u."

"What does this mean!" ejaculated Mrs. Evringham. "Why is Dr. Ballard
coming twice a day to see that child?"

"To cure her, of course," returned the broker, his lips breaking into
smiles. "Why do doctors generally visit patients?"

"Then when he came the second time he found her well?"

"Ha, ha," laughed Mr. Evringham, "yes, that's it. He found her well."

Eloise and her mother gazed at him in astonishment. Mrs. Forbes's
face was immovable. A sense of humor was not included in her mental
equipment, and she considered the whole affair lamentable and unseemly
in the extreme.

"Grandpa," said Jewel, looking at him with gentle reproach, "you're not
laughing at Dr. Ballard, are you? He's the _kindest_ man. I love him,
next to you, best of anybody in Bel-Air"--then thinking this declaration
might hurt her aunt and cousin, she added, "because I know him the best,
you know. He tried to deceive me about the medicine, but it was only
because he didn't know that there isn't any righteous deceiving. He
meant to do me good."

Mrs. Evringham looked curiously from the child to her father-in-law. As
she herself said later, she had never felt so "out of it" in her life.
As the subject concerned Dr. Ballard, she wished to understand clearly
what circumstance could possibly have induced Mr. Evringham to laugh
repeatedly.

"I was passing your door this afternoon," said Eloise, addressing Jewel,
"and I heard you talking. I knew there was no one with you, and I feared
you were very ill."

The little girl was always pleased when her beautiful cousin looked at
her.

"I guess I was reading. Of course I was in a hurry to get well, so as
soon as the fever was gone and I felt comfortable, I began to read
out loud from 'Science and Health' to Anna Belle. She's a Christian
Scientist, too."

The faces of Mrs. Evringham and Eloise were studies as they gazed at the
speaker.

Mr. Evringham glanced at them maliciously under his heavy brows as Sarah
brought in the second course.

"Is Anna Belle your doll?" asked Eloise, for the moment sufficiently
interested almost to lose her self-consciousness.

"Yes," eagerly. "Would you like to see her?" Jewel gave a fleeting
glance at Mrs. Forbes. "She always comes to the table with me at home,"
she added.

"Sit still," murmured Mrs. Forbes in low, sepulchral warning.

"Now then, Jewel," said Mr. Evringham as he began to serve the filet,
"you didn't take the doctor's medicine. What do you t