ecked," Harry remarked smiling, "but, except for
Raymond Lyle, the stiffest-framed man in the room. Solid and slow from
shoulders to ankles; head--shall we say that of a gladiator, or a
prize-fighter? Good gracious, Ralph, remember you're in a ball room, not
trying on your trousseau."

His remarks were not exactly flattering, but for the first time I felt
glad to stand a strong man among those who had other advantages behind
them, though I fumed inwardly when presently I heard Harry's partner say:

"What a curious man your friend is! I saw him standing before the big
glass actually admiring himself."

And Harry had the mendacity to assure her that this was a favorite habit
of mine.

Afterward I chatted for a time with the giver of the feast. We had much in
common, for he was a stalwart plainly spoken man whose chief concern was
the improvement of his holding, and from what he said it was clear that
taking season by season his bank account increased but little, while he
mentioned that several of his neighbors lost a certain sum yearly. There
are two ways of farming in the West, and it seemed that after all Harry
and I had chosen the better, the creeping on from acre to acre, living
frugally, and doing oneself whatever is needed, then investing each dollar
hardly saved in better implements.

Nevertheless, I saw that the men of Carrington who followed the other
plan, spending and hiring freely, were doing a good work for the country,
because even if they lost a small sum each year most of them could afford
it, and their expenses would have been much greater at home. They helped
to maintain a demand for good horses and the product of clever workmen's
skill; they supported the storekeepers of the wooden towns; and the poorer
settlers could always earn a few dollars by working for them. So it dawned
upon me that it is well for the nation that some are content to take their
pleasure, as these men did, in an occupation that brought them small
profit, sinking their surplus funds for the benefit of those who will
follow them. Neither does the mother country lose, because she reaps the
fruit of their labors in the shape of cheap and wholesome food.

At last the conversation drifted around to the founder of Carrington.

"An austere man," said Lyle, "and he's somewhat different from the rest of
us--ready to gather in wherever he can, very hard to get ahead of at a
deal; but if he is keen it's all for the sake of his daughter.