her big husband.

"I hope--yes, I'm sure you did right, Zelotes, and that all's goin' to
turn out to be for the best."

"Are you? Well, _I_ ain't sure, not by a thousand fathom."

"He's Janie's boy."

"Yes. And he's that play-actor's boy, too. One Speranza pretty nigh
ruined your life and mine, Olive. What'll this one do? . . . Well, God
knows, I suppose likely, but He won't tell. All we can do is wait and
see. I tell you honest I ain't very hopeful."

CHAPTER III

A brisk rap on the door; then a man's voice.

"Hello, there! Wake up."

Albert rolled over, opened one eye, then the other and raised himself on
his elbow.

"Eh? Wh-what?" he stammered.

"Seven o'clock! Time to turn out."

The voice was his grandfather's. "Oh--oh, all right!" he answered.

"Understand me, do you?"

"Yes--yes, sir. I'll be right down."

The stairs creaked as Captain Zelotes descended them. Albert yawned
cavernously, stretched and slid one foot out of bed. He drew it back
instantly, however, for the sensation was that of having thrust it into
a bucket of cold water. The room had been cold the previous evening;
plainly it was colder still now. The temptation was to turn back and go
to sleep again, but he fought against it. Somehow he had a feeling that
to disregard his grandfather's summons would be poor diplomacy.

He set his teeth and, tossing back the bed clothes, jumped to the floor.
Then he jumped again, for the floor was like ice. The window was wide
open and he closed it, but there was no warm radiator to cuddle against
while dressing. He missed his compulsory morning shower, a miss which
did not distress him greatly. He shook himself into his clothes, soused
his head and neck in a basin of ice water poured from a pitcher, and,
before brushing his hair, looked out of the window.

It was a sharp winter morning. The wind had gone down, but before
subsiding it had blown every trace of mist or haze from the air, and
from his window-sill to the horizon every detail was clean cut and
distinct. He was looking out, it seemed, from the back of the house. The
roof of the kitchen extension was below him and, to the right, the high
roof of the barn. Over the kitchen roof and to the left he saw little
rolling hills, valleys, cranberry swamps, a pond. A road wound in
and out and, scattered along it, were houses, mostly white with green
blinds, but occasionally varied by the gray of unpainted, weathered
shingles. A long, low-s