now. He dragged his hat from his head, stammering.

"Miss Crawford--for you are Miss Crawford, aren't you?" began
Conniston.

She nodded.

"I should have introduced myself. I am William Conniston, Junior, son
of William Conniston, Senior, as one might guess. This is my friend,
Mr. Hapgood."

The girl inclined her head very slightly and turned toward Conniston.

"If you have come all the way from the hills this morning," she was
saying, "and if you plan to go on to Crawfordsville, you will want to
rest until the cool of the evening. We have eleven-o'clock luncheon in
summer, and have already eaten. But if you will come in I think that
we can find something. And, anyway, you can rest until evening. If
you are not in a hurry to go right on?"

"We have all the time in the world!" Conniston hastened to assure her.
And Hapgood of the aching muscles added fervently, "If it's more than
a mile to Crawfordsville, I've got to rest awhile!"

"It is something more than that." She rose and moved toward the house.
"Through the short cut straight back into the mountains it's twenty."

Lonesome Pete was turning to drive toward a gap in the encircling
trees when the girl called to him to take Conniston's horse. And then
the three went to the house.