him like celestial balm. Song after song
she sang. Some were dreamy bits and snatches in Spanish and English;
others were sacred in character. He wondered deeply, as the girl mused
over these; yet he knew not that they were her own compositions.
Curiosity and uncertainty mastered him at length, and he got softly to
his feet and moved away from the pillar, that he might see from what
manner of being issued such unbroken harmony. But in his eagerness his
foot struck a chair, and the sound echoed loudly through the room.

The music abruptly ceased, and the girl rose and looked over the organ
at the intruder.

"I--I beg your pardon," said the clergyman, advancing in some
embarrassment. "I was listening to your singing--uninvited, but none
the less appreciative. I--"

"Wait, please!" cried the girl, hastily stooping over and fumbling
with her shoes. The doctor laughed genially, as he grasped the
situation.

"I took them off," she explained hurriedly. "I am not yet accustomed
to them. I never wore shoes until I left Simiti." Her face was
scarlet, and she tried to cover her confusion with a little laugh.

The doctor stood staring at her, lost in admiration of the shapely
figure, the heavy, curling hair, and the wonderfully expressive face.
The girl quickly recovered her poise and returned him a frank smile.

"You wish to see me?" she said, after waiting in vain for him to
begin.

"Ah--a--yes, certainly--that is, I beg your pardon," stammered the
doctor. "I did request permission of Madam Elwin to make your
acquaintance. We have heard so much about you. I am Doctor Jurges, an
Episcopal clergyman." His sentences issued like blasts from an engine
exhaust.

"I am Carmen Ariza," said the girl, extending her hand.

"Ah--quite so, quite so," blustered the doctor, clearing his throat
noisily. "Let us be seated. Ah--ah--you have a remarkable voice. It
gives evidence of careful cultivation."

"No," returned the girl simply. "It has never had any cultivation. It
is natural for me to sing. And my poor organ-playing is what I have
picked up myself these six months."

The man regarded her with amazement. "Remarkable!" he murmured.

The girl looked up into his face searchingly. "Why," she asked,
"should every one up here think it remarkable when a human mind is
clear enough to be a transparency for God?"

Had the roof fallen, the excellent doctor could have been no more
startled. He cleared his throat violently again; then f