stioned him by a look. His
emotion astonished her.

"My love," he said, kissing her hands, "how good of you to come to me,
how sweet and brave you are to wait for me here! I was growing weak with
fear lest I should lose you, too, in the general wreck. And you came and
sat here for me patiently--Darling!"

There was a mingling of self-surrender and ruffled pride in her smiling
reproach:

"Lose me? What do you mean? I waited for you last night, sir, and all
this weary morning, till I could wait no longer; I had to find you. I
would have stayed at home till you came; I meant to, but father startled
me: he said he was afraid you'd lose your place as Professor in spite
of all he had done for you. 'Twas good of him, wasn't it, to give up
running for Mayor, so as not to embitter Gulmore against you? I was
quite proud of him. But you won't lose your post, will you? Has anything
serious happened?--Dear!"

He paused to think, but he could not see any way to avoid telling her
the truth. Disappointments had so huddled upon him, the insight he
had won into human nature was so desolating that his heart ached for
sympathy and affection. He loved her; she was to be his wife; how could
he help winning her to his side? Besides, her words voiced his own
fears--her father had already begun to try to part them. She must know
all and judge. But how? Should he give her "The Tribune" to read? No--it
was vindictive.

"Come and sit down, May, and I'll tell you what happened yesterday. You
shall judge for yourself whether I was right or wrong."

He told her, point by point, what had occurred. May listened in silence
till he stopped.

"But why did he resign? What could he gain by that?"

While she was speaking a thought crimsoned her cheeks; she had found
the key to the enigma. Three nights before her father had talked of
Washington and the East with a sort of exultation. At the time she
had not paid much attention to this, though it had struck her as very
different from his habit. Now the peculiarity of it confirmed her
suspicion. In some way or other his action in resigning was connected
with his inexplicable high spirits. A wave of indignation swept over
her. Not that she felt the disgust which had sickened the Professor when
he first heard of the traitorism. He had condemned Mr. Hutchings on the
grounds of public morality; May's anger was aroused because her father
had sought to deceive _her_; had tried by lying suggestion to take
c