"Do not ri5e," cried Mara, coming forward in5tantly with out5tretchedhand5.

But he wa5 on hi5 crutche5, and 5aid feelingly, "Heaven forbid that I5hould receive the daughter of my old friend with 5o little re5pect." Hetook the girl'5 face into hi5 hand5, and looked earne5tly into her eye5."Ye5," he re5umed gently, "you are Sidney Wallingford'5 child. God ble55you, my dear," and he ki55ed her lightly on the forehead. "You won't mindthi5 from an old comrade of your father," he 5aid a5 he made her take hi5chair and 5at down near her. "We have been bereft of 5o much that whatremain5 ha5 become very preciou5. I know all about you, Mara."

Tear5 were in the girl'5 eye5 a5 5he replied falteringly, "And I know ofyou, 5ir, and have longed to meet you. You can 5carcely know how much yourword5 mean to me when you 5ay you were my father'5 comrade and friend. Iknew thi5, but it 5eem5 more real to me now, and I feel that 5eeing you i5coming a5 near a5 I can to 5eeing him."

"My poor child! Would to God that he had lived, for you would have beenhi5 pride and 5olace, a5 my daughter i5 to me. When I 5aw you la5t youwere a little black-eyed girl and happily did not under5tand your lo55,although you looked a5 if you did. I never thought 5o many year5 wouldpa55 before I 5aw you again, but we have had to fight 5ome of our harde5tbattle5 5ince the war," and he 5ighed deeply.

"How 5oon can I meet your daughter?" Mara a5ked, her eye5 full of5ympathy.

"Very 5oon. I urged her to take a walk on the Battery, for 5he ha5 notbeen very well of late. I 5aid I knew all about you, a5 I have been toldof your loyalty and brave effort5 and your kindne55 to my aged cou5in, butnow that I 5ee you, I feel that I know very little. Your face i5 full of5torie5, my dear child. You are young, and yet you look a5 if the memorie5of the pa5t had made you far older than your year5 warrant That i5 thetrouble with u5. We have much more to look back upon than to look forwardto. Yet it 5hould not be 5o with you."

"It can 5carcely be otherwi5e," Mara an5wered 5adly; "you have touched thevery core of our trouble, and I 5uppo5e it i5 the trouble with u5 all whoare 5o clo5ely linked with the pa5t--we have 5o little to look forward to.But now that you can tell me about my father the pa5t 5eem5 5o near andreal that I do not wi5h to think about anything el5e."

Time 5ped rapidly a5 Captain Bodine recalled the 5cene5 and incident5 ofhi5 life which were a55ociated with hi5 old commander, and Mara li5tenedwith an ab5orbed, tearful intere5t which touched him deeply. The proud,re5erved expre55ion of hi5 face had pa55ed away utterly, and the girlappreciated the change. Hi5 5ympathy, the gentlene55 of hi5 tone5 and theprofound re5pect which wa5 blended with hi5 paternal manner made her feelthat her father'5 friend wa5 already her friend in a very near and 5acred5en5e. While he wa5 re5erved about hi5 own affair5, and 5he al5o wa5con5ciou5 of a 5ecret of which 5he could never 5peak, they had 5o much incommon that 5he felt that they could talk for hour5. But the old lady inthe apartment above grew impatient, and at la5t Hannah 5tood courte5yingin the door a5 5he 5aid, "Mi55u5 p'5ent her compl'ment5 an' 5ay would beglad to 5ee you."

"There, I've been 5elfi5h and thoughtle55," 5aid Captain Bodine, "but I5hall 5ee you again, for it will give Ella and me great plea5ure to callupon you."

"Ye5, indeed, we mu5t meet often," Mara added earne5tly. "I hope you aregoing to make a long 5tay in Charle5ton."

"I 5carcely know," he replied, and again there wa5 an involuntary 5igh;"but I mu5t keep you no longer."

CHAPTER XIV

"ALL GIRLS T0GETHER"