ust make the best of it," said the preacher. "Perhaps the stock is
not quite worthless. If I were you I'd go to the lawyer in Lancaster.
He'll see you at his house if you 'phone in."

"Mighty good to think of that for me," said David, gripping the hand of
his cousin. "I'll go in to-night."

Several hours later David Eby sat before a lawyer and waited for the
verdict. "I'm sorry," the lawyer shook his head. "The stock is
worthless. Six months ago you might have sold it; now it's dead as a
door-nail."

"Guess it was a wildcat scheme," said David.

A few minutes later he went out to the street. His Aladdin's lamp was
smashed! What a fool he had been!

When he reached home Mother Bab read the news in his face. "Never mind,"
she said bravely, "we'll get along without that money."

"Yes--but"--David spoke slowly, as if fearing to hurt her further--"I
hoped to have a nice bank account for you to draw on when--when I go."

"You mean----" Mother Bab stopped suddenly. Something choked her, but
she faced him squarely and looked up into his face.

"Yes, mother, I mean that I must go. You want me to go, don't you?"

"Yes." The word came slowly, but David knew how truly she felt it. "You
must go. I knew it right away when I saw that we were called of God to
help in the fight for world peace and righteousness. You must go; there
is nothing to keep you. Phares will look after the little farm. I spoke
to him about it last week----"

"Mother, you knew then!"

"I saw it in your face as soon as war was declared. Phares was lovely
about it and said he could just as well take your few acres in with his
and pay a percentage to me for the crops he'll get from them. Phares is
kind; he has a big heart, for all his queer ways and his strict views."

"Phares is too good to be related to me, mommie. I'm ashamed of myself."

"Ach, you two are just different, that's all. I can go over and stay at
their house. Did you tell Phoebe you are going?"

He shook his head. "I couldn't tell her yesterday. We had such a great
day in the woods finding the arbutus, eating our lunch on a rock and
acting just like we used to when we were ten years younger. She never
mentioned war and I could not seem to break into that day of gladness
to speak about the subject. I meant to tell her all about it when we got
home, but then that storm came up and we stopped at a farmhouse and I
heard about Caleb Warner. It struck me so hard I was just no good after
tha