"None at all," agreed Van Emmon, handing over the dish of chopped meat.
The girl carefully folded the contents into the now spongelike omelet as
he went on: "By the way, a neighbor of mine told me, just before I left,
that he was having trouble with a broken sewer. How'd you like to--"

"About as well as you'd like to darn socks!" she came back, evidently
being primed for such comments. She took a look at the potatoes, and
then permitted the geologist to open their sixth can of peaches. "I must
say they're good," she admitted, as she noted the eagerness with which
he obeyed.

Bread and butter, olives, coffee and cake completed that meal. The table
was set with more care than usual, a clean cloth and napkins being
unearthed for the occasion. When Smith and Kinney were called, both
declared that they weren't hungry enough to do justice to it all.

"It's just as well you weren't very hungry," commented Billie, as she
finished giving each of them a second helping of the potatoes. "There's
barely enough left for me," and she took it.

"Say, I never thought of it before, Miss--er--Miss Billie," said Smith
coloring; "but you eat just as much as a man!"

"Ye gods, how shocking!" she jeered. "Come to think of it, Smith, you
eat MORE than a woman!"

The doctor's face grew red with some suppressed emotion. After a while
he said soberly: "I'll tell you what's worrying Smith. He's afraid that
women, having suddenly become very progressive, will forge entirely