“Well,” said Mary Louise, taking her arm confidentially, “that was only Cousin Will’s banter, you know. No one ever believed in him and I doubt if he ever believed in himself. I am glad he is coming home with a whole skin anyhow, and I wish all our poor boys were as safe to-day as he is.”
“Well,” responded Laura, “neither you nor I can claim any of the Dorfield boys, and yet it’s some satisfaction to see them coming home from that long journey across the seas and know that they have fought for us and died for us—whenever such foolish sacrifice was required.”
“Oh, Laura!” exclaimed Mary Louise, reprovingly. “Do you think it was foolishness to save all our lives—to make the world safe for democracy?”
“Don’t let us argue concerning politics,” said the other girl with a shy shrug. “I am not much posted on such things, as you very well know.”
“You belong to the Liberty Girls, though,” said Mary Louise.
“Oh, as for that,” said Laura, “I will do anything I can for my country and its warriors, and the only reason I am not more interested in the return home of the Dorfield Regiment is that none of my flesh and blood is mixed up in it.”
“Then what are you down here for?” inquired Mary Louise.
“Just to watch these men greet their own friends, who must be supremely proud of their work and anxious to see them safely home. They have had some rather severe scrapping over there, I believe, and according to all reports there has not been a shirker or a coward in the whole lot of them. No wonder everybody has turned out to give them an enthusiastic reception! Just look at the number of mothers and fathers and whole families here to welcome their own back! It’s hard to tell who is enjoying it most—the soldier boys who have come back, or their families who have awaited them so long. But why are you here, Mary Louise?”
“Why, for almost the same reason. There has been a hint that some soldiers from other parts of the country have been transferred to the Dorfield Regiment, to take the places of those who have fallen in the various battles. Grandpa Jim has an idea that some of these strangers may need work or a home after they are mustered out.”
“How can we tell who are the strangers and who are not?” asked Laura.