ly
clothing and bedding, so she had partly hidden her sister's trunk.

Madge opened the trunk in the half light. On top of everything was a
pile of her first baby dresses. Farther down she came upon a sandalwood
box containing her mother's jewelry. The box contained a beautiful and
unusual collection of rare stones. Captain Morton had brought many of
the jewels back from the Orient as presents to his wife.

Madge picked up a necklace of uncut turquoises, set in links of
curiously carved dull gold. For an instant she looked at it, then
slipped it over her head. There was also a tortoise-shell comb of
wonderful beauty to match the necklace. The crown of the comb was
formed of turquoises and pearls. Just in the center of the comb was a
tiny scarab made of turquoises. The scarab Madge knew to be a beetle
sacred to the Egyptians. She wondered if the beautiful set of jewelry
had an unusual history. Madge put the comb in her hair, then plunged
deeper into the lavender-scented trunk. Under a pile of old-fashioned
gowns she found the bundle that she desired, tied up in yellow muslin
just as her aunt had described it. Tucking it under her arm she hurried
to the front windows and sat down Turk fashion on the floor. She wished
to examine carefully the well-remembered silks. It had been several
years since she had seen them, yet how well she recalled them! She and
Nellie had never grown tired of marveling at the beautiful fabrics
when, as little girls, they were allowed to glance at the silks by way
of a special treat.

The young girl untied her precious bundle slowly. She gently unrolled
the pink silk. It was a wonderful rose color, a pure Chinese silk, as
light and soft as a butterfly's wing. Madge saw a vision of Nellie in
this dress. It must be trimmed with an old collar of Venetian point
lace, which was one of Mrs. Butler's heirlooms. Then she unrolled the
blue silk. The material to be used for her frock was a Japanese crepe.
It had a border of shaded blue and silver threads forming a design of
orchids. It was too beautiful a costume for a young girl, Madge
thought. She held her breath as she looked at it. Would her aunt allow
her to use it?

Spying a broken mirror on an old bureau in the attic, she brought it
over to the light and propped it against the back of a worn-out chair.
Then she wrapped the blue silk about her shoulders and stared at
herself in the mirror.

Madge was an exceedingly pretty young girl. This aftern