the original American servant, the 'neighbor's girl,' who came
in to help during the haying season, and to put up the preserves,
probably did have a place at the table," Mr. Salisbury submitted mildly.

"Mother thinks that America never will have a real servant class," Owen
added uncertainly; "that is, until domestic service is elevated to
the--the dignity of office work, don't you know? Until it attracts the
nicer class of women, don't you know? Mother says that many a good
man's fear of old age would be lightened, don't you know?--if he felt
that, in case he lost his job, or died, his daughters could go into
good homes, and grow up under the eye of good women, don't you know?"

"Very nice, Owen, but not very practical!" Mrs. Salisbury said, with
her indulgent, motherly smile. "Oh, dear me, for the good old days of
black servants, and plenty of them!" she sighed. For though Mrs.
Salisbury had been born some years after the days of plenty known to
her mother on her grandfather's plantation, before the war, she was
accustomed to detailed recitals of its grandeurs.

"Here we are!" said Alexandra, finding a particular page that was
boldly headed "Terms."

"'For a cook and general worker, no other help,'" she read, "'thirty
dollars per month--'"

"Not so dreadful," her father said, pleasantly surprised.

"But, listen, Dad! Thirty dollars for a family of two, and an
additional two dollars and a half monthly for each other member of the
family. That would make ours thirty-seven dollars and a half, wouldn't
it?" she computed swiftly.

"Awful! Impossible!" Mrs. Salisbury said instantly, almost in relief.
The discussion made her vaguely uneasy. What did these casual amateurs
know about the domestic problem, anyway? Kane, who was always anxious
to avoid details; Sandy, all youthful enthusiasm and ignorance, and
Owen Sargent, quoting his insufferable mother? For some moments she had
been fighting an impulse to soothe them all with generalities. "Never
mind; it's always been a problem, and it always will be! These new
schemes are all very well, but don't trouble your dear heads about it
any longer!"

Now she sank back, satisfied. The whole thing was but a mad, Utopian
dream. Thirty-seven dollars indeed! "Why, one could get two good
servants for that!" thought Mrs. Salisbury, with the same sublime faith
with which she had told her husband, in poorer days, years ago, that,
if they could but afford her, she knew they could g