id, as he walked away. "Her father's
daughter in every fibre."

He was ashamed to acknowledge how deeply he felt her rejection of his
friendship, and the thought of not seeing her again gave him a sudden
sense of weakness and loneliness.

Elsie, on her part, was surprised to find a new nerve tingling in her
brain, and this tremor cut into the complete self-satisfaction she
expected to feel over her refusal of the peace-pipe. Several times
during the afternoon, while superintending her packing, she found
herself standing in an attitude of meditation--her inward eye reverting
to the fine, manly figure he made, while his grave, sweet voice vibrated
in her ears. She began to see herself in an unpleasant light, and when
at the dinner-table Lawson spoke of Curtis, she listened to him with
more real interest than ever before.

"He is making wonderful changes here," Lawson was saying. "Everywhere
you go you see Tetongs working at fence-building, bridge-making,
cabin-raising, with their eagle feathers fluttering in the winds, their
small hands chapped with cold. They are sawing boards and piling grain
in the warehouse and daubing red paint on the roofs. They are in a
frenzy of work. Every man has his rations and is happy. In some way he
has persuaded the chiefs to bring in all the school-children, and the
benches are full of the little shock-heads, wild as colts."

"A new broom, etc.," murmured Elsie.

"His predecessor never was a new broom," retorted Lawson, quickly.
"Sennett always had a nasty slaunch to him. He never in his life cleaned
the dirt from the corners, and I don't see exactly why you take such
pains in defending him."

"Because he is my uncle," she replied.

"Uncle Boot-jack! That is pure fudge, Bee Bee. You didn't speak to him
once a week; you privately despised him--anybody could see that. You are
simply making a cudgel of him now to beat Curtis with--and, to speak
plainly, I think it petty of you. More than this, you'd better hedge,
for I'm not at all sure that Sennett has not been peculating."

Elsie stopped him with an angry gesture. "I'll not have you accusing him
behind his back."

Lawson threw out his hands in a gesture of despair. "All right! But make
a note of it: you'll regret this taking sides with a disreputable old
bummer against an officer of Captain Curtis's reputation."

"You are not my master!" she said, and her eyes were fiercely bright. "I
do not wish to hear you use that tone to me