Captain?" asked Nort, controlling his voice with difficulty.
"David wrote me that he was sick. I thought I might cheer him up."

"Won't you come in?"

At that moment the old Captain's voice was heard from upstairs, booming
vigorously:

"Is that Nort? Come up, Nort!"

Anthy smiled. She was now perfectly self-possessed, and it was Nort, the
assured, the self-confident, who had become hopelessly awkward and
uncertain.

"Come up, Nort!" called the old Captain.

When he entered the bedroom, the old Captain was propped up on the
pillows, his thick white hair brushed back from his noble head. He was
evidently very much better.

"Captain," said Nort, instantly, before the old Captain had a moment to
express his surprise, "have you seen the Sterling _Democrat_ this
week?"

"No," said the Captain, starting up in bed. "What's that man Kendrick
been doing now?"

"Listen to this," said Nort, pulling the paper out of his pocket and
opening it with a vast simulation of excitement, and reading the heading
aloud:

"_Where was Captain Doane when the flying-machine visited Hempfield?_"

"Why, the scoundrel!" exclaimed the old Captain, this time sitting
straight up in bed, "the arrant scoundrel!"

As Nort read the paragraph the old Captain sank back on the pillows, and
when it was over he remarked in a tone of broad tolerance:

"Nort, what can you expect of a Democrat, anyway?"

He lay musing for a minute or two, and then called out in a loud voice:

"Anthy, I'm going to get up."

The old war horse had sniffed the breeze of battle. When Nort went out,
he saw nothing of Anthy.

Never were there such puzzling days as those which followed. To all
outward appearance the life in the office of the _Star_ had been
restored to its former humdrum. The incident of Nort's disappearance was
as if it had not happened. The business of printing a country newspaper
proceeded with the utmost decorum. And yet there was a difference--a
difference in Nort. He was in a mood unlike anything we had seen before.
He was much less boyish, more dignified, dignified at times to the point
of being almost amusing. Once or twice he thoughtlessly broke out with
some remark that suggested his old enthusiasm--but caught himself
instantly. Also, he had very little to say to Anthy, did not once offer
to walk home with her, and seemed to be most friendly of all with the
old Captain. Also, I found that he was often in the office at night,
sometimes wri