efore he turned his head aside. "I
did find the girl," he answered with a depth of feeling in his voice;
"but I found her too late."

"Forgive me!" Merry cried impulsively, convinced that she had torn open
a concealed wound.

"There is nothing to forgive, dear child," he said quickly. Then with
that smile which took the world in its embrace he added, "Don't waste
your sympathy on me; life has already given me more than I deserve."

"I am so sorry," Merry replied soberly. "She must have been a wonderful
girl to win such a love."

"She was," he answered.

* * * * *

XXX

* * * * *

Billy Huntington was the founder of an original secret organization
called the "Club for Undesirables." Being the founder he was privileged
to write the By-Laws, and these consisted of a single Article: "The
members of this Club shall be elected by the non-members." Exercising
his prerogative he had proposed, seconded and elected Cosden and others
of his acquaintance who failed to attain the standards he demanded of
those around him; and now he unanimously declared Mrs. Thatcher a member
in full standing.

These were not red-letter days for the boy. Ever since his visit to New
York at Easter the times had been out of joint, and he blamed Merry's
mother for it all. From his viewpoint the visit had been a "frost," and
he nursed his resentment so successfully that he came to look upon it as
a virtue. Uncle Monty noticed the change, but having no knowledge of the
cause gave Billy credit for at last showing symptoms of growing up.
Philip looked upon his tragedy as a huge joke, and made his friend's
life wholly unendurable by frequent veiled allusions to the "inflammable
age," rubbed in as only a college chum can do. The sympathy he craved
was sadly lacking, so he sought compensation by sympathizing with
himself.

Billy would have been better satisfied with the completeness of his
martyrdom had he been able to include Merry among those who abused him,
but he could discover no point where she had failed to preserve an
aggravatingly consistent neutrality. She was always friendly, accepting
his extravagant expressions of devotion with a good-natured indifference
which robbed them of all significance She had taken no exceptions to her
mother's humiliation of him, nor had she taken advantage of it;
everything progressed with a disgusting sameness, when he had
confidently e