as scarlet as Mary--scarlet to the ears. She
looked at her watch again--and twenty-five minutes had elapsed since she
had looked at it before.

She went into the hall, glanced over her shoulder oddly; then she let
herself softly out of the front door, and went across the street to her
own house.

Roscoe met her upon the threshold, gloomily. "Saw you from the window,"
he explained. "You must find a lot to say to that old lady."

"What old lady?"

"Mrs. Vertrees. I been waiting for you a long time, and I saw the
daughter come out, fifteen minutes ago, and post a letter, and then walk
on up the street. Don't stand out on the porch," he said, crossly.
"Come in here. There's something it's come time I'll have to talk to you
about. Come in!"

But as she was moving to obey he glanced across at his father's house
and started. He lifted his hand to shield his eyes from the setting sun,
staring fixedly. "Something's the matter over there," he muttered, and
then, more loudly, as alarm came into his voice, he said, "What's the
matter over there?"

Bibbs dashed out of the gate in an automobile set at its highest speed,
and as he saw Roscoe he made a gesture singularly eloquent of calamity,
and was lost at once in a cloud of dust down the street. Edith had
followed part of the way down the drive, and it could be seen that she
was crying bitterly. She lifted both arms to Roscoe, summoning him.

"By George!" gasped Roscoe. "I believe somebody's dead!"

And he started for the New House at a run.

CHAPTER XI

Sheridan had decided to conclude his day's work early that afternoon,
and at about two o'clock he left his office with a man of affairs from
foreign parts, who had traveled far for a business conference with
Sheridan and his colleagues. Herr Favre, in spite of his French name,
was a gentleman of Bavaria. It was his first visit to our country, and
Sheridan took pleasure in showing him the sights of the country's finest
city. They got into an open car at the main entrance of the Sheridan
Building, and were driven first, slowly and momentously, through the
wholesale district and the retail district; then more rapidly they
inspected the packing-houses and the stock-yards; then skirmished over
the "park system" and "boulevards"; and after that whizzed through the
"residence section" on their way to the factories and foundries.

"All cray," observed Herr Favre, smilingly.

"'Cray'?" echoed Sheridan. "I don't know what y