then, for the time
being, she would be, to all intents and purposes,
"Miss Shaw." Also, Bedelia was not going
to boarding-school--on the whole, the
arrangement had its advantages. Of course,
later, she would have her turn at school--Patience
meant to devote a good deal of her
winter's reading to boarding-school stories.

She told Sextoness Jane so, when that
person appeared, just before supper time.

Jane looked impressed. "A lot of things
keep happening to you folks right along," she
observed. "Nothing's ever happened to me,
'cept mumps--and things of that sort; you
wouldn't call them interesting. The girls to home?"

"They're 'round on the porch, looking at
some photos Mr. Oram's brought over; and
he's looking at Hilary's. Hilary's going in
for some other kind of picture taking. I wish
she'd leave her camera home, when she goes to
school. Do you want to speak to them about
anything particular?"

"I'll wait a bit," Jane sat down on the
garden-bench beside Patience.

"There, he's gone!" the latter said, as the
front gate clicked a few moments later. "O
Paul!" she called, "You're wanted, Paul!"

"You and Hilary going to be busy
tonight?" Jane asked, as Pauline came across
the lawn.

"Not that I know of."

"I ain't," Patience remarked.

"Well," Jane said, "it ain't prayer-meeting
night, and it ain't young peoples' night and it
ain't choir practice night, so I thought maybe
you'd like me to take my turn at showing you
something. Not all the club--like's not they
wouldn't care for it, but if you think they
would, why, you can show it to them sometime."

"Just we three then?" Pauline asked.
"Hilary and I can go."

"So can I--if you tell mother you want me
to," Patience put in.

"Is it far?" her sister questioned Jane.

"A good two miles--we'd best walk--we
can rest after we get there. Maybe, if you
like, you'd better ask Tom and Josie. Your
ma'll be better satisfied if he goes along, I
reckon. I'll come for you at about half-past
seven."

"All right, thank you ever so much," Pauline
said, and went to tell Hilary, closely
pursued by Patience. However, Mrs. Shaw
vetoed Pauline's proposition that Patience
should make one of the party.

"Not every time, my dear," she explained.

Promptly at half-past seven Jane
appeared. "All ready?" she said, as the four
young people came to meet her. "You don't
want to go expecting anything out of the
common. Like's not, you've all seen i