red, Mr. Crane, that
however you may value my sister yourself, many of your proud friends
would not receive her?"

"To my mind, Brindlebury, these social distinctions are very
unimportant. Even you I should be willing to have to dinner now and then
when we were alone."

"The deuce you would," said Brindlebury, and added, "but suppose my
sister's lack of refinement--"

"I can't let you talk like that even in fun, Revelly," said Crane. "Get
off your ice-box and let us go back to Claudia."

"Ah, you knew all along?"

"I have suspected for some time. Reed told me this evening."

But when they reached the dining-room, Claudia was not there. She had
gone herself to tell her news to her brother Paul. He was sitting alone
in the garret with the remnants of the game of Coon-Can before him.
Claudia came and put her hand on his shoulder, but he did not move.

"Do you know what I have made up my mind to do?" he said. "I mean to go
and make a clean breast of this to Crane. The game is about up, and I
don't think he's had a square deal. He's a nice fellow, and I'd like to
put myself straight with him."

Claudia remained standing behind her brother, as she asked, "You like
him, Paul?"

"Very much indeed. I think he's behaved mighty well through all this.
Don't you like him?"

There was an instant's pause, and then Claudia answered simply:

"I love him, Paul."

Her brother sprang to his feet. "Don't say that even to yourself, my
dear," he said. "You don't know what men of his sort are like. Spoilt,
run after, cold-blooded. He's not like the men you've ruled over all
your life--"

"No, indeed, he's not," said Claudia.

"My dear girl," her brother went on seriously, "this is not like you.
You must put this out of your head. After all, that oughtn't to be very
hard. You've hardly known the man more than a few days."

"Paul, that shows you don't know what love is. It hasn't anything to do
with time, or your own will. It's just there in an instant. People talk
as if it were common, as if every one fell in love, but I don't believe
they do--not like this. Look at me. I've only known this man as you say
a little while, I've only talked to him a few times, and some of those
were disagreeable, and yet the idea of spending my life with him not
only seems natural, but all the rest of my life--you and my home--seem
strange and unfamiliar. I feel the way you do when you've been living
abroad hearing strange languages and suddenl