never live down his poison-gas and flame-throwers."

"And wouldn't it have been a gorgeous old war if he'd only fought
clean!" said Garrett longingly. They drew together and talked as
fighting men will--veterans in the ways of war, though the eldest was
not much over one-and-twenty.

The sudden hoot of a motor came from the drive, far-off; and then
another, and another.

"Some one's joy-riding," said Harry Trevor.

The hooting increased, and with it the hum of a racing car. The
gravel outside the porch crunched as it drew up; and then came cheery
voices, and two long figures in great coats dashed in: Jim and Wally,
eager-eyed.

"Dad! Norah! Where's old Harry?"

But Harry was grasping a hand of each, and submitting to mighty pats
on the back from their other hands.

"By Jove, it's great to see you! Where did you come from, you old
reprobate? Finished Johnny Turk?"

Gradually the boys became aware that there were other people in the
hall, and made apologies--interrupted by another burst of joy at
discovering Garrett.

"You must think us bears," said Jim, with his disarming smile, to Mrs.
West. "But we hadn't seen Trevor for years, and he's a very old chum.
It would have been exciting to meet him in Australia; but in
England--well!"

"However did you manage to come?" Norah asked, beaming.

"Oh, we got leave. We've been good boys--at least, Wally was until we
got your message this morning. Since then he has been wandering about
like a lost fowl, murmuring, 'Harry! _My_ Harry!'"

"Is it me?" returned Wally. "Don't believe him, Nor--it was all I
could do to keep him from slapping the C.O. on the back and borrowing
his car to come over."

"I don't doubt it," Norah laughed. "Whose car did you borrow, by the
way?"

"Oh, we hired one. It was extravagant, but we agreed that it wasn't
every day we kill a pig!"

"Thank you," said Harry. "Years haven't altered your power of putting
a thing nicely!" He smote Wally affectionately. "I say, you were a
kid when I saw you last: a kid in knickerbockers. And look at you
now!"

"Well, you were much the same," Wally retorted. "And now you're a
hardened old warrior--I've only played at it so far."

"But you were gassed, weren't you?"

"Yes--but we hadn't had much war before they gassed us. That was the
annoying part."

"Well, didn't you have a little private war in Ireland? What about
that German submarine?"

"Oh, that was sheer luck," said Wally