enly to an uncontrollable shriek of delight. The men
stared blankly at her for a moment, and then inquiringly at one
another, and as the humor of the situation struck them they burst into
an echoing shout of laughter, which rose above the noise of the wind
and rain, and before which the disappointments and trials of the
morning were swept away. Before they reached the Palms the sun was out
and shining with fierce brilliancy, reflecting its rays on every damp
leaf, and drinking up each glistening pool of water.

MacWilliams and Clay left the Langhams alone together, and returned to
the office, where they assured each other again and again that there
was no doubt, from what each had heard different members of the family
say, that they were greatly pleased with all that had been prepared for
them.

"They think it's fine!" said young Langham, who had run down the hill
to tell them about it. "I tell you, they are pleased. I took them all
over the house, and they just exclaimed every minute. Of course," he
said, dispassionately, "I thought they'd like it, but I had no idea it
would please them as much as it has. My Governor is so delighted with
the place that he's sitting out there on the veranda now, rocking
himself up and down and taking long breaths of sea-air, just as though
he owned the whole coast-line."

Langham dined with his people that night, Clay and MacWilliams having
promised to follow him up the hill later. It was a night of much
moment to them all, and the two men ate their dinner in silence, each
considering what the coming of the strangers might mean to him.

As he was leaving the room MacWilliams stopped and hovered uncertainly
in the doorway.

"Are you going to get yourself into a dress-suit to-night?" he asked.
Clay said that he thought he would; he wanted to feel quite clean once
more.

"Well, all right, then," the other returned, reluctantly. "I'll do it
for this once, if you mean to, but you needn't think I'm going to make
a practice of it, for I'm not. I haven't worn a dress-suit," he
continued, as though explaining his principles in the matter, "since
your spread when we opened the railroad--that's six months ago; and the
time before that I wore one at MacGolderick's funeral. MacGolderick
blew himself up at Puerto Truxillo, shooting rocks for the breakwater.
We never found all of him, but we gave what we could get together as
fine a funeral as those natives ever saw. The boys, they wan