eason for helping Cousin Henry, Peter;
because I was afraid there might be--another."

He stopped abruptly, looking dashed. Unaccustomed to light methods of
attack and defense, it took him a few seconds to see Drusilla's move.

"You thought I might be--in love?"

She nodded.

"That's queer," he went on, "because I'd got the same impression about
you."

It was Drusilla's turn to be aghast. She was a little surprised at not
being offended, too.

"What made you think that?" she managed to ask, after getting command of
herself.

"What makes one think anything? However," he conceded, "I dare say I'm
wrong."

"That's a very good conclusion to come to. I advise you to keep to it."

"I will if you'll do the same about me."

She seized the opening to carry the attack back in his direction.

"I can't make a bargain of that kind, Peter. The scientific mind bases
its conclusions on--observed phenomena."

"Which I guess is the reason why the scientific mind is so often wrong.
I've had a good deal to do with it in the copper-mine business. It's
always barking up the wrong tree. I've often heard it said that the
clever scientist is generally a poor reasoner."

"Well, perhaps he is. But I wasn't reasoning. I was merely going by
instinct when I thought you might have a special motive for helping
Cousin Henry. If you had, you know, it wouldn't be any harm."

"It mightn't be any harm; but would it be any good?"

"Well, that might depend a good deal--on you."

"On me? How so? I don't know what you're driving at."

"I'm not driving at anything. I'm only speculating. I'm wondering what I
should do if I were in your place--with all your advantages."

"Rot, Drusilla!"

"If I were a man and had a rival," Drusilla persisted, "I should be
awfully honorable in the stand I'd take toward him--just like you. But
if anything miscarried--"

"You don't _expect_ anything to miscarry?"

She shook her head. "No; I don't expect it. But it might be a fortunate
thing if it did."

"You don't mean to infer that this man Ashley mightn't come up to the
scratch?"

"Colonel Ashley has come up to a good many scratches in his time. He's
not likely to fail in this one."

"Well, then, what more is there to it?"

"There's a good deal more. There are things I can't explain, and which
you wouldn't understand if I did. Coming up to the scratch isn't
everything. Charles the First came up to the scratch when he walked up
and had his head cut