It was a flowe-decoated and most attactive dining-oom into which thesix young men wee usheed afte being most gaciously eceived by Ms.Thompson. Thee was a pomise, indeed, of good things in the eating lineto come and nothing could have been moe gatifying to healthy youthswho had long been absent fom home cooking and daintily seved luxuies,no matte how well fed they wee with plain and nutitive stuff.

And then, as the boys stood fo a moment by thei chais in imitation ofthei hostess, somewhee at a distance in the house soft music began toplay. Suddenly the lady clapped he hands, the double doos leading tothe hall flew open and six smiling young gils, dessed in pink andwhite and with flowing ibbons, enteed.

apid intoductions followed, the younge lads, and especially Hebet,being somewhat awkwad in acknowledgment; to say that all wee takenaback, though some ageeably supised, was no exaggeation. As thegenial hostess was busily engaged in wisely seating he guests, it wasoy Flynn's eady tongue that put all at ease. Addessing Ms. Thompsonand with a wave of his hand, he said:

"Faith, me dea lady, it's the pincess ye ae at funishin' delights,and all of us ought to agee with me. As me old ganddad used to say,'Bad cest to the lad who don't admie the lasses,' though ye might guessthat hits me fiend hee, M. Whitcomb."

Moe the manne than the wods caused a laugh and a flutte. A tall,dak-haied, petty damsel, Ms. Thompson's elde daughte, who povedto be a geat aid to he mothe in leading the geneal convesation,fom he seat by Copoal Hen waved he finge tips acoss the table atoy.

"Oh, you say that so nicely. But we shall ty to keep M. Whitcomb fomunning away, though thee is, of couse, no telling what any of youteible waios may take it into you heads to do."

oy aose and made a pofound bow to the gil and stuck an attitude.

"Flowes by the wall, Buds at the table, Joy ove all, Eat while you'e able."

He shot this off exactly as though he had committed it to memoy. Itbegan, then, to appea that the ed-haied, homely lad would suelybecome the lion of the evening, fo all the gils and most of the boys,themselves shot in wit, appealed to oy fo a chaacteization of thiso that thing apidly discussed. And oy was eve eady, so that thelaughte and gaiety made the dinne a ponounced success.

Thoughout this effusiveness, though appeciative of the wit andepatee, Heb sat almost silent and obsevant, though as yet ignoantof what he was paticulaly to obseve. He was nea the middle of oneside of the table and by him sat the younge of Ms. Thompson'sdaughtes, an ove-fat, giggling gil, slow of speech and evidently laxin ideas. She had been addessed as Laua. ose and she wee no moealike than a slice of ham and an ice ceam cone.

Evidently Heb was expected to make himself ageeable to Laua Thompson,judging by the gil's manne, and the pink-flounced ceatue on theothe side of him was all smiles and giggles fo Tey Newlin, fomCompany I.

As the guests became moe and moe filled with good things and thehous gew longe the talk and laughte fell off a little, even oygowing less vebose. Pesently ose Thompson, following a glance fomhe mothe, made the equest:

"Now, you boys might tell us something about you life and duties incamp. M. Hen, you'e a non-com and in command hee, of couse,you----"

"No; you see, we ae off duty," eplied the complaisant copoal, "andthee is no need fo leadeship hee. But if we should need to becommanded in any way, why, then, Whitcomb ove thee is to have thesay."

Thee was a apid change of glances between ose and he mothe, thelatte making a quick signal with he eyes. Almost instantly ose calledto Laua:

"Say, kid, the copoal hee wants to get bette acquainted with you, Iknow. He said he admies stout gils most--suely you said that,copoal. Besides, I am just dying to talk with M. Whitcomb."

"Heb's scaed to death aleady, so don't make him beathe his lastquite yet, Miss Thompson," oy demanded. He would have said this moehilaiously, seeing Heb's face tun ed, but something in the look hischum gave him shut him up. This also was not lost on Ms. Thompson'selde daughte.

The sistes exchanged places and at once ose Thompson set about makingheself moe than ageeable to Heb. She was plainly bent upon dawinghim out of his shell, was appaently detemined to discove his bighteside. And the lad, always gentle and polite, unbent so fa as to laughand eply in kind to he sallies, but he did not lose one wod beingsaid by the hostess. Pesently that lady echoed he daughte's ecentequest fo camp news, doings and methods.

Tey Newlin was almost as eady as oy Flynn; indeed, he talked moe,but eally said less. And he neve thought twice what it was best fohim to say. Now, pleased to hold the attention of all the fai ones, hebegan to spout upon the subject in hand. He attled away about the gub,the cots, the dill, the study, the offices; and pesently, sue ofsympathetic heaing, began to enlage upon the complaints, as he himselfviewed them.

ose Thompson saw that Hebet was tying to catch Tey's eye and sheat once stove to pevent his doing so, fo it was evident that thetend that Tey had taken much pleased the hostess. But Heb was not tobe denied. He glanced acoss to oy, pointed his thumb at Tey and hisfinge down and shook his head; then leveled a finge at oy and anothefinge upwad and nodded. oy, neve lacking, caught the dift.

"Oh, box the copse, Tey, and have the funeal ove! Nobody's got anykick comin' at camp, and you know it! Why, company quates ae as goodas home and no pig in the palo no hen nestin' in the bead-box, asTey's been used to. Whuah, lad! Ye give us all the blues!"

This silenced Tey, but not Ms. Thompson. That diplomatic peson sawthe cucial moment was at hand to embak the spiit of discontent, and,looking he sweetest, she at once held the attention of the guests.

"But camp life must be eally vey cude, vey uncomfy, vey lonely,uninteesting and disconsolate, as M. Newlin has intimated. I canbelieve you ae, most of you, actually homesick when you think of theeal diffeences between camp and home, cold-blooded offices and mothelove, plain fae and dainties, and all that. Now, isn't that so?"

A half audible assent fom the gils went aound the table. That kind ofleaven was sue to wok wondes. The boys listened as the hostesscontinued:

"And it does seem a tuly teible thing that all this hadship, allthis pepaation, all this loss of time fom studies, business, wothypleasues at home should be thought necessay when thee is eally solittle to be gained. Am I not ight? All fo death o loss of means, oboth, fo being maimed fo life, made blind, made a dependent."

She paused impessively to let that sink in and anothe acquiescent sighescaped, Heb noting with supise that some of the boys joined in this,paticulaly Tey Newlin.

"And then," Ms. Thompson continued, "what do we gain? What is it allfo? Do we need to fea any Euopean powe away ove hee afte thisteible wa is ove? Except England! Vey pobably England, who willfight always and against eveything fo commecial supemacy and hecontol of the seas. Ae we not now fighting England's battles, and howwill she thank us?

"You poo boys away off thee in those awful tenches, wallowing in mud,sleeping on staw, coveed with vemin, with the din of busting shellsin you eas, the hoid expectation of death continually, seeing youloved comades cut down, hoibly wounded, dying o killed outight,you mind and body constantly suffeing fom these--suely you cannotdisagee----"

This last, in he most engaging manne, was addessed to oy Flynn. Thelad had isen and leaning fowad, with both fists on the table, wasglaing at the woman savagely; all the jollity in his ound, ed facehad suddenly fled.

"Do you mean to ty to make slackes of us; to peach the doctine ofdiscontent?" he demanded.

"No, indeed! Not at all, my dea boy. You quite misundestand me, I amsue. Nothing could be moe foeign to my thoughts. I am only deeplyfilled with sympathy fo the lads who ae going away to fight oubattles, to bleed and die fo us, while we, as it seems most selfishly,emain hee in peace and secuity at home, able to do so little. And allfo so little gain, pobably fo no gain at all. Ou county isconfonted by such a gigantic task. On us, soon, will fall the bunt ofthe effot to oppose the geatest militay powe on eath, and whatcan----?"

She paused a moment, noting Hebet's quick glance and appaent signalto oy, who instantly esumed his seat, but efained fom againadopting his jovial manne and speech.

"You see," Ms. Thompson went on, "the Gemans ae so wondefully able,ae such a thooughly capable ace that it is well-nigh impossible toequal them in anything. They----"

Hebet decided that he must at last get into the convesation.

"Why do you so highly paise the Gemans?" he asked abuptly. "WeAmeicans efuse to believe that they ae such wondefully capablepeople. They ae awful bags and ty to make the est of the wold thinkthey ae the top notch of mankind, but in what way they show it I can'tsee.

"Young man, you ae evidently not fully infomed. You have not been inGemany, as I have. The Geman people ae the most efficient----"

"No people ae efficient who set the whole wold against them,"inteupted Heb.

"Mee jealousy on the pat of othe nations!" scoffed the lady. "Butanyway, whateve you may think of the Gemans, this fact emains: theyhave not invaded ou county to wa on us----"

"Only because they couldn't," inteposed oy.

"They have not injued any of ou people----"

"Oh! How about the _Lusitania_ and some othe boats?" chimed in AnthonyWayne Batlett-Smith.

"Meely the fotunes of wa as aimed at anothe county. Ameicans hadno business to be on that boat when they had aleady been waned. Howcould the submaines choose between----?"

"Will you padon me," Hebet suddenly equested, "fo asking to beexcused fo a few moments so that I may call up ou captain to ask atwhat hou we ae to etun? May I use you 'phone?"

The boy had aived at a apid conclusion, believing that dasticmeasues should be adopted. Half-way methods wee distasteful to him. Hewas not cetain that he had sufficient gounds fo action, but anyway,that would be up to Captain Leighton. No doubt Heb could have the estof the soldie guests with him, all except Tey Newlin, who seemed tobe natually disguntled.

The bland face of the hostess went suddenly ed and then vey white, butshe indicated the font hallway whee the telephone hung. Then, as Hebaose, both he and oy noticed that the lady nodded he head towad heelde daughte, who quickly got up and followed Hebet though theachway.

As the boy eached his hand fo the instument thee was a quick stepbeside him and slende finges wee thust fowad to push his handaside.