dea--idea--"

"Of your charm, your ineffable beauty!" the Governor supplied. "You see,
Sally, my friend is shy with the shyness of youth and inexperience and
he is unable to utter the thoughts that do in him rise! I can see that
he is your captive, your meekest slave. By the way, will there be
cottage cheese prepared by your own adorable hand for supper? Are golden
waffles likely to confront us on the breakfast table tomorrow at the
hideous hour of five-thirty? Will there be maple syrup from yonder
hillside grove?"

"You have said it!" Sally answered. "But you'd better chase yourselves
into the house now or pop'll be peeved at having to wait for you."

On the veranda a tall elderly man rose from a hammock in which he had
been reading a newspaper and stretched himself. His tanned face was
deeply lined but he gave the impression of health and vigor.

"Leary," whispered the Governor in an aside and immediately introduced
him.

"The road has been smooth and the sky is high," said the Governor in
response to a quick anxious questioning of Leary's small restless eyes.

"Did you find peace in the churches by the way?" asked Leary.

"In one of the temples we found peace and plenty," answered the Governor
as though reciting from a ritual.

Leary nodded and gave a hitch to his trousers.

"You found the waters of Champlain tranquil, and no hawks followed the
landward passage?"

"The robin and the bluebird sang over all the road," he answered; then
with a glance at Archie: "You gave no warning of the second pilgrim."

"The brother is young and innocent, but I find him an apt pupil," the
Governor explained.

"The brother will learn first the wisdom of silence," remarked Leary,
and then as though by an afterthought he shook Archie warmly by the
hand.

They went into the house where Mrs. Walker, a stout middle-aged woman,
greeted them effusively.

"We've got to put you both in one room, if you don't mind," she
explained, "but there's two beds in it. I guess you can make out."

"Make out!" cried the Governor with a deprecatory wave of his hand. "We
should be proud to be permitted to sleep on the porch! You do us much
honor, my dear Mrs. Walker."

"Oh, you always cheer us up, Mr. Saulsbury. And Mr. Comly is just as
welcome."

The second floor room to which Walker led them was plainly but neatly
furnished and the windows looked out upon rolling pastures. The Governor
abandoned his high-flown talk and asked blunt que