s she glanced slyly into Miss Howard's eyes.

Miss Howard understood the quaint remark, and, rising from her seat, said:
"I shall not soon forget our little talk, but must leave you now for the
'school ma'am's' duties. One of them will be to endeavor to persuade
Pauline that it was _not_ Henry VIII. who sought to reduce the American
Colonies to submission, nor Lafayette who won the battle of Waterloo.
Good-bye," and away tripped Miss Howard over the soft green lawn.

Toinette sat for a few moments, and then, springing up, said to herself:
"I might as well go and write that letter this very minute, and I do hope
papa will know of something right off. How lovely it would be!"

The letter was soon written, and within two hours was speeding upon its
way to New York. Toinette had reasoned well, and, as good luck would have
it, the letter arrived at a most auspicious moment. As Mr. Reeve sat
reading it, his face reflecting the happiness he felt at receiving it so
close upon the one which came to him every Monday morning, a client was
shown into his office.

It happened to be one who was about to embark upon a new line of business
in which he was venturing large sums of money, and which required capable,
trustworthy men to carry out his plans. He had consulted with Mr. Reeve
many times before, and nearly all details were completed; the few that
remained dealt with minor matters, so Mr. Reeve felt considerable
satisfaction at the thought of having brought all arrangements through so
successfully. But it was certainly anything but a contented face he saw
before him when he glanced up from Toinette's letter upon Mr. Fowler's
entrance, and his first words were: "Well, for a prosperous capitalist,
you bear a woeful countenance, Ned."

"If mine is woeful, yours certainly is not," was the prompt answer. "You
look as though you had been the recipient of some very pleasing news."

"A pretty good sort," said Mr. Reeve, smiling. "The sort that makes a man
feel old and young at the same time. Ever get any of that?"

"Don't know as I do; it must be a rare specimen," said Mr. Fowler, dryly.
"Better let me know the kind it is; perhaps it will counterbalance the
kind I have for you this morning; confound it!"

Seeing that Mr. Fowler was really disturbed about something, Mr. Reeve
dropped his bantering tone, and went to serious matters. He then learned
that the bookkeeper whom Mr. Fowler had engaged for the new line of
business, and who