twinkle, and then said, with a finality of conviction that made her
dearer to him than ever--

"Never!" and he kissed her hand with fervour,--and not ungracefully,
since the action, though foreign to him, was absolutely spontaneous.

"But--!" she said firmly. And he sat up.

"But me no buts," he said. "And why?"

"Well, you see, Margaret is by way of being an heiress--and you are
not."

"I'm sorry. But, you see, I couldn't very well be if I tried. Still
I'm not absolutely penniless, and--"

"Tuts, boy! What you have is just about enough to pay Jeremiah
Pixley's servants' wages."

"D-hang Jeremiah Pixley!"

"D-hang is not a nice expression to use before a lady, let me tell
you. What you have, as, I was saying, is just enough to make or mar
you--"

"It's going to make me. I can live on it till things begin to come my
way."

"Everyone writes nowadays," she said, with a dubious shake of the
head. "Who reads all the books passes my comprehension. I suppose you