"Now," she continued, when he had seated himself, "you have talked enough for one day, so you must keep quiet for the rest of the afternoon. I will do the talking, giving you an explanation of our brigandish conduct." "I shall be an interested listener," said Stranleigh, resignedly. "But permit me, before silence falls, to ask what you may regard an impertinent question. Do you smoke?" "Goodness, no!" she replied, with widely opened eyes. "Many ladies do, you know, and I thought you might have acquired the habit during your travels abroad. In that case, I should have been delighted to offer you some excellent cigarettes from my portmanteau." Jumping up, the girl laughed brightly. "Poor man! I understand at last. You shall have the cigarettes in less than five minutes. Give me your keys, please." "That particular piece of luggage is not locked. I am so sorry to trouble you, but after such a memorable dinner----" "Yes, yes; I know, I know!" she cried, as she vanished. "Interesting girl, that," murmured Stranleigh to himself, "and unusually accomplished." He listened for a whistle, but the first break in the silence was the coming of Miss Armstrong, holding a box of cigars in one hand and a packet of cigarettes in the other. "Then you didn't call for help, after all," said Stranleigh, a shade of reproach in his tone. "Oh, it was quite easy. By punching the bundles I guessed what they contained, and soon found where the portmanteau was concealed. Now, light up," she continued, "lean back, and smoke. I'll do the talking. My father, as I've told you, is a very poor business man, and that is why I endeavoured to acquire some knowledge of affairs. He is generous and sympathetic, believing no evil of anyone, consequently he is often imposed upon to his financial disadvantage. Our position as father and daughter is the reverse of what is usual in such relationships. I attempt to guide him in the way he should go, and as a general thing he accepts my advice and acts upon it, but on the occasion of which I speak, I was at work in New York, and knew nothing of the disastrous contract into which he had entered, until it was too late. "I always come West and spend the vacation on the ranch, and this time brought with me all the money I had saved, but it proved insufficient to cope with the situation. In his early days my father was a mining engineer. He was successful, and might have been a very rich man to-day if---- But that 'if' always intervened. Nevertheless, he accumulated money, and bought this ranch, determined to retire.