or granted. I advise you not to do
it, Miss Child."

Still he stared as she received his advice in silence. Not a feature
of the piquant, yet proud, arresting face, not a curve of the slim
figure, did his old eyes miss.

"I guess you haven't forgotten who pointed me out," he persisted,
after a pause. "Now think again. _Have_ you? It might pay to
remember."

"I do not remember, sir." She threw up her head in the characteristic
way which the other Peter knew.

"Sure nothing could make you remember?"

"I'm sure nothing could."

"Very well, then, we must let that go for the present. Now to another
subject. I hear you showed a good deal of pluck this morning in
putting out a fire."

"Oh, after all, it may be only that!" Win thought.

She ought to have been relieved. But she was not certain whether
relief was her most prominent emotion. The girl did not quite know
what to make of herself, and the man was not giving her much time for
reflection.

"The little I did was done on the spur of the moment," she said. "I
don't deserve any credit."

"Well, I may be inclined to think different when it comes to settling
up. That depends on several things. We'll come to 'em by and by.
You're English, ain't you?"

"Yes."

"H-m! You look as if you ought to have titles running in your family.
Have you got any?"

Win fancied that this must be her employer's idea of a joke, but his
face was grave, and even curiously eager. "Not one," she answered,
smiling.

"No connections with titles?"

"Why, yes, we have some cousins afflicted in that way," she lightly
admitted, beginning to be faintly amused as well as puzzled. "Almost
every one has, in our country, I suppose."

"What sort of title is it?"

"Oh, my father's second cousin happens to be an earl."

"An earl, is he? That stands pretty high, I guess, on your side. Any
chance of your father inheriting?"

This time Win allowed herself the luxury of a laugh. What a strange
old man! And this was Mr. Balm of Gilead's father!

She was still in the dark as to why he had sent for her. But it must
be on account of the fire. His curiosity was very funny. In any one
except Peter's father she would have considered it ridiculous. Maybe
he wanted to work up a good "story" in the newspapers. Very likely it
could be turned into an "ad" for the Hands if the cousin of an English
earl had saved a fellow employee from burning up, and it would be
still more thrilling if the heroine migh