the rush? Say, Dick, did you hear
yet what Bruce gave to the lady of his heart? No? Well, he out-Bruced
Bruce this time! He gave her a patented, electric foot-warmer!"

Terry smiled his appreciation of Ellis' chuckling loyalty and escaped
upstairs to his room. Ellis wandered aimlessly over to the Christmas
table and noted the number of unopened packages marked with Terry's
name, then called up from the foot of the stairs:

"Come right down here, you ungrateful Non-christian, and see what
Santa Claus brought you! You got more than any of us and--"

He desisted as he suddenly became aware of his wife's frantic signals,
and reading the grievous trouble in her twitching face, he went to
her.

* * * * *

Susan, entering Terry's room at dusk, found him standing at the window
staring out into the evening, watching the shadows paint out one by
one the landmarks he had known from boyhood. Two large leather bags,
packed but still open, stood at the side of the bed. The two frames
which had held the pictures of his father and mother lay upon the
table, empty, beside letters addressed to Father Jennings, Doctor
Mather, and Tony Ricorro.

He did not hear her but continued at the window, his relaxed shoulders
giving an unwonted aspect of frailty to his body. She tiptoed out of
the room, crept back again to look through brimming eyes at the lonely
figure silhouetted against the darkening window, then stumbled into
her own room and closed the door.

* * * * *

Terry returned to Deane in the sitting room after bidding her father
and mother a courteously friendly farewell. Mr. Hunter, vaguely
disturbed, had followed his wife upstairs reluctantly; he was not
quite confident that his decision regarding the fox skin had been
justified, and would have been glad had Terry given him opportunity to
discuss it. In a moment his voice sounded down to them as he defended
himself against his irate spouse.

"I don't care what you say, Marthy, he's got to settle down and--"

Then their door closed.

For a long time Deane and Terry stood voiceless, each leaden with a
dull misery. The shock of his announcement had paled her and she
stared hopelessly at him out of wide blue eyes, her full red lips
aquiver at the hurt she read in the gray eyes and the queer wistful
mouth.

She broke the pulsing silence: "I never understand you, Dick,--quite.
Is it because of the fox skin?"

H