ly.

"You could ask anybody to take _me_," she said with evident amusement,
"and possibly, if Mr. Dalton tries hard, he may find somebody even to
take you, Joyce. I scarcely think they would refuse him."

He evidently appreciated her fine sarcasm.

"I could try hard," he returned, "provided I am too good for the office,
myself. Let me see. I suppose Miss Lavillotte will not be satisfied
unless I bring somebody as unattractive as possible--wait, I have it!"

With a quick "Excuse me!" he hurried away, soon to return with a
grizzled man of uncertain age, who certainly was not attractive, though
so greatly improved by clean linen and a stiff collar that Dalton had
noticed the change at once. He was, in fact, the very man whom Dan so
often heard haranguing in the cobbler's shop, and knew as Tonguey
Murfree, though when voting he registered as Joseph H.

With an air of exaggerated courtesy Dalton led him up and introduced
him.

"Mrs. Bonnivel, Miss Lavillotte, let me present Mr. Murfree, well known
of all in Littleton because of his eloquence. I'm sure he will be glad
to take you out to supper, and give you his latest views on--well, say
anarchy."

The man winced a little, and his florid face took on an added color. In
his embarrassment he giggled like a bashful boy, and scraped one foot
behind him in a low obeisance.

"Glad to please the lady, I'm sure," he muttered, quite at his wits' end
what to do next.

Joyce rather resented the hint of derision in all this, and stepping
forth a bit proudly, said at once,

"Thank you. If you'll just pilot me through to the refreshment room, Mr.
Murfree--that is, if you know the way."

"Bet I do, 'm, and had a taste and sup myself, but I'm not backward to
go again. The coffee's rare good, 'm, an the san'wiches very satisfying.
But"--in a confidential tone, as they moved slowly through the
throng--"whoever's a-doing of all this has made one big mistake, ma'am,
and that's a fact."

"Indeed! How is that?"

"Well, it's on the drinks, 'm. He might at least have give us
ginger-beer, or pop, if he's teetotal, as they say. It 'ud seem more
nateral, somehow, to be drinking stuff outen a glass. But take it all
together it's a pretty decent show, and the pictures and funnygraph, up
in the big room, was fine. But if it's jest a scheme to play some new
game on us they needn't try it. We've got our eyes peeled, and we don't
get tooken in again. Old Early played it up pretty cute once,