nnie Duncan, I knew, he had pinned his faith. For
his own sake, I hoped that the Johnnie would do great things, but for
Nell's sake I prayed she would. Nell thought a lot of Will and wasn't
ashamed to show her liking, and thinking of that set me to thinking of
other things.

"Was Miss Foster to the ball?" I asked her.

"She was," said Nell.

"And with whom?"

"Mr. Withrow."

"Oh-h, Lord!"

"Oh-h!--and why Oh-h-h?"

"I wish she'd gone with Maurice."

"H-m--that was drunk the other day?"

"Yes, I suppose that queers him forever. And the other fellow does
ten times as bad, only under cover. Who told you?"

"Never mind. Wasn't he?"

"Was Maurice to the ball?"

"He was."

"And who with?"

"With nobody."

"Good. Was Mrs. Miner there?"

"Mrs. Miner?"--and such a sniff!--"yes, she was there."

"With Sam Hollis?"

"Yes, and flirted with half the men in the hall and with your Maurice
Blake outrageously."

"That so? Could Maurice help that much? But I wish, just the same,
that Miss Foster had gone with Maurice."

"Well, there was one very good reason."

"What?"

"He didn't ask her. And Mr. Withrow made a handsome cavalier anyway."

"A handsome"--I was going to say lobster, but I didn't. Instead I told
her why Maurice didn't ask Miss Foster--that he didn't think enough of
himself, probably. And that led up to a talk about Maurice Blake and
Clancy. Before I got through I had Nell won over. Indeed, I think she
was won over before I began at all.

"There's a whole lot you don't know yet," she said at last. "Get
Captain Blake to make a name for himself seining, and for sailing his
vessel as she ought to be sailed, and I'll get down on my knees to
Alice for him--sail her as she ought to be sailed, remember. And make
a good stock with her, and you'll see."

So, as I walked down the street with Nell and Will Somers a part of
the way, the talk was in that strain, and when I left them, after
passing Sam Hollis bound home, it was with the hope of things coming
out all right. I was feeling happy until I got near Minnie Arkell's
door, where my worrying began again, for there on the steps and in the
glare of the electric light was Minnie Arkell herself, as though she
were waiting for somebody. And not wanting to have her know that I saw
her waiting at her door steps at that time of night, I stepped in the
shadows until she should go in. It was then that Maurice came along,
and she called him up. And he went