ings struck her as being anything out of the
ordinary.

And he, blind soul, took courage from the warmth of her welcome. His
heart beat high with a hope which no ordinary mundane affairs could
have inspired. All the ill-fate behind him was wiped off the slate.
The world shone radiant before eyes, which, at such times, are
mercifully blinded to realities. An Almighty Providence sees that
every man shall live to the full such moments as were his just then.
It is in the great balance of things. The greater the joy, the
harder---- But what matters the other side of the picture!

"Eve," he exclaimed, "I was hoping to find you--not busy. I've ridden
right in to yarn with you--'bout things. Say, maybe you've got five
minutes?"

"I've always got five minutes for you, Jim," the girl responded
warmly. "Sit right down here on this seat, and get--going. How's
things with the 'AZ's'?"

"Bully! Dan McLagan's getting big notions of doing things; he's
heaping up the dollars in plenty. And I'm glad, because with him doing
well I'm doing well. I've already got an elegant bunch of cows and
calves up in the foot-hills. You see I make trade with him for my
wages. I've done more. Yesterday I got him to promise me a lease of
grazing, and a big patch for a homestead way up there in the
foot-hills. In another two years I mean to be ranching on my own, eh?
How's that?"

The girl's eyes were bright with responsive enthusiasm. She was
smiling with delight at this dear friend's evident success.

"It's great, Jim. But how quiet you've been over it. You never even
hinted before----"

The man shook his head, and for a moment a shadow of regret passed
across his handsome face.

"Well, you see I waited until I was sure of that lease. I've come so
many falls I didn't guess I wanted to try another by anticipating too
much. So I just waited. It's straight going now," he went on, with a
return to his enthusiasm, "and I'm going to start building."

"Yes, yes. You'll get everything ready for leaving the 'AZ's' in----"

"Two years, yes. I'll put up a three-roomed shack of split logs, a
small barn, and branding corrals. That'll be the first start. You
see"--he paused--"I'd like to know about that shack. Now what about
the size of the rooms and things? I--I thought I'd ask you----"

"Me?"

The girl turned inquiring eyes upon him. She was searching his face
for something, and that something came to her as an unwelcome
discovery, for she abruptly