ad said at Los Angeles, for solitary contemplation, and
after the confusion of the first night, when once she had had time to
envisage the situation thoroughly, as she said, she had found that to
sit alone downstairs in the uncertain light of the lanterns while the
twins went to bed and Mr. Twist wouldn't come out of his room, was not
good for her psyche; so she had followed the twins upstairs, and
continued to read the young girl's diary to them during their undressing
and till the noises coming from their beds convinced her that it was
useless to go on any longer. And that morning, the morning they hid in
the ditch, she had even done this while they were getting up.

"It isn't to be borne," said Anna-Rose under her breath, one eye on Li
Koo's ear which, a little in front of her, seemed slightly slanted
backward and sideways in the direction of her voice. "And why should it
be? We're not in her power."

"No," said Anna-Felicitas, also under her breath and also watching Li
Koo's ear, "but it feels extraordinarily as if we were."

"Yes. And that's intolerable. And it forces us to do silly baby things,
wholly unsuited either to our age or our position. Who would have
thought we'd ever hide from somebody in a ditch again!" Anna-Rose's
voice was almost a sob at the humiliation.

"It all comes from sleeping in the same room," said Anna-Felicitas.
"Nobody can stand a thing that doesn't end at night either."

"Of course they can't," said Anna-Rose. "It isn't fair. If you have to
have a person all day you oughtn't to have to have the same person all
night. Some one else should step in and relieve you then. Just as they
do in hospitals."

"Yes," said Anna-Felicitas. "Mr. Twist ought to. He ought to remove her
forcibly from our room by marriage.

"No he oughtn't," said Anna-Rose hastily, "because we can remove her
ourselves by the simple process of giving her notice."

"I don't believe it's simple," said Anna-Felicia again feeling a chill
trickling down her spine.

"Of course it is. We just go to her very politely and inform her that
the engagement is terminated on a basis of mutual esteem but inflexible
determination."

"And suppose she doesn't stop talking enough to hear?"

"Then we'll hand it to her in writing."

The rest of the way they walked in silence, Anna-Rose with her chin
thrust out in defiance, Anna-Felicitas dragging her feet along with a
certain reluctance and doubt.

Mrs. Bilton had finished her bre