of entertainment.

"Just what she seems to be," replied Doctor Churchill, smiling back,
"and a thousand times more."

"I might have known you would care for no other," Lee said. "And you two
'live in your house at the side of the road, to be good friends to
man,'--if I may adapt those homely words."

"We haven't been at it very long, but we hope to realize an ambition of
the sort. It doesn't take much philanthropy to welcome you."

"You can't think what a relief it is to me to get that little sister of
mine under your wing, even for a few hours."

"Tell us all about her."

Lee had not meant to begin at once upon his troubles, but his friend
drew him on, and before the evening ended the doctor and Charlotte had
the whole long, hard story of Lee's guardianship of several young
brothers and sisters, his struggle to get established in his profession
and make money for their support, his many anxieties in the process, and
this culminating trouble in the breakdown of the younger sister, just as
he thought he had her safely established in a school where she might
have a happy home for several years.

Lee stopped suddenly, as if he had hardly known how long he had been
talking. "I'm a pleasant guest!" he said, regret in his tone. "I meant
to tell you briefly the history of Evelyn's illness, and here I've gone
on unloading all my burdens of years. What do you sit there looking so
benevolent and sympathetic for, beguiling a fellow into making a
weak-kneed fool of himself? My worries are no greater than those of
millions of other people, and here I've been laying it on with a trowel.
Forget the whole dismal story, and just give me a bit of professional
advice about my little sister."

"Look here, old boy," said his friend, "don't go talking that way.
You've done just what I was anxious you should do--given me your
confidence. I can go at your sister's case with a better chance of
understanding it if I know this whole story. And now I'm going to thank
you and send you off to bed for a good night's sleep. To-morrow we'll
take Evelyn in hand."

"Bless you, Andy! You're the same old tried and true," murmured Thorne
Lee, shaking hands warmly.

Then Charlotte led him away up-stairs to see his sister, who had waked
and wanted him. Stooping over her bed, he felt a pair of slender arms
round his neck and heard her voice whispering in his ear:

"Thorny, I just wanted you to know that I think Mrs. Churchill is the
dearest pers