Hezekiah shrugged his shoulders in frank disgust at the smallness of the sum named, nodded his head in recognition of his instructions and left the room. CHAPTER VII JOE PROVES INTERESTING The morning was beautiful. During the hours of darkness a shower had cleansed the great outdoor world with its gentle moisture. Now, in all of its new laundered freshness, the earth welcomed the warm rays of the rising sun, sweeping with millions of scintillating reflections through the air, clear and pellucid in its purity. The rays sparkled and glittered on the drops of moisture which clung to the grass blades and to the leaves. They gave warm caresses to the bushes and to the trees and from the upturned faces of the flowers, waving coyly and coquettishly, they stole sly kisses, until the blossoms blushed red and pink and hid their faces beneath the leaves for very shame. Down from the hills danced a gentle breeze, and, catching the naughty lovemakers, laughed merrily and rushed away to whisper the story in the branches of the trees. The birds overheard it and they laughed, too, and spread the news, the naughty gossips, in a cheery chorus of song. Then the world awakened and heard the laughter of the wind and the merry song of the birds and felt the caress of the sun and wise men threw back their shoulders and took deep draughts of the morning air and were happy, too. At the hospital, a nurse in her garb of white was humming softly as she moved about among the awakening patients, setting the ward in order. She stopped by a bed to remove a glass from the enameled table. A big, handsome fellow, arrayed in pink pajamas, opened a pair of black eyes beneath a mop of disheveled black hair and smiled up at her. "Good morning," she greeted him. "How are you this morning?" "Good--ouch!" An attempt to move was the cause of the peculiar response. She came to his assistance. "Isn't that better?" "Yes, thank you. I forgot about yesterday's troubles while I slept. How could I get so many sore spots when I only struck in one place?" he asked. The nurse laughed as she inspected his chart. "How's your head this morning?" "Sister--" he grinned good humoredly--"that dome of mine has completely recovered. I am healing from the top down." She raised a shade and a ray of sunshine flashed across the foot of his bed. "Isn't that better? It's a beautiful day." He rolled and twisted his eyes until he was able to get a glimpse of a bit of blue sky through the window. His face registered great regret. "What a day for a two or three hundred mile spin, sister," he mused. Again she examined his chart. "Say, Mr. Joseph Tolliver Curtis," she remonstrated sharply. "Those who love me call me Joe," he interrupted in a gentle voice as he watched with great interest and amusement the snap in her hazel eyes.