un that is indifferent to wealth and poverty, to
gayety and dejection. From far off in the gray light there came the
sound of a five o'clock bell. A little later the shrieks of factory
whistles were borne to his ears, muffled by distance but pregnant with
the importance of a new day of toil. They were calling him, with all
poor men, to the sweat-shop and the forge, to the great mill of life.
The new era had begun, dawning bright and clear to disperse the gloom
in his soul. Leaning against the casement and wondering where he could
earn the first dollar for the Peggy Brewster that was Peggy Gray, he
rose to meet it with a fine unflinching fearlessness.

Before seven o'clock he was down stairs and waiting. Joe Bragdon joined
him a bit later, followed by Gardner and the minister. The DeMilles
appeared without an invitation, but they were not denied. Mrs. Dan
sagely shook her head when told that Peggy was still asleep and that
the ceremony was off till nine o'clock.

"Monty, are you going away?" asked Dan, drawing him into a corner.

"Just a week in the hills," answered Monty, suddenly remembering the
generosity of his attorneys.

"Come in and see me as soon as you return, old man," said DeMille, and
Monty knew that a position would be open to him.

To Mrs. Dan fell the honor of helping Peggy dress. By the time she had
had coffee and was ready to go down, she was pink with excitement and
had quite forgotten the anxiety which had made the night an age.

She had never been prettier than on her wedding morning. Her color was
rich, her eyes as clear as stars, her woman's body the picture of grace
and health. Monty's heart leaped high with love of her.

"The prettiest girl in New York, by Jove," gasped Dan DeMille,
clutching Bragdon by the arm.

"And look at Monty! He's become a new man in the last five minutes,"
added Joe. "Look at the glow in his cheeks! By the eternal, he's
beginning to look as he did a year ago."

A clock chimed the hour of nine.

"The man who was here yesterday is in the hall to see Mr. Brewster,"
said the maid, a few minutes after the minister had uttered the words
that gave Peggy a new name. There was a moment of silence, almost of
dread.

"You mean the fellow with the beard?" asked Monty, uneasily.

"Yes, sir. He sent in this letter, begging you to read it at once."

"Shall I send him away, Monty?" demanded Bragdon, defiantly. "What does
he mean by coming at this time?"

"I'll read the le