travel and is correspondingly restless at home. But Louis thinks him to
be a young man of sufficiently worthy tastes and standards to have
escaped the worst contaminations, and he says he has never heard
anything to his discredit. That is considerable to say of a young man in
his position, Eleanor, and I hope it may constitute enough of a passport
to your favour to permit of your at least inviting him to dinner.
Besides--let me remind you--your daughters have standards of their own
which you have given them. Ruth is a girl yet, of course, but a mighty
discerning one for sixteen. As for Roberta, I'll wager no young
millionaire is any more likely to get past her defences than any young
mechanic--unless he proves himself fit."

"I am confident of that," she agreed, and with her charming gray head
held high went on about her household affairs.




CHAPTER III

WHILE IT RAINS


The advanced age of the Honourable Calvin Gray, and the precarious state
of his eyesight, made it possible for him to work at his beloved
self-appointed task for only a scant number of hours daily. His new
assistant, therefore, found his own working hours not only limited but
variable. Beginning at ten in the morning, by four in the afternoon
Judge Gray was usually too weary to proceed farther; sometimes by the
luncheon hour he was ready to lay aside his papers and dismiss his