rs,
Sammie came and took a seat by her side. She glanced quickly up, with
a shade of annoyance on her face. They were alone on the verandah, for
her father and Dick were nowhere to be seen.

"You are very quiet this evening, Lois," the young man began. "I have
been watching you for the last half hour, and you never looked our way
once, nor took any interest in what we were saying. You are not
offended, are you?"

"Offended! At what?" Lois asked as she let her needlework fall upon
her lap.

"At me. Have I done anything to annoy you?"

"I wasn't thinking about you at all, Sammie," and Lois looked him full
in the eyes. "My mind was upon more important things."

"And you don't consider me important?" the young man demanded, visibly
embarrassed.

"Why should I? What have you done that you should be considered
important?"

"But my father is rich, and we belong to a good old family. I am a
gentleman, and that should count for much."

"So you seem to think," was the somewhat sarcastic reply. "I do not
for a moment deny that such things are valuable, but they count for
very little in my estimation of a true man. He must prove his worth in
the battle of life, and show to the world that he is something apart
from how much money his father may have or his family history. Now
what have you done that I should consider you important?"

"Nothing at present, Lois, for I am not through college yet. But I am
going to do great things some day, and then you will change your
opinion of me."

"I hope so," and Lois gave a sigh as she picked up her work.

"You don't believe what I say?" and Sammie reddened.

"Not until I see you settle down to something definite. You do not
know how to work, and how, then, can you expect to succeed?"

"But you would not want to see me working like Spuds, for instance,
would you?"

"And why not? He is not afraid to soil his hands at honest labor. Why
he is doing so I do not know, but there must be some good reason."

"Oh, I know. He wants money to help him to finish his college course.
He left very suddenly, so I understand. Of course, he was not in our
set, and so I know very little about him. He studied hard, and kept
much to himself, so he has always been somewhat of a mystery. But say,
Lois, never mind talking about him. I want to ask you something, for I
am going away to-morrow."

"What is it, Sammie?" and again Lois laid down her work. She had an
idea what he wan