very much worried. For the third
time he picked up and read a telegram from the Mother Superior of the
Sacred Heart Convent at Athens, telling him that Ruth Lansing had left
the convent that morning. But the third perusal of the message did not
give him any more light on the matter than the two previous readings
had done.

Why should the girl have gone away? What could have happened? Only the
other day he had received a letter from her telling of her studies and
her progress and of every new thing that was interesting her.

The Bishop thought of the lonely hill home where he had found her
"Daddy Tom" dying, and where he had buried him on the hillside.
Probably the girl would go back and try to live there. And he thought
of the boy who had told him of his love and that he wanted to keep
Ruth there in the hills.

As he laid down the telegraph form, his secretary came to the door to
tell him that the boy, Jeffrey Whiting, was in the waiting room asking
to see him and refusing even to indicate the nature of his business to
any one but the Bishop himself.

The Bishop was startled. He had understood that the young man was in
Albany at school. Now he thought that he would get a very clear light
upon Ruth Lansing's disappearance.

"I came to you, sir," said Jeffrey when the Bishop had given him a
chair, "because you could tell us what to do."

"You mean you and your--neighbour, Ruth Lansing?"

"Why, no, sir. What about her?" said Jeffrey quickly.

The Bishop gave the boy one keen, searching look, and saw his mistake.
The boy knew nothing.

"This," the Bishop answered, as he handed Jeffrey the open telegram.

"But where's she gone? Why did she go?" Jeffrey broke out, as he read
the message.

"I thought you were coming to tell me that."

"No," said Jeffrey, reading the Bishop's meaning quickly. "She didn't
write to me, not at all. I suppose the sisters wouldn't have it. But
she wrote to my mother and she didn't say anything about leaving
there."

"I suppose not," said the Bishop. "She seems to have gone away
suddenly. But, I am forgetting. You came to talk to me."

"Yes." And Jeffrey went on to tell, clearly and shortly, of the coming
of Rogers and his proposition. Though it hurt, he did not fail to tell
how he had been carried away by the man's offer and his flattery. He
made it plain that it was only his mother's insight and caution that
had held him back from accepting the offer on the instant.

The Bis