a merry glance as the rest came up. "I suppose you may,"
she mimicked.

A few minutes later they stepped out of the cab and onto a sun-flooded
wharf, where confusion reigned supreme. An immense crowd of people stood
upon the dock, talking, laughing and gesticulating excitedly, and every
one seemed in the highest of spirits. And, indeed, how could they be
anything else, thought Lucile, as she looked about her with dancing eyes;
the world had never seemed so essentially a place to laugh in as it did
on this glorious morning.

"Well, we haven't very much further to go," said Mr. Payton, beaming
genially down upon them. "There's the good ship, 'Mauretania,' mates.
Neat little craft, eh?"

And following the direction of his glance, they gazed for a second at the
towering bulk of the steamer, scarcely daring to believe the evidence of
their eyes.

"Say, that's class!" breathed Phil, reverently, and Jessie added, "You
could put all of Burleigh in one corner and never miss it!"

They all laughed, and Lucile started forward. "We can go on board now,
can't we, Dad?" she inquired.

"Sure we can go on board. We'll have just about time to look at our
staterooms, if we hurry."

Since that was just the very thing everybody was most anxious to do, they
wasted very little time in following his suggestion.

Jack kept close to Lucile's side as they threaded their way through the
crowd, and Phil took charge of the other two girls.

As Lucile watched the three, she suddenly broke into a little ripple of
laughter, and, upon being questioned severely as to the reason of such
unseemly mirth, she said, gaily, "I was just wondering what poor Phil
will do with three girls, and one his sister, at that."

Jack laughed amusedly. "It will be pretty hard on the poor fellow," he
admitted. "I think I ought to go along. I could at least relieve him of
his sister."

"For which he would be devoutly thankful," she added.

"No more than I," said Jack, from which we may gather that our friend was
much accomplished in the gentle art of flattery. However, to do him
justice, he meant it, and even the most confirmed old bachelor, looking
at Lucile, must have admitted that he had just and sufficient cause. In
fact, there were not many who did not look at Lucile, who, with flushed
cheeks and shining eyes, was the very image of radiant happiness.

At last their party had wormed its way through the crowd and were waiting
at the foot of the gangplank