orth and seen how beautiful the estate
was, nestling among the green hills of West Virginia, close by the famed
Greenbrier River, she had been more anxious than ever to win the master
of this grand domain, and a bitter hatred for gentle Dainty crept into
her heart.

She knew that she was beautiful in a dark, queenly fashion, and she
could only hope that Love Ellsworth would prefer her dark style to
Dainty's fair and radiant one. On this chance hinged all her hopes,
while Ela, on her part, wondered if he might not find a wealth of brown
hair, waxen-skin, and limpid gray eyes as attractive as the more
pronounced brunette and blonde types.

Late that afternoon Mrs. Ellsworth invited the two girls into her
_boudoir_, saying she wished to have a private talk with them.

She was a woman of sixty years, with abundant snow-white hair,
contrasted with piercing dark eyes. In her youth she must have looked
like Olive Peyton, and she was still well-preserved and fine-looking for
her time of life. Her relatives considered her eccentric and
hard-hearted, and she was certainly a woman of strong prejudices and
unbending will--fond of having her own way.

She now looked approvingly at her handsome, stylish nieces, and
remarked, abruptly:

"I suppose neither of you girls have any idea why I invited you here, so
I may as well inform you and get it over. In the first place, have
either of you any entanglements?"

"Entanglements?" murmured Olive, questioningly.

"Entanglements?" echoed Ela, doubtfully, with a slight flush breaking
through her usual pallor.

"I mean, are either of you engaged to be married?"--sharply.

"Oh, dear no!" cried Olive.

"No, indeed!" muttered Ela, still faintly crimson.

"Or--in love with anybody?" added their aunt, anxiously.

"Only with each other. We are chums and sweethearts," laughed Olive, as
they looked at each other affectionately.

"Very good!" said curt Mrs. Ellsworth, smiling, as she continued: "And
you are both as poor as church mice; I know that without asking. Now,
don't color up and get angry. Poverty is inconvenient, but it's no
disgrace. Besides, I intend to change all that."

While they stared at her in wonder, she nodded her white head sagely,
adding:

"You two girls are the nearest kin I have in the world, and it's time I
made some provision for your future. Well, I'm going to do it. That's
why I sent for you to come to Ellsworth."

They began to murmur ecstatic thanks; but