The man thus addressed made no answer. He read a verse or two partly aloud as if to himself, then closed the book and laid it on the table. "What's the matter between you and Madelene?" he inquired presently, fixing Frederick with a steady gaze. "Nothing.... Nothing, that I'm to blame for. Madelene followed me to the lake and found me in Skinner's shack. That's all the row was about." "Why were you there?" Waldstricker did not change his tone. Frederick threw his cigarette into the smoldering grate and shrugged his shoulders impatiently. "Can't a fellow stop in a shanty without the whole town gossiping about it?" he demanded peevishly. "That's just it, Frederick. I don't want people talking about my sister's husband and a squatter girl," the older man explained. "I must know why you were there." "Look at here, Eb," exclaimed the boy, "why don't you let Madelene and me fight out our own quarrels? I don't interfere with you and Helen." "Huh! I should hope not!" growled Waldstricker. "But quarrels are not what we're talking about.... Why were you in the Skinner hut?... Are you in love with that girl?" "God! No! Are you mad? What's the matter with everybody?" "There's nothing the matter, my boy, only I want to warn you I won't have my sister unhappy." "She makes herself unhappy," growled Frederick, selecting another cigarette from his case. "I can't see any use of your going down there at all," Ebenezer went on, turning to poke the fire. "It doesn't look well after the things that happened in your family." "That's just it," said Frederick, using the elder's words as an excuse; "our trouble makes it quite proper some one of my family should go there. The girl did enough for us, God knows." Waldstricker gave a decided negative shake of his head. "It's your mother's place to go, not yours. You don't want a scandal, do you?... Let her go there if any one does." Again Frederick found an excuse. "She can't go when she's out of Ithaca, and I took Miss Skinner a message from my mother today. If Madelene hadn't acted so abominably, I'd have told her about it." Waldstricker looked keenly at the other man. "I didn't notice you tried very hard to explain matters this afternoon! Now, did you?" "I was mad," retorted Frederick, sulkily. "May I see the message your mother sent?" came quickly from Waldstricker. Frederick started. Evidently his brother-in-law didn't believe his story. "If Miss Skinner'll give it to you, you can!" said he. "... I say, Eb, let Madelene and me get out of this the best way we can, won't you? Tell Maddie to behave herself and leave the Skinner girl's name out of her rages at me.... That's all I ask." "No," thundered Ebenezer, wrathfully. "I won't have my sister in tears all the time over a squatter girl. Madelene says you received letters from her abroad." "Well, I didn't," snapped back Frederick.