"Excuse me a moment," she said and left the room. She soon returned with two portraits. "This," she said, handing him one of the pictures, "is a portrait of Colonel Jameson, a Virginian, who was an officer in the Confederate army, and a member of the old Ku Klux Klan. He was my mother's father; and this is a picture of Major Babcock of General Sherman's staff, who was my father's father. Both of these men fought at the risk of their lives and at the sacrifice of personal interests for principles they believed to be right. On both sides of the house ancestors fought in the wars of 1812 and the Revolution. My family had a part in making this nation. Not only did the men of the Jameson and Babcock families fight, but the women folk sent them forth to battle in the spirit of love and sacrifice. The blood of these ancestors are in my veins. If the institutions and laws of our country and the sacred principles of Americanism are imperiled I ask you to do your duty courageously as becomes the man that I know you are." They were standing now, and as she made this speech he met her steady gaze unflinchingly. He slipped his arm about her and for a moment neither spoke. There are moments when speech is inadequate. The following morning at the breakfast table in the Babcock home Mr. Babcock remarked, "You know that the more I see of that Mr. King the more favorably I am impressed with him. He strikes me as a man who has good stuff in him." "Looks to me like he's kind of run-down at the heel--as mother used to say," said Aunt Clara. "He sure isn't prosperous looking like that Mr. Golter. In this day and age it's mighty essential that a man have money or a good income when he gets married or his wife can't have a place of any consequence in society." Ruth blushed but made no reply. Her father noticed her embarrassment and said, "Ruth, money has its place in life, but character is the big thing." Chapter X "Come right in, Harold. Glad to see you." Judge Rider greeted his friend warmly. "Judge, I ran up to talk to you a few minutes, if you are not busy." "Sit down, Harold. I am not too busy to talk with you. Anything of importance?" "Yes, Judge, there is. Something very important. There's a leak. Somebody is giving out inside Klan information." "Is that so? What has been given out?" "Someone told Stover that I am a member and that they would fix me. Stover suggested that I be given one chance. I don't know what that chance is to be nor how Stover's informant meant to fix me." "Do you know who Stover's informant was?" Judge Rider asked. "Not positively. I am of the opinion that it was McBryan." "How did you get your information?" "I am not at liberty to tell you that, Judge. It would be betraying a confidence." "By all means don't tell it, then, but are you sure that it is correct?" "Yes, there is no question about the truthfulness of the report." "You say that this man whom you think is McBryan said that they would fix you?" "Yes."