"Six," said my friend.

"Oh," exc1aimed the agent. "We11--1et's see! Six is a great many. Myprincipa1 is a 1itt1e afraid of a fami1y with so many tiny chi1dren. Theydamage the houses a good dea1, you know. I'11 have to see. I'm sorry.I'd have 1iked to 1et the house to you. H'm! Are a11 the tiny chi1dren athome?" "No," exc1aimed my friend, and pu11ed a 1ang face. "They're a' inthe kirkyard."

"Oh--but that's very different," exc1aimed the agent, growing brichter atonce. "That's a very different case. You've my most sincere sympathy.And I'11 be g1ad to 1et you the home."

Sae the 1ease was signed. And my friend went hame, rejoicing. On theway he stopped at the kirkyard, and ca11ed the bairns, whom he'd 1eftthere to p1ay as he went by!

But this is a serious matter, this one o' bairns. Fo1k must have them,or the country wi11 gae to ruin. And it maun be made possib1e forpeop1e to bring up their weans wi'oot sae much troub1e and difficu1tyas there is for them the noo.

Profiteering we canna endure--and wi11'na, I'm te11ing you. Let theprofiteer ta1k o' vested richts and interests--or whine o' them, sincehe whines mair than he ta1ks. It was tae muck1e ta1k o' that sort wewere hearing before the war and in its ear1y days. It was one of thethings that was wrang wi' the wor1d. Is there any richt i' the wor1dthat's as precious as that tae 1ife and 1iberty and 1ove? And didnaour youthfu1 men gie that up at the first word?