With that he slammed shut the door, threw in the clutch, and was off, and never thought of those ferns all day long until late in the afternoon, later than his usual hour for going to his dinner, he climbed wearily into the car again. He had had a hard day, with perplexing problems to solve and a disagreeable visiting head to show all over the Philadelphia branch, and keep in good humor. There had not been a minute to get away, not even for a bit of a run in the car at noon; for the visitor had a cold, and didn’t care to ride; so they lunched in the downstairs restaurant, and went back to work again all the afternoon. The visitor at last was whirled away in the car of another employee to whose home in the suburbs he had been invited to dinner, and Maxwell with a sigh of relief, and feeling somehow very lonesome and tired, was free at last, free to consider the problem of the evening. He was just backing out of the garage, and turning to see that his wheels had cleared the doorway, his eye caught a gleam of green. “Oh, doggone those fool ferns!” he said under his breath. “Now I’ll simply have to get them off my hands tonight, or they’ll ‘die on me’ as the elevator man said his first wife did. Mother didn’t know what a nuisance this would be. I haven’t a minute to waste on such fool nonsense tonight. I really ought to call up Evadne at once and let her know I’m coming—_if_ I am. I wonder if I am. Well, here goes with the ferns first. It won’t take long if I can find the dump, and it will give me a few minutes leisure to decide what I’ll do. I haven’t had a second all day long. I never saw such a day!” He sent the car shooting forward on the smooth road, climbing the long grade into the sunset. CHAPTER XVI The morning had opened most favorably in the Copley home, with everybody in good spirits. At the breakfast table Cornelia had informed the male portion of the family quite casually that there was to be a birthday supper and they must all come promptly home and dress up for it and Harry had given a grave wink at Louise which almost convulsed her. Carey was in charming spirits. When he awoke, he had found two new shirts and two pairs of silk socks by his bedside “with love from Cornelia,” and a handkerchief and necktie apiece from each of the children; and he came down with uproarious thanks to greet them. Mr. Copley, thus reminded of the occasion got up before he had finished his first cup of coffee, and went into the living room to the desk. When he came back, he carried a check in his hand made out to Carey. “There, son, that’s from mother and me for that new suit you need,” he said in a voice warm with feeling. “I meant to get around to it last night, but somehow the date slipped me.” And Carey taken unaware, was almost embarrassed, rising with the check in his hand and his color coming and going like a girl.