e," he said. "Well, I
acted like a fool--and worse. I've been sorry for it ever since. I was
in the wrong. I couldn't have said this to your father, but I don't
mind saying it to you, and you can tell him if you like."

"He'll be delighted to hear that you are no longer angry with him,"
said Alberta. "He has always longed to be friends with you again,
Uncle William. But he thought you were still bitter against him."

"No--no--nothing but stubborn pride," said Uncle William. "Now, girls,
since you are my guests I must try to give you a good time. We'll take
the double sleigh and have a jolly drive this afternoon. And about
those trinkets there--they are yours. I did get them for some young
friends of mine here, but I'll give them something else. I want you to
have these. That watch looked very nice on your blouse, Mary, and the
bracelet became Alberta's pretty wrist very well. Come and give your
cranky old uncle a hug for them."

Uncle William got his hugs heartily; then we washed up the dishes and
went for our drive. We got back just in time to catch the evening
train home. Uncle William saw us off at the station, under promise to
come back and stay a week with him when his housekeeper came home.

"One of you will have to come and stay with me altogether, pretty
soon," he said. "Tell your father he must be prepared to hand over one
of his girls to me as a token of his forgiveness. I'll be down to talk
it over with him shortly."

When we got home and told our story, Father said, "Thank God!" very
softly. There were tears in his eyes. He did not wait for Uncle
William to come down, but went to Monkshead himself the next day.

In the spring Alberta is to go and live with Uncle William. She is
making a supply of dusters now. And next Christmas we are going to
have a grand family reunion at the old homestead. Mistakes are not
always bad.

The Genesis of the Doughnut Club

When John Henry died there seemed to be nothing for me to do but pack
up and go back east. I didn't want to do it, but forty-five years of
sojourning in this world have taught me that a body has to do a good
many things she doesn't want to do, and that most of them turn out to
be for the best in the long run. But I knew perfectly well that it
wasn't best for me or anybody else that I should go back to live with
William and Susanna, and I couldn't think what Providence was about
when things seemed to point that way.

I wanted to stay in Ca