ndered how she could have ever wanted such a very ordinary
happening as for her grandfather to _adopt_ them and give them _his_
money. Here was this wonderful John Brown actually longing to give up
her grandfather--his grandfather. For he had soon convinced her that
Captain Carew was his grandfather too, and while allowing that he might
be hers, he showed her how very little in the eyes of the world _her_
relationship counted for. He, he said, was the son of his grandfather's
eldest son--that their names were different was solely owing to the fact
that his father had changed his name for private reasons. She and Cyril
and all the rest of them were merely the children of his grandfather's
_daughter_. And, as he impressed upon Betty, women didn't count for much
in the world's eyes.

Yet Betty was very earnest in her intention to be something
great--something self-made, and John was willing enough not to stand in
her way. He himself was going to start at once; _he_ was not going to
waste any more time over going to school and doing lessons. He pointed
to his grandfather as a fine example of a man who had risen _because_ he
had not wasted time in learning. He told Betty they could not begin
their "career" too early.

It was Betty who suggested waiting till the Christmas holidays, and it
was John who said--

"Perhaps you'd better wait till the next Christmas. I will have got a
bit of a start by then and will be able to help you."

But Betty was indignant at that.

"I won't be helped!" she said. "I won't be helped by you, John Brown.
Stay at home till Christmas yourself--I'm going _now_!"

Her career had to be decided upon, and very little time remained in
which to decide. John intended beginning life as an errand boy. In his
spare time, he said, he would go on with his drawing, and if an
opportunity occurred, he would work his passage out somewhere in some
ship. He was rather vague about all but the errand running; that he saw
to be the first step towards greatness.

Betty was not long before she decided he was keeping some part of his
design from her. And every afternoon when they had left school and each
other, she was nervous lest he should have gone by morning--gone and
left her to find her way into the world alone!

And here was she unable to decide upon her career! She even asked
questions about Joan of Arc and Grace Darling, and set herself to find
out if there were any other women in the history book.

"It