t, too exhausted by his
emotions to think. With head resting on his arms, he let the night wind
sweep across him until little by little his brain cleared and he looked
about him. Far and wide, the same wonder of the desert night; the stars,
so low, so tender, so inscrutable, the sky so deep, so utterly
compassionate; the far black scratch of the river on the silver desert,
the distant black lift of the mountains--Pen's eternal hills!

Over the flagpole on the office the flag rippled and floated, sank and
rose, dancing like a child in the joy of living. Jim looked at it
wistfully. Flag that his forefathers had fashioned from the fabric of
their vision, must the vision be forgotten? It was a great vision, fit
to cover the yearnings of the world. His grandfather had fought for it
at Antietam. His father had lost it and had died, bewildered and hungry
of soul. Was he himself to lose it, son of vision seekers?

The Elephant beneath him seemed to listen for Jim's reply. "God knows,"
he said at last, "I would not deny the vision to all the immigrant
world. All I wish is that we who made the vision had kept it and had
taught it to these others to whom our heritage must go. You can scoff,
old Elephant, but the struggle _is_ worth while. You can say that
nothing matters but Time. I tell you that eternity is made up of soul
fights like mine and Pen's!"

Suddenly there came to him the fragment that Pen had quoted to him days
before:

"What though the field be lost?
All is not lost--the unconquerable will,
And courage never to submit nor yield;
And what is else, not to be overcome!"

Jim suddenly rose with his blood quickened. "Not to be overcome! And
God, what stakes to fight for! To build my father's dream in stone and
to make a valley empire out of the tragedy of a woman's soul!"

With renewed strength Jim went down the trail, crossed the canyon and
went up to his house.

Uncle Denny was waiting for him. It was nearly midnight. He had kindled
a fire in the grate and was brewing some tea. "Mrs. Flynn would have it
you'd fallen off a peak but I got her to bed. Have some tea, me boy."

Uncle Denny's voice was cheerful, though his eyes were red. He watched
Jim anxiously.

"You should have gone to bed yourself, Uncle Denny. I have a letter to
write, then I'm going to turn in."

Uncle Denny's hand shook as he poured the tea. "I had to see you, Still,
because I promised Pen I'd go back over there tonight and