f fury.

Again Hiram opened his mouth agitatedly, and his eyebrows wrinkled
in pained surprise. Yet once more his eyes sought the white tie and
his hand reached for the little man's arm, and, feeling at a loss
just then for language of explanation, he hurried him up-stairs and
into a room whose drawn curtains masked some of its untidiness.

"You wash up, elder," he counselled. "I won't let anybody disturb
you, and then whatever needs to be explained will be all explained.
Don't you blame me till you know it all." And he backed out and shut
the door.

He faced the Cap'n at the foot of the stairs. The Cap'n had been
watching intently the ascent of the two, and had gathered from the
little man's scuffles and his language that he was not a particularly
enthusiastic guest.

"They come hard, but we must have 'em, hey?" he demanded, grimly.
"This is worse than shanghaiing for a Liverpool boardin'-house, and
I won't--"

"S-s-s-sh!" hissed Hiram, flapping his hand. "That's the elder."

"An elder? A man that uses that kind of language?"

"He's had good reason for it," returned Hiram, fervently. "It's stout
talk, but I ain't blamin' him." He locked the outside door. "Them
Double-yer T. Double-yers will be flockin' this way in a few
minutes," he said, in explanation, "but they'll have to walk acrost
me in addition to the doormat to get him before I've had my say."

But even while he was holding the unconvinced Cap'n by the arm and
eagerly going over his arguments, once more they heard the treading
of many feet in the office. There were the W.T.W.'s in force, and
they had with them a tall, gaunt man; and the presence of Mrs. Look
and Mrs. Sproul, flushed but determined, indicated that the citadel
had been betrayed from the rear.

"I present to you Reverend T. Thayer, gents," said the president,
icily, "and seein' that he is field-secretary of the enforcement
league, and knows his duty when he sees it clear, he will talk to
you for your own good, and if it don't do you good, I warn you that
there will be something said from the pulpit to-morrow that will
bring down the guilty in high places."

"The elder!" gasped Hiram, whirling to gaze aghast at the Cap'n. Then
he turned desperate eyes up at the ceiling, where creaking footsteps
sounded. "Who in the name o' Jezebel--" he muttered.

Above there was a sort of spluttering bark of a human voice, and the
next moment there was a sound as of some one running about wildly.
Th