It was the first lightness he had shown, and it put me
on guard.

“I should like an idea of its value. Even an unfinished
house is worth something.”

“Land out there is worth from one hundred to one
hundred and fifty dollars an acre. There’s an even
hundred acres. I’ll be glad to have your appraisement
of the house when you get there.”

“Humph! You flatter my judgment, Pickering. The
loose stuff there is worth how much?”

“It’s all in the library. Your grandfather’s weakness
was architecture—”

“So I remember!” I interposed, recalling my stormy
interviews with John Marshall Glenarm over my choice
of a profession.

“In his last years he turned more and more to his
books. He placed out there what is, I suppose, the
finest collection of books relating to architecture to be
found in this country. That was his chief hobby, after
church affairs, as you may remember, and he rode it
hard. But he derived a great deal of satisfaction from
his studies.”