one to work 'Lorelei'?"

"A chauffeur," said Mr. Ronald; "but no skipper for certain yet. I've
been negotiating."

"Dear me!" I exclaimed. "Must we have a chauffeur and a skipper too?"

"I'm afraid we must; a man who understands the waterways of Holland. A
chauffeur understands only the motor, and lucky if he does that."

"Won't it be dreadfully expensive?" asked Phyllis.

"The skipper's wages won't be more than five or six dollars (a bit more
than one of your sovereigns) a week, and the chauffeur less. They'll
keep themselves, but I meant them to sleep on the barge. The skipper
ought to be a smart chap, who can be trusted with money to pay the
expenses of the boat as one goes along--bridge-money and all sorts of
things. The chauffeur can buy the _essence_--petrol, you call it in
England, don't you?--but the skipper had better do the rest."

"It does seem a frightful responsibility for two girls," said Phyllis.

"Of course, if you'd consent to have my aunt--and me--we'd take all the
trouble off your hands, and half the expense," remarked Mr. Starr. "My
poor aunt is so fond of the water, and there's so little in
Scotland----"

"Little in Scotland?"

"Well, only a few lakes and rivers. It does seem hard she should be
disappointed."

"She mightn't like us," said Phyllis.

"She would lo--I mean, she'd be no aunt of mine if she didn't. I'd cut
her off with a penny."

"It's generally aunts who do that with their nephews," said I.

"Ah, but she's different from other aunts, and I'm different from other
nephews. May I telegraph that she's to come?"

"I thought she was coming."

"I mean, may I telegraph that she's to be a chaperon? I ought to let her
know. She might--er--want more dresses or bonnets, or something."

Phil and I laughed, and so did Mr. Starr. After that, of course, we
couldn't be stony-hearted; besides, we didn't want to be. I could see
that, even to Phil, the thought of a cruise taken in the company of our
new friend and that ideal chaperon, his aunt, Lady MacNairne, had
attractions which the idea of a cruise alone with her stepsister had
lacked.

"Well, in the circumstances, I think we should be callous brutes not to
say 'Yes,'" I replied.

"I don't want to force you into consenting from pure generosity," went
on Mr. Starr. "If you'd like to consult your relations, and have them
find out that I'm all right----"

I laughed again. "I know you better than I do them," said I. "I've never
se