s difficulty, indeed--in which he found himself.

So, his first move was characteristic. He sent the tray upstairs to Helen.
But none of the family saw Helen again that night.

However, there was another caller. This was May Van Ramsden. She did not
ask for Helen, however, but for Mr. Starkweather himself, and that
gentleman came graciously into the room where May was sitting with the
three much excited sisters.

Belle and Hortense and Flossie were bubbling over with the desire to ask
Miss Van Ramsden if _she_ knew that Helen was a rich girl and not a poor
one. But there was no opportunity. The caller broached the reason for her
visit at once, when she saw Mr. Starkweather.

"We are going to ask a great favor of you, sir," she said, shaking hands.
"And it does seem like a very great impudence on our part. But please
remember that, as children, we were all very much attached to her. You
see," pursued Miss Van Ramsden, "there are the De Vorne girls, and Jo and
Nat Paisley, and Adeline Schenk, and some of the Blutcher boys and
girls--although the younger ones were born in Europe--and Sue Livingstone,
and Crayton Ballou. Oh! there really is a score or more."

"Ahem!" said Mr. Starkweather, not only solemnly, but reverently. These
were names he worshipped. He could have refused such young people
nothing--nothing!--and would have told Miss Van Ramsden so had what she
said next not stricken him dumb for the time.

"You see, some of us have called on Nurse Boyle, and found her so bright
and so delighted with our coming, that we want to give her a little
tea-party to-morrow afternoon. It would be so delightful to have her greet
the girls and boys who used to be such friends of hers in the time of Mr.
Cornelius, right up there in those cunning rooms of hers.

"We always used to see her in the nursery suite, and there are the same
furniture, and hangings, and pictures, and all. And Nurse Boyle herself is
just the same--only a bit older--Ah! girls!" she added, turning suddenly
to the three sisters, "you don't know what it means to have been cared
for, and rocked, and sung to, when you were ill, perhaps, by Mary Boyle!
You missed a great deal in not having a Mary Boyle in your family."

"_Mary Boyle!_" gasped Mr. Starkweather.

"Yes. Can we all come to see her to-morrow afternoon? I am sure if you
tell Mrs. Olstrom, your housekeeper will attend to all the arrangements.
Helen knows about it, and she'll help pour the tea. Mary