rt of the relict of the late
McGuire. Mary "red up" her house for her when her rheumatism was bad.
She cooked for her, she sang and read for her. Above all things, Mary
was her friend, and no one who has a friend can be altogether at war
with the world.

One evening when Mary was reading the "Pilgrim's Progress" to her, the
Reverend Hugh Grantley came in and begged to be let stay and enjoy the
reading, too. He said Miss Barner's voice seemed to take the tangles
out of his brain, whereupon Mrs. McGuire winked at herself.

That night she obligingly fell asleep just where Christian resolved to
press on to the Heavenly City at all costs, and Mistrust and Timorous
ran down the hill.

After that the minister came regularly, and Mrs. McGuire, though she
complained to herself that it was hard to lose so much of the reading,
fell asleep each night, and snored loudly. She said she had been young
herself once, and guessed she knew how it was with young folks. Just
hoped he was good enough for Mary, that was all; men were such
deceivers--they were all smooth as silk, until it came to livin' with
'em, and then she shook her head grimly, thinking no doubt of the
vagaries of the late McGuire.

The Reverend Hugh Grantley walked up and down the floor of his study in
deep meditation. But his thoughts were not on his Sunday sermon nor yet
on the topic for the young people's meeting, though they were serious
enough by the set of his jaw.

His friend Clay had just left him. Clay was in a radiant humour. Dr.
Barner's friendly attitude toward him had apparently changed the aspect
of affairs, and now the old doctor had suggested taking him into
partnership.

"Think of it, Grantley," the young man had exclaimed, "what this will
mean to me. He is a great man in his profession, so clever, so witty,
so scholarly, everything. He was the double gold medallist in his year
at McGill, and he has been keeping absolutely sober lately--thanks to
your good offices"--at which the other made a gesture of dissent--"and
then I would be in a better position to look after things. As it has
been, any help I gave Mary in keeping the old man from killing people
had to be done on the sly."

The minister winced and went a shade paler at the mention of her name,
but the doctor did not notice.

"Mary is anxious to have it brought about, too," he went on, "for it
has always been a worry to her when he was away, but now he will do the
office work, and I will d