zzling glare, Lydia blinked and looked
away out of the window. A moment later an arm laid about her neck made
her bound up in amazement and confront a small, middle-aged woman, with
a hat too young for her tired, sallow face, with a note-book in her
hand and an apologetic expression of affection in her light blue eyes.
"I'm sorry I startled you, Miss Lydia," she said. "I keep forgetting
you're not still a little girl I can pick up and hug."

"Oh, you!" breathed the girl, sitting down again. "I didn't think there
was anybody in the car with me, you see."

"Have you come all the way from Endbury alone, then?" asked Miss
Burgess, looking about her suspiciously.

"No, I have not," said Lydia uncompromisingly. "Mr. Rankin, the
cabinet-maker, has been with me till just now."

Miss Burgess sat down hastily in the vacant seat by Lydia. "And he's
coming back?" she inquired.

"No; he got off at Hardville. This _is_ Hardville, isn't it?"

"Yes. I happened to be out reporting a big church bazaar here." She
settled back comfortably. "What a nice chance for a cozy little visit I
shall have with you. These long trips on the Interurban are fine for
talking. Unless I shall tire you? Did Mr. Rankin talk much? What does he
talk _about_, anyhow? He's always so rude to me that I've never heard
him say a word except about his work."

Lydia considered for a moment. "We talked about the street-car
conductors having such long hours to work," she said, "and later about
whether people have more bad in them than good."

"Oh!" said Miss Burgess.

Lydia smiled faintly, the ghost of her whimsical little look of mockery.
"We decided that they have more good," she said.

Miss Burgess cast about her for a suitable comment. At last, "Really!"
she said.

CHAPTER XVI

ENGAGED TO BE MARRIED

All over the half-finished house the workmen began to lay down their
tools. Paul Hollister's face broke into a good-humored smile as a moment
later he caught the faraway five-o'clock whistles calling from the city.
He was in a very happy mood these days and the best aspect of the
phenomena of the world was what impressed him most. As the workmen
disappeared down the driveway to the main road, running to catch the
next trolley-car to Endbury, he looked after them with little of the
usual exasperation of the house-builder whose work they were slighting,
but with an agreeable sense of their extreme inferiority to him in the
matter of fixity of purp