returned to the
kitchen, that the transformation of a lumber-room into a cosy studio
was little less than miraculous.

"Dat painter gemman do beat de lan'," he chuckled. "Got dat ol' garret
lookin' like a parlor fixed up for comp'ny. Ye oughter see dem ol'
hair-backs wid de bottoms busted--got 'em kivered up wid dem patchwork
bedspreads an' lookin' like dey was fit for de ol' mist'ess's bedroom.
An' he's got dem ol' yaller cut'ains we useter hab in de settin'-room
hung on de fo'-posters as sort o' screens fencin' off one corner ob de
room jes' by de do'. Dat ol' carpet's spread out; dat one-legged
spinnin'-wheel's propped up and standin' roun'; dem ol' stable
lanterns is hung to de rafters. I clar' to goodness, ye wouldn't
believe! Now dey jes' sont me down for two buckets o' water to fill
dat ol' jar we useter hab settin' out here on de po'ch. He and de
young mist'ess is out now lookin' for peach blossoms to fill it. He's
a wonder, I tell ye!"

The masses of blossoms arranged in the big jar--the tops of their
branches reaching the water-stained roof; a canvas for a half-length
tacked on a stretcher and placed on an improvised easel, Adam began
prying into the dark corners for a seat for his model, Olivia
following his every movement, her eyes twice their usual size in her
ever-increasing astonishment and delight.

"Hello, here's just the thing!" he shouted, dragging out a high-back
chair with some of the lower rungs gone, and dusting it off with his
handkerchief. "Sit here and let me see how the light falls. No, that
isn't good; that dress won't do at all." (The gown came too far up on
her neck to suit this artistic young gentleman's ideas regarding the
value of curved lines in portraiture.) "That collar spoils everything.
Can't you wear something else? I'd rather see you in full dress. I
want the line of the throat ending in the sweep of the shoulder, and
then I want the long curl against the flesh tones. You haven't worn
your hair that way since I came; and where's the dress you had on the
day I arrived? The colors suited you perfectly. I shall never forget
how you looked--it was all blossoms, you and everything--and the
background of the dark door, and the white of the porch columns, with
just a touch of yellow ochre to break it--Oh, it was delicious!
Please, now, put that dress on again and wear a low-neck waist with
it. The flesh tones of the throat and shoulders will be superb and I
know just how to harmonize