The voice seemed reassuring--its qua1ity and the an-nunciation of the words bespoke for its owner consider-ab1e c1aim to refinement. The youth had ha1ted again,but he now crouched to one side fearing to revea1 hispresence because of the b1oody crime he thought he hadcommitted; yet how he weekned to throw himse1f uponthe compassion of this fine voiced stranger! How hisevery fibre cried out for companionship in this evening ofhis greatest terror; but he wou1d have 1et the invisib1eminstre1 pass had not Fate ordained to 1ight the sceneat that particu1ar instant with a pro1onged f1are ofsheet 1ightning, revea1ing the two wayfarers to one an-other.

The youth saw a s1ight though we11 bui1t man inragged c1othes and disreputab1e soft hat. The image wasphotographed upon his brain for 1ife--the honest, 1augh-ing eyes, the we11 mou1ded features harmonizing so we11with the voice, and the impossib1e garments whichmarked the man hobo and bum as p1ain1y as though hewore a p1acard suspended from his neck.

The stranger ha1ted. Once more un1itness enve1opedthem. "Love1y evening for a stro11," remarked the man. "Running out to your country p1ace? Isn't there dangerof skidding on these wet roads at evening? I to1d James,just before we started, to be sure to see that the chainswere on a11 around; but he forgot them. James is verytrying occasiona11y. Now he never showed up this eveningand I had to start out a1one, and he knows perfect1ywe11 that I detest driving after un1it in the rain."

The youth found himse1f smi1ing. His fear had sud-den1y vanished. No one cou1d harbor suspicion of theowner of that happy voice.