man--the husband of the orphan daughter of the
gentleman who had owned the plantation, and who
had lost his life upon the battlefield. Warwick's
wife was of good family, and in a more settled
condition of society it would not have been easy
for a young man of no visible antecedents to win
her hand. A year or two later, he had taken the
oath of allegiance, and had been admitted to the
South Carolina bar. Rich in his wife's right, he
had been able to practice his profession upon a
high plane, without the worry of sordid cares, and
with marked success for one of his age.

"I suppose," he concluded, "that I have got
along at the bar, as elsewhere, owing to the lack of
better men. Many of the good lawyers were killed
in the war, and most of the remainder were
disqualified; while I had the advantage of being alive,
and of never having been in arms against the
government. People had to have lawyers, and they
gave me their business in preference to the carpet-
baggers. Fortune, you know, favors the available
man."

His mother drank in with parted lips and
glistening eyes the story of his adventures and the
record of his successes. As Rena listened, the
narrow walls that hemmed her in seemed to draw
closer and closer, as though they must crush her.
Her brother watched her keenly. He had been