r face.
Why these two should play at cross purposes Sister Kate could not
understand. She smiled, however, confidently: they should not play at
cross purposes much longer, she declared.

On Sunday afternoon Kate asked her eldest brother to take her driving.

"Not a motor car; I want a horse--that will let me talk," she said.

"Certainly," agreed William, with a smile; but Bertram, who chanced to
hear her, put in the sly comment: "As if ANY horse could prevent--that!"

On the drive Kate began to talk at once, but she did not plunge into
the subject nearest her heart until she had adroitly led William into a
glowing enumeration of Billy's many charming characteristics; then she
said:

"William, why don't you take Billy home with you?"

William stirred uneasily as he always did when anything annoyed him.

"My dear Kate, there is nothing I should like better to do," he replied.

"Then why don't you do it?"

"I--hope to, sometime."

"But why not now?"

"I'm afraid Billy is not quite--ready."

"Nonsense! A young girl like that does not know her own mind lots
of times. Just press the matter a little. Love will work
wonders--sometimes."

William blushed like a girl. To him her words had but one
meaning--Bertram's love for Billy. William had never spoken of this
suspected love affair to any one. He had even thought that he was the
only one that had discovered it. To hear his sister refer thus lightly
to it came therefore in the nature of a shock to him.

"Then you have--seen it--too?" he stammered

"'Seen it, too,'" laughed Kate, with her confident eyes on William's
flushed face, "I should say I had seen it! Any one could see it."

William blushed again. Love to him had always been something sacred;
something that called for hushed voices and twilight. This merry
discussion in the sunlight of even another's love was disconcerting.

"Now come, William," resumed Kate, after a moment; "speak to Billy, and
have the matter settled once for all. It's worrying you. I can see it
is."

Again William stirred uneasily.

"But, Kate, I can't do anything. I told you before; I don't believe
Billy is--ready."

"Nonsense! Ask her."

"But Kate, a girl won't marry against her will!"

"I don't believe it is against her will."

"Kate! Honestly?"

"Honestly! I've watched her."

"Then I WILL speak," cried the man, his face alight, "if--if you think
anything I can say would--help. There is nothing--nothing in all this