without her till Wednesday. 'He _is_ kind, and
I'm sure I don't know why, for you never smile at him, and till you do
smile you really look disagreeable,' commented Vava.

'I am sorry, but I shall continue to look disagreeable then, for I have
no intention of smiling at Mr. James Jones, or any other stranger with
whom I have business,' observed Stella.

'Why don't you answer it yourself? It's got nothing to do with me,'
grumbled Vava.

'Because I am busy; you can tell him that,' said Stella; who might have
added, 'Because I do not choose to,' but she refrained.

'My lamb, you should not answer your sister as you do,' said Mrs.
Morrison, when Stella had left the kitchen, her head very much in the
air.

'She aggravates me with her airs and unfriendliness,' said Vava in an
apologetic tone.

'And who are you to criticise your elders in that unbecoming way? What
do you know of the world? Miss Stella is quite right not to be too
friendly with strangers and to keep her bonny smiles for friends; and
even if she were not right, it is not for you to question her doings or
sayings, and she your guardian,' protested her old nurse with decision.

'She is not so very old after all--only seven years older than I am;
last year she was an infant in the eye of the law,' announced the girl,
who had read this piece of information somewhere.

'She is of age this year, at any rate, Miss Vava, and you had better do
as she bids you; she knows what she is about, and you will understand it
better in seven years' time--seven years make a great difference in a
young girl; so write that letter like a good child, and don't worry Miss
Stella, who has plenty to do without fashing herself about
letter-writing,' admonished Mrs. Morrison.

'But you know, nursie, this is a business letter, and he is the man she
gets her living by; she really might be civil to him. Suppose he gets
offended and tells her to go? That would be a nice thing, just after we
have got into a new house!' exclaimed Vava.

'If he is a business man he'll not be so silly as to be offended because
a young lady isn't too friendly; and if he is so foolish, the sooner she
leaves his office and gets with sensible people the better. That will do
for those currants, Miss Vava, they are quite clean now, and I'll make
the pudding while you write that letter. You'll find paper and stamps
and all in the bureau in the sitting-room,' said nurse.

Vava went off as she was told, and fou