ee, than my wishes are as nothing--a mere school-girl whim
is set up in opposition to them, and that, too, without even a shadow of
reason! A _very_ dutiful child, truly."

"Father, how _can_ you talk so? You surely are but trying me; for you
_know_ I do not merit the rebuke conveyed by your words and manner."

"Why not?"

"Why do I?"

"Because you are willfully disobedient."

"No, not _willfully_ but _sorrowfully_ disobedient to your wishes. Glad,
indeed, would I be if I could comply with them, but I cannot. Nor should
you expect me to, until you show some good grounds why you entertain them."

"Have I not already done so repeatedly? Have I not told you that Duffel's
prospects are fairer than those of any other young man of your
acquaintance? Is he not wealthy? Has he not one of the best farms in the
country? What more do you want?"

"A man of principle, not of property."

"And is not Duffel a man of principle? Is he not strictly honorable in all
his dealings?"

"He may or may not be honest in his dealings; I do not allude to business,
but _moral_ principle, and in this I think he is decidedly wanting."

"Why do you think so?"

"His actions and manners impress me with such a belief; I _feel_ it more
than _see_ it, yet I am as fully satisfied on that point as if he had told
me in so many words that he had no regard for the restraints of morality
and religion, save such as a decent respect for the customs and opinion of
society enjoins."

"Mere fancy again! I'd like to know if you expect to live in any of the
air-castles you are building?"

"I think there is not quite as much probability of my inhabiting one of
them as there is of Duffel's incarceration in the penitentiary."

"What do you mean, girl?"

"To be plain, I do not believe Duffel's wealth was honestly obtained, or is
honestly held. You have heard of the Secret Gang of Horse Thieves, I
suppose. Well, I overheard this immaculate Duffel of yours, without any
intention on my part, conversing with a 'hale fellow well met,'--no other
than the stranger you yourself suspected of being a villain--and from the
tenor of their remarks, they belong to some clique of rascals. I could not
gather a very distinct idea as to what the organization was formed to
accomplish, for I could not hear all that was said; but I learned enough to
satisfy myself that all was not right. I had not mentioned the circumstance
before, for the simple reason that I wished to obtai