at all. Sim Eldredge, who had evidently received orders from headquarters to drop the Lane

"agency," troubled me no more, merely glowering reproachfully when we met; and Alvin Baker, whose note

had been renewed, although he hailed me with effusive cordiality, did not press his society upon me, having

no axe to grind at present. Zeb Kendrick was using the Lane again, but he took care to bring no more "billiard

roomers" as passengers. I had as yet heard nothing from my quarrel with Tim Hallet.

I spent a good deal of my time in the Comfort, or wandering about the shore and in the woods. One warm,

cloudy morning the notion seized me to go up to the ponds and try for black bass. There are bass in some of

the larger pondslakes they would be called anywhere else except on Cape Codand, if one is lucky, and

the weather is right, and the bait tempting, they may be caught. This particular morning promised to furnish

the proper brand of weather, and a short excursion on the flats provided a supply of shrimps and minnows for

bait. Dorinda, who happened to be in good humor, put up a lunch for me and, at seven o'clock, with my rod

and landing net in their cases, strapped, with my fishing boots and coffee pot, to my back, and my bait pail in

one hand and lunch basket in the other, I started on my tramp. It was a long four miles to Seabury's Pond, my

destination, and Lute, to whom, like most country people, the idea of a fourmile walk was sheer lunacy,

urged my harnessing the horse and driving there. But I knew the overgrown wood roads and the difficulty of

piloting a vehicle through them, and, moreover, I really preferred to go afoot. So I marched off and left him

Very few summer peopleand only summer people or irresponsible persons like myself waste time in

freshwater fishing on the Cape knew where Seabury's Pond was. It lay far from macadam roads and

automobile thoroughfares and its sandy shores were bordered with verdureclad hills shutting it in like the

sides of a bowl. To reach it from Denboro one left the Bayport road at "Beriah Holt's place," followed

Beriah's cow path to the pasture, plunged into the oak and birch grove at the southern edge of that pasture,

emerged on a grassgrown and bushencumbered track which had once been the way to some early settler's

home, and had been forsaken for years, and followed that track, in all its windings, until he saw the gleam of

water between the upper fringe of brush and the lower limbs of the trees. Then he left the track and clambered

I am a good walker, but I was tired long before I reached the slope. The bait pail, which I refilled with fresh

water at Beriah's pump, grew heavier as I went on, and I began to think Lute knew what he was talking about

when he declared me to be "plumb crazy, hoofin' it four mile loaded down with all that dunnage." However,

when the long "hoof" was over, and I sat down in a patch of "hogcranberry" vines for a smoke, with the

pond before me, I was measurably happy. This was the sort of thing I liked. Here there were no Shore Lane

After my smoke was finished and I had rested, I carried my "dunnage" around to the point where I intended

to begin my fishing, put the lunch basket in a shady place beneath the bushes, and the bait pail in the water

At first the fishing was rather poor. The pond was full of perch and they were troublesome. By and by,

however, I hooked a four pound pickerel and he stirred my lagging ambition. I waded on, casting and

playing beyond the lily pads and sedge. At last I got my first bass, a small one, and had scarcely landed him

than a big fellow struck, fought, rose and broke away. That was spur sufficient. All the forenoon I waded

about the shores of that pond. When at halfpast eleven the sun came out and I knew my sport was over, for

the time at least, I had four basstwo of them fine onesand two, pickerel. Then I remembered my appetite

I went back to the point and inspected the contents of the basket. Sandwiches, cold chicken, eggs, doughnuts

and apple puffs. They looked good to me. Also there were pepper and salt in one paper, sugar in another,

coffee in a third, and milk in a bottle. I collected some dry chips and branches and prepared to kindle a fire.

As I bent over the heap of sticks and chips I heard the sound of horses' hoofs in the woods near by.

I was surprised and annoyed. The principal charm of Seabury Pond was that so few people visited it. Also

fewer still knew how good the fishing was there. I was not more than ordinarily selfish, but I did not care to

have the place overrun with excursionists from the city, who had no scruples as to number and size of fish

caught and would ruin the sport as they had ruined it at other and better known ponds. The passerby, whoever

he wasa native probably would, if he saw me, ask questions concerning my luck, and be almost sure to

tell every one he met. I left my fire unkindled, stepped back to the shade of the bushes and waited in silence,

hoping the driver would go on without stopping. There was no real road on this side of the pond, but there

was an abandoned wood track, like that by which I had come. The horse was approaching along the track; the

The odd part of it was that I heard no rattle of wheels. It was almost as if the person was on horseback. This

seemed impossible, because no one in Denboro or Bayportno one I could think of, at leastowned or rode

a saddle horse. Yet the hoof beats grew louder and there was no squeak, or jolt, or rattle to bear them

company. They came to a point in the woods directly opposite where I sat in the shade of the bushes and

there they stopped. Then they recommenced and the crackle of branches was louder than ever. The rider,

A moment more and the tall swamphuckleberry bushes at the edge of the sandy beach parted and between

them stepped gingerly a clean cut, handsome brown horse, which threw up its head at the sight of the water

and then trotted lightly toward it. The rider, who sat so easily in the saddle, was a girl. And the girl was

She did not notice me at first, but gave her attention to the horse. The animal waded into the water to its

knees and, in obedience to a pull on the reins, stopped, bent its head, and began to drink. Then the rider

turned in her seat, looked about her, saw the heap of wood for the fire, the open lunch basket, the rods and

I had stepped from the bushes when she first appeared and was standing motionless, staring, I imagine, like

what Dorinda sometimes called her husbanda "born gump." There was Fate in this! no doubt about it. The

further I went to avoid this girl, and the more outlandish and forsaken the spot to which I fled, the greater the

certainty of our meeting. A feeling of helplessness came over me, as if I were in the clutch of destiny and no

For a moment she looked as if she might be thinking the same thing. She started when she saw me and her

She was the first to recover from the surprise. Her expression changed. The look of alarm caused by my

She drew a breath of relief. "It IS you!" she declared. "I was beginning to believe in hallucinations. How you

"That is exactly what I was going to ask you," I replied. "I am here for a fishing excursion. But what brought

She smiled and patted the horse's shoulder. "Don here brought me," she answered. "He saw the water and I

knew he was thirsty, so I came straight down the bank. But I didn't expect to find any one here. I haven't seen

a horse or a human being for an hour. What a pretty little lake this is. What is its name?"

"I didn't. Don found it. He and I came for a gallop in the woods and I let him choose his own paths. I have

been in his charge all the morning. I haven't the least idea where we are. There, Don! you have had enough

"It is great fun to be lost," she observed. "I didn't suppose any one could be lost in Denboro."

"Dear me!" she said. "And it is after twelve already. I am perfectly sure I can't find the way back in time for

"No, indeed! Don and I will get home safely. This isn't the first time we have been lost together, though not

on Cape Cod. Of course I shouldn't think of taking you from your fishing. Have you had good luck?"

She swung lightly down from the saddle and, taking her horse by the bridle, led him toward the spot where

my catch lay, covered with leaves and wet grass. I removed the covering and she bent over the fish.

"Oh, splendid!" she exclaimed, with enthusiasm. "That big one must be a threepounder. I envy you. Bass

"No. I use a fly in the spring and fall, but seldom in June or July, here. Those were taken with live

"Yes, indeed. Whoa, Don! steady! Yes, I fish a good deal in September, when we are at our lodge in the

Adirondacks. Trout there, principally. But I have caught bass in Maine. I thought I must give it up this year. I

"There are, a few. The people about here pay no attention to them. They scorn such small fry. Cod and

"I suppose so. But that is all the better for you, isn't it? Were you fishing when I interrupted you?"

"Coffee! You are a luxurious picnicer, Mr. Paine. Hot coffee on a fishing trip! and without a guide. And you

are unfeeling, besides, for you remind me that I am very hungry. I must go at once. How far am I from home?

"Four and a half, or more, by road. And the roads are like those you have been traveling this morning. I doubt

if you could find the way, even with your horse's help. I must insist upon going with you as far as the main

Her answer was a little laugh. She put her foot in the stirrup and vaulted to the saddle.

"Your insisting is useless, you see," she said. "You are on foot and I have the advantage. No, Don and I will

I shrugged my shoulders. "Go back along the road you came," I said, "until you reach the second, no, the

third, path to the right. Follow that to the second on the left. Then follow that for two hundred yards or so

untilwell, until you reach a clump of bushes, high bushes. Behind these is another path, a blind one, and

you must take care to pick the right clump, because there is another one with a path behind it and that path

joins the road to Harniss. If you should take the Harniss road you would go miles out of your way. Take the

She interrupted me. "Stop! stop!" she exclaimed; "please don't. I am absolutely bewildered already. I had no

"And then the bushes and the choice of blind paths. Don, I see plainly that you and I must trust to Providence.

Well, it is fortunate that the family are accustomed to my ways. They won't be alarmed, no matter how late I

"Miss Colton, I am not going to allow you to go alone. Of course I am not. I can set you on the right road and

get back here in plenty of time for fishing. The fish are not hungry in the middle of the day."

She spoke to the horse and he began to move. I took my courage between my teeth, ran after the animal and

I merely smiled. Her chin lifted and her brows drew together. I recognized that look; I had seen it before, on

that afternoon when I announced my intention of carrying her from the dingy to the skiff.

"Will you be good enough to let go of my rein?" she asked. Every word was a sort of verbal icicle. I felt the

"No," I said, serenely as I could. For a minuteI suppose it was not longer than that, it seemed an hour to

mewe remained as we were. Then her lips began to curl upward at the corners, and, to my surprise, she

"Really, Mr. Paine," she said, "you are the most impossible person I ever met. Do you always order people

about this way? I feel as if I were about five years old and you were my nurse. Are we to stand here the rest

"But I can't. I'm not going to spoil your picnic. I know you want your lunch. You must. Or, if you don't, I

"If you go alone, there are nine chances in ten that you will not get home in time for dinner, to say nothing of

She looked at me oddly, I thought, and started to speak. Whatever it was she was going to say she evidently

Then I had a new idea. Whether or not it was her look which inspired it I do not know. I think it must have

"Miss Colton," I said, hesitatingly, "if you really are notif you are sure your people will not worry about

youII should be glad to share my lunch with you. Then we could go home together afterward."

"Areare you sure there is enough for two?" she asked, in a curiously choked tone.

By way of answer I led the horse to the bushes, drew the lunch basket from the shade, and threw back the

cover. Dorinda's picnic lunches were triumphs and she had never put up a more tempting one.

"Butbut I couldn't think of . . . Are you sure I won't be . . . Thank you. Yes, I'll stay."

Before I could offer my hand to help her from the saddle she sprang to the ground. Her eyes were sparkling.

"Mr. Paine," she said, in a burst of confidence, "it is shameless to tell you so, I know, but I was dreadfully

"And now," continued Miss Colton, after an interval during which, I presume, she had been waiting for some

reply to her frank declaration concerning mind and appetite, "what must I do to help? Shall I unpack the

I was struggling, as we say in Denboro, to get the ship under control. I had been taken aback so suddenly that

I had lost steerage way. My slight experience with the vagaries of the feminine mind had not prepared me for

the lightning changes of this kind. Not two minutes before she had, if one might judge by her look and tone,

been deeply offended, almost insulted, because I refused to permit her wandering off alone into the woods.

My invitation to lunch had been given on the spur of the moment and with no idea that it would be accepted.

And she not only accepted, but had expected me to invite her, had been fearful that I might not do so. She

"Shall I unpack the basket?" she repeated. She was looking at me intently and the toe of her riding boot was

"Oh, no, no!" I exclaimed, hastily. "Of course not. I am delighted. But you need not trouble to help. Just let

I led Don over to the little green belt of meadow between the trees and the sand of the beach, unbuckled the

reins and made him fast to a stout birch. He bent his head and began to pull big mouthfuls of the rich grass.

When I returned to my camping ground I found the basket unpacked and the young lady arranging the

She did not look up. "Don't bother the table maid," she observed, briskly. "That fire is not kindled yet."

I lit the fire and, going over to the bushes, selected two of the fish, a bass and a pickerel. I carried them down

to the shore of the pond and began cleaning them, using my jacknife and a flat stone. I was nearing the end of

"Why are you doing that?" she asked. "You are not going to cook themnoware you?"

"I don't need it. You don't appreciate the conveniences of this hotel, Miss Colton. There! now we're ready."

I rose, washed my hands in the pond, and picked up two other flat stones, large ones, which I had previously

put aside. These I carried to the fire and, raking aside the burning logs with a stick, laid the stones in a bed of

"Those are our frying pans," I informed her. "When they are hot enough they will cook the fish. At least, I

But she waved me aside. "The coffee is my affair," she said. "I insist upon making the coffee. Oh, you need

not look at me like that. I am not altogether useless. I studied Domestic Sciencea littlein my prep school

"Mr. Paine, I am not on horseback now and you can't hold my bridle as you did Don's. If you will fill the

coffee pot and put it on to boil. Thank you. I am glad to see that even you obey orders, sometimes."

I had cooked fish in outofdoor fashion often before, but I am quite sure I never took such pains as I did

with these. They were not culinary triumphs, even at that, but my guest was kind enough to pronounce them

delicious. The lunch basket contained two plates, but only one knife and fork. These I insisted upon her using

and I got on very well with sharpened sticks and a spoon. The coffee waswell, it had one qualification,

We conversed but little during the meal. The young lady said she was too hungry to talk and I was so

confounded with the strangeness of the whole affair that I was glad to be silent. Sitting opposite me, eating

Dorinda's doughnuts and apple puffs and the fish that I_I_ had cooked, was "Big Jim" Colton's daughter,

the automobile girl, the heiress, the "incarnation of snobbery," the young lady whose father I had bidden go to

the devil and to whom, in company with the rest of the family, I had many times mentally extended the same

invitation. And now we were picnicing together as if we were friends of long standing. Why, Nellie Dean

could not appear more unpretentious and unconscious of social differences than this girl today! What would

her parents say if they saw us like this? What would Captain Jed, and the rest of those in rebellion against the

Emperor of New York, say? That I was a traitor, hand and glove with the enemy. Well, I was not; and I did

"Mr. Paine," she observed, suddenly, "you will excuse my mentioning it, but you are distinctly not

entertaining. You have not spoken a word for five minutes. And you are not attending to my needs. The apple

"So I imagined. I forgive you; this lunch would tempt me to forgive greater sins than yours. Did that

"Yes. She is so sincere and goodhearted. And so odd and bright and funny. I could listen to her for hours."

"Humph! Well, if you were a member of her household you would have that privilege often. I doubt if her

"I think I never tasted anything so good as this lunch," she observed. "And I'm quite sure I never ate so much

at one sitting. I am going to help you clear away, but please don't ask me to do it just now. Have you

"Now we can talk, can't we?" she said. "I want you to tell me about your mother. How is she?"

"She is a dear. I had heard so many nice things about her and I was not disappointed. I intended to make only

"Did she? I am so glad. I really am. I went to your house with a good deal of misgiving, Mr. Paine. I feared

"I know. But, under the circumstancesFather's disagreement with considering all thethe Oh, what

"Thank you," she said. "That is a quotation, but it was clever of you to think of it. Yes, considering the late

unpleasantness, I was afraid my visit might be misunderstood. I was fearful that your mother

orsomeonemight think I came there with an ulterior motive, something connected with that troublesome

She asked the question quickly and with intense seriousness. I remembered Lute's hint and my own secret

"I came because from what I had heard of your mother I was sure she must be a wonderful woman. I wanted

to meet her. And she IS wonderful; and so patient and sweet and good. I fell in love with her. Everyone must

She did not speak. Her silence hurt. I felt that I knew what she was thinking and I determined to make her say

My stubborn persistence was a mistake. Again, as at our meeting in the grove, I had gone too far. Her answer

"Indeed?" she said, coldly. "It is barely possible that I did not think about it at all. . . . Now, Mr. Paine, if you

The clearing, most of it, was done silently. I washed the plates, the coffee pot and other things, in the pond

and she packed them in the basket. As I returned with the knife and forks I found her looking at the coffee pot

"What is the matter?" I asked, sulkily. I was provoked with myself for forgetting who and what I was, and

"Why, yes," she answered, "surprisingly so. Did they teach Domestic Science at your college, too?"

I started. "MY college!" I repeated. "How did you know I had been at college? Did Mother tell you?"

"Well, what if she did? However, she did not. But you have told me now. Harvard, was it? or Yale?"

I walked over and began to unjoint my rod. I was a fool to be trapped like this. No one in Denboro except

Mother and George Taylor knew of my brief college career, and now I had, practically, told this girl of it. She

mightif she were sufficiently interested to remember, which was fortunately not probabletell her father

and he might ask other questions concerning my history. Where would those questions lead?

I was angrily tugging at the rod when I heard her step behind me. I did not turn.

I said it like a sullen schoolboy. There was another moment of silence. Then I heard her move away. I looked

over my shoulder. She was walking toward the meadow where Don, the horse, was picketed. There was

For a moment I fought with my pride and injured selfrespect. Then I hurried after her.

"Of course you won't explain," she declared. "I had no right to ask you about your college. But I couldn't help

guessing. I told you that I liked puzzles. We'll say no more about it. I have enjoyed this picnic and I won't

"Because I know you want to go home and I am going with you to show you the way."

"But I don't have to go yet, do I? It is not late. And I thought perhaps you would let me see you catch another

Once more she had me at a disadvantage. I had no desire for more fishing, and I was fearful of further

questions, but what could I do? And it was not latebut a little past two o'clock.

So I rigged the rod again and led the way down the shore to the spot where the sedge extended out into the

pond, with the lily pads beyond it. She walked beside me. Then she seated herself on a fallen tree and I baited

the hook with a lively minnow and cast. For some time I got not even a nibble. As I waited she and I talked.

"I am beginning to like it very much. At first I thought it very dull, but now I am getting acquainted."

"There are few cottagers and summer people here. But in Harniss there is a large colony. Very nice people, I

"Yes, I have met some of them. But it was not the summer people I meant. I am beginning to know the

townspeople and to like some of them. I met that delightful old Captain Warren the other day."

"Indeed he is. And I had an interview with another captain, Miss Dean's father, yesterday. We had an

"It was. Oh, we were very fierce at firstat least he was, and I fought for my side as hard as I could. He said

Father was a selfish pig for wanting to close the Lane, and I said it was because of its use by the pigs that he

"Oh, we agreed to disagree. I respect Captain Dean for his fight; but Father will win, of course. He always

"Why not? Oh, I actually forgot I was talking to the head and front of the opposition. So you think he will not

"I am sure of it. He cannot close that Lane until I sell it, and I shall not sell."

"It would be odd if he should not, after all," she said. "He prides himself on having his own way. It would be

strange if he should be beaten down here, after winning so often in New York. Your mother told me

something of your feeling in the matter, Mr. Paine. Father has offered you a good price for the land, hasn't

"Yes. He does not count money when he has set his heart upon anything. And you refused?"

"But Nellie Dean says the town also wished to buy and you refused its offer, too."

"You don't seem to care for money, either, Mr. Paine. Are all Cape Cod people so unmercenary? Or is it that

you all have money enough. . . Pardon me. That was impolite. I spoke without thinking."

"But I do mind. And I am sorry I said it. And I should like to understand. I see why the townspeople do not

want the Lane closed. But you have not lived here always. Only a few years, so Miss Dean says. She said,

too, that that Mr. Taylor, the cashier, was almost the only intimate friend you have made since you came.

Others would like to be friendly, but you will not permit them to be. And, yet for these people, mere

"Not altogether for them. I can't explain my feeling exactly. I know only that to sell them out and make

"I don't know. Unless it was because to refuse your father's offer and accept a lower one seemed a mean trick,

too. And I won't be bullied into selling to anyone. I guess that is it, as much as anything."

"I don't know why I have preached this sermon to you, Miss Colton. your sympathies in the fight are with

"Not altogether. They are with you, just at present. If you had soldif you had given in to Father, feeling as

"As it is?" I asked eagerlytoo eagerly. I should have done better to pretend indifference.

"As it is," she answered, lightly, "I respect you as I would any sincere fighter for a losing cause. And I shall

probably feel some sympathy for you after the cause is lost. Excuse my breaking in on your sermon, provided

I had, very much of a bite. The minnow on my hook had been forgotten and allowed to sink to the bottom,

and a big pout had swallowed it, along with the hook and a section of line. I dragged the creature out of the

water and performed a surgical operation, resulting in the recovery of my tackle.

"There!" I exclaimed, in disgust. "I think I have had enough fishing for one day. Suppose we call it off.

It did not look old to my countrified eyes, but I protested no more. There was a rock a little below where we

then were, one of the typical glacial boulders of the Capelying just at the edge of the water and projecting

She did, and did it well. Moreover, the line had scarcely straightened out in the water when it was savagely

jerked, the pole bent into a halfcircle, and out of the foaming eddy beneath its tip leaped the biggest bass I

For nearly fifteen minutes she fought that fish, in and out among the pads, keeping the line tight, handling

him at least as well as I could have done. I ran for the landing net and, as she brought her captive up beside

It took her several more minutes to do it, and she was pretty well splashed, when at last, with the heavy net

dragging from one hand and the rod in the other, she sprang down from the rock. Together we bent over the

"Poor thing," she mused. "I am almost sorry he did not get away. He IS a beauty, isn't he! Now I am ready to

That journey home was a strange experience to me. She rode Don and bore the lunch basket and the net

before her on the saddle. I walked alongside, carrying the rod, boots, and the fish in the otherwise empty bait

pail. The sunshine, streaming through the leaves of the arching boughs overhead, dappled the narrow,

overgrown paths with shifting blotches of light and shadow. Around us was the deep, living green of the

woods, the songs of birds, the chatter of red squirrels, and the scent of wild honeysuckle. And as we moved

onward we talkedthat is, she did most of the talking and I listened. Yet I must have talked more than I

knew, because I remember expressing opinions concerning books and operas and pictures, subjects I had not

discussed for years except occasionally with Mother, and then only because she was still interested in them. I

seemed, somehow, to have become a different, a younger man, under the influence of these few hours with

the girl I had professed to hate so cordially. Our companionshipperfectly meaningless as it was, the mere

caprice of an idle day on her parthad rejuvenated me. During that homeward walk I forgot myself entirely,

forgot that I was Ros Paine, the country loafer; forgot, too, that she was the only child of the city millionaire,

that we had, or could have, nothing in common. She, also, seemed to forget, and we chatted together as

Yet it may be that her part in the conversation was not altogether without a purpose. She led me to speak of

Denboro and its people, of how they lived, and of the old days of sailing ships and deep sea skippers. George

Taylor's name was mentioned and I praised him highly, telling of his rise from poor boy to successful man, as

"He manages that bank well," I declared. "Everyone says so. And, from what I have seen of his management,

I stopped short. My tongue was running away with me. She did not ask the question which I dreaded and

"I have been trying to understand you, Mr. Paine. Trying to get the answer to the puzzle. In one way I think I

have it. I understand your attitude in the Lane affair and I think I know why you came to Denboro and are

"I think I do. You believe that your mother needs you and you will not leave her. That is your reason for

She spoke to the horse and we moved on again. I waited for her to continue, but she was silent.

"How? What is the other way! The way in which you cannot understand me?" I asked.

"I cannot understand how a man such as you seem to be, young, educated, and with life before him, can be

content to do as you do, spend your time in fishing, or sailing, or shooting. To have no ambition at all. My

father was a poor country boy, like your friend, Mr. Taylor, but he worked night and day until he became

what he is now. And even now he works, and works hard. Oh, I am proud of him! Not because he is what he

is, but because he has done it all himself. If I were a man I would have some purpose in life; I would do

SOMETHING worth while if it were only to sell fish from a cart, like that old fellow with the queer

I did not answer. She had said all that was necessary, and more. It was quite enough for me.

"There!" she observed, after a moment. "You asked me to tell you and I did. If you never speak to me again it

will be exactly what I deserve. But I thought it and so I said it. Expressing my thoughts is one of my bad

We had come to the edge of the grove bordering Beriah Holt's pasture. The grove was on the west side of a

little hill. Before us the pasture sloped away to Beriah's house and barn, with the road beyond it. And beyond

that, in the distance, were the steeples and roofs of Denboro. Among them the gables and tower of the Colton

She turned in the saddle. "I presume I may leave you now, Mr. Paine," she said. "Even you must admit that

the rest of the way is plain sailing. Thank you for your hospitality and for your services as guide. I will send

"You are quite welcome, I'm sure. Thank you for your frank opinion of myworthlessness. It was kind of

"Yes. And it was true enough, probably. Doubtless I shall derive great benefit from yourwords of

Her patience, evidently, was exhausted. She turned away. "Oh, that," she said, indifferently, "is your affair. I

told you what I believed to be the truth, that was all. What you do is not likely to be of vast importance to me,

Don cantered down the slope. I watched him and his rider disappear beyond the trees in the distance. Then I

picked up my pail and other burdens and followed in their wake. The sun was behind a cloud. It had been a

strange day with a miserable ending. I was furiously angry with her, but I was more angry with myself. For

I strode on, head down, through the village. People spoke to me, asking what luck I had had and where I had

been, but I scarcely noticed them. As I reached the Corners and was passing the bank someone called my

"Humph! You ain't exactly what a fellow'd call talkative this afternoon, seems to me. Anything wrong?"

"Well, so am I, but I ain't had your fun getting that way. Small and I have been at it night and day getting

things in shape so he could leave. He's gone. Went this noon. And that ain't the worst of it; I haven't got

anybody yet to take his place. I'll have to be cashier and bookkeeper too for a spell. There's applicants

enough; but they don't suit. Guess likely you'll have to help me out, after all, Ros. The job is yours if you say

But the joke did not seem funny to me, just then. I walked on for some distance without a word. Then I asked

"Expected? Why, plain bank bookkeepingnot much else at first. Yet there's a good chance for a likely

fellow to be considerable more, in time. I need help in my part of the work. That's why I haven't hired any of

the dozen or so who are after the place. What makes you ask? You don't know of a good man for me, do you,

"See here!" he cried, "I'm lost in the fog, I guess likely. What do you mean by that? Is it time to laughor

"It may be; I don't know. But I take the bookkeeper's position in your bank. Now, goodby. Don't talk to me.

"Ros," he said, "I ain't going to say but just one thing. If you meant what you said I'm the most tickled man

"I know it. I haven't asked because I don't care. I'll be on hand in the morning."

I left him standing there, and hurried down the Lower Road. As I had said to him, I did not feel like talking. I

did not want even to see any one. I wanted to be let alone. But it was fated that I should not be, not yet. Sim

Eldredge was waiting for me around the corner. He stepped out from behind the fence where he had been

"Ros!" he whispered. "Ros Paine! Wait. It's me, Sim. I want to ask you somethin'. Wan't that George Taylor

"Say, Ros, you and me ain't pulled that Colton trade off, but it ain't my fault. You ain't got no hard feelin's

against me, I know. And I want you to do a little mite of favor for me. Will you?"

"It ain'tit ain't. It's about that bookkeepin' job in the bank, Henry Small's place, the one he's just quit. I've

got a third cousin, name of Josiah Badger, over to South Harniss. He's a smart young chap, and an A1

accountant at figgers. He's been keepin' books down at the fish wharfsee? Now, he'd like that job and, bein'

as you and George are so thick, I cal'lated maybe you'd sort of use your influence along of George, andand

get it for him. There ain't nothin' in it for methat is, nothin' much. But I feel friendly toward Josiah and you

"No, I can't. I don't know your cousin, and besideswell, you are too late. The place is filled."

"Filled?" he exclaimed. "Why, no, 'tain't! If 'twas I'd have known it, wouldn't I? Who'd you hear had got it?

I hesitated. Before noon of the next day every soul in Denboro would have heard the news. Eldredge might as

"You?" Sim actually forgot to whisper; he shouted the word. "YOU! Ha! ha! ha! Ros, quit your foolin'."

"But Oh, my soul! You! Aw, I know better! Say, Ros, don't let's waste time like this. Fun's all right, but . . .

My heavens to Betsy! YOU work for a livin'! If I believed that I'd believe anything. Tell me, now. Who has

I answered him. "Shut up!" I said, fiercely. Then I vaulted the fence and set out for home across lots.

I heard the next day that Sim went back to the postoffice and informed the gathering there that Ros Paine

"He was tight as a biled owl," declared Sim; "and uglydon't talk! Wanted to fight me because I wouldn't

believe he was goin' to work. Him! What in the everlastin' would HE want to work for? My heavens to

I think Taylor was almost as surprised as Eldredge had been, when, at halfpast eight the following morning,

I appeared at the bank. He was already at his desk and, when he looked up and saw me, he whistled.

"Whew!" he exclaimed. "So. I didn't dream it, after all. You're here, ain't you."

"Not me. It ain't likely. But, Ros, Isit down a minute and let's talk. What are you doing this for?"

It was a question I had been asking myself at intervals during a restless night. Now I gave the only truthful

"No. And I don't seem to care. Suppose we don't talk about it. I am here, and I am ready to begin work. That's

"No, I haven't. But money isn't my reason. I haven't any reason. Now show me the books, will you?"

"I haven't told her yet. Time enough for that when I know that I really mean it and you know that I am

competent to fill the position. George, if you keep on crossexamining me I am likely to quit before I begin. I

don't know why I am doing this, but just now I think I am going to do it if I can. However, I am not sure. So

"Humph! What did you catch up at that pond yesterday? I never saw a day's fishing make such a difference in

a man in my life. . . . All right, Ros. All right. I won't pester you. Too glad to have you here for that. Now

"Before we speak of that there is one more point. How about your directors? Dean and the rest? Do they

"Sure thing! They put the whole affair in my hands. They'll be satisfied. And as for Cap'n Jedwhy, he was

"Yup. In a way, he did. You may not know it, Ros, but you've made a good deal of a hit with the old man. He

ain't been used to having anybody stand up to him as you have. As a general thing Denboro jumps when he

snaps the whip. You didn't, and he couldn't understand why. He is the kind that respects anything they can't

He sighed and, for a moment, seemed to forget me altogether. I reminded him by another question.

"But why should the captain think of me for this place?" I asked. "Why should he dream that I would take it?

"I don't know as he did dream it. But he and I were speaking of you and he said he'd like to do something to

show you what the town thought of your holding out against Colton. That tickled him down to the keel. I said

you'd be a firstclass helper to me in this bank, that I heard you knew something about banking"

"It's all right. I only mentioned that I heard rumors that you were in a city bank somewhere at one time. He

didn't ask any more and I shouldn't have told him if he had. But the idea pleased him, I could see that. 'Why

don't you try to get him?' says he. 'Maybe the days of miracles ain't past. Perhaps even he'd condescend to

"Well, I told him about it last night, when I was up to see Nellie, and he was pleased as Punch. Surprised, of

course, but pleased. He's practically the whole board, as far as settling things is concerned, so it is all right.

I imagined that I understood what Captain Jed's "friendship" meant. My accepting the bank position was one

more bond binding me to his side in the Shore Lane battle. And, so long as I was under Taylor's eye and his

George and I discussed the question of salary, if his offer and my prompt acceptance might be called a

discussion. The pay was not large to begin with, but it was more than I had a right to expect. And I was

perfectly honest when I said that money was not the consideration which led me to make the sudden change

in my habit of life. I was sick of idleness; I had longed for something to occupy my life and time; I might as

well be doing this as anything; Taylor's offer had appealed to me when he first made it; these were the

excuses I evolved for my own satisfaction and I tried to believe them real. But one reason I would not admit,

even in my thoughts, as a possibility. It was not that girl, or anything she had said, which influenced me. No!

Sam Wheeler, the young fellow who acted as assistant bookkeeper and messenger, came in, and Taylor, after

showing me the books and giving me a few hints as to what my duties would be, turned me over to him for

further instruction. I found I needed but little. The pages, with their rows of figures, seemed like old friends. I

almost enjoyed poring over them. Was it possible that I was going to like this new venture of mine?

Before noon I was fairly certain of it. The work in a country bank is different from that in the large city

institutions, in that it is by no means as specialized. I found that, later on, I should be expected to combine the

work of teller with that of bookkeeper. And this, too, seemed natural. I worked as steadily as I could,

The interruptions, however, were numerous and annoying; some of them, too, were amusing. Depositors

came, saw me behind the bars of the window, and, after expressing their astonishment, demanded to know

what I was doing there. If I had answered all the questions put to me by the curious Denboroites I should

have found time for little else. But Taylor helped me by shooing the curious ones away. "Don't bother the

new hand," he said. "If you want to know particulars ask me. Anything I don't tell you you can read in next

Captain Elisha Warren came in and was as surprised as the rest. After an interview with the cashier he

returned to my window and requested me to open up. When I did so he reached in a big hand and seized

"Shake, Ros," he said, heartily. "I'm glad for the bank and I'm gladder still for you. Come hard at fust, does

"Fust day or two out of port is always the toughest. You'll get your sea legs on pretty soon. Then you'll be

"I know you will. There's nothin' so tiresome as doin' nothin'. I know, because that's been my job for quite a

His idea of a "loaf" was rising at six and weeding his garden, superintending the labor on his cranberry

swamps or about his barns and grounds, attending bank and Selectmen's meetings, and generally keeping

"I tell Abbie, my housekeeper," he continued, "that if 'twan't for my age I believe I'd go to sea again just to

keep from fallin' apart with dry rot. I asked her if she'd noticed how my timbers creaked, and she said I didn't

keep still long enough for her to notice anything. Ho! ho! Nothin' makes her more provoked than for me to

mention gettin' old or goin' to sea. All the same, I envy you your youth, Ros. You've got your life afore you,

and I'm glad to see that you're goin' to make somethin' of it. I always said you'd wake up if somebody give

"Better mind my own business, hadn't I," he observed. "All right, I will. No offense meant, you understand.

But, you see, I've never believed that work was the cuss of mankind, like some folks, and no matter how

much money a young feller's got I think he's better off doin' somethin'. That's the gospel accordin' to Elisha.

Well, good luck and a pleasant v'yage. See you again soon. Say," turning back, "keep an eye on George, will

you? Folks in love are l'ble to be absentminded, they tell me, and I should not want him to be absent with

Taylor, who was standing near, laughed and walked away. A moment later I saw him looking out of the

window with the same strange expression on his face which I had noticed several times before when his

approaching marriage was hinted at. Something was troubling him, that was plain. He loved Nellie devotedly,

Sim Eldredge was one of the first visitors to the bank, but his visit was a short one. He entered the door,

walked straight to the teller's window and peered through the bars. I heard him catch his breath.

"Do?" he repeated. "Do for me? Nothin'nothin', 'special. You you meant it, then?"

At about eleven o'clock I was halfway through the addition of a column of figures when I heard some one

say, "Well, by time!" with such anguished fervor that it was almost like a prayer for help. I looked up. Lute

"They told me 'twas so," he stammered. "They said so andand I laughed at 'em. Ros, you ain't, be you?"

"Nor to me. To ME, by time! You let them fellers at the store make a fool of me"

"And you let them know it afore I did. And me livin' right in the house with you! By time! II"

"There, there, Lute! don't cry. I'll tell you all about it when I come home for dinner."

"Yes, I should think you might do that much. Treatin' your own family likewhy did you tell Sim

"Sim asked me and so I told him, that was all. Don't stand there fidgeting. Run along home, there's a good

"Well!" he exclaimed, "I've said you was crazy more'n once, that's some satisfaction. Say! can I tell 'em to

I hesitated. "You may tell Dorinda if you like," I answered. "But I prefer to tell Mother, myself."

George rose from his desk just then and Lute hurried to the door. I smiled. I imagined his arrival in our

kitchen and how he would explode the sensational news upon his unsuspecting wife.

But I was not altogether calm, though I did my best to appear so, when I entered that kitchen at a quarter past

twelve. Lute was seated in a chair by the window, evidently watching and waiting. He sprang up as I entered.

"Set down," ordered Dorinda, who was taking a clam pie from the oven. She merely nodded when I came in.

Dorinda often spoke in meeting against "sinful pride"; yet she had her share of pride, sinful or not. She would

Breaking the news to Mother was a duty which I dreaded. But it turned out to be not dreadful at all. Mother

was surprised, of course, but she did not offer a single objection. Her principal feeling seemed to be curiosity

"Of course, Roscoe, if you are happier I shall be, too," she said. "I know it must have been very dull for you

here. My conscience has troubled me not a little all these years. I realize that a man, a young man like you,

needs an interest in life; he wants something more than the care and companionship of a useless creature like

"But he does. Many times, when you and I have been here together, I have been on the point of urging you to

leave me and go back to the world and take your place in it. More than once, you remember, dear, I have

hinted at such a thing, but you have always chosen not to understand the hints, and I have been so weak and

selfish that I have not pressed them. I am glad you have done this, if it seems right to you. But does it? Are

"This country bank is a pretty small place, isn't it? Not big enough for my boy to prove his worth in."

"It is quite big enough for that. That doesn't require a Rothschild's establishment."

"But your decision must have been a very sudden one. You did not mention that you thought of such a thing.

I avoided the issue. "You don't mind, then, Mother," I said. "You are willing that I should try the

"I am glad, if it pleases you. And you must let me say this now, Roscoe, because it is true and I mean it. If

another and better opportunity comes to you, one that might take you away from Denboroand from

mefor a time, of course, I want you to promise me that you will not refuse it on my account. Will you

"No. Of course I shan't promise any such thing. Is it likely that I would leave you, Mother?"

"I know that you would not leave me unless I were willing for you to go. I know that, Roscoe. But I am much

"But I must say it, because it is true. I shall never be well, but I am strong enough now to bear the thought of

your leaving me and when the time comes I shall insist upon your doing so. I am glad we have had this talk,

dear. I am glad, too, that you are going to be busy once more in the way you like and ought to be. You must

tell me about your work every day. Now go, because your dinner is ready and, of course, you must be getting

"Boy," she whispered, "I know there is some reason for your doing this, a reason which you have not told me.

I straightened hurriedly and tried to laugh. "Of course I'll tell you, Mother," I replied. "If there is anything to

The clam pie was on the table in the diningroom and Dorinda was seated majestically before it. Lute was

"Here he is," he exclaimed, as I joined the pair at the table. "Ros, how did you ever come to do it?"

His wife squelched him, as usual. "If Roscoe's got anything to tell," she observed, with dignity, "he'll tell it

without your help or anybody else's. If he ain't, he won't. This pie's colder than it ought to be, but that isn't my

As I ate I told them of my sudden determination to become a laboring man. I gave the reasons that I had

"But I can't understand," pleaded Lute. "You don't need to work, and I've sort of took a pride in your not doin'

it. If I was well off, same as you be, I bet George Taylor'd have to whistle afore I wore out MY brains in his

"Now, Dorinda, what kind of talk is that? Wouldn't have time to whistle? You do say more things without

any sense to 'em! Just talk to hear yourself, I cal'late. What are you grinnin' at, Roscoe?"

"I can't imagine, Lute. This clam pie is a triumph. May I have another helping, Dorinda?"

Dorinda did not answer, but the second helping was a liberal one. She was so quiet and the glances she gave

me from time to time were so odd that I began to feel uneasy. I was fairly sure that she approved of my new

"Well," said I, looking at my watch and rising, "what do you think of it? Am I doing right?"

Lute leaned back in his chair. "There's consider'ble to be said on that subject," he announced. "Work, as a

general thing, I consider all right; I've told you that afore. But when it comes to"

"Think?" she repeated. "I think . . . When's that Colton girl comin' to call on Comfort again?"

I had taken my hat from the hook. Now, with it in my hand, I turned and faced her.

"How should I know that?" I demanded. "That's a trifle off the subject, isn't it?"

Within the week I was at home in my new position. The strangeness of regular hours and regular employment

wore away with surprising rapidity. There were, of course, mornings when sea and sky and the freshness of

outdoors tempted me and I wondered whether or not I had been foolish to give up my fine and easy life. But

these periods of temptation were shorter and less frequent as I became more and more familiar with my duties

and with the routine of the bank. I found myself taking a greater interest in the institution and, to my

astonishment, I was actually sorry when Saturday came. It seemed odd enough to once more have money in

my pocket which I had earned. It was not a great amount, of course, but I felt it to be mine. Yes, there was no

doubt about it, I had done the right thing, and was glad. I was grateful to Taylor for having given me the

opportunity. Perhaps I should have been grateful to the person whose brutal and impertinent frankness had

She made her second call upon Mother two days after our impromptu picnic at Seabury's Pond. I heard all

about it when I came home that afternoon. It appeared that she had brought more flowers and a fresh supply

of books. She had remained even longer than on her first visit and she and Mother had talked about almost

everything under the sun. One topic, however, had not been discussed, a fact which my guarded questions

made certain. She, like myself, had said nothing concerning the day in the woods.

"That was the truthful way of putting it, wasn't it? She seemed very much interested."

"Why, yes, I think so. She seemed surprised at first; then she laughed; I could not understand why. She has a

"She has. She is a charming girl. I am sorry you were not here when she called. I told her you would be home

"I am, Mother. That young lady comes here to see you merely because she has nothing else to do just now. I

Mother said I was unreasonable and prejudiced and I did not argue the point. Lute and Dorinda discussed the

caller at the supper table until I was constrained to leave the room. Mabel Colton might amuse herself with

Mother and the two members of our household whom she had described as "characters," she might delude

them into believing her thoughtful and sympathetic and without false pride, but I knew better. She had

insulted me. She had, in so many words, told me that I was lazy and worthless, just as she might have told her

chauffeur or one of the servants. That it was true made no difference. Would she have spoken in that way

toto Victor Carver, for instance? Hardly. She was just what I had thought her at first, a feminine edition of

Captain Jed Dean came into the bank the third day after my installation as bookkeeper and teller. I was alone

in the director's room, going over some papers, and he entered and shook hands with me. The old fellow

"George tells me you're takin' hold fustrate," he said. "That's good. I'm glad to hear it."

"Why?" I asked. There was a trace of his old pomposity in the speechor I imagined there wasand I

chose to resent it. These were the days when I was in the mood to resent almost anything.

"Why are you glad?" I said. "I can't see what difference it makes to you whether I succeed or not."

He regarded me with a puzzled expression, but, instead of taking offense, he laughed.

"You've got a chip on your shoulder, ain't you, Ros?" he observed. "Workin' you too hard at the start, are

"Why, nothing, unless it is that everyone I meet seems to take such a great interest in my being here. I believe

"Not much else, I shouldn't wonder. But that's to be expected, ain't it? Everybody's glad you're makin' good."

"Humph! They all seem to regard that as the eighth wonder of the world. The position doesn't require a

marvel of intelligence; almost any one with a teaspoonful of brains could fill it."

"Why no, they couldn't. But that's nothin' to do with it. I see what's the matter with you, Ros. You think all

hands are knocked on their beam ends because you've gone to work. Some of 'em are, that's a fact, and you

can't blame 'em much, considerin' how long you've lived here without doin' anything. But all of 'em that

amount to a threecent piece are glad, and the rest don't count anyway. You've made a good many friends in

"Why, yes, friends. And friends are worth havin', especially if you make 'em without beggin' for their

friendship. I give in that you've surprised some of us. We didn't know that you had it in you. But your standin'

"What of it? And 'twan't that altogether. I, for one, ain't complainin' because you stood up to me and wouldn't

sell to the town. By the way, Tim Hallet's gang haven't bothered you lately, have they?"

He chuckled. "I heard you advised 'em to that effect," he said. "I ain't complainin' at that, either, even though

I knew what they was up to and thought 'twas more or less of a joke. But I liked the way you fired 'em out of

there, not carin' a tinker's darn who was behind 'em. So long as a man stands square in his boots and don't

Captain Jed grinned. "Well," he said, slowly, "I don't object to that in him. He seems to be a fighter and that's

all right. Maybe if I was one of his tribe in New York I should like him. But I ain't. And you ain't, Ros. We're

both of us country folks, livin' here, and he's a city shark buttin' into the feedin' grounds. He wants to hog the

whole place and you and I say he shan't. I'm thankful to him for one thing: his comin' here has waked you up,

"You mustn't get mad because I talk this way," he went on. "I'm old enough to be your dad, Ros Paine, and I

know what I'm talkin' about. I never took much of a shine to you in the old days. You was too much of what

the story books call a 'gentleman' to suit me. I've had to scratch all my life for what I've got, but I've got it.

When a young, able feller like you was contented to loaf around as you did and take no interest in nothin', I,

naturally, figgered he was noaccount. I see now I was wrong. All you needed was somethin' to stir you up

and set you goin'. KEEP goin', that's my advice to you. And so long as you do, and don't bend when the

pressure gets hard, you'll be somebody afore you die. And the friends you've made'll stand back of you."

"Enemies? I suppose likely you have made some enemies, but what of it? I've made enemies all my life. It

The truthful answer would have been no. Captain Dean was not popular, but he was respected even by the

many who disliked and disagreed with him. I hesitated, trying to think what to say.

"You know 'tain't that," he said. "Popularity I never had, though it's a pleasant enough thing and sometimes I

wish But there, this ain't experience meetin'. I'm glad you're here in this bank. You're smart, and George

says you are worth more than Henry Small ever was, even so early. If you really are what it begins to look as

if you are I'm glad for Denboro. Maybe there'll be somebody besides George fit to run this town after I'm

I smiled. The last remark was so characteristic that it was funny. He was turning away, but he noticed the

"Captain," I said, "you are not consistent. When you and I first talked about the Lane you said that you would

not blame me if I closed it. If it was yours you wouldn't have Tom, Dick, and Harry driving fish carts through

"Yes. And you said, on another occasion, that anyone would sell anything if they were offered money

"Humph! Well, sometimes I say 'most anything but my prayers. Matildy says I forget them pretty often, but I

tell her her Friday night speeches are long enough to make up. Maybe I meant what I said to you at those

times, Ros. I shouldn't wonder if I did. But 'twas a lie just the same. There are things I wouldn't sell, of

course. Nellie, my daughter's one of 'em. She's goin' to get a good husband in George here, but her happiness

means more to me than money. She's one of the things I wouldn't sell. And my Selectman's job is another. I

fought for that, not so much for the honor, or whatever you call it, but becausewell, because I wanted to

show 'em that I could get it if I set out to. I don't presume likely you can understand that feelin'."

"I think I can," I answered. "Mr. Colton gave about the same reason for his determination to close the Lane.

He looked at me from beneath his bushy brows. His mouth twisted in a grim smile.

"Say, son," he said, "if I hadn't been so free with my proclamations about bein' your friend you and me would

The next afternoon he came in again and asked me to step outside the railing. He had something to say to me,

"Ros," he said, in a low tone, "have you had any new offer for your property? Not from Colton or the town,

"You ain't heard anything from a Boston firm claimin' to represent the Bay Shore Development Company, or

"I don't know; that is, I don't know much about it. But there's talk driftin' 'round that a Boston syndicate is

cal'latin' to buy up all the shore front land from South Ostable to the Bayport line and open it up for summer

house lots. The name is the Bay Shore Development Company, or somethin' like that. You ain't heard from

"From nobody in particular. It just seems to be in the air. Alvin Baker heard it over to Ostable. The feller that

told him got it from somebody else, who got it from another somebody, and so on. There's talk about good

prices bein' offered and, accordin' to Alvin, Ostable folks are pretty excited. Elnathan Mullet, who owns that

strip below your house, knows somethin' about it, I think. I shouldn't wonder if he'd had an offer, or a hint, or

somethin'. But Elnathan's mouth shuts tighter than a muskrat trap and I couldn't get nothin' out of him. He

just looked knowin' and that was all. But, if it's so, it may mean a heap to Denboro."

"Why, this way: If this concern offered you enough money you might sell out to them, mightn't you? Sell all

your place, I mean; you could get another one easy enough. You ain't particular about livin' by the shore."

"Why not? You wouldn't be sellin' to Colton. And, if this development scheme is what they say it is, there'll

be roads cut through all along shore. The town could use any of 'em; at least that arrangement might be made.

Think it over, Ros. If they do offer and offer enough, I'd sell, if I was you. Say! that would be a reef under

I did not answer. This was a new possibility. Of course his reason for advising my selling was plain enough,

but, leaving the Coltons entirely aside, the idea was not without allurement. The town's convenience in the

matter of a road might be considered, just as he said. And my scruples against selling at a profit were, after

"You think it over," he counseled. "Don't say nothin' to nobody, but just thinkand wait. I'll keep my eye to

wind'ard and see what I can find out. I tell you honest, Ros, I'll feel safer when I know old Imperial's game's

Old Imperial himself made his appearance before closing hours. I looked up from my work to see him

standing by the window. He had not expected to see me thereevidently his daughter had not considered

Mother's news of sufficient importance to repeatand, at first, he did not recognize me.

He nodded. "Cash this for me, will you," he said, pushing a check through the opening. "What? Hello! What

"I haven't had any, for some years. Now I have. How do you wish this money? In tens and fives?"

"Yes. Nothing bigger. Down here it restricts the circulation if you spring a twenty dollar bill on them. So

you've taken to banking? I was thinking of corraling you for a gunning trip one of these days. Now it's all off,

"Humph!" Then, with one of his sudden changes, "How big a business does this concern do? What do your

I gave him the figures, as printed in the yearly statement. He made no comment. Instead he observed, "You

"Suppose I ought to raise it, now that you're a financier yourself. However, I shan't."

He smiled. "No, you haven't," he said. "Well, it is openfor a while. If I were you I'd accept it pretty soon."

"Meaning that I am not you, hey? I'm not. I haven't your high principles, Paine. Can't afford 'em. You're what

"I'll bet you are!" he declared, taking the bills. "I never saw one of you highprincipled chaps yet that

wasn'tuntil he got rich enough to be something else. Progress is all right, maybe, but I notice that you

fellows pay for it and the rest of us get it. Just as I am going to get that land of yours."

"You haven't got it yet," I said, serenely. I had made up my mind that this time he should not provoke me into

He seemed to divine my determination. His eye twinkled. "You're improving, Paine," he observed. "I'll give

you a piece of advice; it has cost me a good deal to learn, but I'll give it to you: Don't ever let the other fellow

I remembered our first interview and I could not resist the temptation to retort.

"If my recollection is correct," I said, "you forgot that the first time we met."

He laughed aloud. "So I did," he admitted. "Maybe if I hadn't it would not cost me so much to get my own

He walked out of the building. I heard one exclamation from behind and, turning, saw Sam Wheeler, my

"Mygosh!" exclaimed Sam, his tone a mixture of wonder and admiration, "I don't see how you dast to talk

I heard no more from Captain Jed and nothing from the mysterious "Development Company" for the

remainder of that week. But on Sunday, as I sat in the boat house, smoking my after dinner pipe and reading,

Lute excitedly entered, followed by a welldressed, smoothshaven man of middle age, whom he introduced

as Mr. Keene of Boston, "who's driven all the way from Ostable apurpose to see you, Ros."

Mr. Keene shook hands with me cordially and apologized for intruding upon my day of rest. He intended

returning to the city in the morning, he said, and, as he had a little matter to discuss with me, had taken the

liberty of calling. "I shan't take more than half an hour of your time, Mr. Paine," he explained. "At least I feel

certain that you and I can reach an agreement in that period. If I might be alone with you"

This hint, evidently intended for Lute's benefit, was quite lost upon the last named individual, who had seated

himself on the edge of the work bench and was listening with both ears. I was obliged to tell him that his

presence was superfluous and request his returning to the house, which he reluctantly did, moving slowly and

looking back with an expression of grieved disappointment. After he had gone I asked Mr. Keene what his

His reply was prompt and to the point. He gave me his card. He was, it seemed, junior partner in the firm of

Barclay and Keene, real estate brokers and promoters, Milk Street, Boston. And, just now, he was acting as

representative of the Bay Shore Development Company. "A concern of which, in spite of all our precautions

and attempts at secrecy, you may, perhaps, have heard, Mr. Paine," he added, smiling.

I admitted that I had heard rumors concerning the company's existence. But, except for these very vague

He expected that, he said, and was glad to give me further and complete information. In fact, that was his

reason for coming so many miles to see me. If I would be good enough to listen he would tell me just what

I listened and he talked. According to him the Bay Shore syndicatethat is what it was, a syndicate of

capitalists represented one of the biggest real estate propositions ever conceived. Those behind it were

awake to the possibilities of the Cape as a summer resort. Shore land, water front property in the vicinity, was

destined to increase in value, provided it was properly exploited and developed. The company's idea was to

"We've been quietly looking about," he continued, "and are all ready for the preliminaries. And naturally, the

first preliminary is to secure the land to develop. You have some of that land, Mr. Paine. We know just how

much, as we do the holdings of every other party we have approached or intend to approach. I am here to get

your figures and, if possible, conclude the purchase of your property this afternoon. It is Sunday, of course,"

he added, with a goodhumored laugh, "and contracts signed today are not legal; but we can make a verbal

contract and the papers may be signed later. I will defer my departure until the afternoon train tomorrow for

Of course I had guessed what was coming. If I intended to sell at all here was my opportunity to do soto,

as Captain Jed expressed it, "block Colton's game" without sacrificing the principle for which I had fought,

and make a good bit of money for myself. Another home near by could be secured, I had no doubt, and to it

Mother might be safely and easily moved. Yet I hesitated to express even a qualified willingness.

"You appear to be certain that I will sell," I observed. "Isn't that taking a good deal for granted, Mr. Keene?"

He smiledin fact he smiled almost too often to please me. There is such a thing as being too cordial and

"I understand," he said. "I have heard about you, Mr. Paine. This, however, is a different matter. We are not

hogs, Mr. Paine, but business men. If our plans go through, Denboro will be grateful to us and to you."

"Certainly, certainly. There is, of course, an 'if' in all human plans, but our particular 'if' is a small one. I hope

you will name your figure now, at once. Don't be afraid. We are disposed to be liberal. And, understand, this

is entirely a cash transaction. You shall have the money in one hand as you sign the contract with the other.

But I would not name a price. I seemed to feel as unreasonably reluctant to close with the Bay Shore

He shook his head. "That, of course," he said, with the same gracious smile, "I can hardly tell even to you.

Some of the deals are not yet closed, and, as a business man yourself, Mr. Paine, you"

"I am not a business man," I interrupted, impatiently. "At least, not much of a one. You say there are

He laid his hand on my knee. "Why, that," he said, "is a secret no one is supposed to know. Menfinanciers

such as we are proud to servepermit their names to be known only when the corporation is ready to begin

actual operations. That is natural enough. If I were to mention nameswell, some of your Yankee neighbors

There was truth in this. I imagine that he guessed he had made an impression, for he went on to shout his

praises of the company and the greatness of its plan. He talked and talked; in fact he talked too much. I did

not like to hear him. I did not like HIM, that was the trouble. He was too smooth and voluble altogether. And

He was plainly disappointed. "I don't wish to hurry you, of course," he said, not moving from his chair, "but

we are anxious to close. This is to be cash, remember, and I stand ready to make an offer. I am sure we can

"Perhaps, but I prefer to think the matter over before naming a price or hearing your offer."

As a matter of fact I did not intend to sell, or consider selling, until I had discussed the whole affair with

"I am sorry, I confess," he said. "I hoped this particular deal might be closed. We have so many of these little

details, Mr. Paine, and time is money. However, if you insist upon it, I presume the company will be willing

"Very well, very well. I shall be down again in a day or two. Of course, waiting may have some effect upon

the price. Today I was empowered to . . . You don't care to hear? Very well. So glad to have met you, Mr.

Paine. Of course you will not mention the subject of our interview to anyone. Business secrets, you know.

I refused to say Thursday, principally because he had said it first. I suggested Saturday instead. He agreed,

shook hands as if I were an old friend from whom he parted with regret, and left me.

No, I did not like Mr. Keene. He was too polite and too familiar. And, as I thought over his words, the whole

prospectus of the Bay Shore Development Company seemed singularly vague. The proposal to buy my land

was definite enough, but the rest of it was, apparently, very much in the air. There was too much secrecy

about it. No one was to tell anyone anything. I was glad I had insisted upon time for consideration. I intended

When I left the boat house I did not go directly home, but wandered along the beach. I had puzzled my brain

with Mr. Keene and his errand until I determined not to puzzle it any longer that day. If my suspicions were

unfounded and existed merely because of my dislike of the Bay Shore Company's representative, then they

were not worth worry. If they were well founded I had almost a week in which to discover the fact. I would

dismiss the whole matter from my thoughts. The question as to whether or not I would sell the land at all to

anybody, which was, after all, the real question, I resolved to put off answering until I had had my talk with

I walked on by the water's edge until I reached the Lane; turning into that much coveted strip of territory I

continued until I came opposite the Colton mansion, where, turning again, I strolled homeward by the path

through the grove. Unconsciously my wandering thoughts strayed to Mabel Colton. It was here that I had met

her on two occasions. I had an odd feeling that I should meet her here again, that she was here now. I had no

reason for thinking such a thing, certainly the wish was not father to the thought, but at every bend in the

path, as the undergrowth hid the way, I expected, as I turned the corner, to see her coming toward me.

But the path was, save for myself, untenanted. I was almost at its end, where the pines and bushes were

scattering and the field of daisies, now in full bloom, began, when I heard a slight sound at my left. I looked

in the direction of the sound and saw her. She was standing beneath a gnarled, mossdraped old pine by the

I stopped, involuntarily. Then I moved on again, as noiselessly as I could. But at my first step she turned and

saw me. I raised my hat. She bowed, coldly, so it seemed to my supersensitive imagination, and I replaced the

hat and continued my walk. I thought I heard the bushes near which she stood rustle as if she had moved, but

I turned. She had followed me and was standing in the path, a bit out of breath, as if she had hurried. I waited

"Good afternoon, Miss Colton," I said, awkwardly. Some one had to speak, we could not stand staring at each

"I DID speak to you," with significant emphasis on the "did." "I thought you might, possibly, be interested to

Considering that she had called upon Mother since, it seemed to me that my knowledge of her reaching home

The way being almost straight, and over the main traveled roads, this, too, was fairly obvious.

"I felt sure you would have no troubleafter I left you," I answered, with a significant emphasis of my own.

She did not reply and, as I had nothing further to say, I waited for her to continue, or to break off the

interview. She did neither, but stood, as if irresolute, looking down and stirring with her foot the leaves at the

"Mr. Paine," she said, "you are making it hard for me to say what I intended. But I think I should say it, and

so I will. I beg your pardon for speaking as I did when I last saw you. I had no right to judge or criticize you,

"You do not need to apologize, Miss Colton. What you told me was probably true enough."

The conventional answer to this would have been a halfhearted denial of my statement. I presume I

"Yes," she said, thoughtfully, "I think it was. If I had not thought so I should not have said it. But that makes

no difference. You and I are strangers, almost, and I had no right to speak as I did. I am impulsive, I know it,

and I often do and say things on impulse which I am sorry for afterward. I offended you."

"Oh no, no," I put in, hurriedly. She had offended me, but this frank confession touched me more than the

"Yes, I offended you," she repeated, firmly. "I have considered the matter a good deal since then, and it

seems to me that you were right to feel offended. You had been very kind to me on several occasions and I

had been your"with a half smile"your guest that day. I should not have hurt your feelings. Will you

She was turning to go; and I could not let her go thus. Although she had apologized for speaking her thought

she had not retracted the thought itself. I was seized with a desire for justification in her eyes. I wanted to

"Miss Colton," I blundered on, "you should not have apologized. You were right. Your estimate of me was

pretty nearly correct. I realized that when you gave it and I have been realizing it ever since. I deserved what I

gotperhaps. But I should not wish you to thinkthat is, Iwell, I had reasons, they seemed to me

reasons, for being what I waswhat I am. I doubt if they were altogether good reasons; I am inclined now to

I stopped, face to face with the fact that I could not give those reasons to her or any one else. She was looking

at me expectantly, and with, so it seemed to me, an expression of real, almost eager interest. I faltered, tried

to go on, and then surrendered, absolutely, to the hopelessness of the situation.

I turned as I said it. I did not care to see her expression change. I knew what she must be thinking and I had

no desire to read the thought in her eyes. I stood there, waiting for her to leave in disgust.

"Very well." Her tone was as coldly indifferent as I had anticipated. "Was that all you wished to say to me,

"Pray don't trouble yourself. I assure you I had no intentions of asking for yourreasons. Good afternoon."

I heard her skirts brush the leaves at the border of the path. She was going; and the contemptuous slur at my

"reasons" proved that she did not believe them existent. She believed me to be a liar.

"I disbelieve you? Why should you think I disbelieve you? I am not sufficiently interested to believe or

"But you do. You apologized just now for judging me without a hearing the other day. You acknowledged

"I apologized for presuming to offer advice to a stranger. I did not apologize for the advice itself. I think it

"You are not asked to argue. But your sneer at my reasons proves that you believe that I have none and am

merely trying to justify myself with trumped up and lying excuses. You are wrong, and since you presumed

to judge me then you must listen to me now. I have or hadreasons for living as I have done, for being

the idler and goodfornothing you believe me to be. I can't tell you what they are; I can tell no one. But I do

ask you to believe that I have them, that they are real, and that my being what you termed ambitionless and a

country loafer is not my condition from choice. It is my right to insist upon your believing that. Do you

At last I had made an impression. My earnestness seemed to have shaken her contemptuous indifference. She

looked at me steadily, frowning a little, but regarding me less as if I were a clod and more and more as if I

were the puzzle she had once declared me to be. I did not shun her look now, but met it eye to eye.

"Yes, you must. I shall make you. If not now, at some other time. You must believe me, Miss Colton."

"If you order me to I suppose I must," she said, with a shrug of mock resignation. "I should have learned by

I stammered a "Thank you" and was silent. I dared not trust myself to speak at the moment. Somehow the

sincerity of her words moved me far more than their trifling import warranted. She had declared her belief

that I was not a liar, that was all; and yet I stood there fighting down all sorts of ridiculous emotions. The

"It seems to me," she said, with the twinkle which I had learned to recognize as a forerunner of mischief on

her part, "that you are inclined to make mountains out of molehills, Mr. Paine. Was there any need to be

quite so fiercely tragic? And, besides, I think that even now you have not told the whole truth."

"Oh, not that truth! Your mysterious 'reasons' are not my affair. And I have told you that I was willing to take

those on trust. But you have not been quite truthful in another particular. You intimated that you were an

idler. I have been given to understand that you are far from being an idler just now."

I was relieved. "Oh, I see!" I exclaimed. "You meansome one has told you of my employment at the

"A number of persons have told me. Surely you did not expect to keep THAT a secretin Denboro?"

"Well, scarcely," I admitted, with a laugh. "That was known almost before I was sure of it myself. You

should have seen Eldredge's face when I announced my intention. And LuteMrs. Rogers' husbandhasn't

completely recovered yet. The sight of me, actually trying to earn a living, was too much for him. You see

"Yes. The chance had been offered me before, but it was your frankness that shocked me into taking it."

"No. At first it seemed ridiculous and strange, even to myself; but now I like the work. It is like old times."

I was forgetting myself again; talking too much was a dangerous trainfor me. I laughed, with pretended

"Why, yes; I was employed in a bank at one time. I think I told you that. Have you been motoring much of

"Then I will answer your question. I am not a bit sorry. I am glad I was impertinent and intrusive, especially

now that I have apologized and you have accepted the apology. I am very glad I told you you should do

"Even if it were nothing more than to follow Thoph Newcomb's example and sell fish."

"Yes," laughingly, "even that. I WAS impertinent, wasn't I! I don't wonder you were offended."

"I needed the impertinence, I guess. But frankly, Miss Colton, I can't see why you should be glad because I

have gone to work. I can't see what difference my working or idling can possibly make to you."

"Oh, it doesn't, of courseexcept on general principles. I am a dreadful idler myself; but then, I am a

I thought of Dorinda and of the other housewives of Denboro and how little of that particular "right" they

enjoyed; which thought brought again and forcibly to my mind the difference between this girl's life and

"A man," continued Miss Colton, sagely, "should not idle. He should work and work hardso that the rest of

"You were good enough not to say what sort of philosophy. Thank you. But seriously, Mr. Paine, I am fond

of your mothervery fond, considering our short acquaintanceand when I saw her lying there, so patient,

and deprived of the little luxuries and conveniences which she needs, and which a little more money might

bring to her, it seemed to me . . . Gracious! what a lot of nonsense I am talking! What is the matter with me

this afternoon? Do let's change the subject. Have you sold your land yet, Mr. Paine? Of course you haven't!

I think she had again spoken merely on the impulse of the moment; doubtless there was no deliberate

intention on her part to bring me to a realization of my position, the position I occupied in her thoughts; but if

she had had such an intent she could not have done it more effectively. She believed me to have been

neglecting Mother, and her interest in my "doing something worth while" was inspired merely because she

wished Mother to be supplied with those "luxuries and conveniences" she had mentioned. Well, my question

was answered; this was the difference my working or idling made to her. And, for a minute or two, I had been

foolish enough to fancy her interested, as a friend, in my success or failure in life. I might have known better.

And yet, because of the novelty of the thing, because I had so few friends, I felt a pang of disappointment.

But I resolved she should not know she had disappointed me. I might have been a fool, but I would keep my

"Mr. Paine," she said, slowly, "would you resent my giving you another bit ofadvice?"

"Why, nothing. I must not give you any advice at all. I won't. Instead I'll give you one of Father's pet

proverbs. It isn't an elegant one, but he is very fond of repeating it. 'There are more ways of killing a cat than

"You mustn't ask me. I shouldn't have said even that. But remember, it is father's pet proverb. I must go.

Please give my love to your mother and tell her I shall call again soon. Goodby."

She walked briskly away and did not look back. I went home. I thought a great deal during the evening and

until late that night. When, at last, I did go to bed I had not made much progress in the problem of the cat, but

I did believe that there was a rat in the vicinity. I was beginning to scent one. If I was not mistaken it called

I said nothing to Mother of the new proposal to buy our land, but next morning at the bank I wrote a letter to

the cashier of a bank in Boston, one of our correspondents, and with which our little institution was on very

friendly terms. I asked the cashier to make some guarded inquiries concerning the Bay Shore Company, to

find out, if possible, who was behind it and also to inquire concerning Barclay and Keene, the real estate

The reply to my letter reached me on Friday. It was satisfactory, eminently so. And when, on Saturday

afternoon, Mr. Keene, bland and smiling as ever, made his appearance at the house, I was ready for him. I

stood on the step and made no move to invite him within. "Well, Mr. Paine," he said, cordially, "are you

"My figure is a naught," I replied, with emphasis. "You may tell your employer that I do not care to sell the

land to him, no matter whether he calls himself James Colton or the Bay Shore Development Company. Oh

yes; and, if you like, you may add that this particular cat declines to be choked."

Mr. Keene showed signs of choking, himself, and I shut the door and left him outside. Lute, who had been

listening at the diningroom window and had heard only fragments of the brief interview, was in a state of

"Well, by time!" he gasped. "Whatwhat sort of talk was that? Chokin' a cat! A cat!! We ain't got no cat."

"Haven't we?" I observed. "Why, no, so we haven't! Perhaps you had better explain that to Mr. Keene, Lute.

It may help him to understand the situation. And add that I suggest his telling the person who sent him here

I think Lute did tell him just that, doubtless with all sorts of excuses for my insanity, for the next day,

Sunday, as I walked along the beach, a big body came ploughing down the sandy slope and joined me.

He put back his head and laughed. He did not seem a bit chagrined or discomfited. The joke was on him, but

he could enjoy it, nevertheless. In spite of my antagonism toward this man I could not help admiring certain

traits of his character. He was big, in every way. Little repulses or setbacks did not trouble him.

"Saw his footprints," I replied. "They were all over the scheme. And your friend Keene purred too loud."

"I don't mean that. Keene was a fool; that was plain enough for anyone to see. I had to use him; if Barclay

hadn't been sick it might have been different. But how did you come to send me that message about the

butter? Man, that is one of my favorite sayings the choking the cat thing! How did you know that? I never

"Oh, it is an old saying. I have heard it often; and it did seem to fit in this case. I imagined you would

"Umyes," dryly. "I appreciated all right. As to understanding well, I'll understand later on. That's

another little conundrum for me to work out. Somebody's been talking, of course. Here! hold on!" as I was

He characteristically did not ask whether or not I wanted to talk to him, but, as I happened to be in no hurry, I

stopped and waited for him to continue. He thrust his hands into his pockets and looked me over, very much

"You've got a job, such as it is. It might be work for the average jay, but it isn't for you. I'll give you

"Ha! ha! not this time. No, this is straight. If you'll say that you'll work for me I'll make an opening for you in

"I'll put you to work in my office," he went on. "It may not be much to begin with, but you can make it

anything you like; that'll be up to you. As to salarywell, I don't know what you're getting in that onehorse

bank, but I'll double it, whatever it is. That will be the start, of course. After that it is up to you, as I said."

"I know all that is necessary. And I have found out that you are all right, so far as bank work goes. That

fellow Taylor and some others told me that. But I didn't need their telling. Why, man, it is part of my trade to

know men when I see them. I have to know 'em. I said a while ago that you didn't belong in this forsaken hole

of a town. God knows it IS forsaken! Even my wife is beginning to admit that, and she was the keenest to

"Oh, not yet. Mabelmy daughterseems to like it here, for some unknown reason, and wants to stay. And

I don't intend to sell until I've boughtwhat I set out to buy. But I'm not the subject we're talking about just

now. You are. Come! here's your chance to be somebody. More chance than I had, I'll tell you that. You can

I laughed at the idea. I believed I had found the motive I was seeking. "Of course not," I said. "You can't

"Bribery be hanged! Come, come, Paine! Wake up, or I shall think your brains aren't up to standard, after all.

When I bribe I bribe. When I ask a man to work for me there are no strings tied to the offer. Forget your

picayune land for a minute. Time enough to remember that when I've got it, which will be some day or other,

of course. I'm making you this offer because I want you. You're sharp; you saw through that Development

game. You're cleveryour sending me that 'cat' message proves it. And your not telling me where the idea

for the message came from proves that you can keep your mouth shut. I could use a dozen fellows like you, if

I could get them. You interested me right at the start. A chap with sand enough to tell Jim Colton to go to the

devil is always interesting. I'm offering you this chance because I think it is a good chance for both of us.

Yes, and because I like you, I suppose, in spite of your pigheadedness. Will you take it?"

"Why? Because you can't leave your sick mother? She'll be all right. I was talking with the doctorQuimby,

his name is, isn't itand he happened to mention that he was encouraged about her. Said she had been

I could not believe it. Doctor Quimby had said nothing of the sort to me. It was impossible. Mother

"That doesn't mean she is going to be well and strong again, of course," he added, not unkindly. "But I think

Quimby believes she may be well enough toperhapssit up one of these days. Be wheeled about in a

chair, or something of that sort . . . Why! what is the matter? You looked as if I had knocked you out. Hasn't

"No," I stammered. I WAS knocked out. I could not believe it. Mother, the bedridden invalid of six long

years, to be well enough to sit up! to use a wheeled chair! It could not be true. It was too good to be true.

"So, you see, you could leave her all right," went on Colton. "If it was necessary you could get a nurse down

here to look after her while you were away. And you might get home every fortnight or so. Better take my

offer, Paine. Come!" with a grunt of impatient amusement, "don't keep me waiting too long. I am not used to

coaxing people to work for me; it is usually the other way around. This offer of mine happens to be pretty

nearly a disinterested one, and," with one of his dry smiles, "all my offers are not that kind, as you ought to

The news concerning Mother had upset me greatly, but my common sense was not all gone. That there was

something behind his offer I believed, but, even if there were notif it was disinterested and made simply

because my unearthing of the Bay Shore "cat" had caught his fancyI did not consider for a moment

accepting it. Not if Mother was like other women, well and strong, would I have accepted it. In Denboro I

was Roscoe Paine, and my life story was my own secret. In New York how long would it be before that

secret and my real name were known, and all the old disgrace and scandal resurrected?

"What do you say?" asked Colton, again. "Want more time to think about it, do you?"

I shook my head. "No," I answered. "I have had time enough. I am obliged for the offer and I appreciate your

I expected him to express impatience or, perhaps, anger; at least to ask my reasons for declining. But his only

"Haven't got the answer yet, have I? All right. Well," briskly, "when are you and I going on that shooting

"There is no shooting at present," I answered, as soon as I could adjust my mind to this new switch in the

"All right. What is the matter with our going squintsquint something or othering one of these days? Will

"All right. I'll look after the boat. You provide the bait and tackle. That's fair, isn't it? Right. Be on hand at my

He walked off. Neither of us had thought of the tidehe, probably, not realizing that high water was an

important factor, and I being too much agitated by what he had said about Mother, and the suddenness with

That week was a strange one to me, and the first of many strange ones. My manner of life was changing,

although I did not realize it and although the change came through no effort of my own. Our house, which

had been so long almost a hermitage, if a home containing four persons might be called that, was gradually

becoming a social center. Matilda Dean had called once a week regularly for some time and this particular

week Captain Jed came with her. Captain Elisha Warren and his cousin and housekeeper, Miss Abbie Baker,

drove down for a halfhour's stay. George Taylor and Nellie spent an evening with us. I feared the

unaccustomed rush of company might have a bad effect upon Mother, but she seemed actually the better for

it. She professed to believe that Denboro was awakening to the fact of my merits as a man and a citizen.

"They are finding you out at last, Boy," she said. I laughed at her. I knew better. It was because of my

position in the bank that these people came. I was making good there, apparently, and the surprise at this

caused Captain Warren and the rest to take a new, and no doubt transitory interest in me.

And I thought I knew Captain Jed's reason for coming. An interview between us gave me the inkling. Matilda

"Nothin', maybe. But they tell me you're kind of thick with the R'yal family lately. Beriah Holt says he see

you and the Colton girl come out of the woods back of his place one afternoon a spell ago. She was on

horseback and you was walkin', but Beriah says you and she was mighty friendly."

"She had lost her way in the woods and I helped her to find the road home," I said, "that was all."

"Hum! You helped her to find the road the night of the strawberry festival, too, didn't you?"

"Oh, it just sort of drifted around. I've got pretty big ears maybe you've noticed 'emand they gen'rally

catch some of what's blowin' past. There was a coachman mixed up in that night's work and he talked some, I

"Well, what of it?" I asked, sharply. "I helped her as I would your daughter if she had been caught alone in a

"Sartin! Needn't get mad about it. What's this about your takin' his Majesty off fishin' next Saturday?"

All of my personal affairs seemed to be common property. I was losing my temper in spite of my recent good

"Look here, Captain Dean," I said, "I have a right to take any one fishing, if I choose. Mr. Colton asked me to

"I don't know that and I don't care. I shall do as I please. I have no grievance against the Coltons. I shall not

sell them my land, but I reserve the right to meet themyes, and to associate with themif I choose. You

"There! there! don't get huffy. I ain't got the right to say what your rights are, Ros. And I don't think for a

minute you'd back water on the Lane business apurpose. But I do think you're takin' chances. I tell you,

honest, I'm scart of old Colton, in a way, and I ain't scart of many folks. He's a fighter and he's smart. He and

"Yup. Lively squabbles they was, too. Each of us expressin' our opinion of t'other and not holdin' back

anything to speak of. I don't know how he felt when we quit, but I know I respected him for his out and

open cussedness and grit, if nothin' else. And I think he felt the same way about me. But he's smartconsarn

him, he is! And HE never backs water. That's why I think you're takin' chances in bein' too friendly with him.

"Captain Dean," I said, "his smartness hasn't caught me yet. I'm going to tell you something, but first you

He promised and I told him of Mr. Keene and the Bay Shore Company. He listened, interrupting with

"By the everlastin'!" he exclaimed, "that was great! I say again, you're all right, Ros Paine. Even _I_

swallered that Development Company, hook, line, and sinker. But YOU saw through it!"

"I tell you this," I said, "so that you will understand I have no intention of backing water."

"I know you ain't. Knew it afore and now I know it better. But I can't understand what the Colton game

isand there is a game, sure. That daughter of his, nowshe may be in it or she may not. She's pretty and I

will give in that she's folksy and sociable with us natives; it's surprisin', considerin' her bringin' up. Nellie and

Matildy like her, Nellie especial. They're real chummy, as you might say. Talk and talk, just as easy and

common as you and I this minute. I've heard 'em two or three times at my house when they thought I wasn't

"Yes. I don't wonder you're surprised. I was myself. Asked Nellie about it and she just laughed. Said you was

the principal object of interest in town just now, which is more or less true. But it makes me suspicious, all

the same. Why should a girl like that Colton one talk about a feller like you? You're as fur apart, fur's

It was so, of course, but he need not have been so brutally frank in telling me. However, I nodded and

"Yes," he said. "A blind horse could see there was no sensible, open and aboveboard reason for HER bein'

interested in YOU. So there's another reason, the way I look at it, and that's why I'd be mighty careful, mighty

careful, Ros. Her pa's got a new trick up his sleeve and she's helpin' him play it, that's my notion. So be

"I'll be careful," said I. I knew, as well as I knew my real name which he did notthat Mabel Colton was

not helping her father play any tricks. I had seen enough of her to be certain she was not tricky. And, besides,

if she were in sympathy with her parent, why had she given me the hint which put me on the trail of the

Development Company? Why had she given me the hint at all? That was the real riddle, and I had not, as yet,

hit upon a plausible answer. Those I had hit upon were ridiculous and impossible, and I put them from my

Captain Jed changed the subject and we talked of Nellie's wedding, which was to take place in a month. The

captain was full of various emotions, regret at losing his daughter and joy because of her getting such a good

"Ros," he said, "be careful, for my sake full as much as yours. This Lane business and Nellie's gettin' married

have sort of possessed me, same as the evil spirits did the swine, in scriptur'. I lay awake nights fussin' for

fear the marriage won't turn out happy or for fear you'll sell the Lane after all. And one's just as likely to

happen as t'otherwhich means they're both impossible, I cal'late. But look out for that Colton girl, whatever

else you do. She's a good deal better lookin' than her dad, but she's just as dangerous. You mark my words,

son, the feller that plays with fire takes chances. So don't be TOO sociable with any of the tribe."

And the very next afternoon the dangerous person herself called and she and I spent an hour in Mother's

room, where the three of us chatted like old friends. She had the rare power of making one forget self and

personal worries and I could readily understand why Mother had been so completely won by her. She was

bright and cheery and sympathetic. Here there was no trace of the pride of class and the arrogance which had

caused me to hate her so heartily at first. It seemed almost as if she had set herself the task of making me like

her in spite of my prejudices. My reason told me that this could not be; it was merely her fancy for Mother

which caused her to notice me at all; she had as much as said so more than once. But I did like her; I

acknowledged it in my thoughts; and, after she had gone, the room, with its drawn shades, seemed doubly

dark and gloomy. Mother was silent for a few minutes and I, too, said nothing. Then:

She was altogether too wonderful, that was the trouble. A girl like her had no place in our lives. I went out for

a walk and a smoke by the bluff edge; and, almost before I knew it, I found myself standing at the border of

the grove, looking at the great house and trying to guess which was her room and if she was there and of what

or whom she might be thinking just then. "Mark my words, son," Captain Jed had declared, "the feller that

I turned on my heel and set out for home. I would take no chances. I must not play with fire, even though the

flames had, for the moment, dazzled me. I had called myself a fool many times in the past few years, but I

So I resolved, more resolutely than ever, to keep out of her way, to see as little of her as possible! and, as had

happened before to similar resolutions of mine with which she was concerned, this one was rendered

noneffective, through no fault of my own, almost as soon as it was made. For on Saturday afternoon, as I

approached the Colton wharf, laden with bait and rods for the fishing excursion in the Colton boat, I saw her

"We've got a passenger, Paine," said "Big Jim." "You've met her before, I believeon the water and in it. No

What could I say; except to announce delight at the addition to our party? Perhaps I did not say it as heartily

as I might, for, Miss Colton, who was regarding me with a mischievous smile, observed demurely:

"I am sure he must be delighted, Father. Mr. Paine knows I am very fond of fishing; don't you, Mr. Paine?"

I thought the question was addressed to her, so I did not answer. She seemed to think otherwise, for she said:

"Whyeryou told me so, Miss Colton," I replied. If she had not related her Seabury Pond experience to

"Oh, it's a little joke of Mr. Paine's and my own," she explained. "I'll tell you about it by and by, Father. It

"Oh! that's all! Humph! And you did not think a trifle like that worth mentioning to me, I suppose. Would

"From starvation. I was a famished wayfarer and he took me in. There, Daddy, don't puzzle your poor brain

any longer. It is all right and I'll tell you all about it when we get home. Now I am sure we should be starting

if we are to have any fishing at all. Shall we cast off, Mr.that is, Captain Paine?"

That fishing trip was not a huge success if judged solely by the size of the catch. The weakfish were not

hungry or we did not tempt them with bait to their taste that day. We got a half dozen, of which I caught

three, Miss Colton two, and her father but one. His, however, was a big one, much the biggest of the six, and

he had a glorious time landing it. He fished as he appeared to do everything else, with intense earnestness and

determination. He evidently considered the struggle a sort of personal disagreement between the fish and

himself and, as usual, intended to have his way. He succeeded after a while, and announced that he had not

His daughter also seemed to be enjoying herself. She was quite as good a fisher as her father, and, when the

sport was over, and we reeled in our lines preparatory to starting for home, rallied him not a little at having

"You think it is quite a feat to get the better of your old dad, don't you, my lady," he observed.

He chuckled. "Well, maybe you're right," he admitted. "You do it oftener than any one else, that is certain.

Paine, you might take lessons from her, if you are still hoping to keep up your end in the little fight you and I

She turned to me and smiled. Her graceful head was silhouetted against the red glow of the sunset and a

"I think Mr. Paine does not need lessons from any one," she said. "He seems to be holding his own very

"But he's frightened, all the same. Come, Paine, own up now. You know you are frightened, don't you?"

"So? Then you aren't as sensible as you ought to be. A wise man knows when to be scared. Let's make a little

bet on it. I'll bet you two to one that I'll own that land of yours inside of six months."

I shook my head. "I never bet on certainties," I declared. "I should be ashamed to collect my winnings."

"Father," said Miss Colton, "I am afraid you don't learn by experience. You have lost one bet already, you

"That's so. And I haven't paid it yet, either. I must, or you'll be telling every one that I am a poor sport. Paine,

"Oh, all right, all right. Just as you say. But I tell you this, Paine; SHE hasn't any scruples against betting on

She was leaning against the cockpit rail, looking forward, and I could not see her face. She spoke without

"You thought yours was the certainty," she said. "You warned me that I was sure to lose."

"Did I? Well, you may, even yet. On the whole, I think I'll wait a while before buying those gloves.

"Father," more firmly, "please be quiet. You have said quite enough. Mr. Paine is not likely to be interested in

I was interested in this particular "gamble." The wager had, obviously, something to do with me. I suppose I

should have felt flattered at being made the subject of a bet in such select circles, but I did not. I had not been

There was nothing more said about it at the time and my passengers talked of other things as we sailed home

before the fast dying breeze. It died almost altogether as we passed the lighthouse at Crow Point and entered

the bay and, for an hour, we barely held our own against the tide. The sun set, twilight came, and the stars

appeared one by one. Colton, lying at full length on the deck forward of the cockpit, smoked in lazy

enjoyment. His only remark in ten minutes was to the effect that his wife had probably drowned us all, in her

His daughter, sitting by the rail and looking out over the smooth, darkly glimmering water, bade him be quiet.

"You must not talk," she said. "This is the most wonderful night I ever experienced. How still it is! You can

"Shouldn't think that would be a pleasant reminder to either of you," he observed. "I am mighty sure it wasn't

The breeze sprang up again soon after, from a different quarter this time, but the tide had ebbed so far that I

was obliged to make the detour around the end of the flat upon which Victor had grounded the dingy. "Big

"Hello!" he exclaimed, "here's another joyful spot. Mabel, it was along here somewhere that Paine acquired

the habit of carrying you about like a bundle. It must have been a picturesque performance. Wish I might

He chuckled and lay down again, and no one spoke during the rest of the voyage. It was after nine when I

brought the boat up to the wharf, made her fast, and lowered and furled the sail.

"Better come up to the house with us and have a bit to eat, Paine," urged Colton. "You must be hungry; I

"I presume Mr. Paine knows what is best for him to do," she said. "Of course we shall be glad to have him, if

I declined, and, after thanking me for the sail and the pleasure of the fishing trip, they left me, Colton

carrying his big squiteague by the gills, its tail slapping his leg as he climbed the bluff. A moment later I

The night was, as my feminine passenger had said, wonderfully quiet, and sounds carried a long way. As I

reached the juncture of the path and the Lane I heard a voice which I recognized as Mrs. Colton's. She was

evidently standing on the veranda of the big house and I heard every word distinctly.

"You are so unthinking, James! You and Mabel have no regard for my feelings at all. I have been worried

almost to death. Do you realize the time? I warned you against trusting yourself to the care of that common

The "fellow" heard no more. He did not wish to. He was tramping heavily through the dewsoaked

undergrowth. He needed now no counsel against "playing with fire." The cutting contempt of Mrs. James W.

Miss Colton and I met again at the door of the bank a day or two later, just at closing time. Sam Wheeler had

already gone and I left George at his desk, poring over papers and busily figuring. He was working over time

much of late and explained his industry by the fact of his approaching marriage and his desire to make things

easy for me to handle while he was on his brief wedding trip. I was not much alarmed by the prospect. He

was to be gone but a week and I had become sufficiently familiar with the routine to feel confident in

assuming the responsibility. Small, my predecessor, had a brother who had formerly been employed in the

bank and was now out of work, and he was coming in to help during the cashier's absence. I was not worried

by the prospect of being left in charge, but I was worried about George. He, so it seemed to me, had grown

pale and thin. Also he was nervously irritable and not at all like his usual goodnatured self. I tried to joke

him into better humor, but he did not respond to my jokes. He seemed, too, to realize that his odd behavior

"Don't mind my crankiness, Ros. I've got so much on my mind that I'd be mean to my old grandmother, if I

had one, I guess likely. Don't let my meanness trouble you; it isn't worth trouble."

I laughed. "George," I said, "if I ever dreamed of such a thing as getting married myself, you would scare me

out of it. You ought to be a happy man, and act like one; instead you act as if you were about to be jailed."

He caught his breath with a sort of gasp. Then, after a pause and without looking up, he asked slowly:

"I said it because you act as if you were bound for state's prison instead of the matrimonial altar. George,

"Troubling me? Whywhy, nothing special, of course. Catching up with my work here makes me nervous

He did, there was no doubt of that, but I did not believe it was his work which caused the absentmindedness.

"If there is any trouble, George," I said, earnestly; "if you're in any difficulty, personally, I shall be very glad

"I know you mean it, Ros," he answered. "I'm much obliged to you, too. But there's nothing to help me with.

I did not believe it, but I felt that I had said all I could, considering his attitude. I bade him good night and left

the building. As I came down the steps Miss Colton was just crossing the road from Eldredge's store, a good

Ever since the day when Captain Jed had given me his warning I had been strengthening my resolution. The

remark of Mrs. Colton's which I had overheard on the night of the fishing trip, although it revealed to me, as I

believed, my real standing in the minds of my neighbors, whatever they might pretend when in my company,

was, after all, only a minor detail. I knew that I must break off my acquaintance with this girl. By all that was

sensible and sane it must be broken off. I must not, for my own sake, continue to meet her, to see her and

speak with her. No; I would avoid her if I could, but, at all events, I would break off the association, even if I

were obliged to offend her, deliberately offend her, to accomplish my purpose. I swore it; and then I swore at

myself for being so weakminded as to need to swear. That I should be afraid of a girl, a mere girl, ten years

younger than I, who, as the casual pastime of an idle summer, had chosen to pretend an interest in me! I was

not afraid of her, of course; I was afraid of myself. Not that I was in danger of falling in love with herthat

idea was too ridiculous to be even funny. But she was becoming a disturbing influence in my lifethat was

So now, as I saw the disturbing influence crossing the road in my direction, my first thought was to retreat to

the bank. But it was too late to retreat; she had seen me, and she bowed pleasantly as she approached.

I bowed and admitted that the afternoon was a good one, conscious as I did so that Sim Eldredge had

followed her to the door of his store and was regarding us with marked interest.

She exhibited the package. "I am acting as my own errand boy, you see," she said, smiling. "It was such a

beautiful day that I refused to send any one for this, or even to ride. I did not realize that a few yards of

muslin would make such a bundle. Now I must carry it, I suppose, in spite of appearances."

"I am going directly home," I said. "Let me carry it down for you. I will send it over to your house by Lute."

"Oh, no thank you. I could not think of troubling Mr. Rogers. But do you really want to carry it? You may,

for a while. We will take turns. I am going directly home, too; and we will walk down together. Unless, of

I think it was the expression of my face which led her to add the last sentence. If I had had time to think, to

summon my resolution, it is possibleyes, it is possible that I should have declared myself to be in a hurry

and gone on alone. But she had caught me unawares and resolution was wanting. I announced that I was in no

We walked on together, she chatting easily, and I pretending to listen, although aware that our progress was

watched by eager eyes and commented upon and exclaimed over by many tongues. The drawn shades of

parlor windows moved significantly as we passed and, as we turned into the Lower Road, I glanced over my

shoulder and saw Sim Eldredge and his clerk and Thoph Newcomb and Alvin Baker on the store platform,

staring after us. As if this audience was not sufficient, and to make the affair complete, we met Captain Dean

strutting importantly on his way to the postoffice. He bowed and said "Afternoon," but the look he gave me

was significant. There was surprise in it, and distrust. I knew I should have to do more explaining at our next

meeting. And I knew, too, or could guess, what was being said that very moment at the store, and of the

surmising and theorizing and strengthening of suspicions which would go on at a dozen supper tables that

My companion, however, appeared to be quite unconscious of all this. That I might be suspected and

misjudged because she had chanced to prefer my company to a walk home alone did not, evidently, occur to

her. There was no reason why it should, of course; she was not in the position where the opinion or

suspicions of Denboro's inhabitants need concern her in the least. But I, angry at Captain Jed for his look and

with Sim Eldredge and his companions for their impudent stares and the trouble I knew their gossipy tongues

She did most of the talking and I walked beside her, putting in a word occasionally and doing my best to

appear as unconcerned as she really was. We crossed Elnathan Mullet's bridge and continued down the Shore

"Eh? Yes, Miss Colton; what is it?" I stammered. Then I realized that we were standing beside the granite

posts marking the entrance to the Colton grounds. I had been so wrapped in my unpleasant thoughts and

"Well!" I exclaimed, and then added the brilliant observation, "We are here, aren't we."

"Yes, I'm sure it must. I think you have spoken exactly six words in the last five minutes. Will you come in?"

She bit her lip. "Far be it from me to criticize your domestic arrangements, Mr. Paine," she said, "but it does

seem to me that your housekeeper serves meals at odd hours. It is only a few minutes after four, by my

She had me at a disadvantage. I imagined I must have appeared embarrassed. I know I felt that way.

"Then you will come in? Father will like to discuss the fishing with you, I know. He has talked of little but

"Very well," she said, indifferently; "as you please. I thank you for your kindness in walking down with me.

She turned away. Here was the opportunity I had been waiting for, the opportunity of breaking off our

acquaintance. If I knew anything I knew the tone of that "Good afternoon" meant that, for some reason or

other, she was offended, just as I had been certain I wished her to be. Here was the opportunity, Heaven sent,

to rid my life of its disturbing influence. Just what I had prayed for had come to pass.

And so, to prove the sincerity of my prayers and the worth of my high resolve, Icalled her back.

"I seem somehow or other to have offended you." And even as I said it I realized the completeness of the

backdown, realized it and blushed. I was ashamed of my weakness. Yet when she asked me to repeat my

"Why should you imagine that I am offended, pray? You seem to think other people must necessarily regard

"Very well; then I am. We won't argue the matter; it is scarcely worth argument, is it?"

This observation called for no answer in particular, at least I could not think of one. While I was groping for a

"Don't let me detain you, Mr. Paine," she said. "I am sure your supper, was it?must be waiting."

"Miss Colton, youyou seem to resent my not accepting your invitation to visit your father. I assure you

"Thank you. I will tell him so. He will be grateful, doubtless. Your condescension is overwhelming, Mr.

"Miss Colton, everything I say seems to be wrong this afternoon. I don't know what I have done. Twice you

Her foot was beginning to pat the grass. I recognized the battle signal, but I kept on.

For an instant she hesitated. Then she turned on me with a gust of fierce impatience which took my breath

"You do," she declared. "You do understand, I am not blind. Do you suppose I could not see that you wished

to avoid me when I met you at the bank just now? That my company was neither welcome nor desired? That

you accepted my suggestion of walking down together merely because you could think of no excuse for

"You do understand. And please," with a scornful laugh, "oh, PLEASE understand that I am not troubled

because of THAT. Your charming and cultivated society is not indispensable to my happiness, Mr. Paine,

"But you are like every one else in this horrid, narrow, bigoted place. Don't you suppose that I see it

everywhere I go! Every one here hates usevery one. We are intruders; we are not wanted here, and you all

take pains to make us feel as uncomfortable as you can. Oh, you are all snobsall of you."

"Yes. That is exactly what you are. When Father came here he meant to be a citizen, a good citizen, of the

town. He had intended to do all sorts of things to help the village and the people in it. He and I discussed ever

so many plans for doing good here. And we wanted to be friendly with every one. But how have you treated

us! No one comes to see us. We are avoided as if we had the smallpox. The majority of people scarcely

She stopped. I had never seen her so agitated. As for me, astonishment is much too mild a term to use in

describing my feelings. That these people, these millionaires and aristocrats should feel that they had been

avoided and slighted, that we Denboroites were the snobs, that THEY should be lonely because no one, or

almost no one, came to call upon themthis was too much for my bewildered brain to grasp all at once.

"And you!" she exclaimed. "You are as bad as the rest. Father has called upon you several times. I have

called on your mother. Father and I have tried to be friendly and neighborly. Not that we are lacking in

friends. We," haughtily, "are not obliged to BEG for friendship. But we felt it our duty to"

I interrupted. There is a limit to forbearance and I considered that limit reached.

"Miss Colton," I declared, "you are talking nonsense. Considering the manner in which your father treated me

"How did you treat him? How did you treat Mr. Carver and me when you first met us in the auto? You

"Indeed! Would it have made any difference if you had known? I doubt it. No, you are like the rest of the

people here. Because we have come from the city you have chosen to be as envious and petty and

disagreeable as you can. Even Nellie Dean, whom I know better than any one here, has never returned my

call. There is a concerted plan to make us feel we are neither welcome nor wanted. Very well," disdainfully,

"we know it. I, for one, shall not force my presence upon any one of you again. And it is probable that I shall

manage to exist even without the delights of Denboro society. Goodby, Mr. Paine."

"Miss Colton, listen to me. You are wrong, all wrong, I tell you. There is no plan or plot to make you feel

uncomfortable. We are plain village people here, and you are wealthy and have been used to associating with

those of your class. Every one in Denboro knew that when you came, and they have been shy of intruding

"I have wished that a number of times in the past few months. But it is here and the question overshadows

everything else in the village just now. It does not seem of much importance to you, perhaps; perhaps it is not

"I think it is important enough to make you forgetordinary courtesy," she declared. "Yes, courtesy. DON'T

look at me like that! You know what I mean. As I told you before, I am not blind. Do credit me with some

intelligence. All the way during this cheerful walk of ours you scarcely spoke a word. Did you suppose I did

not know what was troubling you? I saw how that Captain Dean looked at you. I saw those people staring

from the postoffice door. I knew what you were afraid of their saying: that you are altogether too

companionable with Father and me; that you intend selling the land to us, after all. That is what you thought

they would say and you were afraidAFRAID of their gossip. Oh, it is humiliating! And, for a time, I really

I began to feel as if I were once more a small boy receiving a lecture from the governess.

"You are. Why? Your conscience is clear, isn't it? You don't intend selling out to my father?"

"Then why should you care what people like that may think? Oh, you weary me! I admired you for your

independence. There are few persons with the courage to face my father as you have done and I admired you

"Certainly not! I have been on your side all the time. If you had sold I should have thought you, like all the

rest, holding back merely for a higher price. I respected you for the fight you were making. You must have

known it. If I had not why do you suppose I gave you that hint about the Development Company?"

"And I was sure you could not be bribed by an offer of a position in Father's office. It was not really a

bribeFather has, for some unexplainable reason, taken a fancy to youbut I knew you would believe it to

be bribery. That is why I was so positive in telling him that you would not accept. And now youoh, when I

think of how I have LOWERED myself! How I have stooped to . . . But there! I am sure that supper of yours

must be waiting. Pray condescend to convey my regrets to the faithfulwhat is her name? Odd that I should

forget a name like THAT. Oh, yes! Dorinda!Pray convey my regrets to the faithful Dorinda for being

unwittingly the cause of the delay, and assure her that the offense will NOT be repeated. Goodby, Mr.

She walked off, between the granite posts and along the curved drive. This time I made no attempt to call her

back. The storm had burst so unexpectedly and had developed into such a hurricane that I had had time to do

little more than bend my head before it. But I had had time enough to grow angry. I would not have called her

back then for the world. She had insulted me, not once only, but again and again. I stood and watched her go

The parting had come. The acquaintance was broken off; not precisely as I had intended it to be broken, but

broken, nevertheless, and ended for good and all. I was glad of it. There would be no more fishing

excursions, no more gifts of flowers and books, no more charity calls. The "common fellow" was free from

Yet his gladness was not as apparent to others as it should, by all that was consistent, have been. Lute,

evidently, observed no traces of transcendent happiness, when I encountered him in the back yard, beside the

woodpile, sharpening the kindling hatchet with a whetstone, a process peculiarly satisfying to his

More perfectly good sarcasm wasted. Lute inquired eagerly if I meant old Mrs. Lobelia Glover. "I heard

yesterday she was pretty feeble," he added. "'Tain't to be expected she'll last a long spell, at her age. Doctor

I made no comment upon poor Mrs. Glover's surprising affliction. I merely grunted and went into the house.

"Trouble! There isn't any trouble. You and Lute seem to be looking for trouble."

"Umhm. Settin' so long on the fence make you uneasy? I told you the pickets would wear through if you

"She ain't any wuss. If 'twan't an impossibility I'd say she was better the last month than I'd seen her since she

"Humph! I should think a next week's bride would be too busy to call on any one except possibly the

"Umhm. Well, Nellie looks as if she'd been callin' on the dressmaker pretty often. Anyhow she looked

worried and Olindy Cahoon's dressmakin' gabble is enough to worry anybody. She left a note for you."

"Land sakes! no! What would Olindy be doin' down here? There ain't any brides to dress in this house, or

bridegrooms either unless you're cal'latin' to be one, or Lute turns Mormon. That last notion ain't such a bad

one," with a dry smile. "Another wife or two to help me take care of him would come in handy."

"Nellie, of course. She wanted me to be sure you got it. Somethin' about that wonderful weddin', I s'pose. I

I found the note and put it in my pocket to read later on. I did not feel like reading it then. I did not feel like

doing anything or seeing any one; yet least of all did I feel like being alone. For if I was alone I should think,

and I did not want to think. I prowled about my room for a time and then went down and spent a short time

with Mother. Her first question was concerning my day at the bank, and her second if I had seen any of the

Coltons recently. "I rather hoped Miss Mabel would come to see me today," she added. "I look forward to

her visits so, I think she's a real friend of ours, Roscoe. I know you don't, dear, or you try to believe you do

I could have put a stop to her wondering on that subject, but I was in no mood to do it then. I went into the

diningroom. Dorinda warned me not to go far from the house because supper would be ready in a few

minutes. The word "supper" reminded me of my unfortunate choice of an excuse and the sarcastic reference

to our odd domestic arrangements; which reminded me, in its turn, of other sarcasms which had followed it.

My "charming and cultivated society" was not necessary to her happiness . . . When she thought of how she

had lowered herself . . . Other people did not necessarily regard me as seriously as I did myself . . . And so on

. . . until Dorinda called me in to sit at the table, and pretend to eat while she and Lute commented on my lack

It was eight o'clock, and I had gone up to my room to escape from their solicitude and pointed questioning,

when I happened to think of Nellie's note. I had not been curious concerning its contents, for, as I had agreed

to act as best man at the wedding, I assumed, as Dorinda had done, that she had written on that, to her, all

Nellie had not written about the wedding. Her letter was a long one, evidently written in great agitation and

with words blotted and underscored. Its subject was the man she loved, George Taylor. She was so anxious

about him. Did I remember, that night when my mother was ill, how she had spoken of him to me and asked

"And, Roscoe," she wrote, "I have noticed it more and more since then. He IS in trouble. There is something

on his mind, something that he will not tell me and that I can see is worrying him dreadfully. He is not like

himself at all. I KNOW something is wrong, and I cannot find out what it is. I want to help him SO much.

Oh, please, Roscoe, don't think this is just a foolish girl's imagination, and does not amount to anything. It

does. I know it does. You are his best friend. Can't YOU find out what is troubling him and help him, for my

sake? I have meant to speak to you about this ever so many times, but I seldom see you alone and I could not

speak while he was with me. So I decided to write this letter. If you will try, just TRY to find out what ails

him and help him I shall never, NEVER forget your kindness. Perhaps he does not want to marry me. Perhaps

he does not care for me as much as he thought he did and will not tell me because he does not want me to feel

bad. If that is it tell him not to mind my feelings at all. I want him to be happy. If it would make him happier

to have me give him up I will do it, even though I shall pray to die right away. Oh can't you help him and me,

Roscoe? Please, PLEASE try. A girl ought to be perfectly happy who is going to be married. And I am so

miserable. I can't tell Mother and Father because they would not believe me. They would think I just

imagined it all. But YOU won't think that, will you? You will see him and try to help him, for my sake."

And so on, eight closely written pages, ending with another plea to me to see "poor George" and help him,

and begging me to "burn this letter, because I should be so ashamed to have any one else see it."

It was a pitiful letter and, even in the frame of mind I was then in, disgusted with humanity and hating the

entire feminine sex, I could not help feeling sorry for Nellie Dean. Of course I was surprised at receiving such

a letter and I believed, just as she begged me not to believe, that the cause of her distress and anxiety was

more imaginary than real. But that something was troubling George Taylor I had felt certain for a good while.

The idea that he did not love Nellie I knew was preposterous. That was not it. There was something else, but

what I could not imagine. I wanted to help the girl if I could, but how could I ask George to tell me his

After pondering for some time I decided to walk up to George's boarding place and talk with him. Nothing

would come of the interview, probably, but I might as well do that as anything else. I must do something,

something besides sit in that room and see mocking faces in every corner, faces with dark eyes and scornful

lips which told me that my charming and cultivated society was not necessary to their happiness.

Taylor rented the upper floor of a house a quarter of a mile from the bank. His housekeeper answered my ring

"He did not even come home for supper," she said. "Stayed over to Nellie's probably. You'll most likely find

But I was pretty certain he was not at the Deans', for as I passed their house, I noticed the windows were

dark, indicating that the family, like most of respectable Denboro, had already retired. I walked on to the

Corners. Eldredge's store was closed, but the billiard room was radiant and noisy. I could hear Tim Hallet's

voice urging some one to take a new cue, "'cause that one ain't pocketed many balls yet."

I looked across at the bank. The front portion of it was black enough, but the window of the directors' room

was alight. I had located the object of my search; the cashier was there, working overtime, as he did so often

I had my key in my pocket and I unlocked the big door and entered quietly. The door of the directors' room

was open a little way and I tiptoed over and peeped in through the crack. Taylor was seated in a chair beside

the big table, his elbows upon the table and his head in his hands. As I stood there, watching him, he took his

hands away and I saw his face. Upon it was an expression of abject misery and utter despair. I opened the

He heard the sound of the opening door and leaped to his feet. His chair fell backward on the floor with a

He was deathly pale and trembling violently. His appearance startled and alarmed me.

"It's all right," I said, hastily. "It is IPaine. I saw the light and knew you must be here. What ails you? What

For a moment he stood there staring. Then he turned and picked up the fallen chair.

"George! what IS the matter with you? For heaven's sake! stand up, man!" He was swaying and I thought he

was going to faint. "George! George Taylor! Are you ill? I am going for the doctor."

"No, no! Stay where you are. I ain't sick. I'll be all right in a minute. Youyou scared me, creeping in that

He steadied himself with one hand on the table and with the other reached to shut a drawer which had been

open beside him. The drawer was almost full of papers, and, lying upon those papers, was a revolver.

He tried to pull his arm free. Finding that I would not let him do this he gave up the attempt and, with a poor

attempt at a laugh, answered, "Matter? Why, nothing is the matter. I am tired and nervous, same as I've told

you I've been for the last two or three months, and you scared me, tiptoeing in like a sneak thief, this time of

"Nothing is the matter, I tell you. Let go of my arm, Ros. What do you mean by holding on to me like this?"

I pointed to the drawer. He looked and, with a sudden effort, jerked his arm free and closed the drawer.

"That?" with a forced laugh. "Oh, that's nothing. It was late and I was alone here, so"

"I know better. George, you're frightening us all. Don't you suppose we can see that something is wrong with

you? I have seen it ever since I came here to work. You are worrying your friends. You worry me. Give us a

chance to help you. Give ME a chance. You owe me that. Tell me your trouble and I'll pull you out of it; see

My confidence was, of course, only pretence, but my earnestness had some effect. He looked at me wistfully,

"Nobody can pull me out," he said. "You're a good fellow to want to help, but you can't. There ain't any

"Humph! You're pretty plain spoken, Ros Paine. There ain't many people I'd take that from."

"You'll take it from me, because you can't help it and because you know it is true. Come, George; come. You

have been a friend to me; the only real friend I have had in years. I have been looking for a chance to get even

for what you have done for me. Maybe here is the chance. Let me help you. I will."

"George, for my sakewell, then, if not for my sake or your own, then for Nellie's, give me a chance. You

"The right of a friend, her friend and yours. You're frightening the poor girl to death. She is beginning to be

To my utter amazement he began to laugh. And then, all at once, his laughter ceased, he swayed, choked,

and, suddenly collapsing in the chair, dropped his head upon his arms on the table and sobbed, sobs that

For one strong, healthy, normal man to see another cry is a disconcerting and uncomfortable experience.

Masculine tears do not flow easily and poor George, on the verge of hysterics, was a pitiful and distressing

spectacle. I was almost as completely disorganized as he. I felt ashamed for him and ashamed of myself for

having seen him in such a condition. I wanted desperately to help him and I did not know what to do, so

beyond patting him on the back and begging him repeatedly to brace up and not behave like that, I did

nothing. At last his sobs ceased and he was silent. I had risen from my chair and now I stood there with a

hand on his shoulder; the ticking of the ancient eightsided clock on the wall sounded loud in the room.

"Well," he said, bitterly, "I'm a fine specimen of a man, ain't I. Ain't you proud of me?"

"Because I do know, Ros," he turned and looked me straight in the eye. "I am going to give you some good

advice. Take it, for your own sake. Clear out of here and leave me. Don't have anything more to do with me.

"Are you going to do as I tell you?" he demanded. "Mind, I'm telling you this for your own good. Will you

"Don't be a fool. You can't afford to be my friend. Clear out and leave me, do you hear?"

"Then, by the Almighty, I'll tell you!" he cried, fiercely. "It'll be all over the county in a week. You might as

well know it now. I'm a crook. I'm a thief. I've stolen money from this bank and I can't pay it back because I

haven't got it and can't get it. I'm a crook, I tell you, and in a week or so it'll be the county jail for mine.

Unlessunless," with a significant glance at the drawer, "something else happens to me in the meantime.

There; now you know. Are you satisfied? Are you happy because you've found out?"

I did not answer. To tell the truth I was not entirely overcome by surprise at the disclosure. I had begun to

suspect something of the sort. Yet, now that my suspicions were confirmed, I was too greatly shocked and

He stared at me aghast. "You won't go?" he cried. "Youyou are going to stick by me eveneven"

"There! there! pull yourself together, old fellow. We won't give up the ship yet. How much is it? It can't be a

"It ain't. But, Rosyouyou can'tyou mustn't be mixed up in this. I shan't let you. Don't you see?"

I argued and pleaded and reasoned with him for what seemed a long time before he would consent to tell me

the whole story. And when it was told there was nothing new or novel in it. The old tale of an honest man

who had not meant to go wrong, but, tempted by one of those wiles of the devil, an "inside tip" on the stock

market, had bought heavily on margins, expecting to clear a handsome profit in a short time. The stock was

Louisville and Transcontinental and the struggle for its control by certain big interests had made copy for

financial writers for nearly a year. George had bought at a time when one syndicate had, so it believed,

Then something went wrong in the deal and the shares began to decline in value. He put up more margins and

still more, but it continued to decline. Finally under the spur of another "tip," the last of his own savings

having gone to the insatiate brokers, he sent, to bolster his account and to save him from utter ruin, some

"Not much," he declared, "only about thirtyfive hundred dollars' worth, that's all. I never would have done

it, Ros, but I was wild, desperate, you see. Here I was, getting ready to be married; Nellie and Cap'n Jed and

the rest believing me to be comfortably fixed. It's easy enough now to say that I ought to have gone to her and

told her. If I hadn't been certain that the market would turn and I'd be all right in a week, I'd have done it. But

I was sure I'd be all right and I couldn't take the chance. I knew what her father would say about her marrying

a pauper, and I just couldn't take the risk of losing her; I couldn't. She means more to me thanthanoh,

wait until your time comes! Wait until the girl comes along that you care for more than the whole world. And

then see what you'd do. See what it would mean to give her up! Just waitwait and see!"

"Yes, yes," I put in, hastily. "I understand, George. But the stock, Louisville and Transcontinental, how is it

"Just the same. It is dead, practically speaking. It hasn't moved half a point for six weeks. I've been expecting

it would, but it hasn't. It's all right; the value is there; I know it. If I could only hang on and wait I could get

my money back, part of it, anyhow. But I can't. I can't wait. And the broker people have got those bonds. Ros,

I've been fighting this thing for weeks and weeks. I ain't slept a night for years, or so it seems. And next

"Here, here! Don't do that," I urged. "Brace up. You and I must work this out. Wasn't there any one you could

go to? Anyone you could borrow the money of? Thirtyfive hundred isn't such a lot."

"Whom could I go to? I tried. Lord knows I tried! I did borrow a thousand of Cap'n Elisha Warren; trumped

up some excuse or other and got that. But that was all he could let me have. And I know he thought my

"Dean? Cap'n Jed? Her father? Oh, Ros, don't be a fool altogether! I beg your pardon, old man! I don't mean

it. You mustn't mind. I ain't responsible for what I say just now. But I couldn't go to Cap'n Jed. You know

him. He's as straight and square and honest as he is obstinate and cranky. If I went to him I couldn't tell him

the truth. And if I lied he'd suspect and want to know why I needed to borrow money. And Nelliedon't you

see? There's the real awfulness of the whole thing. I couldn't go to her and tell her I was a thief. I couldn't see

"But why? The stock may go up any day and then you could withdraw part of your margin."

He struck the table with another blow. "The stock ain't moved for six weeks, I tell you," he declared. "And,

Ros," he leaned forward, his haggard face working with emotion, "those bonds ain't in our safe here, where

they should be, and the bank examiner is due here within the next four days. He's at Middleboro now. I

'phoned Bearse, the cashier there, this very forenoon on a matter of business, and he happened to mention that

the examiner was in his bank and working his way down the Cape. It's all up with me! All up! And Nellie!

poor girl; I can't be here when she finds it out. I know you think I'm a poor specimen of a man, Ros, but I

"Stop it!" I commanded. "Stop it, George! Let me think. Be quiet now and let me think. There must be a way

He leaned back in his chair. "All right," he said, hopelessly; "think, if you want to. Though why you should

want to think about a thing like me I don't see. And I used to despise a crook as much as any one! and a

I knew his cowardice was merely on Nellie's account. George Taylor was no coward in the ordinary sense of

the word, nor was he a crook. I rose and paced up and down the room. He watched me listlessly; it was plain

that he felt no confidence whatever in my being able to help him. After a time he spoke.

"It's no use, Ros," he said. "Don't worry your head about me; I ain't worth it. If there was any way out, any

way at all, I'd have sighted it long ago. There ain't. Take my advice and leave me. You don't want to be mixed

I turned on him, impatiently. "I have been mixed up, as you call it, with one before," I said, sharply. "Is my

own family record so clean that I need to pretendthere, George! don't be an idiot. Let me think."

"George," I said, "tell me this: If you had the money to buy back these bonds belonging to the bank you

would be all right, wouldn't you? If you had it in your hands by tomorrow morning, I mean."

"Send! I wouldn't send; I'd go myself and fetch the bonds back with me. Once I had them in that safe again

"And you would not take any more risks, even if the market dropped and they had to sell out your account?

The fierce earnestness of his answer satisfied even me. "What do you think I am?" he demanded. "Investment

be hanged! It's my name as an honest man that I care about. Once let me get that back again and I'll face the

poorhouse. Yes, and I'll tell Nellie the truth, all except that I was a thief; I can't tell her that. But I will tell her

that I haven't got a cent except my salary. Then if she wants to give me up, all right. I'll bear it as best I can.

Or, if she doesn't, and I lose my job here, I'll get another one somewhere else; I'll work at anything. She and I

can wait and . . . But what is the use of talking like this? I've been over every inch of the ground a thousand

times. There ain't a ray of light anywhere. The examiner will be here, the bonds will be missing, and II'll

"Because there IS a ray of light. More than a ray. George, you go home and go to bed. Tomorrow morning I

"Good news!" he gasped. "Good news for ME! RosRos, for the Lord's sake, what do you mean? You don't

"Never mind what I mean. But I should like to know what you mean by not coming to me before? What are

"You? Why, you ain't got . . . Have you? Ros Paine, you ain't got thirtyfive hundred to spare. Why, you told

"Shut up! Get up from that chair and come with me. Yes, you; and now, this minute. Give me that thing

you've got in the drawer there. No, I'll take it myself. You ought to be ashamed of its being there, George. I

am ashamed of you, and, if I thought you really meant to use it, I should be still more ashamed. Come! don't

I dragged him, almost literally dragged him, from the chair. Then, after extinguishing the lamp, I led him to

"Now," said I, "I want you to make me a promise. I want you to quit behaving like a coward, because you are

not one, and promise me that you will go straight home and to bed. I'll see you again the first thing in the

morning. Then, I thinkyes, I think your troubles, the worst part of them, will be over."

"Not a word. Will you promise me to behave like a man and go home? Or must I go with you?"

I left him standing there, stammering incoherently like a man awakening from a nightmare, and hurried away.

I could not describe my progress down the dark Lower Road and along the Shore Lane. I do not remember

any portion of it. I think I ran most of the way and if I met any onewhich is not likely, considering the

timehe or she must have thought me crazy. My thoughts were centered upon one fixed purpose. I had

made up my mind to do a certain thing and, if possible, to do it that very night. If I did not, if I had time in

which to reflect, to consider consequences, I might lose my nerve and it would not be done at all.

It was with a feeling of great relief that, as I came in sight of the Colton house, I saw lights in the rooms on

the lower floor. The family, not being native born Denboroites, had not retired even though it was well after

ten. I hastened up the long drive, and stood before the big door, my hand upraised to the knocker. And then,

If I lifted that knocker and let it fall; if I summoned the servant and announced that I wished to speak with

Mr. Colton; if I did what I had come there to do, it would be all over with me in the village. My new born

popularity, the respect which Cap'n Warren and Cap'n Jed and the rest of the townspeople had shown toward

me of late, the cordial recognition which had been mine during the past few weeks and which, in spite of

pretended indifference, I had come to expect and enjoy, all these would be lost if I persisted in my purpose.

My future in Denboro depended upon whether or not I knocked at that door. And it was not too late to back

out, even yet. I had only to turn quietly away and tell George, when I saw him in the morning, that I could not

help him as I had hoped. And then I thought of his face as I saw it when I entered the bankand of Nellie's

For a few moments my knock was unanswered. Then I heard footsteps and the door was opened. Johnson, the

butler, opened it, and his clerical countenance assumed a most astonished expression when he saw me

"What? Whatsir?" stammered Johnson. The "sir" was added under protest. He did not wish to show more

respect than was absolutely necessary to a countryman, but he scarcely dared speak as disrespectfully as he

felt. Therefore he compromised by voicing the respect and looking the other way.

The windows at my left were, I knew, those of the library, the room where "Big Jim" and I had had our first

"I think he is," I said. "In fact I know it; there is his shadow on the curtain. Tell him Mr. Paine wishes to

"It is very late," he said. "Mr. Colton is not in the 'abit of receiving callers at this time of night and"

He was interrupted. The door behind him, the door leading from the library to the hall, opened and Colton

"No sir," he said; "nothing wrong exactly, sir. There is a person 'ere to see you, sir, and"

"Come in, come in," he interrupted. "What are you standing out there for? Johnson, why didn't you ask Mr.

"You thought! If I had wanted any one to think I never should have hired you. Come in, Paine. Come into the

He led the way to the library and I followed him. It was my second visit to the big, handsomely furnished

room and again, as on the first occasion, the sight of the books and all the other refinements and luxuries

which money brings to its possessor gave me a pang of envy and resentment. It added increased bitterness to

the humiliation of my errand. I had left that room defiantly expressing my independence. I had come back to

"Sit down," ordered Colton, pulling forward the big, leather covered chair. "Have a cigar?"

"Humph! That's what you said when you were here before. You're young, Paine. When you get to be as old as

I am you'll never refuse a good cigar, or anything else that is good, when it is offered you. Well, you're still

That was exactly what I was going to do. I would not sit down in that house. I would not accept the slightest

courtesy from this man or any of his people. I would get rid of the unpleasant task I had come to do and then

go away, never to return. They might make the most of the triumph which was to be theirs, but I would

compel them to understand that I was not seeking their favor. I would not accept their patronage and they

should know it. This, as I look back at it now, seems silly and childish enough, but I was not myself that

"Mr. Colton," said I, ignoring the proffered chair, "I have come to see you on a matter of business."

"Business, eh? Umph! I thought probably you were going to ask me to go fishing with you again. I'm all

ready for another tussle with thosewhat do you call 'emsquidsquitgood Lord! what a name for a

decent fish! But I don't care a continental what you call 'em. I'm ready to get at 'em when you say the word."

"What is the matter with you?" he asked. "You haven't got a balky digestion, have you? I've been fighting one

for the last week. That fool of a country doctor tells me if I'm not careful what I eat I'll keel over pretty soon.

I told him I'd eaten what I dashed please ever since I'd had teeth and I wasn't going to quit now. But I do feel

He did look ill, that was a fact, though I had not noticed it before and was far from feeling pity for him then.

In fact I was rather glad to know that he was uncomfortable. I wanted him to be.

"What is the matter with you?" he demanded. "You look as if you had seen your grandmother's ghost."

I ignored the question. "Mr. Colton," I began again. "You made an offer not long ago."

"In a way? What do you mean by that? I tell you frankly, Paine, if you go to work for me there must be no

'ifs' or 'buts' about it. You'll enter my office and you'll do as I, or the men under me, tell you to do."

I was glad he said that, glad that he misunderstood me. It gave me an opportunity to express my feelings

"Don't let that trouble you," I said, sarcastically. "There will be no 'ifs' and 'buts' so far as that is concerned. I

have no desire to work for you, Mr. Colton, and I don't intend doing so. That was not the offer I meant."

He was surprised, I am sure, but he did not express astonishment. He bent forward and looked at me more

"There was only one other offer that I remember making you," he said, slowly. "That was for that land of

yours. I offered you five thousand dollars for it. Do you mean you accept that offer?"

"Humph! Paine, we're wasting a lot of time here, it seems to me. My time is more or less valuable, and my

digestion is, as I told you, pretty bad. Come! get it over. What do you mean? Are you going to sell me that

"That is my own affair. I will sell you the land, but not for five thousand dollars."

"I see," he sneered. "Humph! Well, I've tried to make it plain to you fellows down here that I couldn't be held

up. I thought I'd done it, but evidently I haven't. Five hundred is a good price for that land. Five thousand is

ridiculous, but I gave you my reasons for being willing to be robbed that much. That, however, is the limit.

"I'll get out very shortly," I said. "You are no more anxious to have that happen than I am. I don't want your

other cent. I don't want your five thousand dollars. I'll sell you the land on one conditionno, on two. The

I had upset his composure this time. He forgot to sneer; he even forgot to smoke.

"I know your offer. This is mine: I will sell you the land for thirtyfive hundred, and not another cent. That,

as you say, is the limit. You can take it oror I will follow your suggestion and get out."

We looked at each other. His fingers moved toward the match box on the table. He took a match, scratched it,

and held it to the end of his cigar. Then he took the cigar from his lips, blew out the match and tossed the

"Yes, now. Tonight if possible; if not, no later than nine o'clock tomorrow morning."

"Humph! . . . Look here, Paine; what? I offered you the five thousand. That offer holds good."

"I don't know. Yes, I do, too. You said once that you were willing to pay fortyfive hundred for the privilege

of having your own way. Perhaps I am willing to sacrifice fifteen hundred for the privilege of having mine.

"No. It is useless to argue, Mr. Colton, and useless to ask my reasons. I have them, and that is enough. Will

He hesitated. The sneer had left his face and his tone when he addressed me was respectful, though there was

a curious note of chagrin or dissatisfaction in it. I had expected him to be eager and, perhaps, mockingly

"I suppose I'll have to," he said. "But, Paine, what is up? Why are you doing this? You're not afraid of me?

No, of course you're not. You're not the kind to squeal and lie down because you think the odds are against

you . . . Confound you!" with a sudden burst of impatience, "you are enough to upset all the selfconceit a

man's got in him. Just as I think I'm beginning to size you up you break loose in a new place."

"Pardon me," I put in, "but I don't see that you are helping to save that valuable time of yours. I understand

He rose, threw away his cigar, and, with his hands in his pockets, stood regarding me.

"Humph! Have you thought of what our mutual friend Dean and the rest of the patriots may say when they

I had thought of little else all the way from the bank to his door. I was thinking of it then.

"You're right; it isn't. Stillhang it all, Paine! I don't often feel any compunctions when I beat a fellow in a

"Because I am not so sure I am having it. Of course I can see that, for some reason or other, you need

thirtyfive hundred dollars. Anyone but you, if they were going to sell, would get the last dime they could

"Oh, do cut it short," I snapped. And then, a trifle ashamed of my rudeness, "Excuse me, Mr. Colton, but this

"Hold on; let me finish. I was going to say that, if you needed the thirtyfive, perhaps I could manage to let

"Why, yes, maybe. You and I have had such a firstrate, square, stand up fight that I rather hate to have it

end. I want to lick you, not have you quit before I've really begun to fight. There's no fool philanthropy in

I was so taken aback by this totally unexpected offer from the man whom I had insulted a dozen times since I

"No," I faltered. And then more firmly, "No; certainly not. II am much obliged to you, Mr. Colton,

"All right. You know best. I'll take your offer and I will hand you the money at the bank tomorrow morning.

"Not at the bank, Mr. Colton. Send it over to the house, if you can conveniently."

"I'll have it here before ten. My lawyer will draw up the papers and arrange for transfer of title in a few days.

What? Going, are you? Good night. OherPaine, remember that my other offer, that of the place in my

I shook my head. I had turned to go, but now I turned back, feeling that, perhaps, I should apologize again for

my rudeness. After all, he had been kind, very kind, and I had scarcely thanked him. So I turned back to say

My doing so was a mistake. The door behind me opened and a voice said reproachfully, "Father, are you still

I recognized the voice. Of all voices in the world I wished least to hear it just then. My back was toward the

door and I kept it so. If she would only go! If she would only shut that door and go away!

"Mabel," he cried, "Mabel, don't go. It's all right. Come in. Paine and I have finished our talk. Nothing more

"No," said I. I was obliged to turn now; I could not get out of that room without doing it. So turn I did, and

She said, "Good evening," distantly and without any enthusiasm, but I saw her glance at her father and then at

"Paine has been making me a little call," explained Colton, his eye twinkling. "Mabel, I'll risk another bet that

"Oh, you'd better! No? You won't? Well, then, I'll tell you. He has just sold me that land of his . . . Don't look

at me like that; he has. We had a little disagreement as to price, but," with a grin, "I met his figures and we

closed the deal. Aren't you going to congratulate him on having come to his senses at last? Come! he's

This was not true. I was waiting for nothing; I was on my way to the door. But, to reach it I was obliged to

pass her and our eyes met. My glance wavered, I know, but hers did not. For a moment she looked at me.

Then she smiled. Whenever I am tempted to be vain, even now, I remember that smile.

I am not going to attempt a description of my thoughts that night. It would take too long and the description

would be wearisome. Other people's miseries are not interesting and I shall not catalog mine. Morning came

at last and I rose, bathed my hot face in cold water, and went down stairs. Early as it was, not yet six, I heard

Dorinda in the kitchen and, having no desire for conversation, I went out and walked up and down the beach

until breakfast time. I had to pretend to eat, but I ate so little that both Lute and Dorinda once more

commented upon my lack of appetite. Lute, who had never become fully reconciled to my becoming a

member of the working class, hastened to lay the blame for my condition upon my labors at the bank.

"The trouble is," he announced, dogmatically, "the trouble is, Roscoe, that you ain't fitted for bein' shut up

astern of a deck. Look at yourself now! Just go into Comfort's room and stand in front of her lookin' glass and

look at yourself. There you be, pale and peaked and wore out. Look for all the world just as I done when I

"If you mean to say that you looked peaked when you had sore throat," she announced, "then there's

somethin' the matter with your mind or your eyesight, one or t'other. You peaked? Why, your face was

swelled up like a young one's balloon Fourth of July Day. And as for bein' pale! My soul! I give you my word

I couldn't scurcely tell where your neck left off and the strip of red flannel you made me tie 'round it begun."

"Don't make no difference! I FELT pale, anyhow. And I didn't eat no more'n Ros does. You'll have to give in

"Maybe I did," with grieved dignity; "maybe I did. But that's no reason why you should set there and heave

"What is the man talkin' about now? I didn't heave 'em in your face. They come there themselves, same as

sore throat sufferin's generally do, and if you hadn't waded around in the snow with leaky boots, because you

Lute drew back from the table. "It's no use!" he declared, "a man can't even be sick in peace in this house.

Some wives would have been sorry to see their husbands with one foot in the grave."

"Your feet was in the cookstove oven most of the time. There! there! the more you talk the further from home

you get. You started in with Roscoe and the bank and you're in the grave already. If I was you I'd quit afore I

went any further. Land knows where you might fetch up if you kept on! I . . . Mercy on us! who's at the

Her husband, ever curious, was on his way to answer the knock already. He came back, a moment later,

"It's that Mr. butler, the Johnson over to Mr. Colton's," he whispered. "I mean it's that Jutlerthat There,

Dorindy! you see what sort of a state your hectorin' has worked me into! It's that parson critter who opens

Colton's door for him, that's who 'tis. And he wants to see Ros. I tried to find out what for, but he wouldn't

Even Dorinda showed surprise. She looked at the clock, "This hour of the mornin'!" she exclaimed; "what in

I hastened to the kitchen, closing the diningroom door behind me just in time to prevent Lute's following

me. Johnson, the butler, was standing on the mica slab at the threshold inspecting our humble premises with

"Mr. Colton sent this to you, sir," he said, handing me an envelope. "He wishes you to send a receipt by me."

I took the envelope and, stepping back out of sight, tore it open. Inside was a check on a New York bank for

four thousand dollars. It was made payable to "Bearer." With it was this brief note:

This is the best I can do for you, as I haven't the money on hand. Cash it yourself, take out your thirtyfive

hundred and hold the additional five hundred until I, or one of the family, call for it. I made the thing payable

to Bearer because I imagined you would prefer it that way. Send me some sort of receipt by Johnson;

anything will do. I will see my lawyer in a day or two. Meanwhile have your papers, deeds, etc., ready when

For a minute I considered. If I could cash the check at the bank without Taylor's knowledge and get him off

to Boston on the early train, I might be able to cover my tracks. It was necessary that they should be covered.

Knowing George as I did I knew that he would never consent to my sacrifice. He would not permit me to

wreck my future in Denboro to save him. The money must be turned over to the Boston bankers and the

bank's bonds once more in the vault where they belonged before he learned where that money came from.

Then it would be too late to refuse and too late to undo what had been done. He would have to accept and I

might be able to prevail upon him to keep silent regarding the whole affair. I disliked the check with Colton's

name upon it; I should have much preferred the cash; but cash, it seemed, could not be had without

considerable delay, and with that bank examiner's visit imminent every moment of time was valuable. I

folded the check, put it in my pocketbook, and, hastily scribbling a receipt in pencil at the bottom of Colton's

note, replaced the latter in the envelope and handed it to Johnson, who departed.

Entering the diningroom I found Dorinda and Lute at the window, peering after the butler.

"By time!" exclaimed Lute, "if I didn't know I should say he was a bigger bigbug than old Colton himself.

Look how he struts! He sartin is a dignified lookin' man. I don't see how he ever come to be just hired help."

"Umhm," sniffed the cynical Mrs. Rogers. "Well; you can get an awful lot of dignity for its board and

lodgin'! There's nothin' much more dignified or struts much better'n a rooster, but it's the hens that lay the

I made some excuse or other for Mr. Johnson's early call and, taking my cap from the rack, hurried from the

house. I went "across lots" and, running a good part of the way, reached the bank just as Sam Wheeler was

sweeping out. He expressed surprise at my early arrival and wished to know what was up.

"Ain't nothin' wrong, is there, Ros?" asked Sam anxiously. "I saw by the paper that the market was feverish

Sam was an ambitious youth and, being desirous of becoming a banker in the shortest possible time, read the

financial page with conscientious thoroughness. I assured him that the market's fever was not contagiousat

least I had not contracted the diseaseand sent him out to sweep the front steps. As soon as he had gone I

opened the safe, found, to my joy, that we had an abundance of currency on hand, cashed the Colton check

and locked it securely in the drawer of my own desk. So far I was safe. Now to secure George's safety.

He came in soon after, looking as if, as he had told me, he had not slept for years. He bade Sam good

I led the way and he followed me. I closed the door behind us, took the thirtyfive hundred dollars in notes

"There's the money, George," I said. "Now you've got just time enough to catch that nine o'clock train for

I thought, for a moment, he was going to collapse altogether. Then he pounced upon the money, counted it

"There! there!" I interrupted. "I told you I wasn't a pauper exactly. Put that where you won't lose it and clear

"Butbut, Ros, I hadn't ought to take this from you. I don't see where you got it and"

I seized his arm. "George," I urged, impatiently, "you fool, don't waste time. Get that train, do you hear!

The mention of the bonds did what my urging had failed to do. He crammed the bills into his pocket book,

thrust the latter into an inside pocket, and rushed from the room. I followed him as far as the outer door. He

"For mercy sakes!" he cried, "what's the matter with the boss? Has he gone loony?"

"No," I said, turning back to my desk; "he's sane enough, I guess. He's after the train."

"I should think he was after somethin'. Did you see the face he had on him? If he ain't crazy then you and I

"All right, Sam," I answered, drawing a long breath, "perhaps that's it. Perhaps you and I are the crazy

All that day I worked hard. I did not go home for lunch, but sent Sam over to Eldredge's store for canned ham

and crackers which I ate at my desk. It was a fairly busy day, fortunately, and I could always find some task

to occupy my mind. Lute called, at two o'clock, to inquire why I had not been home and I told him that

"It's just as I said," he declared, "you're workin' yourself sick, that's what you're doin'. You're growin' foolish

in the head about work, just the same as Dorindy. And YOU don't need to; you've got money enough. If I had

independent means same as you've got I tell you I'd have more sense. One sick invalid in the family's enough,

"No doubt, Lute," I replied. "At all events you must take care of your health. Don't YOU work yourself sick."

Lute turned on me. "I try not to," he said, seriously; "I try not to, but it's a hard job. You know what that wife

of mine is cal'latin' to have me do next? Wash the hen house window! Yes sir! wash the window so's the hens

can look at the scenery, I presume likely. I says to her, says I, 'That beats any foolishness ever I heard! Next

thing you'll want me to put down a carpet in the pigsty, won't ye? You would if we kept a pig, I know.'"

"Oh, the land knows! Somethin' about keepin' one pig bein' trouble enough. I didn't pay much attention. But I

I shouldn't have bet much on it. He went away, to spend the next hour in a political debate at Eldredge's, and I

wrote letters, needlessly long ones. Closing time came and Sam went home, leaving me to lock up. The train

was due at sixtwenty, but it was nearly seven before I heard it whistle at the station. I stood at the front

I waited only a few minutes, but they were long ones. Then I saw George coming, not running this time, but

walking with rapid strides. The crowd, waiting on the postoffice steps, shouted at him but he paid no

attention. He sprang up the steps and entered the bank. I stepped forward and seized his hand. One look at his

"Ros, you here!" he exclaimed. "Is it all right? The examiner hasn't showed up?"

"Right in my pocket, thank the Lordand you, Ros Paine. Just let me get them into that safe and I What!

"Yes, I'm going. I congratulate you, George. I am as glad as you are. Good night."

"But Ros, I want to tell you about it. I want to thank you again. I never shall forget . . . Ros, hold on!"

But I was already at the door. "Good night," I called again, and went out. I went straight home, ate supper,

spent a half hour with Mother, and then went to my room and to bed. The excitement was over, for good or

bad the thing was done beyond recall, and I suddenly realized that I was very tired. I fell asleep almost

I had plenty of time to think during the fortnight which followed and there was enough to think about. The

lawyer came and the papers were signed transferring to James W. Colton the strip of land over which

Denboro had excited itself for months. Each day I sat at my desk expecting Captain Dean and a delegation of

indignant citizens to rush in and denounce me as a traitor and a turncoat. Every time Sam Wheeler met me at

my arrival at the bank I dreaded to look him in the face, fearing that he had learned of my action and was

waiting to question me about it. In spite of all my boasts and solemn vows not to permit "Big Jim" Colton to

obtain the Shore Lane I had sold it to him; he could, and it was to be expected that he would, close it at once;

Denboro would make its just demand upon me for explanations, explanations which, for George and Nellie's

sake, I could not give; and after that the deluge. I was sitting over a powder mine and I braced myself for the

But hours and days passed and no explosion came. The fishcarts rattled down the Lane without hindrance.

Except for the little flurry of excitement caused by the coming wedding at the Dean homestead the village life

moved on its lazy, uneventful jog. I could not understand it. Why did Colton delay? He, whose one object in

life was to have his own way, had it once more. Now that he had it why didn't he make use of it? Why was he

holding back? Out of pity for me? I did not believe it. Much more likely that his daughter, whose pride I had

dared to offend, had taken the affair in her hands and this agony of suspense was a preliminary torture, a part

I saw her occasionally, although I tried my best not to do so. Once we passed each other on the street and I

stubbornly kept my head turned in the other direction. I would risk no more looks such as she had given me

when, in response to her father's wouldbe humorous suggestion, she had offered me her "congratulations."

Once, too, I saw her on the bay, I was aboard the Comfort, having just anchored after a short cruise, and she

went by in the canoe, her newest plaything, which had arrived by freight a few days before. A canoe in

Denboro Bay was a distinct novelty; probably not since the days of the Indians had one of the light, graceful

little vessels floated there, and this one carried much comment among the old salts alongshore. It was the

"Them things," said Zeb Kendrick, sagely, "are all right for ponds or rivers or cricks where there ain't no tide

nor sea runnin'. Float anywheres where there's a heavy dew, they say they will. But no darter of mine should

"Yup; well, Zeb, you ain't got the say, I cal'late," observed Thoph Newcomb. "And it takes more'n say to get

a skiff like that one. They tell me the metal work aboard her is silverplatedsilver or gold, I ain't sure

which. Wonder the old man didn't make it solid gold while he was about it. He'd do anything for that girl if

she asked him to. And she sartin does handle it like a bird! She went by my dory t'other mornin' and I swan to

man if she and the canoe together wan't a sight for sore eyes. I set and watched her for twenty minutes."

"Umyees," grunted Zeb. "And then you charged the twenty minutes in against the day's work quahaugin'

"You can take out the ten cents when you pay meif you ever do," said Newcomb, gallantly. "'Twas wuth

The time had been when I should have agreed with Thoph. Sitting in the canoe, bareheaded, her hair tossing

in the breeze, and her rounded arms swinging the light paddle, she was a sight for sore eyes, doubtless. But it

was not my eyes which were sore, just then. I watched her for a moment and then bent over my engine. I did

I did not tell Mother that I had sold the land. I intended to do so; each morning I rose with my mind made up

to tell her, and always I put off the telling until some other time. I knew, of course, that she should be told;

that I ought to tell her rather than to have her learn the news from others as she certainly would at almost any

moment, but I knew, too, that even to her I could not disclose my reason for selling. I must keep George's

secret as he had kept mine and take the consequences with a close mouth and as much of my old indifference

to public opinion as I could muster. But I realized, only too well, that the indifference which had once been

I have said very little about George Taylor's gratitude to me, nor his appreciation of what I had done for him.

"You've saved my good name and my life, Ros," he said, over and over again, "and not only my life, but what

is a mighty sight more worth saving, Nellie's happiness. I don't know how you did it; I believe yet that there

is something behind all this, that you're keeping something from me. I can't see how, considering all you've

said to me about your not being welloff, you got that money so quick. But I know you don't want me to talk

"I don't, George," I said. "All I ask of you is just to forget the whole thing."

"Forget! I shan't forget while I live. And, as soon as ever I can scrape it together, I'll pay you back that loan."

He had kept his word, so far as telling Nellie of his financial condition was concerned. He had not, of course,

told her of his use of the bank bonds, but he had, as he said he would, told her that, in all probability, he

"I told her she was free to give me up," he said, with emotion, "and what do you suppose she said to me? That

she would marry me if she knew she must live in the poorhouse the rest of her days. Yes, and be happy, so

long as we could be together. Well, I ain't worth it, and I told her so, but I'll do my best to be worth

"I don't think there's much danger of that," I said. "And, by the way, George, your Louisville and

Transcontinental speculation may not be all loss. You may save something out of it. There has been

considerable trading in the stock during the past two days. It is up half a point already, according to the

"Yes, I noticed it. But I tell you, Ros, I don't care. I'll be glad to get some of my money back, of course;

enough to pay you and Cap'n Elisha anyhow; but I'm so happy to think that Nellie need never know I was a

Nellie was happy, too. She came to me and told me of her happiness. It was all on George's account, of

"The poor fellow had lost money in investments," she said, "and he thought I would not care for him if I

found out he was poor. He isn't poor, of course, but if he was it would make no difference to me. I am so glad

to see him without that dreadful worried look on his face that II Oh, you must think me awful silly,

Roscoe! I guess I am. I know I am. But you are the only one I can talk to in this way aboutabout him. All

Ma wants to talk about now is the wedding and clothes and such, and Pa always treats me as if I was a child. I

feel almost as if you were the closest friend I have, and I know George feels the same. He says you have

helped him out of his troubles. I was sure you would; that is why I wrote you that letter. We are both SO

Their gratitude and the knowledge of their happiness were my sole consolations in this trying time. They kept

me from repenting what I had done. It was hard not to repent. If Colton had only made known his purchase

and closed the Lane at once, while my resolution was red hot, I could have faced the wrath of the village and

its inevitable consequences fairly well, I believed; but he still kept silent and made no move. I saw him once

or twice; on one occasion he came into the bank, but he came only to cash a check and did not mention the

subject of the Lane. He did not look well to me and I heard him tell Taylor something about his "damned

The wedding day came. I, as best man, was busy and thankful for the bustle and responsibility. They

occupied my mind and kept it from dwelling on other things. George worked at the bank until noon, getting

ready to leave the institution in my charge and that of Dick Small, Henry's brother, who had reported for duty

that morning. The marriage was to take place at half past one in the afternoon and the bridal couple were to

go away on the three o'clock train. The honeymoon trip was to be a brief one, only a week.

Every ablebodied native of Denboro, man, woman and child, attended that wedding, I honestly believe. It

was the best sort of advertising for Olinda Cahoon and Simeon Eldredge, for Olinda had made the gowns

worn by the bride and the bride's mother and a number of the younger female guests, and Sim had sold

innumerable bottles of a peculiarly penetrating perfume, a large supply of which he had been talked into

"Smell it, Ros, do ye?" whispered Sim, grinning triumphantly between the points of a "standup" collar. "I

give you my word when that slicktalkin' drummer sold me all that perfumery, I thought I was stuck sure and

sartin. But then I had an idee. Every time women folks come into the store and commenced to talk about the

weddin' I says to 'em, says I, 'Can't sell you a couple of handkerchiefs to cry on, can I, Miss Soandso?

Weddin's are great places for sheddin' tears, you know.' If I sold 'em the handkerchiefs all well and good; but

if they laughed and said they had a plenty, I got out my sample bottle of 'May Lilock', that's the name of the

cologne, and asked 'em to smell of it. 'If you cry with that on your handkerchief,' says I, 'all hands will be

glad to have you do it. And only twenty cents a bottle!' You wouldn't believe how much I sold. You can smell

You could, and you continued to smell it long after you left. My best suit reeked of "May Lilac" weeks later

Dorinda was there, garbed in rustling black alpaca, her Sunday gown for ten years at least, and made over and

"turned" four or five times. Lute was on deck, cutaway coat, "high water" trousers and purple tie, grand to

look upon, Alvin Baker and Elnathan Mullet and Alonzo Black and Thoph Newcomb and Zeb Kendrick

were, as the Item would say, "among those present" and if Zeb's black cutaway smelled slightly of fish it was,

Captain Jed strutted pompously about, monarch of the day. He greeted me genially.

"Hello, Ros!" he said. "You out here? Thought you'd be busy overhaulin' George's runnin' riggin' and makin'

"All right, all right. Matildy give me fits for not stayin' upstairs until the startin' gun was fired, but I told her

that, between her with her eyes full of tears and Olindy Cahoon with her mouth full of pins, 'twas no place for

a male man. So I cleared out till everything was shipshape. Say, Ros," he laid his hand on my shoulder and

bent to whisper in my ear: "Say, Ros," he said, "I'm glad to see you're takin' my advice."

"Yes; about not playin' with fire, you know. I ain't heard of you and the Princess cruisin' together for the past

week. Thought 'twas best not to be too familiar with the R'yal family, didn't you? That's right, that's right. We

can't take chances. We've got Denboro and the Shore Lane to think about, ain't we?"

"She's liable to be here most any time, I cal'late," he went on. "Nellie would insist on invitin' her. And I must

say that, to be honest, the present she sent is the finest that's come aboard yet. The only thing I've got against

her is her bad judgment in pickin' a father. If 'twan't for that Ihello! WhoWhy, I believe"

There was a commotion among the guests and heads were turned toward the door. The captain started

forward. I started back. She had entered the room and was standing there, looking about her with smiling

interest. I had forgotten that, considering her friendship with Nellie, she was certain to be invited.

She was dressed in a simple, but wonderful, white gown and wore a bunch of lilies of the valley at her

bosom. The doorway was decorated with sprays of honeysuckle and green boughs and against this

background she made a picture that brought admiring whispers from the people near me. She did not notice

me at first and I think I should have escaped by the side door if it had not been for Sim Eldredge. Simeon was

"Why, how d'ye do, Miss Colton!" exclaimed Sim. "You're just in time, ain't ye! Let me get you a chair.

Alvin," to Mr. Baker, who, perspiring beneath the unaccustomed dignity of a starched shirt front, occupied a

She looked in Sim's direction and saw me, standing beside him. I had no opportunity to avoid her look now,

as I had done when we met in the street. She saw me and I could not turn away. I bowed. She did not

acknowledge the bow. She looked calmly past me, through me. I saw, or fancied that I saw, astonishment on

the faces of those watching us. Captain Jed stepped forward to greet her and I went into the adjoining room,

"Good land, Ros!" he exclaimed, with a sigh of relief, "I was beginning to be afraid you'd skipped out and left

me to go through it all alone. Say something to brace me up, won't you; I'm scared to death. Say," with a

wondering glance at my face, "what's struck YOU? You look more upset than I feel."

I believe I ordered him not to be an idiot. I know I did not "brace him up" to any extent.

It was a very pretty wedding. At least every one said it was, although they say the same of all weddings, I am

told. Personally I was very glad when it was over. Nellie whispered in my ear as I offered her my

congratulations, "We owe it all to you, Roscoe." George said nothing, but the look he gave me as he wrung

my hand was significant. For a moment I forgot myself, forgot to be envious of those to whom the door for

happiness was not shut. After all I had opened the door for these two, and that was something.

I walked as far as the corner with Lute and Dorinda. Dorinda's eyes were red and her husband commented

"I thought a weddin' was supposed to be a joyful sort of thing," he said, disgustedly. "It's usually cal'lated to

be. Yet you and the rest of the women folks set and cried through the whole of it. What in time was there to

"Oh, I don't know, Luther," replied Dorinda in, for her, an unusually tolerant tone. "Perhaps it's because we've

"I don't forget, no more'n you do. I ain't so old that I can't remember that fur back, I hope. But it don't make

"Well, all right. We won't argue about it. Let's be pleasant as we can, for once."

Now that is where Lute should have taken the hint and remained silent. At least he should have changed the

subject. But he was hot and uncomfortable and, I suspect, his Sunday shoes were tight. He persisted.

"Huh!" he sniffed; "I don't see's you've given me no sensible reason for cryin'. If I recollect right you didn't

"Didn't I?" she said, tartly. "Well, maybe not. But if I'd realized what was happenin' to me, I should."

"Lute," said I, as I parted from them at the corner, "I am going to the bank for a little while. Then I think I

shall take a short run down the bay in the Comfort. Did you fill her tank with gasolene as I asked you to?"

Lute stopped short. "There!" he exclaimed, "I knew there was somethin' I forgot. I'll do it soon's ever I get

"When you get home," observed Dorinda, firmly, "you'll wash that henhouse window."

"Now, Dorinda, if that ain't just like you! Don't you hear Roscoe askin' me about that gas? I've had that gas in

"Umhm," wearily. "Well, I shouldn't think a little extry more or less would make much difference. Never

mind, don't waste any more on me. Get the gas out of your head, if Roscoe wants you to. You can wash the

Lute's parting words were that he would fill that tank the very first thing. If he hadbut there! he didn't.

The fog had come almost without warning. When, after leaving the bank, at four o'clock or thereabouts, I

walked down to the shore and pulled my skiff out to where the Comfort lay at her moorings, there had not

been a sign of it. Now I was near the entrance of the bay, somewhere abreast Crow Point, and all about me

was gray, wet blankness. Sitting in the stern of the little launch I could see perhaps a scant ten feet beyond the

It was the sudden shift of the wind which had brought the fog. When I left the boat house there had been a

light westerly breeze. This had died down to a flat calm, and then a new breeze had sprung up from the south,

blowing the fog before it. It rolled across the water as swiftly as the smoke clouds roll from a freshly lighted

bonfire. It blotted Denboro from sight and moved across the bay; the long stretch of beach disappeared; the

Crow Point light and Ben Small's freshly whitewashed dwellings and outbuildings were obliterated. In ten

minutes the Comfort was, to all appearances, alone on a shoreless sea, and I was the only living creature in

I was not troubled or alarmed. I had been out in too many fogs on that very bay to mind this one. It was a

nuisance, because it necessitated cutting short my voyage, although that voyage had no objective point and

was merely an aimless cruise in search of solitude and forgetfulness. The solitude I had found, the

forgetfulness, of course, I had not. And now, when the solitude was more complete than ever, surrounded by

this gray dismalness, with nothing whatever to look at to divert my attention, I knew I should be more bitterly

miserable than I had been since I left that wedding. And I had been miserable and bitter enough, goodness

Home and the village, which I had been so anxious to get away from, now looked inviting in comparison. I

slowed down the engine and, with an impatient growl, bent over the little binnacle to look at the compass and

get my bearings before pointing the Comfort's nose in the direction of Denboro. Then my growl changed to

an exclamation of disgust. The compass was not there. I knew where it was. It was on my work bench in the

boat house, where I had put it myself, having carried it there to replace the cracked glass in its top with a new

I could get along without it, of course, but its absence meant delay and more trouble. In a general way I knew

my whereabouts, but the channel was winding and the tide was ebbing rapidly. I should be obliged to run

slowlyto feel my way, so to speakand I might not reach home until late. However, there was nothing

else to do, so I put the helm over and swung the launch about. I sat in the stern sheets, listening to the dreary

"chockchock" of the propeller, and peering forward into the mist. The prospect was as cheerless as my

Suddenly, from the wet, gray blanket ahead came a call. It was a good way off when I first heard it, a call in a

I did not answer. I took it for granted that the call was not addressed to me. It came probably, from the beach

at the Point, and might be Mrs. Small hailing her husband, though it did not sound like her voice. Several

That was not Mrs. Small, certainly. Unless I was away off in my reckoning the Point was at my right, and the

voice sounded to the left. It must come from some craft afloat in the bay, though before the fog set in I had

I shifted my helm just a bit and peered ahead. I could see nothing. The fog was thicker than ever; if that were

"Where are you?" repeated the unseen voyager, and to my dismay, the hail came from the right this time.

"Don't move!" I shouted. "Stay where you are. I will keep shouting . . . LOOK OUT!"

Out of the fog to starboard a long dark shadow shot, silent and swift. It was moving directly across the

Comfort's bow. I jammed the wheel over and the launch swung off, but not enough. It struck the canoe, for it

was a canoe, a glancing blow and heeled it down to the water's edge. There was a scrape, a little scream, and

two hands clutched at the Comfort's rail. I let go the wheel, sprang forward and seized the owner of the hands

about the waist. The canoe, half full of water, disappeared somewhere astern. I swung Mabel Colton aboard

I think she spoke first. I do not remember saying anything, and I think it must have been at least a full minute

before either of us broke the silence. She lay, or sat, upon the cockpit floor, her shoulders supported by the

bench surrounding it, just where I had placed her after lifting her over the rail. I knelt beside her, staring as if

she were a spirit instead of a real, and rather damp, young lady. And she stared at me. When she spoke her

Another interval of silence. Then she spoke once more and her tone was one expressing intense conviction.

The mention of the canoe brought me partially to my senses. I realized that I was kneeling on the deck of a

launch that was pounding its way through the fog with no one at the helm. I sprang to my feet and seized the

wheel. That my doing so would be of little use, considering that the Comfort might be headed almost

"I am afraid your canoe has gone," I said. And then, as the thought occurred to me for the first time, "You're

"I don't know, exactly. Somewhere near the mouth of the bay, that is all I can be sure of. You, are certain you

"Before the fog caught me I was nearly abreast the Point. I was running at half speed up the channel when I

"I was just beyond your boat house, out in the middle of the bay. I had come out for a paddle before dinner. I

did not notice the fog until it was all about me. Then I think I must have been bewildered. I thought I was

going in the direction of home, but I could not have beennot if you were abreast the Point. I must have

"You are wet," I said, anxiously. "There is a storm coat of mine in the locker forward. Won't you put that

"No, thank you. I am not wet, at all; or, at least, only my feet and the bottom of my skirt. I shall not take

Her answers were short now. There was a different note in her voice. I knew the reason of the change. Now

that the shock and the surprise of our meeting were over she and I were resuming our old positions. She was

realizing that her companion was the "common fellow" whose "charming and cultivated society" was not

necessary to her happiness, the fellow to whom she had scornfully offered "congratulations" and whom she

had cut dead at the Deans' that very afternoon. I made no more suggestions and expressed no more sympathy.

That ended conversation for the time. She seated herself on the bench near the forward end of the cockpit and

kept her head turned away from me. I, with one hand upon the wheela useless procedure, for I had no idea

where the launch might be headed looked over the rail and listened to the slow and regular beat of the

engine. Suddenly the beat grew less regular. The engine barked, hiccoughed, barked again but more faintly,

I knew what was the matter. Before I reached the gasolene tank and unscrewed the little cover I knew it. I

thrust in the gauge stick and heard it strike bottom, drew it out and found it, as I expected, dry to the very tip.

I had trusted, like an imbecile, to Lute. Lute had promised to fill that tank "the very first thing," and he had

There was not a pint of gasolene aboard the Comfort; and it would be my cheerful duty to inform my

She did not wait for me to break the news. She saw me standing there, holding the gauge stick in my hand,

"Yes. The fact is, we have run out of gasolene. I told my man, Rogers, to fill the tank and he hasn't done it."

"Hasn't done it?" she repeated. "You meanwhy, this boat cannot go without gasolene, can it?"

I was on my way forward to where the anchor lay, in the bow. She rose and stepped in front of me.

"Miss Colton, we must do one of two things, either anchor or drift. And if we drift I cannot tell you where we

"Believe it?" I gazed at her uncomprehendingly. "Believe it," I repeated. "Don't you believe it?"

"Miss Colton, do you mean that you think I am not telling you the truth? That I am lying?"

"Well," fiercely, "and if I did, would it be so astonishing, consideringconsidering the TRUTHS you have

"Would you mind telling me," I demanded, with deliberate sarcasm, "what possible reason you think I might

For a moment I hesitated. Then I did what was perhaps the most senseless thing I ever did in all my life,

which is saying considerable. I turned my back on her and on the anchor, and seated myself once more in the

I do not know how long we drifted before I regained my sanity. It must have been a good while. When I first

returned to my seat by the wheel it was with the firm determination to allow the Comfort to drift into the

bottomless pit rather than to stir hand or foot to prevent it. In fact that particular port looked rather inviting

than otherwise. Any torments it might have in store could not be worse than those I had undergone because of

this girl. I sat, silent, with my gaze fixed upon the motionless engine. I heard my passenger move once or

What brought me to my senses was the boat hook, which had been lying on the seat beside me, suddenly

falling to the floor. I started and looked over the rail. The water, as much of it as I could see through the fog,

was no longer flat and calm. There were waves all about us, not big ones, but waves nevertheless, long,

regular swells in the trough of which the Comfort rocked lazily. There was no wind to kick up a sea. This was

a ground swell, such as never moved in Denboro Bay. While I sat there like an idiot the tide had carried us

With an exclamation I sprang up and hurried forward. Miss Colton was sitting where I had left her.

She tried to prevent me, but I pushed her away, not too gently I am afraid, and clambered forward to the bow,

where the anchor lay upon its coil of line. I threw it overboard. The line ran out to its very end and I waited

expectantly for the jerk which would tell me that the anchor had caught and was holding. But no jerk came.

Reaching over the bow I tried the line. It was taut and heavy. Then I knew approximately how far we had

drifted. We were beyond the shoal making out from Crow Point over the deep water beyond. My anchor rope

Still I was not alarmed. I was provoked at my own stubbornness which had gotten us into this predicament

and more angry than ever at the person who was the cause of that stubbornness. But I was not frightened.

There were other shoals further out and I left the anchor as it was, hoping that it might catch and hold on one

Then followed another interval of silence and inaction. From astern and a good way off sounded the notes of

a bell. From the opposite direction came a low groan, indescribably mournful and lonely.

"The fog horn at Mackerel Island, the island at the mouth of Wellmouth harbor," I answered.

"At Crow Point? Why, it can't be! Crow Point is in Denboro Bay, and that bell is a long way behind us."

"Yes. We are a mile or more outside the Point now. The tide has carried us out."

"I tried to, but I was too late. The water is too deep here for the anchor to reach bottom."

"Nothing! Nothing! Do you mean that you propose to sit there and let us be carried out to sea?"

"We shall not be carried far. There is no wind. When the tide turns we shall probably be carried in again."

"But you must do something. You MUST. II It is late! it is growing dark! My people! What will they

"Sorry! You are not sorry! If you were you would do something, instead of sitting there asas if you

"But I do mind. You have accused me of lying, Miss Colton, and of keeping you here purposely. What do

"I mean thatthat Oh, you know what I mean! You hate me and you hate my father, and you are trying

"Miss Colton," I interrupted, sternly, "stop! this is silly. I assure you that I am as anxious to end

thisexcursionof ours as you can be. Your being afloat in Denboro Bay in a canoe was your own

recklessness and not my fault. Neither was it my fault that the launch collided with your canoe. I called to

you not to move, but to stay where you were. And, moreover, if you had permitted me to anchor when I first

attempted to do so we should not be in this scrape. I shall get you out of it just as quick as I can. In order that

I may do so I shall expect you to stop behaving like a child and do as I tell you. Sit down on that bench and

This had the effect I meant it to. She looked at me as if she could not believe she had heard aright. But I met

her gaze squarely, and, with a shudder of disgust, or fear, I do not know which, she turned her back upon me

and was silent. I went forward to the cuddy, found the tin horn which, until that moment, I had forgotten, and,

returning, blew strident blasts upon it at intervals. There was little danger of other craft being in our vicinity,

The bell at Crow Point sounded further and further astern. The twilight changed to dusk and the dusk to

darkness. The fog was as thick as ever. It was nearly time for the tide to turn.

There was an odd rushing sound from the darkness astern, a sort of hiss and low, watery roar. I rushed to the

bow and dragged the anchor inboard with all my strength. Then I ran to the wheel. I had scarcely reached it

She hesitated and I seized her arm and forced her down upon the bench beside me. I threw the helm over. The

rushing sound grew nearer. Then came a blast of wind which sent my cap flying overboard and the fog

disappeared as if it had been a cloth snatched away by a mighty hand. Above us was a black sky, with stars

showing here and there between flying clouds, and about us were the waves, already breaking into foam upon

The Comfort rocked and wallowed in the trough. We were being driven by the wind away from the shoal, but

not fast enough. Somehow or other we must get out of that dangerous neighborhood. I turned to my

I presume she could not imagine what I meant. No doubt, too, my tone and the request frightened her. She

"I want you to hold that wheel just as it is," I commanded. "I must go forward and get steerage way on this

I left her, went to the cuddy and dragged out the small canvas tarpaulin which I used to cover the engine at

night. With this, a cod line, the boathook, and my one oar I improvised a sort of jury rig which I tied erect at

the forward end of the cockpit. Then I went aft and took the wheel again. The tarpaulin made a poor apology

for a sail, but I hoped it might answer the purpose well enough to keep the Comfort before the wind.

It did. Tacking was, of course, out of the question, but with the gale astern the launch answered her helm and

slid over the waves instead of rolling between them. I sighed in relief. Then I remembered my passenger

sitting silent beside me. She did not deserve consideration, but I vouchsafed a word of encouragement.

"Don't be frightened," I said. "It is only a stiff breeze and this boat is seaworthy. We are all right now."

By way of answer I pointed aft over the stern. In the darkness the froth of the shoal gleamed white. I felt her

"We are headed for the Wellmouth shore. It is the only direction we can take. If this wind holds we shall land

"Not very. If we can make Mackerel Island we may be able to get ashore at the light or anchor in the lee of

the land. It is all right, Miss Colton. I am telling you the truth. Strange as it may seem to you, I really am."

I could not help adding the last bit of sarcasm. She understood. She drew away on the bench and asked no

On drove the Comfort. The first fierceness of the squall had passed and it was now merely what I had called

it, a stiff breeze. Out here in the middle of the bay the waves were higher and we shipped some spray over the

She took it. I groped about in the cuddy again, got out my storm coat, an old pea jacket which I wore on

"Now sit down on the deck here," I ordered. "Here, by my feet. You will be below the rail there and out of the

To my surprise she obeyed orders, this time without even a protest. I smiled grimly. To see her obey suited

my humor. It served her right. I enjoyed ordering her about as if I were mate of an old time clipper and she a

foremast hand. She had insulted me once too often and she should pay for it. Out here social position and

wealth and family pride counted for nothing. Here I was absolute master of the situation and she knew it. All

her life she would remember it, the humiliation of being absolutely dependent upon me for life and safety and

warmth. I looked down at her crouching at my feet, and then away over the black water. The Comfort

She said no more, nor did I. Except for the splash of the spray and the flapping of the loose ends of the

tarpaulin, it was quiet aboard the Comfort. Quiet, except for an odd sound in the shadow by my knee. I

"What is it, Miss Colton?" I repeated. "What is the matter? Why are you crying?"

"II am NOT crying," indignantly. And on the very heels of the denial came a stifled sob.

That sob went to my heart. A great lump rose in my own throat. My brain seemed to be turning topsyturvy.

A moment before it had been filled with bitterness and resentment and vengeful thoughts. Now these had

vanished and in their place came crowding other and vastly different feelings. She was crying, sobbing there

"Miss Colton," I pleaded, in an agony of repentance, "what is it? Is there anything I can do? Are you still

cold? Take this other coat, the one I have on. I don't need it, really. I am quite warm."

I closed my lips tightly and clutched the wheel with both hands. Oh, I had been a brute, a brute! I should have

known that she was not herself, that she was frightened and nervous and distraught. I should have been

considerate and forbearing. I should have remembered that she was only a girl, hysterical and weak. Instead I

"I have been a cad," I cried. "I have treated you abominably. I don't expect you to forgive me, but"

"II am so frightened!" The confession was a soliloquy, I think; not addressed to me at all. But I heard it

and forgot everything else. I let go of the wheel altogether and bent over her, both hands outstretched,

But while I still hesitated, while my hands were still in the air above her, before they touched her, I was

brought back to sanity with a rude shock. A barrel or so of cold water came pouring over the rail and

drenched us both. The launch, being left without a helmsman, had swung into the trough of the sea and this

I am not really sure what happened in the next few seconds. I must, I imagine, have seized the wheel with one

hand and my passenger with the other. At any rate, when the smoke, so to speak, had cleared, the Comfort

was headed on her old course once more, I was back on the bench by the wheel, Mabel Colton's head was on

my shoulder, and I was telling her over and over that it was all right now, there was no danger, we were

"Yesyes, I think so," she answered, faintly. "What was it? II thought we were sinking."

"I don't know why." This was untrue; I did. "But you are wet through," I added, remorsefully. "And I haven't

"I am all right. I was a little faint, at first, I think, but I am better now." She raised her head and sat up.

"We are within a few miles of the Wellmouth shore. That light ahead is the Mackerel Island light. We shall

"You are cold!" I cried. "Of course you are! If I only had another coat or something. It is all my fault."

"Don't say that," reproachfully. "Where should I have been if it had not been for you? I was paddling directly

out toward those dreadful shoals. Then you came, just as you have done before, and saved me. And," in a

"But I tell you I knew it was you," she repeated. "I did not know I did not suspect until the moment before

"I can't explain it. Just before your canoe broke through the fog I knew, that is all."

It was unexplainable, but it was true. Call it telepathy or what you willI do not know what it wasI am

certain only that, although I had not recognized her voice, I had suddenly known who it was that would come

to me out of the fog. And she, too, had known! I felt again, with an almost superstitious thrill, that feeling of

helplessness which had come over me that day of the fishing excursion when she rode through the bushes to

my side. It was as if she and I were puppets in the hands of some Power which was amusing itself at our

I closed my lips on the words that were on the tip of my tongue. That reason was more impossible than all

She did not repeat her question. I saw her face, a dainty silhouette against the foam alongside, turned away

from me. I gazed at it until I dared gaze no longer. Was I losing my senses altogether? IRos Painethe

man whose very name was not his own? I must not think such thoughts. I scarcely dared trust myself to speak

and yet I knew that I must. This silence was too dangerous. I took refuge in a commonplace.

"We are getting into smoother water," I said. "It is not as rough as it was, do you think?"

If she heard the remark she ignored it. She did not turn to look at me. After a moment she said, in a low

"I cannot understand myself," I answered. "I presume it was a coincidence, like our meeting at the pond."

She shook her head. "I did not mean that," she said. "I mean that I cannot understand how you can be so kind

I was obliged to wait another moment before I could reply. I clutched the wheel tighter than ever.

"The wonderful part of it all," I said, earnestly, "is that you should even speak to me, after my treatment of

"Hush! Don't! please don't. Think of what I said to you! Will you forgive me? I have been so ungrateful. You

She choked back the sob. "Tell me," she said, a moment later, this time looking me directly in the face, "why

"I know it was not because of the moneythe price, I mean. Father told me that you refused the five

thousand he offered and would accept only a part of it; thirtyfive hundred, I think he said. I should have

known that the price had nothing to do with it, even if he had not told me. But why did you sell it?"

I would have given all I had, or ever expected to have, in this world, to tell her the truth. For the moment I

"Oh, I thought I might as well, give in then as later," I answered, with a shrug. "It was no use fighting the

"That was not it. I know it was not. If it had been you would have taken the five thousand. And I know, too,

that you meant what you said when you told me you never would sell. I have known it all the time. I know

"Don't! I know what I said, and I am so ashamed. I did not mean it, really. For a moment, there in the library,

when Father first told me, I thought perhaps youbut I did not really think it. And when he told me the

"Yes. I think you wanted the money for some purpose, some need which you had not foreseen. And I do not

believe it was for yourself at all. I think it was for some one else. Wasn't that it?"

I could not reply. I tried to, tried to utter a prompt denial, but the words would not come. Her "guess" was so

"I am not wrong. Never mind. I suppose it is a secret. Perhaps I shall find out some day. But will you forgive

"Yes, there was, a great deal. Is there something else? Are you still angry with me because of what I said that

"It was hateful of me, I know. But I could see that you wished to avoid me and I was provoked. Besides, you

"Yestwice. Once when we met in the street. You deliberately turned away and would not look at me. And

once when I passed you in the canoe. You saw meI know you didbut you cut me dead. That is why I did

"I know. I had said horrid things. I deserved to be snubbed. There! now I have confessed. Mayn't we be

I turned on her. "Can't you see?" I said, despairingly. "Look at the difference between us! You are what you

She interrupted me. "Oh," she cried, impatiently, "how dare you speak so? How dare you believe that money

andall the rest of it influences me in my friendships? Do you think I care for that?"

"I did not mean money alone. But even that Miss Colton, that evening when we returned from the trip after

weakfish, you and your father and I, I heardI did not mean to hear but I didwhat your mother said when

she met you. She said she had warned you against trusting yourself to 'that common fellow,' meaning me.

That shows what she thinks. She was right; in a way she was perfectly right. Now you see what I mean by

I had spoken at white heat. Now I turned away. It was settled. She must understand now.

"I am sorry you heard that. Mothershe is my mother and I love herbut she says foolish things

sometimes. I am sorry you heard that, but since you did, I wish you had heard the rest."

"Yes. I answered her by suggesting that she had not been afraid to trust me in the care of VictorMr.

Carver. She answered that she hoped I did not mean to compare Mr. Carver with you. And I said"

"I said," the tone was low but I heard every syllable, "I said she was right, there was no comparison."

"I meantI think I meant that I should not be afraid to trust you alwaysanywhere."

Where were my good resolutionsmy stern reasons to remember who and what I wasto be sane, no

matter at what cost to myself? I do not know where they were; then I did not care. I seized her hand. It

The Comfort shook as the bow of a dory scraped along her starboard quarter. A big red hand clasped the rail

"Now," said a determined voice, "I've got ye at last! This time I've caught ye dead to rights! Now, by

If I had been giving undivided attention to my combined duties as steersman and pilot, instead of neglecting

them for other and more engrossing matters, I should, doubtless, have seen the dory before. As it was I had

not seen it at all, nor heard the oars. It had sneaked up on the Comfort out of the darkness and its occupant

I was, to say the least, startled and surprised. I dodged the threatening club and turned a dazed face toward the

person brandishing it. He appeared to be a middlesized, elderly person, in oilskins and souwester, and when

"Never you mind that. You know who I be all right enough. Be you goin' to pay me for them lobsters? That's

"Yes, you. I been layin' for you all night long. I don't know who you be, but you'll pay for them lobsters or

I looked about, over the water. The light toward which I had been trying to steer blazed dead ahead,

surprisingly near and bright. Except for that, however, there was no sign of anything except darkness and

"I know better. I don't know who you be, but I'd know you was a thief if I run acrost you in prayermeetin'.

I heard a hysterical giggle from the bench beside me. Evidently the person with the club heard it, too, for he

"So there's two of ye, eh!" he said. "Well, by godfreys, I don't care if there's a million! You'll pay for them

"You're agreeable! What do you mean by that? This ain't no laughin' matter, I'll tell you that."

I laughed again. "I don't care what you tell me," I observed. "And if you will take us somewhere ashoreto

"What sort of talk is that?" he demanded. "Where's my lobsters? . . . Hey! What? I swan to man, I believe one

"I don't know. See here, my friend, my name is Paine, and I'm the only lobster aboard this craft. This lady and

I belong in Denboro. My launch has run out of gasolene and we have been drifting about the bay since five

o'clock. Now, for heaven's sake, don't talk any more, but take us to the lockup and be quick about it."

The unknown paid no attention to my entreaty. Instead he leaned still further over the Comfort's rail. The

"Mygodfreys! Do you mean to say? From Denboro? Out of gasolene! Whywhy, you've got sail up!"

"Yes. Might I suggest that we postpone the rest of the catechism until we reachthe lockup?"

This suggestion apparently was accepted. Our captor suddenly became very much alive.

He pawed the dory along, hand over hand, until he reached the Comfort's bow. I heard the thump of the

anchor as he dragged it into the dory. Then came the creak and splash of oars. His voice sounded from

And it was. Mr. Atwood had a tough job on his hands, towing the launch. But the makeshift sail helped

some and I did my best to steer in his wake. Miss Colton and I had no opportunity to talk. The gentleman in

the dory kept up a running fire of remarks, shouted between grunts, and embroidered with cheerful profanity.

"I swan to manughI thought ye was thieves, for sartin. Some everlastin', damughhave been

sneakin' out nights and haulin' my lobster pots. Ughif I'd caught 'em I was cal'latin' tough break

theirughugh This dory pulls like a coal bargeI Wet through, ain't ye? And froze, I cal'late

Ughand hungry, too Ughugh My old woman's tendin' light. Sheugh Here we be! Easy now!"

A low shore loomed black across our bows. Above it the lighthouse rose, a white chalk mark against the sky

with a red glare at its upper end. Mr. Atwood sprang overboard with a splash. The launch was drawn in at the

"Now then!" said our rescuer. "Here we be! Made harbor at last, though I did think I'd crack my back timbers

I could and I was very glad of the opportunity. I turned to take Miss Colton in my arms, but she avoided me.

She was swung into the air and moved shoreward to the accompaniment of mighty splashings.

"Don't be scart, ma'am," said Mr. Atwood. "I shan't let ye drop. Lord sakes! I've toted more women in my

time than you can shake a stick at. There's more dathat is, there's more summer folks try to land on this

island at low tide than there is moskeeters and there's more of them than there's fiddles in Hi! come on,

I came on wading through eelgrass and water until I reached a sandy beach. A moment later we stood before

a white door in a very white little house. Mr. Atwood opened the door, revealing a cosy little sitting room and

a grayhaired, plump, pleasantfaced woman sitting in a rocking chair beside a table with a lamp upon it.

"Hello, Betsy!" bellowed our rescuer, stamping his wet rubber boots on the braided mat. "Got company come

to supperor breakfast, or whatever you want to call it. This is Mr. Paine from Denboro. This is his wife,

Mrs. Paine. They've been cruisin' all the way from Cape Cod to Kamchatky in a motor boat with no power to

The plump woman rose, without a trace of surprise, as if having company drop in at three o'clock in the

morning was nothing out of the ordinary, and came over to us, beaming with smiles.

"I'm real glad to see you, Mrs. Paine," she exclaimed. "And your husband, too. You must be froze to death!

Set right down while I fix up a room for you and hunt up some dry things for you to put on. I won't be but a

Before I could offer explanations, or do more than stammer thanks, and rather incoherent ones at that, she had

bustled out of the room. I caught one glimpse of Mabel Colton's face; it was crimson from neck to brow.

"Mrs. Paine!" "Your husband!" I was grateful to the doughty Mr. Atwood, but just then I should have enjoyed

The light keeper, quite unaware that his unfortunate misapprehension of the relationship between his guests

"Take off your boots, Mr. Paine," he urged. "The old lady'll fetch you a pair of my slippers and some socks in

a minute. She'll make your wife comf'table, too. She's a great hand at makin' folks comf'table. I tell her she'd

The "old lady" herself interrupted him, entering with a bottle in one hand and a lamp in the other.

"Yes, you was. Mrs. Paine, you mustn't mind him. He used to go mate on a fishin' schooner and, from all I

"Pick it up same as a poll parrot," cut in her husband. "Comes natural when you're handlin' wet trawl line in

"He's a real goodhearted man, Joshua is, and a profession' church member, but he does swear more'n he

"Not a damn thing!" said Mr. Atwood, reassuringly. The bottle, it appeared, contained Jamaica ginger, a

liberal dose of which Mrs. Atwood insisted upon our taking as a precaution against catching cold.

"You bet there ain't!" this from the lightkeeper. "A body can't get within forty fathoms of a cold with a

"And now, Mrs. Paine," went on the lady of the house, "your room's all ready. I've laid out some dry things

"Heermade a mistake. She is Miss Colton, a summer resident and neighbor of mine in Denboro."

"Just like me! Well, how'd I know? I beg your pardon, Miss, I'm sure. Shan't beg your husI mean Mr.

"If my room is ready, Mrs. Atwood," she said,, without even a glance in my direction, "I think I will go to it. I

"Wet! Land sakes, yes! I guess you be! Come right in, Joshua, take them clothes of yours into our room and

Her husband obeyed orders. After I was alone in the room to which he conducted me and enjoying the luxury

"I couldn't help it, Betsy," I heard him say. "I took it for granted they was married. When I hove alongside

that motor boat they was asettin' close up together in the stern sheets and so, of course, I thought"

"You hadn't any business to. You made that poor young lady blush somethin' dreadful. Most likely they're

I wondered if the young lady herself heard all this. I didn't see how she could help it.

Kinderhearted people than these two never lived, I do believe. It was after three in the morning, both had

been up all night, we were absolute strangers to them, and yet, without a word of complaint, they gave the

remainder of the hours before daylight to making us comfortable. When I dressed as much of myself as a suit

of Mr. Atwood'shis Sunday best, I presumewould cover, and, with a pair of carpet slippers about the

size and shape of toy ferry boats on my feet, emerged from the bedroom, I found the table set in the kitchen,

the teapot steaming and Mrs. Atwood cooking "spider bread" on the stove. When Miss Colton, looking

surprisingly presentable considering that she, too, was wearing borrowed apparel four sizes too large for

hermade her appearance, we sat down to a simple meal which, I think, was the most appetizing I ever

The Atwoods were bursting with curiosity concerning our getting adrift in the motor boat. I described the

adventure briefly. When I told of Lute's forgetfulness in the matter of gasolene the lightkeeper thumped the

"There, by godfreys!" he exclaimed. "I could see it comin'! That feller's for all the world like a cook I had

once aboard the Ezry H. Jones. That cook was the biggest numskull that ever drawed the breath of life.

Always forgettin' somethin', he was, and always at the most inconvenient time. Once, if you'll believe it, I had

a skipper of another vessel come aboard and, wishin' to be sort of hospitable, as you might say, I offered him

"Oh, it's all right, Betsy. This was years ago. I'm as good a teetotaler now as you be, and I never was what

you'd call a soak. But I've SEEN fellers Why, I knew one once that used to go to bed in the dark. He was

so full of alcohol he didn't dast to light a match fear he'd catch afire. Fact! He was eightyodd then, and he

lived to be nigh a hundred. Preserved, you understand, same as one of them specimens in a museum. He'd

kept forever, I cal'late, if he hadn't fell off the dock. The water fixed him; he wasn't used to it. He was the

"Yes, yes. Well, I sent that cook for the rum and when he fetched it, I thought it smelt funny. And when I

TASTED itgodfreys! 'Twas bay rum; yes, sir, bay rum! same as they put on your hair. You see, he'd forgot

to buy any rum when we was in our last port and, havin' the bay rum along he fetched that. 'Twas SOME kind

of rum and that was enough for him. I WAS mad, but that visitin' skipper, he didn't care. Drank it down and

smacked his lips. 'I'm a State of Maine man,' he says, 'and that's a prohibition state. This tastes like home,' he

says. 'If you don't mind I'll help myself to another.' 'I don't mind,' says I, 'but I'm sorry I ain't got any hairile.

If I had you might have a barbershop toddy.' Yes, sir! Hoho! that's what I said. But he didn't mind. He

And so on. The yarns were not elegant, but, as he told them, they were funny. Mabel Colton laughed as

heartily as the rest of us. She appeared to be in fine spirits. She talked with the Atwoods, answered their

questions, and ate the hot "spider bread" and butter as if she had never tasted anything as good. But with me

she would not talk. Whenever I addressed a remark to her, she turned it with a laugh and her next speech was

pretty certain to be addressed to the lightkeeper or his wife. As for our adventure in the launch, that she

"Wan't you awful scared when that squall struck so sudden?" inquired Mrs. Atwood.

"Humph!" this from Joshua; "I cal'late Mr. Paine was some scart too. What did you do, Mr. Paine?"

"Tell me, Mr. Atwood," asked the young lady innocently, "are all seafaring men very dictatorial under such

"I mean do they order people about and make them do all sorts of things, whether they wish to or not?"

"Sartin. Godfreys! I never asked nobody what they wished aboard the Ezry H. Jones."

"Gen'rally they tell 'em to get up and keep movin'. If they don't they start 'em pretty livelywith a rope's

"Ladies? Godfreys! we never had but one woman aboard the Ezry. Had the skipper's wife one v'yage, but

nobody ever ordered her around any to speak of. She was six feet tall and weighed two hundred. All hands

"Suppose she had been ordered to 'sit down and keep still'; what do you think would have happened?"

"Don't know. If 'twas one of the hands I guess likely she'd have hove him overboard. If 'twas the skipper I

shouldn't wonder if she'd have knocked him downafter she got over the surprise of his darin' to do such, a

"Miss Colton thinks me rather a bully, I am afraid," I said. "I did order her about rather roughly."

Mr. Atwood burst into a laugh. "That Ezry Jones woman was the skipper's wife," he declared. "Makes a lot of

diff'rence, that does. I was considerable of a bully myself afore Betsy got me on the parson's books. Now I'm

the most peaceable critter ever you see. Your turn's comin', Miss Colton. All you got to do is be patient."

"Joshua!" said Mrs. Atwood, in mild reproof. "You mustn't mind his talk, Miss Colton. He's a terrible joker."

Miss Colton changed the subject. She did not so much as look at me again during the meal and, after it was

over, she went to her room, explaining that she was very tired and would try to get a little sleep.

I had discovered that the lighthouse, being close to the mainland, was equipped with a telephone. Now I

begged permission to use it. I called up Denboro and asked to be connected with the Colton home. I felt very

sure that there would be no sleep in the big house that night and I wished to relieve their anxiety and to send

I announced my identity and explained where I was and that his daughter was in my care and perfectly safe.

"Thank God!" was the fervent exclamation at the other end of the wire, and the voice which uttered it was

shaking with emotion. "Stay where you are a moment, Paine. Let me tell my wife. She is almost crazy. Hold

I held the wire and waited. The next voice which reached my ears was Mrs. Colton's. She asked a dozen

questions, one after the other. Was Mabel safe? Was I sure she was safe? Wasn't the poor child almost dead

after all she'd been through? What had happened? What was she doing away over there in that dreadful

I answered as well as I could, telling briefly of the collision in the fog and what followed. The explanation

"You take the wire, James," I heard the lady say. "I can't make it all out. Mabel is at some horrid lighthouse

and there is no kerosene, or something. The poor child! Alone there, with that man! Tell him she must be

brought home at once. It is dreadful for her! Think what she must have suffered! And with HIM! What will

"Hellohello, Paine!" Colton was at the 'phone once more. "Can you get MabelMiss Colton, over to

"Yes. I will get a boat as soon as I can. Miss Colton is in her room, asleep I hope. She is very tired and I think

she should rest until daylight. I will get her to Wellmouth in time for the morning train."

"Never mind the train. I'll come after her in the auto. I will start now. I will meet you at the landingat the

"Very well. Will you be good enough to send word to my mother that I am safe and sound? She will be

"Yes, yes, I'll send word. Tell Mabel to be careful and not take cold. . . . Yes, Henrietta, I am attending to

That was all, not a word of thanks. I did not expect thanks and I made allowances for the state of mind at the

mansion; but that telephone conversation, particularly Mrs. Colton's share in it, cast a gloom over my spirits.

I did not care to hear more of Mr. Atwood's yarns and jokes. I went to my own room, but I did not sleep.

At halfpast five I was astir again. The lightkeeper, it appeared, had an auxiliary engine in a catboat which he

owned and could let me have a sufficient supply of gasolene to fill the Comfort's tank. When this was

doneand it took a long time, for Joshua insisted upon helping and he was provokingly slowI returned to

"Land sakes!" was the cheery answer, "I didn't have to call her. She's been up for fifteen minutes. Said she

was goin' to take a cruise around the lighthouse. I cal'late you'll find her out there somewheres. Go and fetch

her here. You two must have a bitea cup of hot coffee and a biled egg, anyhowafore you leave. Yes, you

I went out and crossed the sandy yard to the whitewashed lighthouse. There was no sign of Miss Colton in

the yard, but the door of the lighthouse was open and I entered. No one there. The stairs, winding upward,

invited me to climb and I did so. The little room with the big lantern, the latter now covered with a white

cloth, was untenanted also. I looked out of the window. There she was, on the iron gallery surrounding the

top of the tower, leaning on the rail and gazing out over the water. She had not heard me. For a moment I

She was not wearing Mrs. Atwood's gown now, but her own, wrinkled and stained from its last night's

drenching in salt water, but dry now. She was bareheaded and her brown hair was tossing in the sea breeze.

The sun, but a little way above the horizon and shining through the morning haze, edged her delicate profile

with a line of red gold. I had never seen her look more beautiful, or more aristocratic and unapproachable.

The memory of our night in the launch seemed more like an unbelievable dream than ever, and the

awakening more cruel. For I was awake now. What I had heard over the 'phone had awakened me

She was startled, that was evident, and, it seemed to me, a trifle embarrassed. But the embarrassment was but

"Good morning," she said. "How very silent you can be when you choose, Mr. Paine. How long have you

"I did not see you until I reached the lantern room. My silence was not premeditated. I made noise enough, or

"Nonsense!" She interrupted me almost sharply. "I was not 'wrapped' in anything, except the beauty of this

"Very," I answered, but fear I was not looking at the view. It may be that she noticed this, for she said:

"You should have kept it. You have no idea what a picturesque lightkeeper you make, Mr. Paine."

Her eyes twinkled. "I thought the measure rather scant," she observed, mischievously. "I wish I might have a

"Is your bump of humor a dent, Mr. Paine?" she inquired. "I am afraid it must be."

"You may be right. I don't appreciate a joke as keenly aswell, as Mr. Carver, for instance."

Breakfast was a silent meal, so far as we two were concerned. The Atwoods, however, talked enough to make

"Mr. Atwood," she said, "I presume you are going to be kind enough to take me to Wellmouth?"

"Why, Miss, II wan't cal'latin' to. Mr. Paine here, he's got all the gas he needs now and he'll take you over

"You have been so very kind that I dislike to ask another favor; but I hoped you would send a telegram for

me. My father and mother will be very much alarmed and I must wire them at once. You will have to send it

I put in a word. "It will not be necessary," I said, impatiently. "I have money enough, Miss Colton."

"Thank you so much, Mr. Atwood. You will come with me and look out for the telegram?"

"Yes. Yesyes. But I don't see what you need to send no telegram for. Mr. Paine here, he telephoned to your

"Why yesor this mornin' after you'd gone to bed. He was dead set on it. I could see he was 'most tired and

wore out, but he wouldn't rest till he'd 'phoned your folks and told 'em you was safe and sound. Didn't seem

to care nothin' about himself, but he was bound your pa and ma shouldn't worry."

"I intended to. I meant to tell you when I saw you in the lighthouse, butI forgot it."

She said no more, but when Joshua, hat and boots on, met us at the door she spoke to him.

He hurried down to the beach. I was about to follow when a hand touched my arm. I turned, to find a pair of

"But I shall. It was thoughtful and kind. I had forgotten, orat leastI took it for granted there was no

"Don't," I said, roughly. "It was nothing. Anyone with common sense would have thought of it and done it, of

"I did not. But you Oh, it was like you! Always some one else and never yourself. You were worn out.

You must have been, after" with a shudder"last night. Oh, I have so much to thank you for! I"

"Come on! Heave ahead!" It was Mr. Atwood, bellowing from the beach. "All aboard for Wellmouth and

I could not have answered, but my companion was once more as calm and cool as the morning itself.

"All ready," she answered. "Goodby, Mrs. Atwood. And thank you over and over again. You have been so

kind." With a sudden flash of enthusiasm. "Every one is kind. It is a beautiful world. Goodby."

The trip to Wellmouth was of but a half hour's duration. Atwood talked all the time. Miss Colton laughed at

his stories and seemed to be without a care. She scarcely looked at me during the passage, and if she caught

me looking at her and our glances met she turned away. On the wharf was a big automobile, surrounded by a

We drew up beside the landing. Our feminine passenger sprang ashore and ran up the steps, to be seized in

her father's arms. Mrs. Colton was there also, babbling hysterically. I watched and listened for a moment.

The launch was fifty feet from the pier when I heard a shout. Colton was standing on the wharf edge, waving

"Here! Paine!" shouted Colton. "Come back! Come back and go home with us in the car. There is plenty of

"Come back! Come back, Paine!" he shouted again. Mrs. Colton raised her head from her daughter's

"James! James!" she cautioned, without taking the trouble to lower her voice, "don't make a scene. Let him

"I must look out for the launch," I shouted. "I shall be home almost as soon as you are. Goodby."

I left the lightkeeper at his island. He refused to accept a cent from me, except in payment for the gasolene,

"Come and see us again, Mr. Paine," he said. "Come any time and fetch your lady along. She's a good one,

she is, and nicelookin', don't talk! You're a lucky critter, did you know it? Haw! haw! Goodby."

The Comfort never made better time than on that homeward trip. I anchored her at her moorings, went ashore

in the skiff, and hastened up to the house. It was past ten o'clock and I would be over an hour late at the bank.

The diningroom door was open, but no one was in the diningroom. The kitchen door, however, was shut

"You can get right out of this house," she said. "I don't care if you've got a mortgage on the rest of the Cape!

You ain't got one on this house, and you nor nobody else shall stay in it and talk that way. There's the door."

"Dorindy!" wailed another voiceLute's. "You mustn't talk soto him! Don't you realize"

"I realize that if I had a husband instead of a jellyfish I shouldn't have to talk. Be still, you!"

"All right," it growled. "I ain't anxious to stay here any longer than is necessary. Bein' an honest, decent man,

I'm ashamed to be seen here as it is. But you can tell that lowlived sneak, Ros Paine, that"

My unexpected entrance caused a sensation. Lute, sitting on the edge of one of the kitchen chairs, an

agonized expression on his face, started so violently that he almost lost his balance. Dorinda, standing with

her back toward me, turned quickly. Captain Jedediah Dean, his hand on the knob of the door opening to the

back yard, showed the least evidence of surprise. He did not start, nor did he speak, but looked at me with a

"By time!" he gasped. "It's Ros himself! RosRos, you know what he says?" He pointed a shaking finger at

"Keep still!" Dorinda struck her palms together with a slap, as if her husband had been what she often called

him, a parrot. Then, without another glance in his direction, she stepped backward and took her stand beside

"Thank you, Dorinda. Now, Captain Dean, I believe you were sending a message to me just now. I am here

"You come with me. This ain't any of my business any more, and it never was any of yours. Come! move!"

Lute moved, but so slowly that his progress to the door took almost a full minute. His wife paid no heed to

the pleading looks he gave her and stood majestically waiting until he passed her and crossed the sill. Then

"If you want me, just speak," she said. "I shall be in the dining room. There ain't no need for Comfort to

know about this. She doesn't know that you've been away and hasn't been worried at all. I'll look out for her.

"It won't take me long. You've sold that Shore Lane land to Jim Colton, ain't you?"

My calm affirmative seemed to astonish him. I think he expected a denial. His hand left the doorknob and he

"YouHAVE!" he cried. "You don't even take the trouble to You have the face to stand there and tell

"Captain Dean," I interrupted, quickly, "wait a moment. Listen to me. I have sold Colton the land. I did not

intend selling it at all, least of all to him, but circumstances compelled me to change my mind. I did it

because I was obliged to. It is done. I am sorry I had to do it, but, under the same conditions, I should do it

He leaned forward, steadying himself with a hand upon the table, and stared at me.

"You ain't ashamed?" he repeated. "You ain't ashamed! Why, you Didn't you tell me you'd never sell that

"I did not promise anything. At first I promised not to sell without letting you know of my intention.

"But why did you sell? You said it wan't a question of price at all. You made your brags that it wan't! To me,

"Stop! I did think it was not a question of price. Then I found out that it was."

"That is enough, Captain. This has gone far enough. I have sold the landfor what seemed to me a good

reasonand your calling me names will not change the situation. I don't care to hear them. You had better

"No, certainly not. But there is nothing to be gained by a quarrel, and so, for both our sakes, I think you had

For a moment I thought he would strike me. Then his fist fell heavily upon the table. His lips were quivering

like those of an infirm person. He looked old, and I had never before considered him an old man.

"What made you do it?" he cried, desperately. "What made you do it? Is it all settled? Can't you back out?"

"Butbut why didn't you sell to meto the town? If you had to sell why didn't you do that? Why did you

"Because he would pay me what I needed; because his price was higher than any you or the town could

"How did you know that? My heavens above! I'd have paidI'd have paid most anythingout of my own

pocket, I would. I tell you this meant everything to me. I'm gettin' along in years. I ain't been any too well

liked here in Denboro, and I knew it. You think that didn't make no difference to me, maybe I pretended it

didn't, but it did; by the Almighty, it did! I intended for folks to be thankful to me forI Oh, WHY did

I shook my head. I was sorry for him nowsorry and astonished. He had given me a glimpse of the real

Jedediah Dean, not the pompous, loudvoiced town politician and boss, but the man desirous of fighting his

"I'm sorry, Captain," I said. "If I had knownif I had had time to think, perhaps I might have acted

differently. But I had no time. I found that I must have the money which that land would bring and that I had

"Yes, me. What do you cal'late I've been backin' you all this summer for? What did I get you that job in my

"Maybe so. But do you suppose he did it on his own hook? HE couldn't hire you unless the directors said so

and the directors don't say anything, the majority of 'em, unless I say it first. _I_ put the notion in George's

head. He didn't know it, but I did. And I put it in the directors' heads, too. Ros Paine, I always liked you,

though I did use to think you was a gentleman loafer. There was a somethin' about you even then, a kind of

handsoff, mind your own business independence about you that I liked, though I knew mighty well you

never liked me. And after you and me got together on this Lane thing I liked you more and more. You could

tell me to go to the devil as well as you could anybody else, and I'll shake hands with a feller that'll do that. I

always wanted a boy of my own. Nellie's a good girl, no better afloat or ashore, but she is a girl. George is a

good feller, too, but somehow, or 'nother, I'd come to think of you as the kind of son I'd have had, if the

I could not answer. He had overwhelmed me. I never felt meaner or more wicked. I had been ready to face

him, ready for the interview with him which I knew was inevitable and which I had foreseen, but not this

"Money!" he said. "You wanted money. You must have wanted it bad. What did you want it for?"

He regarded me in silence for a moment. Then: "All right," he said, solemnly. "I'm through with you, Ros

Paine. In one way I'm through with you. In another I ain't. I cal'late you was figgerin' to go straight up to the

bank, as bold as brass, and set down at George Taylor's desk and draw your wages like an honest man. Don't

you ever dare set foot in that bank again. You're fired! bounced! kicked out! Do you understand?"

"You will understand, whether you do now or not. Colton's got the Shore Lane and you've got his dirty

money in your pocket. He's paid you, but the town ain't. The town you sold out ain't paid youbut I'm goin'

I went back to the diningroom. Lute was nowhere in sight, but Dorinda was standing by the mantel, dusting,

as usual, where there was no dust. I did not speak but walked toward the door leading to the stairs. Dorinda

"Can he give you your walkin' papers at that bank? Oh, I heard him! I tried not to, but he hollered so I

couldn't help it. That kitchen door ain't much thicker'n a sheet of paper, anyhow. Can he do it?"

"But can't 'Lisha Warren or some of the other directors help you? Jed Dean don't boss 'Lisha Warrennot

"I shan't trouble you, Ros," she said. "I guess you've got troubles enough without me. But you let me ask you

I shrugged my shoulders. "It may not take much driving," I announced, listlessly, "if it were not for Mother I

"Roscoe Paine," she cried, "don't you talk like that. I don't want to hear another word like that. Don't you let

Jed Dean or nobody else drive you out of Denboro. You ain't done nothin' to be ashamed of, have you?"

"I sold that land to Mr. Colton. I don't know how Captain Jed found it out, but it is true enough; I did exactly

"Found out! He found out from somebody over to Ostable where the deed was recorded, that is how he found

out. He said so. But I don't care for that. And I don't care if you sold the Lane ten times over. You didn't do it

for any mean or selfish reason, that I know. There ain't a selfish bone in your body, Roscoe. I've lived along

with you all these years and I know. Nobody that was mean or selfish would give up their chances in life and

stay here in this onehoss town because his ma was sick and had took a notion that she couldn't bear to part

with him. Don't you mind Jed Dean pigheaded old thing!or anybody else in Denboro. Hold up your

head and show 'em you don't care for the whole caboodle of 'em. Let 'em talk and act like fools, if they want

to. It comes natural to most of 'em, I cal'late, and they'll be sorry some day. Don't you let 'em drive you out.

They won't come inside THIS house with their talk, not while I'm here, I tell you that!"

Her eyes, behind the brassrimmed spectacles, flashed fire. This was the longest speech I had ever heard her

"There, Dorinda," I said, smiling, "don't worry on my account. I'm not worth it. And, whatever I do, I shall

Instead of calming her this statement seemed to have the exactly opposite effect.

"Stop it!" she snapped. "The idea! Do you suppose it's for myself I'm talkin' this way to you? I guess 'tain't!

My soul! I'll look out for myself, and Lute, too, long's I'm able to walk; and when I can't walk 'twill be

because I've stopped breathin'. It's for you I'm talkin', for you and Comfort. Think of her."

I sighed. "I have been thinking of her, Dorinda," I declared. "She doesn't know a word about this."

"Tell her what you can, then. Tell her as much of the truth as you can. She'll say you done right, of course.

"I don't know, Dorinda. I might as well be here as anywhere, perhaps. I am rather blue and discouraged just

"I can't blame you much. But bein' discouraged don't do any good. Besides, it's always darkest just afore

dawn, they say; anyhow, I've had that preached to me ever since I was a girl and I've tried to believe it

through a good many cloudy spells. Roscoe, don't you let old Jed or anybody DRIVE you out of Denboro,

but, if you WANT to goif you think you'd ought to go, to earn money or anything, don't you worry about

leavin' Comfort. I'll look out for her as well as if she was my own. Remember that."

I laid my hand on hers. "Thank you," I said, earnestly. "Dorinda, you are a good woman."

To my surprise the eyes behind the spectacles became misty. Tears in Dorinda's eyes! When she spoke it was

"Roscoe," she faltered, "I wonder if you'd be cross if I asked about what wan't any of my business. I'm old

enough to be your grandma, pretty nigh, so I'm goin' to risk it. You used to be independent enough. You

never used to care for the town or anybody in it. Lately you've changed. Changed in a good many ways. Is

somethin' besides this Lane affair frettin' you? Is somebody frettin' you? Are you worried aboutthat one?"

She had caught me unawares. I felt the blood tingle in my cheeks. I tried to laugh and made a failure of the

"Don't you? Well, if you don't then I'm just talkin' silly, that's all. If you do, I . . . . Humph! I might have

She turned like a shot and jerked the door open. There was a rattle, a series of thumps, and a crash. Lute was

sprawling upon the floor at our feet. I gazed at him in openmouthed astonishment. Dorinda sniffed

"I might have known it," she repeated. "Sittin' on the stairs there, listenin', wan't you?"

"Umhm! Well, if you'd broke your neck 'twouldn't have been no more'n you deserve. Shame on you!

"Don't talk to me. Don't you open your mouth. And if you open it to anybody else about what you heard

I'llI declare I'll shut you up in the dark closet and keep you there, as if you was three year old. Sometimes I

"I don't care where you go. Only don't let me set eyes on you till dinner time. March!"

Lute backed away as she advanced, waving both his hands and pleading and expostulating.

"Dorindy, I tell you . . . WHAT makes you so unlikely? . . . I was just . . . All right then," desperately, "I'll go!

And if you never set eyes on me again 'twon't be my fault. You'll be sorry then. If you never see me no more

"Ah hum!" she sighed, "it's pretty hard to remember that about darkest just afore dawn when you have a

burden like that on your shoulders to lug through life. It's night most of the time then. Poor critter! he means

well enough, too. And once he was a likely enough young feller, though shiftless, even then. But he had a

long spell of fever three year after we was married and he's never been good for much since. I try to

remember that, and to be patient with him, but it's a pretty hard job sometimes."

She sighed again. I had often wondered how a woman of her sense could have married Luther Rogers. Now

"I never really cared for him," she went on, looking toward the door through which the discomfited

eavesdropper had made his exit. "There was somebody else I did care for, but he and I quarreled, and I took

Luther out of spite and because my folks wanted me to. I've paid for it since. Roscoe," earnestly, "Roscoe, if

you care for anybody and she cares for you, don't let anything keep you apart. If she's worth a million or fifty

cents that don't make any difference. It shouldn't be a matter of her folks or your folks or money or pride or

anything else. It's a matter for just you and her. And if you love each other, that's enough. I tell you so, and I

I was more astonished than ever. I could scarcely believe that this was the dry, practical Dorinda Rogers who

had kept house for Mother and me all these years. And with my astonishment were other feelings, feelings

which warned me that I had better make my escape before I was trapped into betraying that which, all the

way home from Mackerel Island, I had been swearing no one should ever know. I would not even admit it to

I did not look at Dorinda, and my answer to her long speech was as indifferent and careless as I could make

"Thank you, Dorinda," I said. "I'll remember your advice, if I ever need it, which isn't likely. Now I must go

When I came down, after an absence of half an hour, she was sitting by the window, sewing.

"About your sellin' the Lane and losin' your job, and so on. Don't look at me like that. 'Twas the only

commonsense thing to do. She'd heard old LeatherLungs whoopin' out there in the kitchen and she'd heard

you and me talkin' here in the dinin'room. I hoped she was asleep, but she wan't. After you went upstairs she

called for me and wanted to know the whole story. I told her what I knew of it. Now you can tell her the rest.

It was Mother calling me. I went into the darkened room and sat down beside the bed.

She and I had much to say to each other. This time I kept back nothing, except my reason for selling the land.

I told her frankly that that reason was a secret, and that it must remain a secret, even from her.

"I hate to say that to you, Mother," I told her. "You don't know how I hate it. I would tell you if I could."

She pressed my hand. "I know you would, Roscoe," she said. "I am quite content not to know. That your

"I am sure of it. But," hesitatingly, "can you tell me this: You did not do it because you needed moneyfor

"Then it was not because of me; because you felt that I should have those 'luxuries' you talk about so often?

Oh, I don't need them, Roscoe I really don't. I amI scarcely dare say it for fear it may not be truebut I

"Is he? I am so glad! For your sake, Boy. Perhaps the time will come when I may not be your Old Man Of the

"You did not sell it for yourself, that I know. I wonder . . . But, there! I mustn't wonder, and I won't. Captain

Dean was very angry and unreasonable, Dorinda says. I suppose his pride is hurt. I'm afraid he will make it

"You poor boy! As if you did not have enough to bear without that! He has asked you to resign from the

I smiled. "He has pitched me out, neck and crop," I answered. "I expected that, of course."

"But what will you do? Can't Mr. Taylor help you? Perhaps he will use his influence with the captain."

"I don't need his influence, Mother. I took the place merely because of a whim. Now that I have lost it I am

I was only beginning to realize how much I had enjoyed it. I sighed, involuntarily.

"Poor boy!" she said again. Then, after a moment, "I wish I might talk with Miss Colton about this."

"Miss Colton!" I exclaimed. "Mother, whatever you do, don't speak to herabout me."

"Why not? She has not called on us for some time, but she is interested in you, I know. And perhaps her

She was silent for an instant. Then she said, quietly. "Boy, what is it? Is there something else you haven't told

I do not know what reply I should have made. Her question, coming so close upon the heels of Dorinda's

hints, upset me completely. Was it written upon my face, for everyone to see? Did I look the incredible idiot

that I knew myself to be? For I did know it. In spite of my determination not to admit it even in my innermost

thoughts, I knew. I was in love with Mabel Coltonmadly, insanely, hopelessly in love with her, and should

Before I could answer there came a knock at the door. It opened and Dorinda's head appeared. She seemed,

"There's somebody to see you, Ros," she said. "You'd better come out soon's you can. He's in a hurry."

Dorinda glanced at Mother and then at me. She did not so much as whisper, but her lips formed a name. I

"Just a caller on a business matter," I answered, hurriedly. "I'll be out at once, Dorinda."

Dorinda hesitated, but when Mother spoke in that tone none of us hesitated long. She disappeared. A moment

later the door opened wide and Colton entered. The sudden transition from sunlight to semidarkness

bewildered him for a moment, doubtless, for he stood there without speaking. Dorinda, who had ushered him

"Good morning, Mr. Colton," I said, as calmly as I could. "You have never met my mother, I think. Mother,

Colton turned toward the bed and murmured a few words. For once, I think, he was startled out of his

customary cool selfpossession. And when Mother spoke it seemed to me that she, too, was disturbed.

"Roscoe," she said, quickly, "will you draw that windowshade a little more? The light is rather strong.

Thank you. Mr. Colton, I am very glad to meet you. I have heard of you often, of course, and I have met your

"Thank you, Mrs. Paine," he said. "I will sit. To be honest, I'm very glad of the opportunity. I have been

under the doctor's care for the past few weeks and last night's performance is not the best sort of treatment for

a tender digestion. The doctor told me what I needed was rest and sleep and freedom from care. I told him I

probably shouldn't get the last item till I was dead. As for the restand sleep Humph!" with a short laugh,

Mother's face was turned away from him on the pillow. "I am sorry to hear that you have been ill, Mr.

"Ill! I'm not ill. I have never been sick in my life and I don't propose to begin now. If the crowd in New York

would let me alone I should be all right enough. There is a deal on there that is likely to come to a head pretty

soon and my people at the office are nervous. They keep 'phoning and telegraphing and upsetting things

generally. I'll have to run over there myself in a day or two and straighten it out. But there! I didn't come here

"Yes. I have never had the pleasure of meeting you before, but my daughter has spoken of you often. She is a

great admirer of yours. I won't tell you all the nice things she has said about you, for she has probably said

"You should be very proud of your daughter, Mr. Colton. She is a charming girl."

"Thanks. Just among us three I'll admit, in confidence, that I think you're right. And I'll admit, too, that you

have a pretty good sort of a son, Mrs. Paine. He is inclined to be," with a glance in my direction, "a little too

stubborn and highprincipled for this practical world, but," with a chuckle, "he can be made to listen to

"I am not sure that I understand you, Mr. Colton," she said, quietly. "I presume you are referring to the sale of

the land. I do not know why Roscoe changed his mind in that matter, but I do know that his reason was a

"Did you call to discuss the Shore Lane, Mr. Colton?" I inquired. "I thought that affair settled."

"It is. No, I didn't come to discuss that. Mrs. Paine, I don't know why your son sold me that land, but I'm

inclined to think, like you, that he wouldn't have done it unless he thought it was right. I know mighty well he

wasn't afraid of me. Oh, you needn't laugh, young man. There ARE people in that fix, plenty of 'em. No, I

didn't come to talk 'Lane.' That bird is dead. I came, first of all, to thank you for what you did for my daughter

"Nothing, Mother, nothing," I said, hastily. "I was unlucky enough to run the Comfort into Miss Colton's

canoe in the bay yesterday afternoon in the fog. Fortunately I got her into the launch and and"

"And saved her from drowning, then and a dozen times afterward. He hasn't told you, Mrs. Paine? No, I can

see that he hasn't. All right, I will. Paine, if your ingrowing modesty won't stand the pressure you had better

I tried to prevent him, but it was no use. He ignored me altogether and went on to tell of the collision in the

fog, the voyage across the bay, and my telephone from the lighthouse. The story, as he told it, magnified what

he called my coolness and commonsense to a ridiculous extent. I lost patience as I listened.

"Mr. Colton," I interrupted, "this is silly. Mother, the whole affair was more my fault than my good judgment.

If I had anchored when it first happened we should have been home in an hour, instead of drifting all night."

"That's all right," he said. "I guess Mabel's story is near enough to the truth for all practical purposes. Mrs.

Paine," with a sudden change to seriousness, "you can understand why I have come here this morning. If it

had not been for your son's pluck, and cool head, and good judgment IMrs. Colton and I might have

been God knows in what state we might have been today! God knows! I can't think of it."

"So I came to thank him," went on our visitor. "This isn't the first time he has done something of the sort. It

seems almost as if he But never mind that. I'm not going to be foolish. Your son and I, Mrs. Paine, have

been fighting each other most of the summer. That's all right. It was a square fight and, until this newest freak

of hisand he has got me guessing as to what it meansI admit I thought he was quite as likely to lick me

as I was to lick him. I've watched him pretty closely and I am a pretty fair judge of a man, I flatter myself.

"In your office? You offered him that? No, he did not tell me. Roscoe!" reproachfully.

"I did not tell you, Mother, because it was not worth while. Of course I could not accept the offer."

"Why not? That was what you were going to say, Mrs. Paine, I take it. That is what _I_ saidwhy not? And

I shook my head. "I told you then that I could not accept," I said. "It is impossible."

"Why is it impossible? So far as I am concerned I believe you would be a mighty good investment."

"Nothing is impossible. We won't waste words. I am going to be plain and I think Mrs. Paine will excuse me.

You think you should not leave your mother, perhaps. I understand that reason. It would be a good one,

except thatwell, that it isn't good any longer. Your mother is much better than she was. Quimbyher

doctor and minesays so. I shall see that she is well looked after. If she needs a nurse she shall have one, the

best we can get. Oh, be still and let me finish! You can talk afterward. You're not going so far away. New

York isn't the end of the earth; it is only the center, or it thinks it is. You'll be in close touch with Denboro all

the time and you can come here whenever you want to. Now will you take my offer?"

"Young man, if I didn't know there were brains inside that head of yours I should think it was, as the boys

say, solid ivory. Confound you! Here, Mrs. Paine," turning to Mother, "you take him in hand. Tell him he

Mother looked at me. "I think, perhaps, you should accept, Roscoe," she said, slowly.

"Yes. II think you should. I am sure everyone else would think so. I should not wish you to do so if Mr.

Colton was merely trying to be kind, to help you from motives of gratitude, or charity"

"Don't use that word, please," snapped "Big Jim." "When I lose my mind I may take to charity, but not

"But it is not charity. I am better, Roscoe; I realize it every day; and with Dorinda I shall get on perfectly

well. I have been thinking of something like this for a long time. You owe it to yourself, Roscoe. The chance

is one that many men would be very, very glad to have come their way. I shall not urge you, Boy. You must

decide for yourself, and I know you will; but, Roscoe, I shall be quite contentedyes, glad and proud, if you

The gentleman named nodded emphatic approval. "That's the talk!" he exclaimed. "Mrs. Paine, I congratulate

"I think, like you, that you will have made a good investment, Mr. Colton," was Mother's answer.

"I thank you, Mr. Colton," I said, though not as steadily as I could have wished. "I am greatly obliged to you

and I realize that you offer me an exceptional opportunity, or what would be one for another man. But I

"Look here, Paine! I'll speak plainer still. I understand that that Shore Lane trade of ours has become common

property, or, at any rate, it will be common property soon. If I see the situation clearly, Denboro is likely to

be a rather unpleasant place for you. That fellow Dean has a lot of influence hereheaven knows why!

and he hates me worse than Old Nick hates holy water. Oh, I know you're not afraid of him! But what is the

use of taking the rough road when the smooth one is right before your feet? Say yes, and let's end it."

"You mean it? Very well, I leave you in your Mother's hands. She will probably bring you to your senses

before long. Mrs. Paine, you can handle him, I have no doubt. I am glad to have met you, and, with your

permission, I shall call on you again. So will Mabel. As for you, young man, I thank you for last night's work.

He rose, bowed, and walked to the door. As he opened it he staggered, perceptibly. I thought, for an instant,

"It's all right," he said, gruffly. "This digestion of mine sets my head spinning sometimes. That doctor says I

shall upset completely unless I rest. I told him he was a fool and I intend to prove it. Let me be. I can walk, I

should hope. When I can't I'll call the ambulanceor the hearse. I'll find the way out, myself. Goodby."

"At our home in the old days. He came there once withwith your father. He was our guest at dinner."

I could scarcely believe it. Then, as the thought of what this might mean flashed to my mind, I asked

"No, I am sure he did not. We met but once and I have," with a little sigh, "changed since then. But I

recognized him. The name of Colton was familiar to me when you first mentioned it, some time ago, but I did

not remember where I had heard it. Of course, I did not connect this Mr. Colton withthat one."

I frowned. This complicated matters still more, and further complications were superfluous.

"And, knowing this, knowing that he might recognize you at any time, you urged me to accept his offer," I

"Mother, how can you? Would you have me go to New York and enter a banking house where, any hour of

any day, I might be recognized by some of the men I once knew? Where I might expect at any moment to be

I stared at her, aghast. "Tell him!" I repeated. "Tell him who I am? Tell him our story, the story that

"No. I believe I am sane, at least. I have been thinking a great deal of late. As I have been growing stronger I

have been thinking more and more and I am not sure that you and I have been right in hiding here as we have

done. It was all my fault, I know, but I was weak andand I dreaded all the gossip and scandal. But, Boy, it

was a mistake. After all, we have done no wrong, you and Iwe, personally, have nothing to be ashamed of.

Why not end all this? Go to Mr. Colton, tell him who you are, tell him our story; then, if he still wants

I interrupted. "No, Mother," I said, "no, no! It is impossible. Even if he knew, and it made no difference, I

could not do it. I may go away! I may feel that I must go, if you are well enough for me to leave you, but I

can not go with him. I ought not to see him again. I must not see HER. . . . . Oh, don't you understand?

She understood. I had seized her hand and now she stroked it gently with her own.

"Yes! yes! yes!" I answered, desperately. "Oh, don't speak of it, Mother! I am insane, I think."

This was so characteristic that, although I was in anything but a laughing mood, I could not help smiling.

"How could she help it? I presume you mean," I observed, sarcastically. "There, Mother, don't worry. I did

not intend that you or anyone else should know what an idiot I am, but don't worry I shan't do anything

ridiculous or desperate. I may go somewhere, to get away from Denboro, and to earn a living for you and me,

"If she does Of course, she doesn'tbut, if she does, can't you see that only makes it worse? Think who

she is and who and what I am! Her family Humph! you have not met her mother; I have."

"It is all right, Mother. There! we won't be foolish any longer. I am going for a walk and I want you to rest. I

am glad, we have had this talk; it has done me good to speak what I have been thinking. Goodby. I will be

She would have detained me, but I broke away and went out. My walk was a long one. I tramped the beach

for eight long miles and, though one might think that my adventures of the night before had provided exercise

enough, this additional effort seemed to do no harm. I forgot dinner entirely and supper was on the table

"Have you seen anything of that man of mine?" she demanded. "I ain't seen hide nor hair of him since I

I was surprised and a little disturbed. I remembered Lute's threat about "never seein' me no more."

"He wouldn't run far; runnin's too much like work. But why he wan't home for dinner I don't understand. I

never knew him to miss a meal's vittles afore. I hope nothin' ain't happened to him, that's all. Well, we'll have

But we did not have to see. We were at the table when we heard the sound of hurrying footsteps on the walk.

The door was thrown open and the missing member of the household appeared. He was redfaced and

panting, but there was a curious air of dignified importance in his bearing. Dorinda's lips shut tightly.

"Don't ask me where I've been!" he gasped. "Don't waste no time askin' ME questions. Get your hat on, Ros!

He was fumbling in his pockets. Dorinda and I looked at each other. She shook her head.

"He's gone stark foolish at last!" she said, with decision. "Well, I've been expectin' it! Lute Rogers, stop

pawin' yourself over and act sensible, if you can. What is the matter with you?"

"Matter with me! Nothin's the matter with ME; but there's somethin' the matter with other folks, I tell you

that! Doctor Quimby's been there twice already, and the telephone's been goin', andand My time! you

His "pawing" became more frantic than ever. His wife stepped forward and seized him by the arm.

"Stop it, I tell you!" she commanded. "Stop it! Who's sick? Whose telephone's ringin'? What letter are you

talkin' about? Answer me! Stop that Saint Vitus dancin' and answer me this minute!"

She gave him a shake and his cap fell to the floor. From it fell an envelope. Lute pulled himself free and

"There 'tis!" he exclaimed. "By time! I was scart I'd lost it! Read it, Ros! read it!"

He handed me the envelope. It bore my name. I tore it opentook out the sheet of notepaper which it

"Father is very ill, and I am in great trouble. I think you, perhaps, can help us both. Will you come over at

"Andand" panted Lute, "she told me to tell you to please hurry. And you'd ought to seen her face!

I heard no more. I did not wait to get my hat, as the excited bearer of the note had urged me to do.

Bareheaded, I hurried out of the diningroom and along the path toward the Colton mansion.

It was early in the evening, but the big house was lighted as if for a reception; lights in the rooms above,

lights in the library and hall and drawingroom. Doctor Quimby's horse and buggy stood by one of the

hitching posts and the Colton motor car was drawn up by the main entrance. From the open windows of the

servants' quarters came the sounds of excited voices. I hastened to the front door. Before I could push the

button of the electric bell the door was opened. Johnson, the butler, peered out at me. Most of his dignity was

"Is it you, Mr. Paine?" he asked, anxiously. "Come in, sir, please. Miss Mabel has been asking for you not a

I entered the hall. "What is it, Johnson?" I asked, quickly. "How is Mr. Colton?"

"He's awful ill, sir," he whispered. "The doctor's been with him for an hour; 'e's unconscious and Mrs. Colton

His nervousness was sufficient indication of the general demoralization of the household. And from one of

"Brace up, man," I whispered in reply. "This is no time for you to go to pieces. Where is Miss Colton?"

He was not obliged to call her, for, at that moment, I heard her voice speaking from the head of the stairs.

I heard a little exclamation, of relief it seemed to me. Then she appeared, descending the staircase. Her face

was, as Lute had said, pale, but her manner was calm, much calmer than the butler's.

She came to me and extended her hand. "Thank you for coming," she said. "I was sure you would."

"He is no worse. Come into the library, please. Johnson, if Mother or the doctor need me, I shall be in the

We entered the library together. The room in which I had had my two memorable encounters with "Big Jim"

Colton was without its dominant figure now. His big armchair was drawn up beside the table and the papers

and writing materials were in the place where I had seen them. A halfburned cigar lay in the ash tray. But

the strong fingers which had placed it there were weak enough now and the masterful general of finance was

in his room upstairs fighting the hardest battle of his life, fighting for that life itself. A door at the end of the

library, a door which I had not noticed before, was partially open and from within sounded at intervals a

series of sharp clicks, the click of a telegraph instrument. I remembered that Colton had told me, in one of his

"Thank you for coming," she said, again. "I need help and I could think of no one but you. You have hurried

She was looking at my forehead. I caught a glimpse of my face in the mirror above the mantel and reached

"I must have run every step of the way," I answered. "I didn't realize it. But never mind that. Tell me about

"He was taken ill soon after he returned from your house. He was in the library here and I heard him call.

When I reached him he was lying upon the couch, scarcely able to speak. He lost consciousness before we

could get him to his room. The doctor says it is what he has feared, an attack of acute indigestion, brought on

by anxiety and lack of rest. It was my fault, I am afraid. Last night's worry Poor Father!"

For just a moment I feared she was going to break down. She covered her eyes with her hand. But she

"The doctor is confident there is no great danger," she went on. "Danger, of course, but not the greatest. He is

still unconscious and will be for some time, but, if he is kept perfectly quiet and not permitted to worry in the

"Thank God for that!" I exclaimed, fervently. "And your mother Mrs. Coltonhow, is she?"

Her tone changed slightly. I inferred that Mrs. Colton's condition was more trying than serious.

"Mother iswell, in her nervous state any shock is disturbing. She is bearing the anxiety as well as we

"It was not on account of Father's illness that I sent for you, Mr. Paine," she went on. "If he had not been ill I

should not have needed you, of course. But there is something else. It could not have happened at a more

unfortunate time and I am afraid you may not be able to give me the help I need. Oh, I hope you can! I don't

know what to do. I know it must be dreadfully important. Father has been troubled about it for days. He has

been saying that he must go to New York. But the doctor had warned us against his going and so we

persuaded him to wait. And now . . . Sit down, please. I want to ask your advice."

"Nothing," I answered, "nothing except Isn't that the telegraph instrument I hear? Isn't someone calling

"Yes, yes, it is Mr. Davis, Father's confidential man, his broker, in New York. He is trying to get us, I am

sure. He telephoned an hour ago. I got a part of his message and then the connection was broken off. Central

says there is something the matter with the wire, a big storm in Connecticut somewhere. It may take a whole

day to repair it. And it is SO important! It may meanI don't know WHAT it may mean! Oh, Mr. Paine, DO

"Yes, yes," a trifle impatiently. "Stocksthe stock market railroad shareshow they are bought and

"A very little," I replied. "I used to know a good deal about them once, and, of late, since I have been in the

Denboro bank, my knowledge has been brushed up a bit. But I am afraid it is pretty fragmentary."

I started. Louisville and Transcontinental was the one stock about which I did know something. Of late I had

read everything the papers printed concerning it. It was the stock in which George Taylor had risked so much

and which had come so near to ruining him. No wonder I was startled. Why did she mention that particular

"Louisville and Transcontinental," she repeated, eagerly. "DO you know anything about it? Why do you look

I must be careful. It was not possible that she could have learned George's secret. No one knew that except

George himself, and his brokers, and I. Yetyet why did she ask that question? I must be on my guard.

"I did not realize that I was looking at you in any extraordinary way, Miss Colton," I answered.

"But you were. Why? Do you know anything about it? If you do oh, if you do you may be able to help me,

For her father's sake! That did not sound as if her question concerned George or me. A trifle reassured, I tried

"I know, of course," I answered, slowly, "what every one knows, that the California and Eastern has been, or

is reported to have been, trying to get control of the L. and T. Its possession would give the California people

the balance of power and mean the end of the present rate war with the Consolidated Pacific. The common

stock has fluctuated between 30 and 50 for months and there have been all sorts of rumors. So much the

"You did not know then that Father and his associates control the California and Eastern?"

"Father tells me a great deal concerning his business affairs. I have been very much interested in this. It

seems almost like a great war and as if Father were a general. He and his associates have gradually bought up

the C. and E. until they practically own it. And they have been working to get the Louisville road. Last

winter, you remember, there was a great excitement and the stock went up and then down again. That was

when it looked as if the other sidethe Consolidated Pacifichad beaten Father, but they had not. You

I remembered it. That is to say, George had told me of the rise and fall of the stock. It was then that he had

"If Father had stayed in New York he would have won before this. Oh," with a burst of pride, "they can

NEVER beat him when he is leading the fight himself! He has, through his brokers, been sellingwhat do

they call it? Oh, yes, selling the Louisville stock 'short' ever since. I am not sure just what that means, but

"I think I do," I answered, thoughtfully. "He has been selling, quietly, so as to force the stock down,

preparatory to buying in. I remember the papers have said that the C. and E. were reported as having lost

"Yes. Father never gives up, you know that. But he was very anxious that the Consolidated Pacific people

should think he had. And nownow, when he is so illcomes this! Mr. Davis telephoned that Yes, what

"Give it to me. Tell the man to wait, Johnson. It is from Mr. Davis," she exclaimed, turning to me. "I am sure

"Galileo potato soap currency tomato deeds command army alcohol thief weather family"

"That is in the code, Father's private code. Don't you see? The code book is here somewhere. I must find it."

She was rummaging in the drawer of the desk. With a sigh of relief she produced a little blue leathercovered

"Here it is," she said. "Now read me the telegram and I will write the translation. Hurry!"

It took us five minutes to translate the telegram. When we had finished the result was:

"Consolidated Pacific crowd wise situation. Strong buying close market today. Expect worse tomorrow.

We are bad shape. Can deliver only part. Sure big advance opening and more follow. What shall I do? Why

do not you answer private telegraph line? Telephone out order. Wire instructions immediately. Better still

"Wait. Wait, please, until I dig some sort of sense out of all this. 'Wise situation'"

"Wise TO situation, I presume that means. The Consolidated Pacific is wise to the situation. 'Wise' is slang,

"It is yet, even in Denboro. Humph! let me think. 'Sure big advance opening.' I suppose that means the market

will open with Louisville and Transcontinental at a higher figure and that the price is sure to advance during

"Yes. Yes, it must mean that. But why should Mr. Davis be so excited about it? He said something about

'ruin' over the 'phone. What does 'We are bad shape' mean? And 'Can deliver only part'?"

"I don't know . . . unless . . . Humph! If we had some particulars. Why don't you answer on the private

"Because I can't. Don't you see? I can't. There is no telegraph operator in the house. When we first came

Father had a secretary, who could use the telegraph; but he sent him back to New York. Said he was sick of

"Yes. Father used it himself. He was a telegraph operator when he was a young man. Oh, you don't know

what a wonderful man my father is! His story is like something in a book. He But never mind that. Hark!

there is the instrument going again. It must be dreadfully important. Mr. Davis is so worried."

"No. Nothing more than I have told you. Oh, CAN'T you help me? I feel somehow as if Father had left me in

charge of his affairs and as if I must not fail. Now, when he is helpless! when he is . . . Oh, can't YOU do

"A poor imitation only, I am afraid. Let me think. Did you tell this man Davis of your father's illness?"

"No. I thought perhaps Father would not wish it. And I had no opportunity . . . Oh, dear! there is someone at

Johnson's voice replied. "It is me, Miss Mabel," he said. "The telegraph person says he can't wait any longer.

He 'asn't 'ad his supper. And there is a twentyfivecent charge for bringing the message, Miss."

"Tell him he must wait a minute longer," I answered, for her. "Miss Colton, it seems to me that, whether we

can do anything or not, we should know the particulars. Tell that manPhineas Cahoon, the depot master, I

suppose it isthat there is an answer and he must wait for it. Now let's consult that code."

She took the code book and I picked up a sheet of paper and a pencil from the table.

"We must ask him to send all the particulars," I declared. "Look up 'send' in the code, Miss Colton."

"He says he can't send any message until morning, Miss Mabel. The telegraph office closes at eight o'clock."

I rose to my feet. "Wait, Johnson," I called. "Make that man wait a moment longer. Miss Colton, I have an

idea. Would your father be willing tobut, that is silly! Of course he would! I'll see Cahoon myself."

I found Phineas, longlegged and gaunt, sitting on the front step of the colonial portico. He had been invited

into the hall, but had refused the invitation. "I had on my workin' duds," he explained later. "A feller that's

been handlin' freight all the afternoon ain't fit to set on goldplated furniture." He looked up in surprise as I

"Well, for thunder sakes!" he exclaimed, in astonishment. "It's Ros Paine! What in the nation are you doin' in

I could have kicked him for that pleasantryif he had not been just then too important a personage to kick.

"How's the old man, Ros?" he whispered. "They tell me it's brought on by high livin', champagne wine and

"Phin," said I, ignoring the question, "would you stay up all night for twenty dollars?"

"What kind of conundrum's that?" he demanded. "'Would I set up all night for twenty dollars?' That may be a

"Would you? I mean it. Mr. Colton is sick and his daughter needs some one to send and receive messages

over their private telegraph wire. She will pay you twenty dollarsor I will, if she doesn't if you will stay

"You mean it, Ros?" he asked, slowly. "You do, hey! I thought p'rapsbut no, it's long past April Fool day.

WILL I do it? Show me the telegraph place quick, afore I wake up and come out of the ether. Twenty dollars!

Consarn it, I send messages all the week for twelve, and hustle freight and sell tickets into the bargain. I ain't

had no supper, but never mind. Make it twentyfive and I'll stay all day tomorrer."

I led him into the library and explained his presence to Miss Colton. She was delighted.

"It is SO good of you, Mr. Cahoon," she exclaimed. "And you shan't starve, either. I will have some supper

She hurried out to order the supper. Phineas, in accordance with my request, seated himself in the little room

"Thunder!" he observed, looking about him. "I never expected to send messages for King Solomon in all his

glory, but I cal'late I can stand it if Sol can. S'pose there'd be any objection to my takin' off my coat? Comes

"This feller's in some hurry," he said, nodding toward the clicking instrument. "Shall I tell him we're on deck

His long fingers busied themselves with the sender. A sharp series of clicks answered the call. Phineas

"Say, he ain't no parson, is he?" he chuckled. "Wants to know what in hell has been the trouble all this time.

"Tell him to send particulars concerning L. and T. at once. All the particulars."

"He says you know all the particulars already. You must know 'em. Wants to know if this is Mr. Colton."

"Tell him Mr. Colton is here, in the house. That will be true enough. And say we wish all particulars, figures

"Give me a piece of paper and a pencil, quick," urged Phineas. "This is a long feller."

While he was writing the "long feller," as the telegraph ticked it off, Miss Colton and the butler appeared, the

latter bearing a loaded tray. He drew a little table up beside the operator and placed the tray upon it. Then he

went away. The telegraph clicked and clicked and Cahoon wrote. Miss Colton and I watched him anxiously.

"Say," observed Phineas, between intervals of clicks, "this feller's in some loony asylum, ain't he. This is

pretty nigh as crazy as that message I fetched down. . . . Here 'tis. Maybe you folks know what it means, I

It was long enough, surely. It was not all in the code jargon Davis trusted the privacy of the wire

sufficiently to send a portion of it in plain Englishbut he did not trust even that altogether. Miss Colton and

I worked it out as we had the first telegram. As the translation progressed I could feel my hair tingling at the

Was it to help in such a complication as this that I had been summoned? I, of all people! These waters were

Boiled down, the "particulars" for which Davis had been asked, and which he had sent, amounted to this:

Colton, it seemed, had sold L. and T. "short" for a considerable period of time in order, as I had surmised, to

force down the price and buy in at a reasonable figure. He had sold, in this way, about threeeighths of the

common stock. Of this amount he had in his possessionin his broker's possession, that isbut two of the

eighths. The "other crowd"the Consolidated Pacific, presumablyhad, as Davis now discovered,

threeeighths actual certificates, in its pocket, had been acquiring them, on the quiet, while pretending to

have lost interest. The public, unsuspecting powers in this, as in most of Wall Street little games, had still

threeeighths. The "other crowd," knowing "Big Jim's" position, had but to force immediate delivery of the

missing oneeighththe amount of Colton's over sellingand he might be obliged to pay Heaven knew

what for the shares. He MUST acquire them; he must buy them. And the price which he would be forced to

pay might meanperhaps not bankruptcy for him, the millionairebut certainly the loss of a tremendous

sum and all chance of acquiring control of the road. "This has been sprung on us all at once," wired Davis.

"They have got us cold. What shall I do? You must be here yourself before the market opens."

The long telegram, several hundred words of it, was before us. I read it through again, and Miss Colton sat

"I was just wonderin'," drawled Cahoon's voice from the adjoining room, "if I couldn't eat a little mite of this

supper. I've got to do it or have my nose and eyes tied up. Havin' all them good things settin' right where I can

"Yes, yes, eat away," I said, laughing. And even Miss Colton smiled. But my laugh and her smile were but

"Is it Does it mean that things are VERY wrong?" she asked, indicating the telegram.

"Say, Ros," said Phin, his mouth full, "this feller's gettin' as fidgety as I was afore I got afoul of this grub. He

"I don't know," I answered. "I do not know. I am afraid I am of no use whatever. This is no countryman's job.

No country banker, even a real one, should attempt to handle this. This is high finance with a vengeance. I

don't know. I think he . . . Suppose we tell him to consult the people at your father's office."

She shook her head. "No," she said. "The people at the office know nothing of it. This was Father's own

"Tell himyes, tell him Mr. Colton cannot leave here at present and that he must use his own judgment, go

ahead on his own responsibility. That is the only thing I see to do, Miss Colton. Don't worry; he must be a

man of experience and judgment or your father never would use him. He will pull it through, I am sure."

I was by no means as confident as I pretended to be, however, and the next message from Davis proved my

Matter too important. Decline to take responsibility. Must have definite instructions or shall not act. Is this

"He would not act without Father's orders in a matter like this. I was afraid of it. And he is growing

suspicious. Oh, CAN'T you help me, Mr. Paine? CAN'T you? I relied on you. I felt sure YOU would know

She turned away and leaned her head upon her hand on the table. I felt again the desperate impulse I had felt

when we were alone on board the launch, the impulse to take her in my arms and try to comfort her, to tell

"Miss Mabel," he whispered, "Miss Mabel, will you come, please? The doctor wants you right away."

"I am coming, Johnson," she said. Then, turning to me, "I will be back as soon as I can. Do trytry to think.

She left the room. I rose and, with my hands in my pockets, began to pace the floor. This was the tightest

place I had ever been in. There had been a time, years before, when I prided myself on my knowledge of the

stock market and its idiosyncrasies. Then, in the confidence of youth, I might have risen to a situation like

this, might have tackled it and had the nerve to pull it through or blame the other fellow if I failed. Now I was

neither youthful nor confident. Whatever I did would be, in all human probability, the wrong thing, and to do

the wrong thing now meant, perhaps, ruin for the sick man upstairs. And she had trusted me! She had sent for

I walked the floor, trying hard to think. It was hard to think calmly, to be sensible, and yet I realized that

commonsense and coolness were what I needed now. I tried to remember the outcome of similar situations

in financial circles, but that did not help me. I remembered a play I had seen, "The Henrietta" was its name.

In that play, a young man with more money than brains had saved the day for his father, a Wall Street

magnate, by buying a certain stock in large quantities at a critical time. He arrived at his decision to buy,

rather than sell, by tossing a coin. The father had declared that his son had hit upon the real secret of success

in stock speculation. Possibly the old gentleman was right, but I could not make my decision in that way. No,

whatever I did must have some reason to back it. Was there no situation, outside of Wall Street, which

offered a parallel? After all, what was the situation? Some one wished to buy a certain thing, and some one

else wished to buy it also. Neither party wanted the other to get it. There had been a general game of bluff

and then . . . Humph! Why, in a way, it was like the original bidding for the Shore Lane land.

It was like it, and yet it was not. I owned the land and Colton wanted to buy it; so also did Jed Dean. Each

side had made bids and had been refused. Then the bidders had, professedly, stood pat, but, in reality, they

had not. Jed had told me, in his latest interview, that he would have paid almost anything for that land, if he

had had to. And ColtonColton had invented the Bay Shore Development Company. That company had

fooled Elnathan Mullet and other property holders. It had fooled Captain Jed. It had come very near to

fooling me. If Mabel Colton had not given me the hint I might have been tricked into selling. Then Colton

would have won, have won on a "bluff." A good bluff did sometimes win. I wondered . . .

I was still pacing the floor when Miss Colton returned to the library. She was trying hard to appear calm, but I

"He is not as well just now. II must not leave himor Mother. But I came back for a moment, as I told

"No. Davis has repeated his declaration to do nothing without orders from your father."

She nodded. "Very well," she said, "then it is over. We are beatenFather is beaten for the first time. It

makes little difference, I suppose. If heif he is taken from us, nothing else matters. But I hoped you . . .

never mind. I thank you, Mr. Paine. You would have helped him if you could, I know."

Somehow this surrender, and the tone in which it was made, stirred me more than all else. She had trusted me

"Miss Colton," I said, earnestly, "supposesuppose I should go ahead and make this fight, on my own hook.

Suppose I should give Davis the 'instructions' he is begging for. Have I permission to do it?"

"Do you mean it? It may mean complete smash. I am no railroad man, no stock manipulator. I have an idea

and if this trouble were mine I should act upon it. But it is not mine. It is your father'sand yours. I may be

She stepped forward. "Do it," she commanded. "I tell you to do it. If it fails I will take the responsibility."

"Send this message at once: 'Try your hardest to get hold of any shares you can, at almost any figure in

reason, before the market opens. When it opens begin buying everything offered.' Got that?"

"Sign it 'Colton' and send it along. I am using your father's name," I added, turning to her. "It seems to me the

only way to avoid suspicion and get action. No one must know that 'Big Jim' is critically ill; you understand

"Yes, I understand. But," hesitatingly, "to buy may mean paying tremendous prices, may it not? Can we"

"Tell him no. Tell him to let it leak out that Colton is seizing the opportunity to clinch his control of the road.

The other crowd will think, if he is willing to buy at any price, that he cannot be so short as they supposed.

Send all that, Phin. It is a bluff, Miss Colton, nothing but a bluff, but it may win. God knows I hope it will."

All right if you say so, of course, but still think it suicide. I am off on the still hunt for those shares but don't

believe one to be had, Consolidated bunch too sharp for that. Stay by the wire. Will report when I can. Good

"Right you be. Send word to the old woman, that's all, if you can. Cal'late she's waitin' at the kitchen door

"I will send the word, Mr. Cahoon," replied Miss Colton. "And don't you think you could go home now,

"No home for me," I answered, with assumed cheerfulness. "Admirals of Finance are expected to stick by the

ship. I will lie down here on the couch and Phineas can call me if I am needed. Don't worry, Miss Colton. Go

to your father and forget us altogether, if you can. Ifif I should be needed forfor any other cause, please

She looked at me in silence for a moment. Then she came toward me and held out her hand. "I shall not

forget, whatever else I may do," she said, brokenly. "And I will speak if I need you, my friend."

"I will send word to your people as well as Mr. Cahoon's," she added. "Try and sleep, if you can. Good

The door closed behind her. Sleep! I was not likely to sleep. A man who has lighted the fuse of the powder

And yet sleep I did, for a little while, just before morning broke. I had spent the night pacing the floor and

talking to Phineas, who was wide awake and full of stories and jokes, to which I paid little attention. Miss

Colton did not come to the library again. From the rooms above I heard occasional sobs and exclamations in

"Hello, Ros!" he hailed, "I heard you were here. This is a high old night, isn't it!"

"About the same. No worse; in fact, he's better than he was a while ago. But he's not out of the woods yet,

though I'm pretty hopeful, for the old boy has a husky constitutionconsidering the chances he's taken with

it all his life. It's his wife that bothers me. She's worse than one of the plagues of Egypt. I've given her some

"She! She's as calm and sensible and helpful as a trained nurse. By the Almighty, she is a wonder, that girl!

Well, I must get back on my job. Don't have a millionaire patient every day in the week."

At three o'clock came a message from Davis. He had not been able to secure a single share. Did his

instructions to buy still hold? I answered that they did and he replied that he was going to get a nap for an

It was shortly after this that I lay down on the couch. I had determined not to close my eyes, but I was utterly

worn out, I suppose, and exhaustion got the better of me. The next thing I knew the gray light of dawn was

streaming in at the library windows and Johnson was spreading a temptinglooking breakfast on the table.

"About halfpast five, sir, or thereabouts," was the answer, in a tone of mingled weariness and resentment.

I was thankful that my lapse from duty had been of no longer duration. It had been much too long as it was.

"Here I be," this from Phineas in the next room. "Have a good snooze, did you, Ros?"

"Too good." I walked in and found him still sitting by the telegraph instrument. "Has anything happened?" I

"Nary thing. All quiet as the tomb since that last message, the one you heard. Pretty nigh fell asleep myself, I

did. Guess I should have, only Miss Colton she came in and kept me comp'ny for a spell."

"I was goin' to, but she wouldn't let me. Said you was all wore out, poor feller, and that you wan't to be

disturbed unless 'twas necessary. She's an awful nice young woman, ain't she. Nothin' stuck up about her, at

all. Set here and talked with me just as sociable and folksy as if she wan't wuth a cent. Asked more questions

"Did she?" I was not paying much attention to his remarks. My mind was busy with more important things. I

"Yup. I happened to remember that you wan't at the bank today and I asked her if she knew the reason why.

'How did you know he wasn't there?' says she. 'Alvin Baker told me fust,' I says, 'and Sam Wheeler told him.

Everybody knew it and was wonderin' about it. They cal'lated Ros was sick,' I told her, 'but that couldn't be or

he wouldn't be round here settin' up all night.' What WAS the reason you wan't there, Ros?"

I thought it strange that he, and everyone else in town, did not know the reason before this. Was it possible

that Captain Dean alone knew of my "treason" to Denboro, and that he was keeping the discovery to himself?

"Yup. So I gathered from what Cap'n Jed said. He was in the depot this noon sendin' a telegram and I asked

him about you. 'Is Ros sick?' I says. 'Huh!' says heyou know how he grunts, Ros; for all the world like a

hog'Huh!' says he, 'sick! No, but I cal'late he'll be pretty sick afore long.' What did he mean by that, do you

"Twas a queer sort of talk, seemed to me," continued Phin. "I asked him again why you wan't at the bank, and

he said you had other business, just same as you said now. He was ugly as a cow with a sore horn over

somethin' and I judged 'twas best to keep still. That telegram he sent was a surprisin' thing, too. 'Twas

tobut there! he made me promise I wouldn't tell and so I mustn't. I ain't told a soulexcept oneand then

it slipped out afore I thought. However, that one won't make no difference. She ain't interested inin the one

"With her ma and pa, I presume likely. Her and me set and whispered together for a long spell. Land sakes!

she wouldn't let me speak louder'n a whisper for fear of wakin' you up. A body'd think you was a youngone

Again I did not answer, and again the garrulous station master continued without waiting for a reply.

"I says to her, says I, 'It's a pity George Taylor ain't to home,' I says. 'I shouldn't wonder if he could help you

with this Louisville stock you're so worried about. George was consider'ble interested in that stock himself a

spell ago. I sent much as a dozen telegrams from him about that very stock to some broker folks up to

"Sure I did! I never meant to, nuther. Ain't told another soul. You see, George, he asked me not to. But she's

got a way with her that would make Old Nick confess his sins, if she set out to larn 'em. I was sort of

ashamed after I told her and I explained to her that I hadn't ought to done it. 'But I guess it's all right now,

anyway,' I says. 'If there was any trouble along of George and that stock I cal'late it's all over. He acted

dreadful worried for a spell, but for the week afore he was married he seemed chipper as ever. Biggest change

in him you ever see,' says I. 'So my tellin' you is all right, I guess,' I says. 'I'm sure it's all right,' says she, and

her face kind of lighted up, as you might say. When she looked at me that way I'd have given her my house

and lot, if she'd wanted 'em, though you needn't tell my old woman that I said so. He! he! 'Of course it's all

right,' she says. 'But you had better not tell anyone else. We'll have it for our secret, won't we, Mr. Cahoon?'

she says, smilin'. 'Sartin we will,' says I. Andwell, by thunder!" as if the thought occurred to him for the

first time. "I said that, and now I've been and blatted out the whole business to you! I am the DARNDEST

I did not contradict him. I was too angry and disturbed even to speak to him for the moment. And, before I

could speak, we were interrupted. The young lady herself appeared in the doorway. SHE had not slept, that

was plain. Her face was pale and there were dark shadows beneath her eyes. As I looked at her I was more

ashamed of my own unpremeditated nap than ever. Yet she was, as the doctor had said, calm and

"Good morning," she said. "Your breakfast is ready, Mr. Cahoon. I know you feel that you must be getting

"Land sakes! most six, ain't it," he exclaimed. "I guess you're right. I'll have to be trottin' along. But you

needn't fuss for no breakfast for me. I'm used to missin' a meal's vittles now and again and I et enough last

"There has been no 'fuss' whatever, Mr. Cahoon," she said. "Breakfast is ready, here in the library. And yours

is ready, too, Mr. Paine. I hope your few minutes' sleep has rested you. I am sorry you woke so soon. I told

"I deserve to be shot for sleeping at all," I declared, in self reproach. "I did not mean to. I lay down for a

"Yes, it was. You had the care and the responsibility. I, you see, knew that I was well guarded. Besides, I

Phineas was already seated at the table, glancing over his shoulder at the butler, whose look of dignified

disgust at being obliged to wait upon a countryman in his shirt sleeves would have been funny, if I had been

in a mood for fun. I don't know which was the more uncomfortable, Cahoon or the butler.

"Whywhy, yes, perhaps I will, if you don't mind. I am not hungry but I will take a cup of coffee, Johnson."

Phineas did almost all the talking while he remained with us, which was not long. He swallowed his breakfast

in a tremendous hurry, a proceeding which still further discomposed the stately Johnson, and then rose and

"I hate to leave you short handed and on a lee shore, Miss," he explained, apologetically; "but I know you

understand how 'tis with me. My job's all I've got and I'll have to hang onto it. The up train's due in forty

minutes and I've got to be on hand at the deepo. However, I've got that Davis feller's address and I'll raise him

the first thing to send his messages to me and I'll get 'em right down here by the reg'lar telephone. He can use

that whatdoyoucallit?that code thing, if he's scart of anybody's findin' out what he says. The boss

I hated to have him go, but there was no alternative. After he had gone and she and I were left together at the

table a sense of restraint seemed to fall upon us both. To see her sitting opposite me at the table, pouring my

coffee and breakfasting with me in this intimate, family fashion, was so wonderful and strange that I could

think of nothing else. It reminded me, in a way, of our luncheon at Seabury's Pond, but that had been out of

doors, an impromptu picnic, with all a picnic's surroundings. This was different, quite different. It was so

familiar, so homelike, so conventional, and yet, for her and me, so impossible. I looked at her and she,

looking up at the moment, caught my eyes. The color mounted to her cheeks. I felt my own face flushing.

Dorindapractical, unromantic Dorindahad guessed my feeling for this girl; Mother had divined it. It was

plain enough for anyone to read. I glanced apprehensively at the butler, half expecting to see upon his clerical

countenance the look of scornful contempt which would prove that he, too, was possessed of the knowledge.

But he merely bent forward with a deferential, "Yes, sir. What is it?" and I meekly requested another roll.

I inquired about Mr. Colton's condition and was told that he was, or appeared to be, a trifle better. Mrs.

Colton was, at last, thanks to the doctor's powders, asleep. Johnson left the room for the moment and I

switched to the subject which neither of us had mentioned since the night before, the Louisville and

Transcontinental muddle. I explained what had been done and pretended a confidence which I did not feel

that everything would end well. She listened, but, it seemed to me, she was not as interested as I expected. At

"Suppose we do not talk about it now," she said. "As I understand it, youwe, that ishave made up our

minds. We have decided to do certain things which seem to us right. Right or wrong, they must be done now.

I am trying very hard to believe them right and not to worry any more about them. Oh, I CAN'T worry! I

can't! With all the rest, II Please let us change the subject. Mr. Paine, I am afraid you must think me

selfish. I have said nothing about your own trouble. Father" she choked on the name, but recovered her

composure almost immediately"Father told me, after his return from your house this morning, that his

purchase of the land had become public and that you were in danger of losing your position at the bank."

I smiled. "That danger is past," I answered. "I have lost it. Captain Dean gave me my walking papers this

"I am not. I expected it. The wonder is only that it has not happened before. I realized that it was inevitable

"Yes, it is. But Father offered you the position in his employ. He said you refused, but he believed your

She looked at me oddly, and with a faint smile. "Very well," she said, after a moment, "we will not discuss it

now. But you cannot suppose that either Father or I will permit you to suffer on our account."

"There is no suffering. I sold the land to your father deliberately and with complete knowledge of the

consequences. As to the bank well, I am no worse off than I was before I entered its employ. I am

"Captain Dean seems to be the only person in Denboro who knows of the sale," she said. "Why has he kept it

"You know he has, Mr. Paine. Mr. Cahoon did not know of it, and he would be one of the first to hear. It

"Probably he is waiting for the full particulars. He will tell, you may be sure of that. His last remark to me

I rather expected a burst of indignation. In fact I was somewhat hurt and disappointed that it did not come.

"He has not done it yet," she said. "If he knew why you sold that landyour real reason for selling ithe

"Oh, then there is such a person! I was sure of it before. Now you have told me."

Before I could recover from the mental disturbance and chagrin which my slip and her quick seizure of it

"Mrs. Colton is awake and asking for you, Miss Mabel," he said. "The doctor thinks you had better go to her

With a word of apology to me, she hurried away. I rose from the table. I had had breakfast enough. The

interruption had come at a fortunate time for me. Her next question might have forced me to decline to

answerwhich would have been equivalent to admitting the truthor to lie. One thing I determined to do

without delay. I would write Taylor at once warning him to be more closemouthed than ever. Under no

conditions would I permit him to speak. If it were necessary I would go to Washington, where he and Nellie

were spending their honeymoon, and make him promise to keep silence. His telling the truth might ruin him,

and it certainly would not help me. In the one essential thingthe one which was clenching my

determination to leave Denboro as soon as I could and seek forgetfulness and occupation elsewhereno one

could help me. I must help myself, or be miserable always. Just now the eternal misery seemed inevitable, no

Johnson cleared the table and left me alone in the library. The hours passed. Nine o'clock came, then

ninethirty. It was almost time for the stock market to open. My thoughts, which had been diverted from my

rash plunge into the intricacies of high finance, began to return to it. As ten o'clock drew near, I began to

realize what I had bade Davis do, and to think what might happen because of it. I, Roscoe Paine, no longer

even a country banker, was at the helm of "Big Jim" Colton's bark in the maelstrom of the stock market. It

would have been funny if it had not been so desperate. And desperate it was, sheer reckless desperation and

nothing else. I must have been crazier than ever, more wildly insane than I had been for the past month, to

The telephone on the desknot the public, the local, 'phone, but the other, Colton's private wire to New

"Helloo! Helloo!" a faint voice was calling. "Is this Colton's house at Denboro? . . . Yes, this is Davis. . . .

"No," I answered, "Mr. Colton is here in the house. You may give the message to me."

"I want to know if his orders hold. Am I to buy? Ask him. I will wait. Hurry! The market opens in five

I put down the receiver. Now was my opportunity. I could back out now. Five minutes more and it would be

And I waited alone. I walked up and down the floor of the little room, looking at the clock and wondering

what was happening on that crowded floor of the big Broad Street building. The market was open. Davis was

No one came near me, not even the butler. It was tentwenty before the bell rang again.

"Hello! This is Mr. Davis's office. Is this Mr. Colton? Tell him Mr. Davis says L. and T. is one hundred and

fifty now and jumping twenty points at a lick. There is the devil to pay. Scarcely any stock in sight and next

I was trying to decide upon an answer when some one touched my elbow. Miss Colton was standing beside

"One hundred and fifty!" she exclaimed. "That is Why, that is dreadful! What will you do?"

"No, it is for you. You are doing this. I trust you. Do what you think is rightyou and Mr. Davis. That is

I turned to the 'phone once more. "Buy all you can get," I ordered. "Keep on bidding. But be sure and spread

the news that it is Colton buying to secure control of the road, not to cover his shorts. Be sure that leaks out.

"I must," gently. "Father is worse, I fear, and I must not leave him. Doctor Quimby says the next few hours

may tell us whether he isiswhether he is to be with us or not. I must go. Be brave. I trust you. Be brave,

I seized her hand. She drew it from my grasp and hastened away. Brave! Well, for her sake, I must be. Yet it

As I recall all this now I wonder at myself. The whole thing seems too improbable to be true, yet true it was. I

lost my identity that day, I think, and, as the telephone messages kept coming, and the situation became more

and more desperate, became some one else, some one a great deal braver and cooler and more clearsighted

than ever I had been or shall be again. I seemed to see my course plainer every moment and to feel surer of

At eleven Louisville and Transcontinental was sellingthe little that was soldat four hundred and fifty

dollars a share, on a par value of fifty. At eleventhirty it had climbed another hundred. The whole Street was

"Tell Davis to stop buying now," I ordered. "Let it be known that Colton has secured control and is satisfied."

At noon the figure was 700 bid and 800 asked. There was no trading at all, for the sufficient reason that no

shares were to be had. Johnson came in to ask if he should bring my luncheon. I bade him clear out and let

"Very bad indeed, sir. Miss Mabel wished me to say that she could not leave him an instant. It is the crisis,

There were two crises then, one on each floor of the big house. At one Davis himself 'phoned.

"Still hanging around 700," he announced. "Begins to look as if the top had been reached. What shall I do

My plan was ready and I gave my orders as if I had been doing such things for years.

"Sell, in small lots, at intervals," I told him. "Then, if the price breaks, begin buying through another broker

The answer was in a different tone; there was a new note, almost of hope, in it.

"By the Lord, I believe you have got it!" he cried. "It may work. I'll report to you, Mr. Colton, right away."

Plainly he had no doubt that "Big Jim" was directing the fight in person. Far was it from me to undeceive

"The bottom is beginning to fall out, I honestly believe. They think you've done 'em again. I am spreading the

report that you have the control cinched. As soon as the scramble is really on I'll have a half dozen brokers

"Hooray for our side! They're dead and buried! You have two hundred shares more than fifty per cent, of the

common stock. The Louisville road is in your pocket, Mr. Colton. I congratulate you. Might have known they

couldn't lick the old man. You are a wonder. I'll write full particulars and then I am going home and to bed.

I sat there, staring at the 'phone. Then, all at once, I began to laugh, weakly and hysterically, but to laugh,

I rose from the chair and walked out into the library. I was so completely fagged out by the strain I had been

under that I staggered as I walked. The library door opened and Johnson came in. He was beaming, actually

"He's very much better, sir," he cried. "He's conscious and the doctor says he considers 'im out of danger

now. Miss Mabel sent word she would be down in a short while. She can't leave the mistress immediate, but

I looked at him in a dazed way. "Tell Miss Colton that I am very glad, Johnson," I said. "And tell her, too,

that everything here is satisfactory also. Tell her that Mr. Paine says her father has his control."

"She will understand. Say that everything is all right, we have won and that Mr. Colton has his control. Don't

The next thing I remember with any distinctness is Dorinda's knocking at my bedroom door. I remember

reaching that bedroom, of course, and of meeting Lute in the kitchen and telling him that I was not to be

disturbed, that I should not come down to supper and that I wanted to be let aloneto be let ALONEuntil

I saw fit to show myself. But these memories are all foggy and mixed with dreams and nightmares. As I say,

the next thing that I remember distinctly after staggering from the Colton library is Dorinda's knocking at the

"Ros! Roscoe!" she was calling. "Can you get up now? There is somebody downstairs waitin' to see you."

Ten! Then I had not slept so long, after all. It was nearly four when I went to bed and . . . But what made the

"Umhm. I hated to disturb you. You've been sleepin' like the everlastin' hills and I knew you must be

completely wore out. But I felt pretty sartin you'd want to see thewho 'tis that here's to see you, so I

"It is high time you did, I should think! I'll be down in a minute. Who is it that wishes to see me, Dorinda?"

But Dorinda had gone. I dressed hurriedly and descended the stairs to the diningroom. There, seated in a

chair by the door, his eyes closed, his chin resting upon his chest, and his aristocratic nose proclaiming the

fact that he slumbered, was Johnson, the Colton butler. I was not greatly surprised. I had rather suspected that

"II beg your pardon, sir," he stammered. "II beg your pardon, sir, I'm sure. I've beenI 'aven't closed

my eyes for the past two nights, sir, and I am tired out. Mr. Colton wishes to see you at once, sir. He wishes

I was surprised now. "MR. Colton wishes it," I repeated. "You mean Miss Colton, don't you, Johnson."

"No, sir. It is Mr. Colton this time, sir. Miss Colton is out in the motor, sir."

"No, sir, he isn't. He's very much better. He's quite himself, sir, really. And he is very anxious to see you. On

I hesitated. I had expected this, though not so soon. He wanted to ask questions concerning my crazy dip into

his financial affairs, doubtless. Well, I should have to see him some time or other, and it might as well be

I called to Dorinda, who was in the kitchen, and bade her tell Mother, if she inquired for me, that I had gone

out, but would be back soon. Then Johnson and I walked briskly along the bluff path. We entered the big

"Mr. Colton is in his room, sir," explained the butler. "You are to see him there. This way, sir."

But before we reached the foot of the stairs Doctor Quimby came out of the library. He and I shook hands.

"Well!" he exclaimed, "what's the matter with the onehorse, countryjay doctor now, hey! If there is any

one of the Boston specialists at a hundred a visit who can yank a man out of a serious sickness and put him

on his feet quicker than I can, why trot him along, that's all! I want to see him! I've been throwing bouquets at

myself for the last ten hours. Ho! ho! Say, Ros, you'll think my head is swelled pretty bad, won't you! Ho!

"Fine! Tiptop! The only trouble is that he ought to keep perfectly quiet and not do a thing or think of a

thing, except getting his strength back, for the next week. But he hadn't been conscious more than a couple of

hours before he was asking questions about business and so on. He and his daughter had a long confab this

morning and after that he was neither to bind or tie. He must see you, that's all there was to it. Say, Ros, what

"That's all, hey! Well, whatever 'twas, he and I owe you a vote of thanks. He began to get better the minute he

heard it. He's feeling so chipper that, if it wasn't that I swore he shouldn't, he'd have got out of bed by this

time. You must go up and see him, I suppose, but don't stay too long. He's a wonder for strength and

recuperative powers, but don't tire him too much. If that wife of his was in Europe or somewhere, I'd feel

Johnson led the way upstairs. At the chamber door he knocked and announced my presence.

"Bring him in! What is he waiting for?" demanded a voice which, considering how recently its owner had

He was in bed, propped up with pillows. Beside him sat Mrs. Colton. Of the two she looked the more

disturbed. Her eyes were wet and she was dabbing at them with a lace handkerchief. Her morning gown was

a wondrous creation. "Big Jim," with his iron gray hair awry and his eyes snapping, looked remarkably wide

"How are you, Paine?" he said. "Glad to see you. Sorry to bring you over here, but I had to see you and that

doctor says I must stay in this room for a while yet. He may be right. My understanding is pretty shaky, I'll

I bowed and expressed my pleasure at meeting the lady. Her bow was rather curt, but she regarded me with

an astonishing amount of agitated interest. Also she showed symptoms of more tears.

"I don't remember whether or not Mr. Paine and I have ever been formally introduced," she observed. "If we

haven't it makes no difference, I suppose. The other members of the family seem to know him well enough.

She had recourse to the lace handkerchief. I could understand what the doctor meant by calling her the "most

"There, there, my dear," he said, soothingly, "don't be foolish. Sit down, Paine. Henrietta, perhaps you had

better leave Mr. Paine and I together. We have someerbusiness matters to discuss and you are tired and

Mrs. Colton accepted the suggestion, but her acceptance was not the most gracious.

"I am in the way, as usual," she observed, chokingly. "Very well, I should be resigned to that by this time, no

doubt. I will go. But James, for my sake, don't be weak. Remember what Oh, remember all we had hoped

and planned! When I think of it, II A nobody! A person without . . . What SHALL I do?"

The handkerchief was in active operation. She swept past me to the door. There she turned.

"I may forgive you some time, Mr. Paine," she sobbed. "I suppose I shall have to. I can't do anything else.

The door closed and I heard her sobs as she marched down the hall. To say that I was amazed and decidedly

uncomfortable would be a very mild estimate of my feelings. Why should I expect her to forgive me? What

had I done? Ior luck and I togetherhad saved one of her husband's stock speculations from ending in

smash; but that was no injury for which I should beg forgiveness. At least I could not see that it was.

"Nerves are the devil, aren't they," he observed. "And nerves and a woman together are worse than that. My

wife, Paine, iswell, she hasn't been in good health for a long time and Mabel and I have done our best to

give her her own way. When you've had your own way for years it rather hurts to be checkmated. I know that

"Better about what?" I demanded, involuntarily. "I don't understand Mrs. Colton's meaning in the least."

"So you don't understand what she means, hey?" he said again. "All right, all right! We won't discuss that yet

a while. If you don't understandnever mind. Time enough for us to talk of that when you do. But, say,

"No one taught me," I answered. "If I had any knowledge at all in that direction I was born with it, I guess. A

"It's a mighty profitable sort of wickednessfor me. Young man, do you realize what you did? How do you

"I don't expect you to thank me at all. It was bull luck that won for you, Mr. Colton. Bull luck and

desperation on my part. Miss Colton sent for me to help her. Your confidential man, Davis, refused to make a

move without orders from you. You couldn't give any orders. Someone had to do something, or, so it seemed

to your daughter and me, your Louisville and Transcontinental deal was a gone goose."

"It was more than that. I might have come pretty near being a gone goose along with it. Not quite gone,

perhapsI should have had a few cents left in the stockingbut I should have lost a lot more than I care to

lose. So it was bull luck, hey? I don't believe it. Tell me the whole story, from beginning to end, will you?

I thought of Quimby's warning. "I'm afraid I should tire you, Mr. Colton. It is a long story, if I give

"Never mind, you give them. That 'tiring' business is some more of that doctor's foolishness. HE makes me

tired, all right. You tell me what I want to know or I'll get out of this bed and shake it out of you."

He looked as if he meant to carry out his threat. I began my tale at the beginning and went on to the

"Don't ask me why I did this or that, Mr. Colton," I concluded. "I don't know. I think I was off my head part

of the time. But something HAD to be done. I tried to look at the affair in a commonsense way, and"

"And, HAVING commonsense, you used it. Paine, you're a brick! Your kind of commonsense is so rare

that it's worth paying any price for. Ha! ha! So it was Keene and his 'Development Company' that gave you

the idea. That's good! That little failure of mine wasn't altogether a failure, after all. You saw it was a case

where a bluff might win, and you had the sand to bluff it through. That comes of living so long where there is

more sand than anything else, I imagine, hey! Ha! ha! Well, bull luck or insanity or whatever you call it, it

did the trick. Of course I'm more obliged to you than I can tell. You know that."

"That's all right, Mr. Colton. Now I think I must be going. You've talked enough."

"You sit still. I haven't begun to talk yet. Paine, before you did this thing for me I had taken a fancy to you. I

believed there was good stuff in you and that I could use you in my business. Now I know I can't afford to do

without you. . . . Stop! let me finish. Young man, I told you once that when I made up my mind to do a thing,

I always did it. ALWAYS; do you understand? I am going to get you. You are coming with me."

I had foreseen this, of course. But I had hoped to get away from that room before he reached the point. He

had reached it, however, and perhaps it was as well he had. We would end this for all time.

"Mr. Colton," I answered, "you have a monopoly of some things, but of others you have not. I am just as

determined to have my own way in this matter as you are. I shall NOT accept your offer of employment. That

I rose. "The doctor told me that you must not excite yourself," I said. "I am going. Goodby."

"You come back!" he ordered. "Come back! If you don't Well, by the Lord, if you don't I'll get up and

I believe he would have tried to do it. I was frightened, on his account. I turned reluctantly. He sank back on

"Sit down there," he panted. "Sit down. Now I want you to tell me the real reason why you won't work for

me. By gad! you're the first one in many a day I have had to ask twice. Why? Tell me the truth! Why?"

"I did that because I was driven to it. But I don't care for the stock game. Once I used to think I liked that sort

of thing; now I know I don't. If I am anything I am a bank man, a poor sort of one, perhaps, but"

"Bank man! Why, you idiot! I don't care what you are. I can use you in a dozen places. You don't have to

buck the market. I'll do that myself. But there are plenty of places where your brains and that commonsense

you talk about will be invaluable to me. I do a banking business, on the side, myself. I own a mining

property, a good one, out West. It needs a financial manager, and needs one badly. You come with me, do

you hear! I'll place you where you fit, before I get through with you, and I'll make you a rich man in ten

"NO! You are enough to drive a well man crazy, to say nothing of a halfsick relic like me. _I_ say

yesyesYES! Sooner or later I'll MAKE you. You've lost your place here. You told me yourself that that

old crank Dean is going to make this town too hot to hold you. You'll HAVE to go away. Now won't you?"

I nodded. "I shall go away," I answered. "I have made up my mind to go, now that Mother seems well enough

He stared at me in silence for what seemed a long time. I thought he must be exhausted, and once more I rose

"Stop! Stay where you are," he ordered. "I haven't got the answer to you yet, and I know it. There's something

back of all this, something I don't know about. I'm going to find out what it is, if it takes me a year. You can

tell me now, if you want to. It will save time. What is the real reason why you won't take my offer?"

I don't know why I did it. I had kept the secret all the years and certainly, when I entered that room, I had no

intention of revealing it. Yet, now, when he asked this question I turned on him and blurted out what I had

"I'll tell you why," I cried, desperately. "I can't take the place you offer because you know nothing about me.

You don't know who I am. If you did you . . . . Mr. Colton, you don't even know my name."

He looked at me and shook his head, impatiently. "Either you ARE crazy, or I am," he muttered. "Don't know

"No, you don't! You think I am Roscoe Paine. I am not. I am Roscoe Bennett, and my father was Carleton

I had said it. And the moment afterward I was sorry. I would have given anything to take back the words, but

I heard him draw a deep breath. I did not look at him. I did not care to see his face and read on it the disgust

"Humph!" he exclaimed. "Humph! Do you mean to tell me that your father was Carleton BennettBennett

"Well! well! well! Carleton Bennett! No wonder there was something familiar about your mother, something

that I seemed to remember. I met her years ago. Well! well! So you're Carleton Bennett's son?"

I looked at him now. He was smiling, actually smiling. His illness had affected his mind.

I could have struck him. If he had not been weak and ill and irresponsible for what he was saying I think I

"Mr. Colton," I said, striving to speak calmly, "you don't understand. My father was Carleton Bennett, the

embezzler, the thief, the man whose name was and is a disgrace all over the country. Mother and I came here

to hide from that disgrace, to begin a new, clean life under a clean name. Do you think? Oh, you don't

"I understand all right. This is the first time I HAVE understood. I see now why a clever man like you was

willing to spend his days in a place like Denboro. Well, you aren't going to spend any more of them there.

"Mr. Colton," I cried, "even if you meant it, which you don'tdo you suppose I would go back to New York,

where so many know me, and enter your employ under an assumed name? Run the risk of"

"Hush! Enter it under your own name. It's a good name. The Bennetts are one of our oldest families. Ask my

"Yes. I declare, PaineBennett, I meanI shall begin to believe you haven't got the sense I credited you

with. I can see what has been the matter with you. You came here, you and your sick mother, with the scandal

of your father's crookedness hanging over you and her sickness making her supersensitive, and you two kept

the secret and brooded over it so long that you have come to think you are criminals, too. You're not. You

"Yes, sensible, if you can. I don't care who your father was. He was a smart banker, before he went wrong,

and I can see now where you inherited your ability. But never mind that. He's dead; let him stay so. I'm not

"You want ME! Do you mean you would take me into your employ, knowing who I am?"

'Yes." I faced him squarely. "Yes," I said, "there is another reason, one that makes it impossible, utterly

impossible, if nothing else did. When I tell you what it is you will understand what I mean and agree with me.

Your daughter and I have been thrown together a great deal since she came to Denboro. Our meetings have

not been of my seeking, nor of hers. Of late I have realized that, for my own sake, for the sake of my peace of

"Here! Stop!" he broke in sharply. "What is this? Do you mean to tell me that you and Mabel"

"Stop, I tell you! Do you mean to tell me that you arethat you have been making love to my daughter?"

"There! Don't act like the Wild Man of Borneo. Do you mean that you are in love with her?"

"Humph! That will do. . . . Humph! Well, PaineBennett, I should say; it is hard to keep track of your

namesyou are rather erreckless, it seems to me. Mabel is our only child and her mother and I,

naturally, had planned for her future . . . Have you told her of yourrecklessness?"

"Of course not! I shall not see her again. I shall leave Denboro as soon as I can. She will never know."

"Humph! I see . . . I see . . . Well, I don't know that there is anything for me to say."

There was a sharp rap at the door. Doctor Quimby opened it and entered the room. He glanced from me to his

"You'd better go, Ros," he snapped. "What is the matter with you? Didn't I tell you not to excite him."

"Clear out this minute!" continued the angry doctor. "Ros Paine, I thought you had more sense."

"So did I," this from "Big Jim". "However, I am learning a lot these days. Goodby, Paine."

"Oh, by the way," he called after me, "let me make a suggestion. If I were you, Roscoe, I wouldn't leave

I did not understand him and I asked for no explanation. It was the first time he had addressed me by my

That afternoon I was alone in my haven of refuge, the boathouse. Mother and I had had a long talk. I told her

everything that had transpired. I kept back nothing, either of my acts or my feelings. She said she was not

sorry for what I had done. She was rather glad, than otherwise, that I had disclosed our secret to Mr. Colton.

"He knows now, Roscoe," she said. "And he was right, too. You and I have brooded over our sorrow and

what we considered our disgrace much more than we should. He is right, Boy. We are innocent of any

"Yes, Mother," I answered, "I suppose we are. But we must keep the secret still. No one else in Denboro must

know. You know what gossip there would be. There is enough now. I presume I am called a traitor and a

"Why no, you are not. That is the strange thing about it. Luther was up at the postoffice this morning and no

one seems to know of your sale of the land. Captain Dean has, apparently, kept the news to himself. Why do

"I don't know. I don't know, unless it is because heno, I can't understand it at all. However, they will know

soon enough. By the way, I have never asked Dorinda where Lute was that noonit seems ages agowhen

She smiled. "Poor Luther!" she said. "He announced his intention of running away, you remember. As a

matter of fact he met the Coltons' chauffeur in the motor car and the chauffeur invited him to go to Bayport

with him. The chauffeur had an errand there. Lute acceptedas he says, automobile rides don't come his way

every day in the weekand they had trouble with the engine and did not get back until almost night. Then

Miss Colton told him of her father's seizure and gave him the note for you. It was to you she turned in her

The rest of our conversation need not be written here. She said many things, such as fond mothers say to their

sons and which the sons know too well they do not deserve. We discussed my leaving Denboro and she was

"I'll stay, Mother," I said. "I can't leave you. I'll stay and fight it out with you. After all, it will not be much

But she would not hear of my staying. I had a friend in Chicago, a distant relative who knew our story.

Perhaps he could help me to a start somewhere. She kissed me and bade me keep up my courage, and I left

her. I ate a hurried meal, a combination of breakfast and dinner, and, dodging Lute, who was in the back yard

waiting to question me concerning the Coltons, walked down to the boathouse. There, in my armchair, I tried

It was a hopeless task. I was not interested in it. I did not much care what became of me. If it were not for

Mother I should not have cared at all. Nevertheless, for her sake, I must try to plan, and I did.

I was still trying when I heard footsteps approaching the door, the small door at the side, not the big one in

front. I did not rise to open the door, nor did I turn my head. The visitor was Lute, probably, and if I kept still

The door opened. "Here he is," said a voice, a voice that I recognized. I turned quickly and sprang to my feet.

Standing behind me was Captain Jedediah Dean and with him George Taylor George Taylor, who should

But I paid no attention to him. It was his companion I was staring at. What was he doing here?

He stepped forward and held out his hand. He was smiling, but there was a look in his eye which expressed

"Ros," he said, quietly, "Ros Paine, you bullheaded, bighearted old chump, how are you?"

But I could only stare at him. Why had he come to Denboro? What did his coming to me mean? Why had he

come with Captain Jed, the man who had vowed that he was done with me forever? And why was the captain

"George!" I cried in alarm, "George, you haven'tyou haven't made a fool of yourself? You haven't"

Captain Jed interrupted me. "He ain't the fool, Ros," he said. "That is, he ain't now. I'm the fool. I ought to

have known better. Ros, II don't know's you'll give it to me, but anyhow I'm goin' to ask it; I beg your

"Ros," said Taylor, before I could reply, "don't stand staring as if you were petrified. Sit down and let me

look at you. You pig headed old idiot, you! What do you mean by it? What did you do it for?"

He pushed me into the chair I had just vacated. Captain Dean took another. George remained standing.

But my petrification was only temporary. I was beginning to understand, and to be more alarmed than ever.

Captain Jed answered for him. "He's here because I telegraphed for him yesterday," he said. "I wired him to

come straight home and take charge of the bank. I had fired you, like the dumb fool I was, and I wanted him

I remembered what Phin Cahoon had said about the telegram and the captain's making him promise not to

mention the name of the person to whom it was sent. It was George, of course. If I had been in a normal state

Taylor took up the conversation. "Yes, I got here," he said. "And when I got hereor a little before" with

a glance at the captain"I found out what had been going on since I left. You old chump, Ros Paine! What

I looked at him and then at his companion. What I saw there confirmed my worst suspicions.

"I was crazy not to tell him before. I was crazy not to guess what you had been up to. But I didn't suppose

anybody would be crazy enough to do what you did, Ros. I didn't imagine for a minute that you would be

crazy enough to throw away your job and get yourself into the trouble you knew was sure to come, just to

"You've said enough, and more than enough," I answered, bitterly. "I did what I did so that you might keep

your secret. I did it to help you and Nellie. And if you had kept still no one need ever have known, no one but

"Shut up, Ros!" he interrupted. "Shut up, I tell you! Why, confound you, what do you think I am? Do you

suppose I would let you sacrifice yourself like that, while I set still and saw you kicked out of town? What do

"But what was the use of it?" I demanded. "It was done. Nothing you could say would change it. For Nellie's

"There! there!" broke in Captain Jed, "Nellie knows. George told her the day they was married. He told her

before they was married. He was man enough to do that and I honor him for it. If he'd only come to me then it

would have been a mighty sight better. I'd have understood when I heard about your sellin' Colton the land,

and I wouldn't have made a jackass of myself by treatin' you as I done. You! the man that sacrificed yourself

to keep my girl from breakin' her heart! When I think what you saved us all from II By the Almighty,

He turned away and looked out of the window. George laid a hand on his shoulder.

"I am the one to make it up, Cap'n," he said, solemnly. "If I live I'll make it up to Ros here, and to you, and to

Nellie, God bless her! I expected you would never speak to me again when I'd told you. Telling younext to

telling Nelliewas the toughest job I ever tackled. But I'll make it up to you both, and to Ros. Thank the

"We'll both make it up to him, George," replied Captain Jed. "As far as we can, we will. If he wants to come

back to the bank this minute he can. We'll be proud to have him. But I cal'late," with a smile, "he'll have

bigger fish to fry than we can give him. If what we've just heard is true, he will."

"I don't know what you mean," I answered. "And as for the bank well, you forget one thing: I sold the

Shore Lane and the town knows it. How long would the other directors tolerate me in that bank, after that, do

To my surprise they looked at each other and laughed. Captain Dean shook his head.

"No," he said, "you're mistook, Ros. The town don't know you sold it. I didn't tell 'em because I wanted

George in command of that bank afore the row broke loose. I larned of the sale myself, by chance, over to

Ostable and I never told anybody except Dorindy Rogers and her fool of a husband. I'll see that they keep still

tongues in their heads. And as for the Lanewell, that won't be closed. Colton don't own it no more."

"Yes. And George, here, bought it back not an hour ago. We saw His Majestysick in bed he was, but just

as high and mighty and independent as everand George bought back the land and the Lane for thirtyfive

hundred dollars. The old man didn't seem to give a durn about it any more. He'd had his own way, he said,

and that was all he cared about. Besides, he ain't goin' to stay in Denboro much longer. The old ladyhis

wifeis sick of the place and he only come here on her account. He cal'lates that New York is good enough

for him. I cal'late 'tis. Anyhow, Denboro won't hang onto his coattails to hold him back. Tell Ros the whole

George told it, beginning with his receipt of his fatherinlaw's telegram and his hurried return to the Cape.

He had gone directly to Captain Dean and confessed the whole thing. The captain had behaved like a trump, I

learned. Instead of denouncing his daughter's husband he had forgiven him freely. Then they had gone to see

"And I shall give it to the town," he said. "It's the least I can do. You wonder where the money came from,

Ros? I guess you ain't seen the newspapers. There was a high old time in the stock market yesterday and

Louisville and Transcontinental climbed halfway to the moon. From being a pauper I'm pretty well fixed."

"I'm heartily glad of it, George," I said. "But there is one thing I don't understand. You say you learned of my

selling the land before you reached Denboro. Captain Jed says no one but he and my people knew it. How did

"Why, somebodya friend of yourscome to me at the Ostable station and dragged Nellie and me off the

train. We rode with that person the rest of the way andthe said person told us what had happened and

begged us to help you. Seemed to have made a middling good guess that I COULD help, if I would."

"A persona friend of mine! Why, I haven't any friend, any friend who knew the truth, or could guess."

They left me soon after this. I tried to make them tell who the mysterious friend might be, but they refused.

The kind things they said and the gratitude they both expressed I shall never forget. They did not strenuously

"The job's yours if you want it, Ros," said Captain Jed. "We'd be only too happy to have you if you'd

"No," I answered, "I shall not. I have made other plans. I am going to leave Denboro."

That did not seem to surprise them and I was still more puzzled. They shook hands and went away, promising

After they had gone I sat by the big door, looking out at the bay, smooth and beautiful in the afternoon

sunlight, and thinking of what they had told me. For Mother's sake I was very glad. It would be easier for her,

after I had gone; the townspeople would be friendly, instead of disagreeable. For her sake, I was glad. For

myself nothing seemed to make any difference. George Taylor's wordsthose he had spoken to me that

fateful evening when I found him with the revolver beside himcame back to me over and over. "Wait until

your time comes. Wait until the girl comes along that you care for more than the whole world. And then see

I rose and went out of the boathouse. I did not care to meet anyone or speak with anyone. I strolled along the

path by the bluff, my old walk, that which I had taken so many times and with such varied feelings, never

The goldenrod, always late blooming on the Cape, bordered the path with gorgeous yellow. The leaves of

the scrub oaks were beginning to turn, though not to fall. I walked on and entered the grove where she and I

had met after our adventure with Carver and the stranded skiff. I turned the bend and saw her coming toward

"I was waiting for you," she said. "I was on my way to your house and I saw you comingso I waited."

"Because I wished to speak to you and I did not want thatthat Mr. Rogers of yours to interrupt me. Why

did you go away yesterday without even letting me thank you for what you had done? Why did you do it?"

"You were tired. You must have been. But that is no excuse, no good one. I came down and found you were

"Your father thanked me this morning, Miss Colton. I saw him in his room and he thanked me. I did not

"Yes. Why not? Does it make any difference that you are Mr. Bennettinstead of Mr. Paine?"

"Tell me," she interrupted, quickly, "have you seen Mr. Taylor? He is here in Denboro."

"And you will not be," with a smile, "driven from Denboro by that cross old Captain Dean?"

She appeared confused. "II Of course I saw him at the house this noon, when he came to see Father."

"But he could not have promised you then. He had helped me already. Did you see him before that?"

"Miss Colton, answer me. Was it you that met him at the Ostable station this morning? Was it?"

"I did meet him there," she confessed. "That queer Mr. Cahoon, the station agent, told me that Captain Dean

had telegraphed him to come. I knew he would probably be on that train. And Mr. Cahoon told me about his

being interested in stocks and very much troubled. You had told me, or as much as told me, that you sold the

land to get money to help some one. I put two and two together and I guessed the rest. I met him and Nellie

and we rode to Denboro together in our auto. He promised me that he would make everything right for you. I

"Why not? Surely you had done enough forus. I could not let you be 'driven from town', you know."

I did not speak. I knew that I must not attempt a reply. I should say too much. She looked up at me, and then

"Father says he intends to do great things for you," she went on. "He says you are to come with him. He is

enthusiastic about it. He believes you are a great man. No one but a great man, he says, could beat the

Consolidated Pacific gang singlehanded. He says you will be the best investment he ever made."

"I am afraid not," I answered. "Your father made me a generous offer. I wish I might have been able to accept

"No, I am going to leave Denboro. I don't know where I shall go. This is goodby, Miss Colton. It is not

She was silent, still looking down at the pineneedles. I could not see her face. I was silent also. I knew that I

ought to go, that I should not remain there, with her, another moment. Yet I remained.

"I am not wrong. You will not go away, Mr.Bennett. At least, you will not until you go where my father

"No. I think I am not mistaken. I think you will accept it, becausebecause I ask you to."

"Yes, he told me. II am not sure that he was greatly surprised. He thought it honorable of you and he was

The oaks and the pines and the huckleberry bushes were dancing great giddygorounds, a reflection of the

"Becausebecause Oh, I don't know! What have I been saying! I Please don't ask me!"

"Becausebecause" she hesitated. Then suddenly she looked up into my face, her wonderful eyes alight.

"No," with a swift shake of the head, "not you. II did not know thatthen. I told him that I"

Some time after thatI do not know how long after and it makes no difference anywayI began to

remember some resolutions I had made, resolves to be selfsacrificing and all that sort of thing.

"But, my dear," I faltered, "I am insane! I am stark crazy! How can I think of such a thing! Your

She looked up at me; looking up was not as difficult now, and, besides, she did not have to look far. She

"I think Mother is more reconciled," she said. "Since she learned who you were she seems to feel better about

I shook my head, ruefully. "Yet she referred to me as a 'nobody' only this morning," I observed.

"Yes, but that was before she knew you were a Bennett. The Bennetts are a very good family, so she says.

And she informed me that she always expected me to throw myself away, so she was not altogether

I sighed. "Throwing yourself away is exactly what you have done, I'm afraid," I answered.

She put her hand to my lips. "Hush!" she whispered. "At all events, I made a lucky throw. I'm very glad you

There was a rustle of leaves just behind us and a startled exclamation. I turned and saw Lute Rogers standing

there in the path, an expression on his face which I shall not attempt to describe, for no description could do

"Come here!" I shouted after him. "Come back here this minute! Lute, come back!"

"You'll tell nobody. Nobody, do you hear! I'll tell Dorinda myself, when it is necessary. What were you doing

"II wan't spyin', Ros. Honest truth, I wan't. II didn't know you and she waswas"

"I was chasin' after you, Ros. I just heard the most astonishing thing. Jed Dean was to the house to make

Dorindy and me promise to say nothin' about that Shore Lane 'cause you never sold it, and he said Mr. Colton

had offered you a turrible fine job along of him and that you was goin' to take it. I wanted to find you and ask

"Yes, it is true, Mr. Rogers," she said. "It is quite true and you may tell anyone you like. It is true, isn't it,

What answer could I make? What answer would you have made under the circumstances?