you were indifferent to her?" was the wily
interrogation that followed. "Usually I believe something conveys the
sweet word 'hope' to the waiting one. And what do you say about
Hannibal? That he came to call your charmer and took her away from you?"

Without reserve the young man repeated what had happened. Archie seemed
deeply interested, but whatever his thoughts he did not express them at
the time.

"And that reminds me of another thing," said Roseleaf. "Have you noticed
anything strange about Mr. Fern?"

"Yes," said Mr. Weil, "I have noticed. I wondered if you had done the
same. Have you discovered what the trouble is?"

"No, and Daisy doesn't know, either. Indeed, she is much distressed
about it. Remember, this is a secret between us, for perhaps I had no
right to talk of their affairs. He is in a state of great depression,
and as he is so regular in his habits I can't imagine what to lay it to.
You are so shrewd, couldn't you find out?"

Mr. Weil rose and took a few paces up and down the room.

"You are the fellow to do that, not I," he said, presently. "Yes, hear
me out. You are in a sense a member of his family, and would have a
natural right to allude to the state of his health. Then, if you were to
put in a word about Miss Daisy--why, you might kill several birds with
one stone."

Roseleaf looked much puzzled.

"I thought," he said, "that you wanted me to postpone the matter of my
marriage as long as possible."

"Your marriage, yes. But not the preliminaries. They may require a dozen
bouts with the old gentleman. The first time he will probably laugh you
out of the room as a silly young noodle; the second he will say that he
has nothing against you personally, but that his 'baby' is too infantile
to think of such things for ten years yet; the third he will begin to
see the situation in its right light, and after that it will be only a
matter of detail. All these things will be of the greatest value to you
in the novel you are going to write, and you must not on your life miss
a single one of them.

"Drop into the wool shop, catch his royal highness there, and for the
first thing express solicitude for his health. Unless he is on his guard
more than is likely you ought to catch some slight straw to show what
ails him. Then follow it up with a word or two about Miss Daisy, and you
will have spent a good afternoon, even if he doesn't smile on your suit
at first hand, and take you to his manly breast a