much more concerned for father than for
son. She sighed resignedly as she folded a flattering request from her
club for an address entitled, "Do We Forget Our Maids?" and gave him
her full attention. "Read me the letter, dear," said she, placidly.

"Of course I always knew some woman would get hold of him," said
Anthony, Sr., fumbling blindly for his mouth with a bit of toast, his
eyes still on the letter; "but, by George, this sounds like Charlie
Ross!"

"Woman!" repeated Mrs. Fox, with a relieved laugh. "Buddy's in love, is
he? Don't worry, Tony, it won't last! Of all boys in the world he's the
least likely to be foolish that way!"

"Of all boys in the world he's the kind that is easiest taken in!" said
his father, dryly, securing the toast at last with a savage snap.
"H-m--she's his landlady! Keeps fancy fowls and takes boarders--ha!
Says they rather hope to be married in June. This has quite a settled
tone to it, for Buddy. I don't like the look of it!"

"Nonsense!" said Mrs. Fox, with dawning uneasiness. "You don't mean to
say he considers himself seriously engaged? At twenty! And to his
landlady, too--I never heard such nonsense! Buddy's in no position to
marry. Who IS the girl, anyway?"

"GIRL is good!" said the reader, bitterly. "She's thirty-two!"

Mrs. Fox, her hand hovering over a finger-bowl, grew rigid.

"Thirty-two!" she echoed blankly. Then sharply: "Anthony, do you think
you can stop it?"

"I'll do what I can, believe me!" he assured her grimly. "Yes, sir,
she's thirty-two! By the way, Fanny, this letter's already a month old.
Why haven't I had it before?"

"You told them to hold only the office mail while you were travelling,
you know," Mrs. Fox reminded him. "That one evidently has been
following you. Anthony, can Tony marry without your consent?"

"No-o, but of course he's of age in five months, and if she's got her
hooks deep enough into him, she--oh, confound such a complication,
anyway!"

"It looks to me as if she wanted his money," said Mrs. Fox.

"H-m!" said his father, again deep in the letter. "That's just occurred
to you, has it? Poor old Buddy--poor old Bud!"

"Oh, he'll surely get over it," said Mrs. Fox, uncertainly.

"He may, but you can bet SHE won't! Not before they're married, anyway.
No, Bud's the sort that gets it hard, when he does get it!" his father
said. "There's a final tone about the whole thing that I don't like.
Listen to this!" He quoted from the letter with