Housework, I suppose. I'm going to try to like it, but I wanted to teach. I had finished high school and was going to normal next fall if father hadn't died. But something happened to our money and I had to take this place. Mother's got a place as matron in an orphan asylum, where she could take my little brother with her. It isn't very pleasant, but it was the best that we could do.”

“That's tough luck, kid!” said the young man sympathetically, “but brace up! If you've got it in you to teach you'll get your chance yet. Are you German?”

 “No,” said the girl decidedly. “Father was. He was born in Germany. He liked this country, though, and didn't keep running hack to Germany every year the way my uncle does. But mother and I are Americans. Mother was born in Chicago.”

 “Well, you'd better keep your eyes open, kid! Those German truck farms have been getting a bad name since the war broke out. There are lots of spies around just now. You can't tell what you may come across.”

 There was a twinkle of fun in his eyes, but a strain of earnestness in his voice. The girl looked at him in wide-eyed wonder.

“You don't suppose there would be any such thing as that?” she asked, dropping her spoon. “I thought spies were just newspaper talk. Our high school teacher used to say so.”

 “Well, there are plenty of spies around all right!” be said seriously. “It's not all newspaper talk. But don't you worry. It isn't likely they'll come around you, and you might not know them for spies if they did.”

 

“Oh! I should be so frightened!” she said, her hand fluttering to her throat. “What do people do when they discover spies?”

 “Just lie low and send word to Washington as quick as they can. But don't look like that, kid; I was just talking nonsense!”

 She tried to answer his smile with another.

 “I know I'm silly,” she said contritely, “but it seems so dreadful to come to this strange place among people I don't know anything about.”

 “Oh, you'll come out all right. It won't be so bad as you think. They'll likely turn out to be fine.”

 She took a deep breath and smiled bravely.

 “I don't know what mother would say if she knew I was talking to you,” she remarked anxiously. “She brought me up never to speak to strange young men. But you've been so kind saving my life! Only I wouldn't like to have you think I'm that kind of a girl----”

 “Of course not!” he said indignantly. “Anybody could see that with a glance. I hope you haven't thought I was fresh, either. I saw you were all in and needed a little jollying up. I guess those two expresses sort of introduced us, didn't they? I’m Dan Stevens.