leaned her elbows on the table, rested her chin in the little
basket formed by her interlacing fingers, and looked at Dearie in a way
that she knew to be particularly engaging and effective.

"I 've always wanted to do a certain thing," she began. "_You_ have
always been my first concern, but now--I want to do something very
personal--very much for my own pleasure. Will you promise to let me do
it?"

"You bet I will," said Skinner; "nothing's too good for you!"

Skinner was genuinely and enthusiastically generous. Also, it would be a
good scheme to indulge Honey, since he might have to ask her indulgence
later on.

"I had a letter from mother this morning."

"Indeed?" There was little warmth in Skinner's tone. "I suppose she
spoke pleasantly, not to say flatteringly, of me."

"Now, Dearie, don't talk that way. I know mother is perfectly
unreasonable about you."

"She came darned near making me lose you. That's the only thing I've got
against her."

"She has n't really anything against you--she only thinks she has,"
observed Honey.

"The only thing she's got against me is that she acted contrary to my
advice and lost her money. She's hated me ever since!"

"It _is_ wrong of her, but we 're not any of us infallible. Besides,
she's my mother--and I can't help worrying about her."

"Why worry?"

"The interest on her mortgage comes due and she can't pay it."

"If she'd only listened to me and not taken the advice of that scalawag
brother-in-law of yours, she would n't have any mortgage to pay interest
on."

"She only got a thousand dollars. At five per cent, that's fifty dollars
a year."

Skinner swallowed hard to keep down the savage impulse that threatened to
manifest itself in profanity whenever he thought of Honey's mother and
his weakling brother-in-law.

"Honey," he said grimly, "does your mother in that letter ask you to help
her out with that interest?"

Honey lifted her head proudly. "She does n't ask me anything. She does
n't have to. She only tells me about it."

"Yes, she does n't have to."

"You know I 've always wanted to do something for her, and I've never
been able to. I'm ashamed to neglect her now, when we're living so well
and dressing so well--and you have your raise. It's only a dollar a
week."

"Have you any more relatives who have a speculative tendency?" Skinner
began with chill dignity.

"Now, Dearie!" Honey began to cry and Skinner got up from the table