"It will be all right, dearest," said Lorry, divining his wife's

thoughts as she sat staring rather soberly straight ahead of her, "Just

as soon as we get to Edelweiss, the whole affair will look so simple

that we can laugh at the fears of to-day. You see, we are a long way off

just now."

"I am only afraid of what may happen before we get there, Gren," she

said, simply. He leaned over and kissed her hand, smiling at the

emphasis she unconsciously placed on the pronoun.

Beverly Calhoun was announced just before coffee was served, and a

moment later was in the room. She stopped just inside the door, clicked

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her little heels together and gravely brought her hand to "salute." Her

eyes were sparkling and her lips trembled with suppressed excitement.

"I think I can report to you in Edelweiss next month, general," she

announced, with soldierly dignity. Her hearers stared at the picturesque

recruit, and Halkins so far forgot himself as to drop Mr. Lorry's lump

of sugar upon the table instead of into the cup.

"Explain yourself, sergeant!" finally fell from Lorry's lips. The eyes

of the princess were beginning to take on a rapturous glow.

"May I have a cup of coffee, please, sir? I've been so excited I

couldn't eat a mouthful at home." She gracefully slid into the chair

Halkins offered, and broke into an ecstatic giggle that would have

resulted in a court-martial had she been serving any commander but Love.

With a plenteous supply of Southern idioms she succeeded in making them

understand that the major had promised to let her visit friends in the

legation at St. Petersburg in April a month or so after the departure of

the Lorrys.

"He wanted to know where I'd rather spend the Spring--Washin'ton or

Lexin'ton, and I told him St. Petersburg. We had a terrific discussion

and neither of us ate a speck at dinner. Mamma said it would be all

right for me to go to St. Petersburg if Aunt Josephine was still of a

mind to go, too. You see, Auntie was scared almost out of her boots when

she heard there was prospect of war in Graustark, just as though a tiny

little war like that could make any difference away up in

Russia--hundreds of thousands of miles away--" (with a scornful wave of

the hand)--"and then I just made Auntie say she'd go to St. Petersburg

in April--a whole month sooner than she expected to go in the first

place--and--"

"You dear, dear Beverly!" cried Yetive, rushing joyously around the

table to clasp her in her arms.

"And St. Petersburg really isn't a hundred thousand miles from

Edelweiss," cried Beverly, gaily.

"It's much less than that," said Lorry, smiling, "But you surely don't

expect to come to Edelweiss if we are fighting. We couldn't think of

letting you do that, you know. Your mother would never--"




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