s--and widows, and a few other classes of people. But I
don't imagine it's so common as to be noticeable among the young men of
his class, do you?"

"Perhaps not. Though you do hear of wonderful things the bachelors do at
Christmas for the poor children."

"At Christmas--that's another story. Hearts get warmed up at Christmas,
that, like old Scrooge's, are cold and careless the rest of the year.
But for a fellow like Rich Kendrick to keep it up all the year
round--you'll find that's not so commonplace a tale."

"I don't know much about rich young men."

"You've certainly kept this one at a distance," Louis observed, eying
his sister curiously in the twilight. She was sitting in a boyish
attitude, racket on lap, elbows on knees, chin on clasped hands, eyes on
the shadowy garden. "He's been coming here evening after evening until
now that his grandfather has gone home, and never once has anybody seen
you so much as standing on the porch with him, to say nothing of
strolling into the garden. What's the matter with you, Rob? Any other
girl would be following him round and getting into his path. Not that
you would need to, judging by the way I've seen him look at you once or
twice. Have you drawn an imaginary circle around yourself and pointed
out to him the danger of crossing it? I should take him for a fellow who
would cross it then anyhow!"

"Imaginary circles are sometimes bigger barriers than stone walls," she
admitted, smiling to herself, "Besides, Lou, I thought somebody else was
the person you wanted to see walking in the garden with me."

"Forbes? The person I expected to see, you mean. Well, I don't know
about Forbes Westcott. He's a mighty clever chap, but I sometimes think
his blood is a little thin--like his body. I can't imagine his bothering
about a sick child at a hospital, can you? I've never seen him take a
minute's notice of Steve's pair; and they're little trumps, if ever
children were. Corporations are more in his line than children."

* * * * *

One thing leads to another in this interesting world. It was not two
days after this talk that Roberta herself had a private view of a little
affair which proved more illuminating to her understanding of a certain
fellow mortal than might have been all the evidence of other witnesses
than her own eyes.

Returning from school on one of the last days of the term, weary of
walls and longing for the soothing stillness and ref