“No, no. A pessimist is one who never expects to find anything to suit him. Geordie hain’t got that far yet.”

“You’d find something good to say of the devil himself, Jim Boyd.”

“Well, you’ve heard the story of the old lady who said he was persevering. But no, Cornelia, I’ve nothing good to say of the devil.”

“Do you believe in him at all?” asked Miss Cornelia seriously.

“How can you ask that when you know what a good Presbyterian I am, Cornelia? How could a Presbyterian get along without a devil?”

“Do you?“ persisted Miss Cornelia.

Captain Jim suddenly became grave.

“I believe in what I heard a minister once call ‘a mighty and malignant and intelligent power of evil working in the universe,’” he said solemnly. “I do that, Cornelia. You can call it the devil, or the ‘principle of evil,’ or the Old Scratch, or any name you like. It’s there, and all the infidels and heretics in the world can’t argue it away, any more’n they can argue God away. It’s there, and it’s working. But, mind you, Cornelia, I believe it’s going to get the worst of it in the long run.”

“I am sure I hope so,” said Miss Cornelia, none too hopefully. “But speaking of the devil, I am positive that Billy Booth is possessed by him now. Have you heard of Billy’s latest performance?”