ied with a knowing toss of her head, "You see! You'll
be in society before you know it. There ain't many girls as accomplished
as you."

On the morning of the fifteenth of October the Kronborg family, all of
them but Gus, who couldn't leave the store, started for the station an
hour before train time. Charley had taken Thea's trunk and telescope to
the depot in his delivery wagon early that morning. Thea wore her new
blue serge traveling-dress, chosen for its serviceable qualities. She
had done her hair up carefully, and had put a pale-blue ribbon around
her throat, under a little lace collar that Mrs. Kohler had crocheted
for her. As they went out of the gate, Mrs. Kronborg looked her over
thoughtfully. Yes, that blue ribbon went very well with the dress, and
with Thea's eyes. Thea had a rather unusual touch about such things, she
reflected comfortably. Tillie always said that Thea was "so indifferent
to dress," but her mother noticed that she usually put her clothes on
well. She felt the more at ease about letting Thea go away from home,
because she had good sense about her clothes and never tried to dress up
too much. Her coloring was so individual, she was so unusually fair,
that in the wrong clothes she might easily have been "conspicuous."

It was a fine morning, and the family set out from the house in good
spirits. Thea was quiet and calm. She had forgotten nothing, and she
clung tightly to her handbag, which held her trunk-key and all of her
money that was not in an envelope pinned to her chemise. Thea walked
behind the others, holding Thor by the hand, and this time she did not
feel that the procession was too long. Thor was uncommunicative that
morning, and would only talk about how he would rather get a sand bur in
his toe every day than wear shoes and stockings. As they passed the
cottonwood grove where Thea often used to bring him in his cart, she
asked him who would take him for nice long walks after sister went away.

"Oh, I can walk in our yard," he replied unappreciatively. "I guess I
can make a pond for my duck."

Thea leaned down and looked into his face. "But you won't forget about
sister, will you?" Thor shook his head. "And won't you be glad when
sister comes back and can take you over to Mrs. Kohler's to see the
pigeons?"

"Yes, I'll be glad. But I'm going to have a pigeon my own self."

"But you haven't got any little house for one. Maybe Axel would make you
a little house."

"Oh, her ca