The Doctor's fat hand pressed the strong hand of the girl. "Well," he began slowly, his high-keyed voice was pitched to a soft tone and he spoke with a woman's gentleness, "Tom's quite a man, but--" he could only repeat, "quite a man." Then he added gently: "And I feel that he thinks it's genuine now--his--love for you, daughter." The Doctor's face twitched, and he swallowed a convulsive little sob as he said, "Laura--child--can't you see, it really makes no difference about Tom--not finally!" He blinked and gulped and went on with renewed courage. "Can't you see, child--you're all we've got--mother and I--and if you want Tom--why--" his face began to crumple, but he controlled it, and blurted out, "Why by johnnie you can have him. And what's more," his voice creaked with emotion as he brought his hand down on his knee, "I'm going to make Tom the best father-in-law in the whole United States." His body rocked for a moment as he spurred himself to a last effort. Then he said: "And mother--mother'll be--mother will--she'll make him--" he could get no further, but he felt the pressure of her hand, and knew that she understood. "Mother and I just want you to be happy and if it takes Tom for that--why Tom's what it takes, I guess--and that's all we want to know!" The girl felt the tears on his face as she laid her cheek against his. Then she spoke: "But you don't know him, father! You don't understand him! It's beautiful to be able to do what I can do--but," she shuddered, "it's so awful--I mean all that devil that used to be in him. He is so ashamed, so sorry--and it's gone--all gone--all, every bit of it gone, father!" She put her father's hand to her flaming cheek and whispered, "You think so, don't you, father?" The father's eyes filled again and his throat choked. "Laura," he said very gently, "my professional opinion is this: You've a fighting chance with Tom Van Dorn--about one in ten. He's young. You're a strong, forceful woman--lots of good Satterthwaite in you, and precious little of the obliging Nesbits. Now I'll tell you the truth, Laura; Tom's got a typical cancer on his soul. But he's young; and you're young, and just now he's undergoing a moral regeneration. You are new blood. You may purify him. If the moral tissue isn't all rotten, you may cure him." The girl gripped her father's hand and cried: "But you think I can--father, you think I can?"