us, it must mean that she
cared. "That's right. I saw her last night," he stated calmly.

Miss Satterly sat more erect, if that were possible. She had not known
of this last meeting, and she had merely shot at random, anyway.

"At least," he amended, watching her from the corner of his eye, "I saw
a woman and a man ride over the hill back of Denson's, last night. The
man was Bert, and the woman had red hair; I took it to be Myrt."

"You surely should be a good judge," remarked Miss Satterly, irritated
because she knew he was teasing.

Weary was quick to read the signs. "What did you mean, a while back,
about me sneaking away from Chadville? And how did yuh happen to have
your dances booked forty-in-advance, the other night? And what makes
yuh so mean to me, lately? And will yuh take a jaunt over Eagle Butte
way with me next Sunday--if I can get off?"

The schoolma'am, again feeling herself mistress of the situation,
proceeded with her disciplining. She smiled, raised one hand and
checked off the questions upon her fingers. You never would guess how
oddly her heart was behaving--she looked such a self-possessed young
woman.

"I'll begin at the last one and work backward," she said, calmly. "And
I must hurry, for aunt Meeker hates to keep supper waiting. No, I will
_not_ go for a jaunt over Eagle Butte way next Sunday. I have other
plans; if I _hadn't_ other plans I still would not go. I hope this is
quite plain to you?"

"Oh, it's good and plain," responded Weary. "But for the Lord's sake
don't take up that talking in italics like Myrt does. I can't stand
this bearing down hard on every other word. It sets my teeth all on
edge."

The schoolma'am opened her eyes wider. Was it possible Weary was
acquiring an irritable temper? "_Second_," she went on deliberately,
"I do not _consider_ that I have been _mean_ to you; and if I _have_ it
is because I _choose_ to be so."

Weary, observing a most flagrant accent, shut his lips rather tightly
together.

"Third--let me see. Oh, that about the _dances_; I can only say that
we _women_, as a means of _self-defence_, claim the privilege of
_effacing_ undesirable, would-be partners by a certain _form_ of
rejection, which _eliminates_ the necessity of going into unpleasant
_details_, and--er--lets the fellow down easy." The schoolma'am's
emphasis and English seemed to collapse together, but Weary did not
notice that.

"I'm sure grateful to be let down