on of him, and he hesitated at the wheel. He had left the
Brights' party fully intending to run out to Sombari, but had been
diverted; and now it was too late. They would not be expecting him after
midnight. He yawned, thoroughly tired, as he had had a strenuous day,
and decided to call at the Mission fairly early in the morning, instead.
There was nothing he could do for the sufferer more than was being done
by the trained nurse he had procured for the case.

Satisfied in mind that bed was the best place for tired people, Dalton
turned his car and drove it to his own bungalow next door to the
Brights'.

CHAPTER X

THE MISSION

Life at a small station like Muktiarbad would have been a dull affair
for any young girl not constituted like Honor Bright. Being endowed with
plenty of common sense and sincerity of purpose, she found a great deal
to occupy her in her restricted circle by throwing herself into the
business of the moment, heart and soul. If it were an early morning
ride, she enjoyed every yard of it, and all there was to see and do.
Even the flat countryside with its endless fields of paddy and mustard
were good to view because Muktiarbad was "home" to her.

"Define the word 'home,'" she was once asked when very young. "Where
Mother is," was her ready reply. "Where Love is," would be her later and
more comprehensive amendment.

When she played tennis she played to win, and her enthusiasm infected
others, till the game was worth the energy, however great the heat. If
house-duties were imposed on her, they were accomplished thoroughly and
cheerfully. Honor striding across the back-yard to examine the horses in
their stalls, the condition of their bedding, and to see them fed; or to
inspect the chicken run; or visiting the kitchen to view pots and pans
which were arranged at a particular hour, bottom up, in a row, to prove
how perfectly aluminium could be made to shine, was a refreshing sight;
and the grace of her gait, the freedom of her movements, and the
brightness of her looks, brought sunshine to hearts on the darkest days.

In spite of Mrs. Bright's confidence in her faithful Kareem Majid, she
never neglected to supervise those details of housekeeping in India that
make all the difference between sickness and health, economy and
extravagance. "For, however wonderful the dear servants are, they do
want watching," she would explain to inquiring friends. "You simply have
to see what they are up to