ver her head and stood slowly
fastening it as Kate started to leave the room. Seeing her go: "I wish
you would wait and meet Robert," she said. "I have told him about what
a nice sister I have."

"I think I'll go on to Adam's now," said Kate. "I don't want to wait
until they go some place, and I miss them. I'll do better to meet your
man after I become more accustomed to bare facts, anyway. By the way,
is he as tall as you?"

"Yes," said Nancy Ellen, laughing. "He is an inch and a half taller.
Why?"

"Oh, I hate seeing a woman taller than her husband and I've always
wondered where we'd find men to reach our shoulders. But if they can
be picked at random from the berry patch--"

So Kate went on her way laughing, lifting her white skirts high from
the late August dust. She took a short cut through the woods and at a
small stream, with sure foot, crossed the log to within a few steps of
the opposite bank. There she stopped, for a young man rounded the
bushes and set a foot on the same log; then he and Kate looked straight
into each other's eyes. Kate saw a clean-shaven, forceful young face,
with strong lines and good colouring, clear gray eyes, sandy brown
hair, even, hard, white teeth, and broad shoulders a little above her
own. The man saw Kate, dressed in her best and looking her best.
Slowly she extended her hand.

"I bet a picayune you are my new brother, Robert," she said.

The young man gripped her hand firmly, held it, and kept on looking in
rather a stunned manner at Kate.

"Well, aren't you?" she asked, trying to withdraw the hand.

"I never, never would have believed it," he said.

"Believed what?" asked Kate, leaving the hand where it was.

"That there could be two in the same family," said he.

"But I'm as different from Nancy Ellen as night from day," said Kate,
"besides, woe is me, I didn't wear a pink dress and pick you from the
berry patch in a blue bowl."

Then the man released her hand and laughed. "You wouldn't have had the
slightest trouble, if you had been there," he said.

"Except that I should have inverted my bowl," said Kate, calmly. "I am
looking for a millionaire, riding a milk-white steed, and he must be
much taller than you and have black hair and eyes. Good-bye, brother!
I will see you this evening."

Then Kate went down the path to deliver the telescope, render her
thanks, make her promise of speedy payment, and for the first time tell
her good news about her sc