e he offered, and held it up to the light.

"It certainly is true blue," she said, with a smile, "and I'm suah you
are too, now. I didn't need this to tell me how well you've been doing
since you left Arizona. We've heard a great deal about yoah successes
from Cousin Carl."

"Then let me have it set in a ring for you," he added. "There will be
plenty of time before the wedding."

"No," she answered, hastily. "I couldn't do that. Papa Jack wouldn't
like it. He wouldn't allow me to accept anything from a man in the way
of jewelry, you know. I couldn't take it as a ring. Now just this little
unset stone"--she hesitated. "Just this bit of a turquoise that you say
cost only a trifle, I'm suah he wouldn't mind that. I'll tell him it's
just my friendship stone."

"What a particular little maid of honor you are!" he exclaimed. "How
many girls of seventeen do you know who would take the trouble to go to
their fathers with a trifle like that, and make a careful explanation
about it? Besides, you can't tell him that it is _only_ a friendship
stone. I want it to mean more than that to you, Lloyd. I want it to
stand for a great deal more between us. Don't you see how I care--how I
must have cared all this time, to let the thought of you make such a
difference in my life?"

There was no mistaking the deep tenderness of his voice or the
earnestness of his question. Lloyd felt the blood surge up in her face
and her heart throbbed so fast she could hear it beat. But she hastily
thrust back the proffered turquoise, saying, in confusion:

"Then I can't wear it! Take it back, please; I promised Papa Jack--"

"Promised him what?" asked Phil, as she hesitated.

"Well, it's rathah hard to explain," she began in much confusion,
"unless you knew the story of 'The Three Weavahs.' Then you'd
undahstand."

"But I don't know it, and I'd rather like an explanation of some kind. I
think you'll have to make it clear to me why you can't accept it, and
what it was you promised your father."

"Oh, I can't tell it to make it sound like anything," she began,
desperately. "It was like this. No, I can't tell it. Come in the house,
and I'll get the book and let you read it for yoahself!"

"No, I'd rather hear the reason from your own lips. Besides, some one
would interrupt us in there, and I want to understand where I'm 'at'
before that happens."

"Well," she began again, "it is a story Mrs. Walton told us once when
our Shadow Club was in disgr