ceiling, and took seats at the table. Pan feasted his
eyes. His mother had not been idle during the hours that he was out in
the orchard with Lucy, nor had she forgotten the things that he had
always liked. Alice acted as waitress, and Bobby sat in a high chair
beaming upon Pan. At that juncture Lucy came in. She had changed her
gray blouse to one of white, with wide collar that was cut a little low
and showed the golden contour of her superb neck. She had put her hair
up. Pan could not take his eyes off her. In hers he saw a dancing
subdued light, and a beautiful rose color in her cheeks.

"Well, I've got to eat," said Pan, as if by way of explanation and
excuse for removing his gaze from this radiant picture.

Thus his home coming proved to be a happier event than he had ever
dared to hope for. Lucy was quiet and ate but little. At times Pan
caught her stealing a glimpse at him, and each time she blushed. She
could not meet his eyes again. Alice too stole shy glances at him,
wondering, loving. Bobby was hungry, but he did not forget that Pan
sat across from him. Mrs. Smith watched Pan with an expression that
would have pained him had he allowed remorse to come back then. And
his father was funny. He tried to be natural, to meet Pan on a plane
of the old western insouciance, but it was impossible. No doubt such
happiness had not reigned in that household for years.

"Dad, let's go out and have a talk," proposed Pan, after dinner.

As they walked down toward the corrals Pan's father was silent, yet it
was clear he labored with suppressed feeling.

"All right, fire away," he burst out at last, "but first tell me, for
Gawd's sake, how'd you do it?"

"What?" queried Pan, looking round from his survey of the farm land.

"Mother! She's _well_. She wasn't well at all," exclaimed the older
man, breathing hard. "An' that girl! Did you ever see such eyes?"

"Reckon I never did," replied Pan, with joyous bluntness.

"This mornin' I left Lucy crushed. Her eyes were like lead. An'
now!... Pan, I'm thankin' God for them. But tell me how'd you do it?"

"Dad, I don't know women very well, but I reckon they live by their
hearts. You can bet that happiness for them means a lot to me. I felt
pretty low down. That's gone. I could crow like Bobby ... but, Dad,
I've a big job on my hands, and I think I'm equal to it. Are you going
to oppose me?"

"Hell, no!" spat out his father, losing his pipe in