ue, where you can call a policeman or a taxicab if you get
lost. This vast forest is an entirely different proposition."

Theo nodded.

"How still it is," he said softly.

"Yes," rejoined his father; "that is why it means to me something that
no other place can. After the rush of the city, the jangle of
telephones, the constant sight of sick people, there is nothing to
compare with the restfulness of these woods."

The Doctor, who had been standing with his back to the fire, his hands
clasped behind him, drew out his pipe, lighted it, and puffed a ring
of smoke into the air.

"You have had a very busy year, Father."

"Yes, and I fancy there will be a still busier one ahead. Before I
attack it I feel that it is my duty to get a good rest. In these war
days a doctor never knows where he may be needed to serve. Thus far my
place seems to have been at a home hospital. With eight of our
operating staff in France it has meant much extra work, too. Not that
I am complaining of that. I am only too glad to do my bit wherever it
is. But I had got to the point where I felt that the man who can give
the best service is the man who does not allow himself to become too
fagged. So I determined to take my usual vacation even though on the
face of it it seemed a crime to devote myself to nothing but fishing
for a whole month."

Theo glanced into the face of the big, earnest man before him; he felt
suddenly very grown up. His father had seldom talked to him like
this.

"This war," went on Dr. Swift thoughtfully, "is going to make demands
on all of us--demands for money, work, and time. We should be proud to
give these, for it is the first time our country has ever asked
anything of our generation. We have taken unthinkingly all the
benefits America has to offer--libraries; schools; well ordered cities
to live in; the blessings of constant peace and prosperity. For it we
have returned to the government only the slight taxes demanded for the
up-keep of these things; and most of us, I blush to say, have grumbled
a great deal about it, at that. As a nation we were becoming too
comfortable, too rich, too selfish, too complacent. Now a crisis has
arisen when the United States is asking more of us, as it has every
right to do; and we should be eager to prove our gratitude for all we
have so freely received. Only those who have traveled much can fully
realize what a home and an education in a place like America mean.
Never forget, son