were off for the city again. The
trip back up the river was finished also before it seemed hardly begun.
All too soon for anybody the three young travellers were on their train,
and Doctor Churchill and Fred Forester had taken leave of them and were
out on the platform, ready to jump off. Jeff had lingered till the last.

"Good-by, Lucy! Good-by, Ran!" he said, and gave each a hearty grip and
smile. Then his hand clasped Evelyn's, his eyes said things his lips
would not have ventured to speak, and his hand wrung hers with a fervour
which made it sting. Then he went away without a backward look, as if he
must get the parting quickly over.

Outside the train, however, he turned with the others, and as the train
rolled slowly out of the station, and Evelyn strained her eyes to see
the group of her friends waving affectionately to her from the platform,
the last face upon which her gaze rested wore the strong, loyal,
eloquent look of Jefferson Birch.

* * * * *

"Home again," said Andrew Churchill, as he set his latch-key in the door
of the brick house four days later. "Fieldsy must be away, or she would
have answered."

They hurried through the house. It was in absolute order, but empty. On
the office desk was a note in the housekeeper's awkward hand:

"If you should come to-night, I've had to go to take care of a sick
woman, will be back in the morning, you will find everything cooked up."

Doctor Churchill read it with a laugh. "Charlotte, we're actually alone
in our own house. Let's run over to the other house and embrace them all
round, and then come back and see how it feels over here."

So they went across the lawn.

"We shall be delighted to have you stay with us, my dears," said Mrs.
Birch, after the greetings.

"Mother Birch," said her son-in-law, with air affectionate hand on her
shoulder, "not even you can charm us out of our own house to-night. Do
you know that we're all alone--that not even Fieldsy is over there?
Charlotte's going to get dinner, and I'm to help her with the clearing
up, and then we're going to sit on our porch. Of course we shall be
constantly looking down the street for a messenger boy with a telegram
announcing the coming of our next guest, but until he comes--"

Everybody laughed at the expressive breath he drew.

"Go, you dear children," said Mrs. Birch, and the rest joined in warmly.

"I'll sit on our doorstone with a rifle, and pick off the vi