oked at him steadily, and Winston felt the blood
surge to his forehead as he remembered having heard of a certain
venture made by Courthorne which brought discredit on one or two men
connected with the affairs of a grain elevator. It was evident that
Miss Barrington had also heard of it, and no man cares to stand
convicted of falsification in the eyes of a very pretty girl. Still,
he roused himself with an effort.

"It is neither wise nor charitable to believe all one hears," he said.

The girl smiled a little, but the man still winced inwardly under her
clear brown eyes, that would, he fancied, have been very scornful had
they been less indifferent.

"I do not remember mentioning having heard anything," she said. "Were
you not a trifle premature, in face of the proverb?"

Winston's face was a trifle grim, though he laughed. "I'm afraid I
was; but I am warned," he said. "Excuses are, after all, not worth
much, and when I make my defense it will be before a more merciful
judge."

Maud Barrington's curiosity was piqued. Lance Courthorne, outcast and
gambler, was at least a different stamp of man from the type she had
been used to, and, being a woman, the romance that was interwoven with
his somewhat iniquitous career was not without its attractions for her.

"I did not know that you included farming among your talents, and
should have fancied you would have found it--monotonous," she said.

"I did," and the provoking smile still flickered in Winston's eyes.
"Are not all strictly virtuous occupations usually so?"

"It is probably a question of temperament. I have, of course, heard
sardonic speeches of the kind before, and felt inclined to wonder
whether those who made them were qualified to form an opinion."

Winston nodded, but there was a little ring in his voice. "Perhaps I
laid myself open to the thrust; but have you any right to assume I have
never followed a commendable profession?"

No answer was immediately forthcoming, but Winston did wisely when, in
place of waiting, he turned to Miss Barrington. He had left her niece
irritated, but the trace of anger she felt was likely to enhance her
interest. The meal, however, was a trial to him, for he had during
eight long years lived for the most part apart from all his kind, a
lonely toiler, and now was constrained to personate a man known to be
almost dangerously skillful with his tongue. At first sight the task
appeared almost insuperably difficult