is aiming to be a dandy
himself. "Father has cut us all out completely."

"It is a comfort to think that I shall no longer be a disgrace to my
family," I remarked with humble mien. "I may add that this is not all.
I possess not merely this costume, but I have replenished my wardrobe
utterly. When you see my new trousers, my new summer overcoat, my
assortment of neckties, my brilliant shoes--both patent leather and
strawberry roan--you will no longer be able to state, Josephine, that
my clothes lack joyousness."

Later in the evening, after the children had gone to bed, Josephine,
who had been up stairs to inspect my purchases, sat down beside me on
the sofa, and nestled her head against my shoulder.

"Fred, you are very good," she said. "It must have bothered you
terribly to get all those things--you, who are so busy. Everything is
lovely, and the latest and prettiest of its kind. You have shown
exquisite taste, dear; but I feel as though I had badgered you into it,
following as it does on top of the house and everything else."

"No, dearest," I answered, stroking her hair. "I am proud of you--I am
grateful to you. A man falls behind the times before he is aware of
it. The world changes and paterfamilias ought to change with it out of
consideration for his children. You were perfectly right, Josephine,
just as you were right about the moving. Our house was too small and I
was getting to look fusty and frowsy."

"Not so bad as that, Fred. I never said that you didn't look perfectly
clean and respectable. All I meant was that there are such pretty
things now, it seems a pity not to wear them. It wasn't the fashion to
wear them when you were young. I mean younger than you are now," she
added, patting my cheek. "I am glad, Fred, that you are reconciled to
the house. I know that I have been a thorn in your flesh for the last
eighteen months on account of it. I didn't mean to be irritating about
the moving, but I was, and my soul has been wearing sackcloth and ashes
ever since because I was so nasty. You see, Fred, in the first place,
though I pretended to be pleased at your selecting the house, I was
really dreadfully disappointed, for half the fun of a new house is
choosing it. Of course a new house chosen by some one else is better
than none at all, but a woman hates surprises of that sort, and somehow
my teeth were set on edge by the few things about the house that didn't
suit me. And then, dear