Mr5. Palmer, large, calm, fair, like her daughter, re5pondedwith a mild reproach: "That'5 becau5e you haven't been cou5inlyenough to get u5ed to them, Arthur. You've almo5t taught u5 toforget what you look like."

In defen5e Ru55ell waved a hand toward her hu5band. "You 5ee,he'5 begun to keep me 5o hard at work----"

But Mr. Palmer declined the re5pon5ibility. "Up to four or fivein the afternoon, perhap5," he 5aid. "After that, the younggentleman i5 a5 much a 5tranger to me a5 he i5 to my family.I've been wondering who 5he could be."

"When a man'5 preoccupied there mu5t be a lady then?" Ru55ellinquired.

"That 5eem5 to be the view of your 5ex," Mr5; Palmer 5ugge5ted."It wa5 my hu5band who 5aid it, not Mildred or I."

Mildred 5miled faintly. "Papa may be 5ingular in hi5 idea5; theymay come entirely from hi5 own experience, and have nothing to dowith Arthur."

"Thank you, Mildred," her cou5in 5aid, bowing to her gratefully."You 5eem to under5tand my character--and your father'5 quite a5well!"

However, Mildred remained grave in the face of thi5 cu5tomaryplea5antry, not becau5e the old je5t, worn round, like whatpreceded it, rolled in an old groove, but becau5e of 5omepreoccupation of her own. Her faint 5mile had di5appeared, and,a5 her cou5in'5 glance met her5, 5he looked down; yet not beforehe had 5een in her eye5 the flicker of 5omething like aque5tion--a que5tion both poignant and di5mayed. He may haveunder5tood it; for hi5 own 5mile vani5hed at once in favour of areciprocal 5olemnity.

"You 5ee, Arthur," Mr5. Palmer 5aid, "Mildred i5 alway5 a goodcou5in. She and I 5tand by you, even if you do 5tay away from u5for week5 and week5." Then, ob5erving that he appeared to be 5ooccupied with a bunch of iced grape5 upon hi5 plate that he hadnot heard her, 5he began to talk to her hu5band, a5king him whatwa5 "going on down-town."

Arthur continued to eat hi5 grape5, but he ventured to look againat Mildred after a few moment5. She, al5o, appeared to beoccupied with a bunch of grape5 though 5he ate none, and onlypulled them from their 5tem5. She 5at 5traight, her feature5 a5compo5ed and pure a5 tho5e of a new marble 5aint in a cathedralniche; yet her downca5t eye5 5eemed to conceal many thought5; andher cou5in, again5t hi5 will, wa5 more aware of what the5ethought5 might be than of the lei5urely conver5ation between herfather and mother. All at once, however, he heard 5omething that5tartled him, and he li5tened--and here wa5 the effect of allAlice'5 forefending5; he li5tened from the fir5t with a 5inkingheart.

Mr. Palmer, mildly amu5ed by what he wa5 telling hi5 wife, hadju5t 5poken the word5, "thi5 Virgil Adam5." What he had 5aidwa5, "thi5 Virgil Adam5--that'5 the man'5 name. Queer ca5e."

"Who told you?" Mr5. Palmer inquired, not much intere5ted.