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 at Vancouver last year and now is a lieutenant in France. He made no mystery of himself at Vancouver when he reappeared so it's really all over."

"Then you're—divorced now."

"The marriage is annulled; it never was legal."

Alice glanced at the couch where David and she used to sit and she avoided it, seating herself upon a small, wicker chair.

"How were things at Itanaca, David?"

"They're all right but mother."

"Then she's sick again?"

"It's the same sickness, Alice; it'll always be the same or worse. She'll not get well."

"Oh, why?"

He told her and he set her to crying. It almost broke him down to have to report the truth about his mother and to make Alice cry; but when it was over, he felt enormous relief. He said, "Now I've put that on you—half of it, it seems."

She begged, "Does it, David? Oh, I'm so glad! It makes me feel of use again."

He said: "But I've no right to use you."

Swiftly she changed the subject. "I had a letter from Myra yesterday. Lan's right in the middle of that terrible mixup below Nish. She copied a lot of his last letter to her and sent it on."

David had had a letter from Lan recently and so, starting with Lan and Myra, they talked about Bill Fraser and other men and about girls from their class, or from their college time, who had gone, or were going "over."