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O'Reilly eyed the speaker with appreciation On the way north he had learned to know Leslie Branch and to like him, for he had discovered that thepeculiarity of disposition Ordinarily Branch was bitter, irritable, pessimistic; but when his luck orst and his fortunes lowest he brightened up It seeainstCuba had been sufficiently unpleasant, for they were almost penniless, and the invalid,a probably fatal cliru a genuinely cheerful mien Even yet O'Reilly was not over his amazement; he could not make up his e or nation But whatever the truth, the effect of this typical perversity had been reeable And when Leslie cheerfully volunteered to share the proceeds of his newspaper work during their stay in New York, thus enabling his friend to seize the first chance of returning to Cuba, Johnnie's affection for him was cemented But Branch's very cheerfulness worried him; it seemed to betoken that the felloas sicker than he would confess

That evening O'Reilly anticipated his dinner engagement by a few moments in order to have a word alone with Alvarado

"I've seen Enriquez," he told the doctor, "but he won't proed by felloant to fight for Cuba--and of course I don't When I appealed in Rosa's nah, I dare say, that there are thousands of Cuban women as badly in need of succor as she He says this is no tireed "We hear frightful stories about this new concentration policy I--can't believe theuess they are true; it is the et back at once," O'Reilly said, earnestly

"This lady who is coht has influence with Enriquez You reht help you"

"I'll implore her to put in a word for me Who is she?"

"Well, she's my pet nurse--"

"A nurse!" O'Reilly's eyes opened wide "A nurse, with MONEY! I didn't know there was such a thing"

"Neither did I They're rarer even than rich doctors," Alvarado acknowledged "But, you see, nursing is merely Miss Evans's avocation She's one of the feealthy women I knoho have real ideals, and live up to them"