's name."

"Ain't got no farver."

"Well then, run along to your mother."

He kissed the child and set him down just as a young woman came down
the sadly neglected shell walk from Caleb Brent's little white house.
Donald opened the gate and advanced to meet her.

"I'm sure you must be Nan," he said, "although I can't be certain. I
haven't seen Nan in six years."

She extended her hand

"Yes; I'm Nan," she replied, "and you're Donald McKaye. You're a man
now, but somehow you haven't changed greatly."

"It's fine to meet you again, Nan." He shook her hand
enthusiastically.

She smiled a little sadly.

"I saw you at colors last night, Donald. When your flag came down and
the gun was fired, I knew you'd remembered."

"Were you glad?" he demanded, and immediately wondered why he had
asked such a childish question.

"Yes, I was, Donald. It has been a long time since--since--the gun has
been fired--for me. So long since we were children, Donald."

"You weren't at the barbecue yesterday. I missed you and Caleb. You
two are very old friends of mine, Nan. Was it quite loyal of you to
stay home?"

"You're the only person that missed us, Donald," she answered, with
just the suspicion of a tremor in her sweet voice. "But, then, we are
accustomed to being left out of things."

He made no effort to formulate an answer to this. Truth does not
require an answer. Yet he was sensible of a distinct feeling of
sympathy for her, and, manlike, he decided to change the topic of
conversation.

"You have neighbors on the Sawdust Pile, Nan."

"Yes. They came when The Laird was in Europe."

"They would never have dared it had he been in Port Agnew. I'm
surprised that Andrew Daney permitted it. I had thought of him as a
man of courage, but, strange to say, these people outgamed him."

"They didn't outgame him, Donald. He just didn't care. I--I--fancy he
concluded they would make agreeable neighbors--for me."

"I'm sorry, Nan. However, I'm the new laird of Tyee, and I've come
down to stage an eviction. I didn't know of this state of affairs
until this morning."

She smiled a little wistfully and bitterly.

"I had flattered myself, Donald, you had called to visit your old
friends instead. When you waved at me last night, I--oh, you can't
realize how happy it made me to know that _you_ had noticed me--that
you really were big enough to be the big man of Port Agnew. And I
thought perhaps you would come because of that."