e and
tense voice.

"How did you like her?" he asked feebly and at that moment Lynda
realized how futile a subterfuge would have been.

"Brace, I love her!"

"Thank God!"

"Why, Brace!"

"I mean it. It would have gone hard with me if you hadn't."

To Truedale, Betty presented another aspect.

"You can trust women with your emotions about men," she confided to
Lynda, "but not men! I wouldn't let Brace know for anything how my love
for him hobbles me; and if your Con--by the way, he's a great deal nicer
than I expected--should guess my abject state, he'd go to Brace and--put
him wise! That's why men have got where they are to-day--standing
together. And then Brace might begin at once to bully me. You see,
Lynda, when a husband gets the upper hand it's often because he's
reinforced by all the knowledge his male friends hand out to him."

Truedale met Betty first at the dinner--the little family dinner Lynda
gave for her. Morrell and his wife. Brace and Betty, himself and Lynda.

In a trailing blue gown Betty looked quite stately and she carried her
blond head high. She sparkled away through dinner and proved her happy
faculty of fitting in, perfectly. It was a very merry meal, and later,
by the library fire, Conning found himself tete-a-tete with his future
sister-in-law. She amused him hugely.

"I declare," he said teasingly, "I can hardly believe that you believe
in the equality of the sexes." They were attacking that problem at the
moment.

"I--don't!" Betty looked quaintly demure. "I believe in the superiority
of men!"

"Good Lord!"

"I do. That's why I want all women to have the same chance that men have
had to get superior. I--I want my sisters to get there, too!"

"There? Just where?" Truedale began to think the girl frivolous; but her
charm held.

"Why, where their qualifications best fit them to be. I'm going to tell
you a secret--I'm tremendously religious! I believe God knows, better
than men, about women; I want--well, I don't want to seem flippant--but
truly I'd like to hear God speak for himself!"

Truedale smiled. "That's a common-sense argument, anyway," he said. "But
I suppose we men are afraid to trust any one else; we don't want
to--lose you."

"As if you could!" Betty held her small, white hand out to the dog
lying at her feet. "As if we didn't know, that whatever we don't want,
we do want you. Why, you are our--job."

Truedale threw his head back and laughed. "You're like a w