tapping his boot nervously
with his long riding-whip.

"I am sorry if I frightened you," he said. "My horse is a little
restive, and the acetylene light which your chauffeur turned on him was
sufficiently alarming."

"You did not exactly frighten me," she assured him, "but you looked so
abnormally large. Please tell us what you would advise us to do. Is
there a village near, or an inn, or even a barn? Or shall we have to
spend the night in the car?"

"The nearest village," he replied, "is twelve miles away. Fortunately,
my own home is close by. I shall be very pleased--I and my brother--if
you will honor us. I am afraid I cannot offer you very much in the way
of entertainment--"

She rose briskly to her feet and beamed upon him.

"You are indeed a good Samaritan!" she exclaimed. "A roof is more than
we had dared to hope for, although when one looks up at this wonderful
sky and breathes this air, one wonders, perhaps, whether a roof, after
all, is such a blessing."

"It gets very cold toward morning," the young man said practically.

"Of course," she assented. "Aline, you will bring my dressing-bag and
follow us. This gentleman is kind enough to offer us shelter for the
night. Dear me, you really are almost as tall as you appeared!" she
added, as she stood by his side. "For the first time in my life you make
me feel undersized."

He looked down at her, a little more at his ease now by reason of the
friendliness of her manner, although he had still the air of one
embarked upon an adventure, the outcome of which was to be regarded with
some qualms. She was of little more than medium height, and his first
impressions of her were that she was thin, and too pale to be
good-looking; that her eyes were large and soft, with eyebrows more
clearly defined than is usual among Englishwomen; and that she moved
without seeming to walk.

"I suppose I am tall," he admitted, as they started off along the road.
"One doesn't notice it around here. My name is John Strangewey, and our
house is just behind that clump of trees there, on the top of the hill.
We will do our best to make you comfortable," he added a little
doubtfully; "but there are only my brother and myself, and we have no
women servants in the house."

"A roof of any sort will be a luxury," she assured him. "I only hope
that we shall not be a trouble to you in any way."

"And your name, please?" he asked.

She was a little amazed at his directness, but she answ