er.

Arriving a stranger in Westhaven the winter before, among Victoria
Drew's first acquaintances were Dorothy McClain and her six brothers.
Their father was the leading physician in Westhaven and an old friend
of her aunt and uncle. They were neighbors as well.

In the beginning Tory had believed she preferred Lance to any of the
other boys. He was Dorothy's favorite among her brothers, a delicate,
musical chap, partly admired and partly scorned by the five who were
stronger and more matter of fact.

Lance's passion for music, of which he knew but little, his desire to
be left alone, his failure in most athletic sports, the rest of his
family found annoying and amusing.

Lance McClain alone was like his mother who had died some years
before, the others like Dr. McClain.

"Lance, why in the world don't you help Don out? You know he will only
make things worse if left to himself." Tory whispered at this moment.

"Want to save Don at my expense? All right, Tory," he answered
quizzically in the voice and manner Tory never really understood.

Lance moved forward and now stood close beside Miss Mason.

His golden-brown eyes and his sensitive mouth relieved his face from
plainness, although he was considered the least good looking member of
his family.

At present he was smiling in a charming fashion.

"See here, Miss Mason," he began speaking slowly, "I don't suppose you
can imagine what a difficult thing it is to have a brother who is
always putting you in the wrong? Oh, not intentionally, but by
everlastingly doing the right thing and then trying to take the blame
for your mistakes!

"Don did not want us to come to your camp and make a scene. He is our
Patrol leader and we should have done what he advised. Only we
wouldn't and didn't! He came along at last more to keep the rest of us
out of mischief than because he wanted to be in it."

Lance drew his brows together so they became a fine line.

"Wonder if I've got to make a clean breast of the whole business? Don
is everlastingly forcing me to play up to him when I would not
otherwise. The suggestion that we hike over to the girls' camp and see
what was going on originated with me. Don and I had been telling
Dorothy you would never get things in shape over here without help
from us, or men in the village. Your Girl Scout Troop has been
claiming that you could accomplish all the things we do and a few
other things beside. We did not believe you and wished t