"My child," he began very gently.

"Oh, daddy," I exclaimed, snuggling down close to him, "you
kept me waiting so long I went to sleep. I thought you'd never
come."

He put his arm about my shoulders in a fatherly way. You know,
I found out later the Bishop never had had a daughter. I guess he
thought he had one now. Such a simple, dear old soul! Just the
same, Tom Dorgan, if he had been my father, I'd never be doing
stunts with tipsy men's watches for you; nor if I'd had any
father. Now, don't get mad. Think of the Bishop with his gentle,
thin old arm about my shoulders, holding me for just a second as
though I was his daughter! My, think of it! And me, Nance Olden,
with that fat man's watch in my waist and some girl's beautiful
long coat and hat on, all covered with chinchilla!

"There's some mistake, my little girl," he said, shaking me
gently to wake me up, for I was going to sleep again, he feared.

"Oh, I knew you were kept at the office," I interrupted
quickly. I preferred to be farther from the station with that
girl's red coat before I got out. "We've missed our train,
anyway, haven't we? After this, daddy dear, let's not take this
route. If we'd go straight through on the one road, we wouldn't
have this drive across town every time. I was wondering, before
I fell asleep, what in the world I'd do in this big city if you
didn't come."

He forgot to withdraw his arm, so occupied was he by my