Mrs. Reginald Hawthorne welcomed her husband's friend with a winning charm. She was very pretty, very graceful and very young. Reginald idolized her. John saw that as he looked around the sumptuous home whose every fitting was a tribute to her taste. They had just finished unpacking the things they had brought from Europe. "Strangely enough," said Reginald with a laugh, "I told Elise this morning that now I was going to start out in search of you!" He had developed wonderfully. John saw that too. Travel and trial had brought out the good that was in him--but not the best. The evening passed pleasantly. Mrs. Hawthorne played beautifully, and Reginald had kept ears and eyes open and talked well. "How about the other life, Rege?" asked John when they had a few moments alone. "This one seems very fair." "All a humbug, John. You Christians are chasing a will o' the wisp, a jack o' lantern. You remember my fad for mathematics? I have followed it up, and I find your theory a 'reductio ad absurdum.' I must have everything demonstrable and clear. This is neither." "Yet it was a great mathematician who said, 'Omit eternity in your estimate of area and your solution is wrong.'" Reginald shook his head. "I have nothing to do with this faith business. I go as far as I see, no further." "God calls our wisdom foolishness, Rege. Jesus Christ put a tremendous premium upon the faith of a little child." "Things must be tangible for me to believe in them. Reason is king with me." "Without faith in your fellow man--and your wife--you would have a poor time of it, Rege; why should you refuse to have faith in your God? Is your will tangible, and can you demonstrate the mysterious forces of nature? You know you can't, Rege, you have to take them on trust; and if you had seen what I have, you would know that poor human reason is a pitiful thing! But I won't argue with you. Some day you will understand." Reginald Hawthorne went back into the room where his wife was sitting. "Elise, darling, you have seen one of the grandest men in the world to-night. The only trouble is that on one subject he is a crank." "Oh, Reginald, do you mean it! I thought he was splendid. And what a wonderful face he has!" Reginald started. "Hah! Am I to be jealous of my old friend? But I might have known," he added sadly, "no one could care long for such a wreck as I!" The girl wife put her arms around his neck and kissed him softly, "You foolish boy!" she whispered, "you know I shall never love any one but you!" And Reginald Hawthorne counted himself a perfectly happy man. CHAPTER XXIX.