Lance broke in upon her thoughts.
"I like that fellow," he said. "It's a pity he isn't more of our kind."
Beatrice pondered. Harding was not of their kind; but she did not feel sure that the difference was wholly in favor of the Allenwood settlers. This struck her as strange; as it was contrary to the opinions she had hitherto held.
"Why?" she asked carelessly.
"We might have seen something of him then."
"Can't you do so now, if you wish?"
"I'm not sure. It might not please the Colonel—you know his opinions."
Beatrice smiled, for she had often heard them dogmatically expressed.
"After all, what is there he could object to about Harding?" she asked.
"Not much in one sense; a good deal in another. You can't deny that the way one is brought up makes a difference. Perhaps the worst is that he's frankly out for money—farming for dollars."