make a decent place of it."

"I hope you will succeed," she said, very earnestly.

"Thank you," he said again.

He was looking at her speculatively, as if there were something about her
that he found hard to understand. Her agitation had subsided, leaving her
with a piteous, forlorn look--the look of the wayfarer who is almost too
tired to go any farther.

There fell a brief silence between them, then with a little smile she
spoke.

"Are you going to give me back my brooch?"

He put his hand in his pocket. "I was nearly keeping it for good and
all," he said, as he brought it out.

She took it from him and pinned it in her dress without words. Then,
shyly, she proffered her hand. "Thank you. Good-bye!"

He drew a short hard breath as he took it into his own. For a second or
two he stood so, absolutely motionless, his great hand grasping hers.
Then, very suddenly, he stooped to her, looking into her eyes.

"Good-bye, little new chum!" he said, softly. "It was--decent of you to
treat me--without prejudice."

The words pierced her. A great tremor went through her. For an instant