upants had undergone a change.

"Mr. and Mrs. Daly," began the priest, "I want to congratulate you. You
have a boy to be proud of. You have someone to live for. Willie is a
hero. He has just saved two lives at a fire."

At the word fire, and at not seeing their boy along with the priest, a
certain apprehension seized them both. Neither spoke for a moment, and
then Daly said, "And where is the boy?"

"He is all right," answered the priest. "He got a few scratches and
bruises, but it is nothing much. He is a real hero, and all the boys are
talking about him. I just thought I'd be the first to bring you the
news."

"Tell us about it, Father dear," exclaimed Mrs. Daly.

The priest now felt that the worst part of his task was over. In a
reassuring tone he narrated all that had happened. He made up his mind
to tell everything just as it was, because he felt it was better for
them to get it from him and with him near, than in any other way.

When he got to the fall from the ladder, the mother screamed and fell
back in her chair. The priest was not unprepared for this. He dashed
cold water into her face, and soon she came to, moaning and uttering
pious ejaculations for her son. By the time the priest was ready to
leave, both father and mother were composed and resigned.

"You should thank God, both of you," said Father Boone to them, "that He
has left you your boy. It is a lesson to all of us to live in such a way
as to be always ready to meet God whenever He calls us out of life. Now
you, Michael, no matter what happens, don't you ever think that the
liquor will drown your sorrow. I'd rather see Willie a corpse than to
see you drunk again."

"And so would I myself, so help me!" exclaimed Michael.

The priest nodded, satisfied that now Michael was out of the pit. He
gave them the hospital address, and advised them not to go before the
next day, unless they received a message. No news, he assured them, was
good news.

No news might be good news, but not for a mother. Hardly had the door
closed when Mrs. Daly put on her things and made ready to start for the
hospital.

The priest had a good deal to think about. There was a possibility that
Willie's condition was serious on account of internal injuries. What a
blow it would be to the parents if he should die! When he reached home,
the first thing he did was to telephone to the hospital and inquire
about the boy. He was informed that the patient was resting quietly.
"