adventure, change, excitement.

The man, Hollister soon perceived, was actually sorry the war was
over, sorry that his occupation was gone. He talked of resigning and
going to Mexico, to offer his sword to whichever proved the stronger
faction. It would be a picnic after the Western Front. A man could
whip a brigade of those greasers into shape and become a power. There
ought to be good chances for loot.

Yet Hollister enjoyed his company. Rutherford was genial. He was the
first man for long to accept Hollister as a human being. He promised
to look Hollister up again before he went away.

The world actually seemed cheerful to Hollister, after Rutherford had
gone,--until in moving about the room he caught sight of his face in
the mirror.




CHAPTER III


About ten days later Tommy Rutherford walked into Hollister's room at
eight in the evening. He laid his cap and gloves on the bed, seated
himself, swung his feet to and fro for a second, and reached for one
of Hollister's cigarettes.

"It's a hard world, old thing," he complained. "Here was I all set for
an enjoyable winter. Nice people in Vancouver. All sorts of fetching