nd she did not seem to mind accepting civilities from them.

It was Stella's house, taken in her name, and the other two were to
share it for a year, furnishing their own rooms and a sitting-room; the
rest was being furnished by Stella, chiefly from Lomore, where old
'nursie' was finding unexpected treasures.

'If only she could come herself, Stella!' said Vava wistfully.

But Stella replied decidedly, 'That is impossible; she could not
possibly do the work of that house alone, and we cannot afford two
servants.'

So Vava gave up all hope of seeing her old nurse until fate should take
them north again.

The next time the youthful housekeepers went to Heather Road to measure
rooms and windows, the exact sizes of which Mrs. Morrison wrote from
Scotland that she wished to know, Mrs. Hackney as usual asked them to go
in to tea with her, and, in the course of conversation with Stella,
observed, 'If I may be allowed to make a suggestion, I should not get a
servant at once; it will be amusing for a short time to do a little
housework, and while everything is new and clean there will be no hard
work to do. Besides, the Easter holidays are soon coming, and you want
to go to the sea for a few days to bring the roses back to this young
lady's cheeks.'

'Oh I think it will be change enough to come out here,' said Stella
quickly.

'Then you will have plenty of time to do your own work,' agreed Mrs.
Hackney, guessing that motives of economy prevented the girls from going
away at Easter, and respecting Stella's sturdy independence and thrifty
ways.

Stella, for her part liked and respected Mrs. Hackney, and she and Amy
decided to take her advice, and do without a servant, for the present at
least.

In spite of Vava's disappointment at not having 'nursie' at No. 2
Heather Road, she found herself counting the days until they moved.

Nor was Eva less enthusiastic. Indeed, her enthusiasm went rather too
far; she was always buying something or other 'for her bedroom.'

'There won't be an inch of wall-paper to be seen, Eva,' Vava warned her,
as she showed her the tenth picture she had bought for it.

'Oh yes, there will; it's wonderful what a lot you can get into a room,
and pictures brighten up a place,' she argued.

But one day Eva came to the club in a state of great excitement.
'Girls!' she cried, including Stella in this familiar address, 'I have
just bought myself the sweetest suite of furniture you ever saw!'

Every