ut made more obvious by--her surroundings."

"Well, she has apparently decided to take the moulding of her life into
her own hands and, without knowing the quotation, determined to be 'the
master of her fate and captain of her soul.' However, a little more
education can scarcely hurt her, and, if she succeeds in saving up some
money, it will come in handy enough as a 'dot,' in case she marries your
friend, Judd Amos, and raises a family of mountain brats."

Donald's reply was unnecessarily positive.

"I'll wager that she'll never do that." And with that the conversation,
as far as it concerned Smiles, ended.

* * * * *

During purloined hours in the next few days the eminently successful
young physician might have been seen engaged in strange errands, which
took him into such places as a dressmaker's establishment, and several
stores which sold textbooks. It was also a noteworthy fact that the
decidedly soiled and crumpled ten-dollar bill, with which he had been
commissioned to purchase the means through which education might be
acquired, was never taken from the special compartment in his bill
folder.

Then the flood of fall practice engulfed him, and gradually the memory
of little Smiles faded from his busy mind, although it never quite
vanished, and from time to time fresh breezes from the distant
Cumberlands fanned it to life like a glowing ember.

CHAPTER VIII

SOME OF SEVERAL EPISTLES

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I

Commonwealth Avenue
Boston, Massachusetts.
September 15, 1912.

Dear little Smiles:

If you had been able to look inside of my heart when I opened your
present and read your letter, you would have beheld as many different
lights and shadows there as you can see in your own eyes when you look
in the glass over your bureau.

The sight of that little jar, and the scent of the spiced rose-petals,
brought you so near to me that I thought I could almost see you by just
closing my eyes--which may seem to you a funny way of "seeing" a person.
It made me very happy.

The letter, too, pleased me a great deal; but I must tell you that it
also troubled me. That is when the shadow fell on my thoughts of you.

The reason? I will tell it to you, be