r!" she exclaimed. "Are you going back to that ten thousand a
year?"

"Pretty soon now it will be September," he reflected irrelevantly.

"And then?"

"I had rather hoped to get it by then."

"Well, you won't, so you'd better forget it. I shouldn't wonder but
what you received a raise to two thousand if Farnsworth gets you out
selling, and that ought to satisfy you."

Don looked up. Somehow, every time she put it that way it did sound
enough. Beside the brook it sounded like plenty.

"Look here," he exclaimed. "Would you marry a man who was only drawing
a salary of two thousand?"

For a moment the question confused her, but only for a moment.

"If I was willing to take my chance with a man," she said, "his salary
of two thousand would be the least of my troubles."

"You mean you think two could live on that?"

"Of course they could," she answered shortly.

"And have enough to buy clothes and all those things?"

"And put money in the bank if they weren't two fools," she replied.

"But look here," he continued, clinging to the subject when it was
quite evident she was willing to drop it. "I've heard that hats cost
fifty dollars and more apiece, and gowns anywhere from two hundred to
five."

"Yes," she nodded; "I've heard that."

"Well, don't they?" he persisted.

"I don't remember ever getting any bill of that size," she answered
with a smile.

"What do your bills amount to?" he inquired.

Miss Winthrop hesitated a moment.

"If you want to know," she answered finally, "this hat cost me some
three dollars with the trimmings. And if I ever paid more than
twenty-five dollars for a suit, I'd want some one to appoint a
guardian for me."

There certainly was a wide margin of difference here in the estimates
made by two women--a difference not accounted for, as far as Don could
see, in the visible results. He would have liked to continue more into
details, but Miss Winthrop rose as if to put an end to this subject.

"I'm hungry," she announced.

"Right," he nodded. "There's my basket over there, and I'll let you
set the table."

Her idea had been that he was to eat his luncheon and she hers.
However, she had no objection to making things ready for him. So she
brought the basket over in front of him and opened it. She gave one
look into it.

"Did you buy all this?" she demanded.

"Why, yes," he answered.

She removed the napkin and saw the cold chicken.

"Didn't you know any better, or were yo