"Why didn't you approach him yourself?" It was an afterthought.
"It looks more natural for you to be interested in your brother-in-law. Bob said to see you."
"So this is his method of beginning a campaign for a seat in the United States Senate!"
"We knew we could trust you!" replied Moore.
And Danvers knew that the man believed he was paying a sincere tribute.
More than a month after this conversation Judge Latimer also paid a visit to Fort Benton and straightway sought his dearest friend.
"I wanted to get away from business, from—everything that distracts one," he explained, "and I wanted to see you, Phil, and the doctor, and dear old sleepy Fort Benton again."
He looked worn and distracted—thinner than Philip remembered him, and in need of something more than physical relaxation.
"Are you quite well, Arthur?" asked Danvers solicitously. "I'm going to have the doctor over to give you a thorough examination, and I'll see that you carry out all his directions. You don't take a bit of care of yourself!"
But in the evening, after a day in the open air, he brightened, and under the old spell of comradeship he took on the boyish manner that had been so marked a characteristic.