ervants but three times since they began housekeeping, nearly a year
ago, which certainly proves that there is every possible convenience
for doing work easily. The outside of the house is not wholly
satisfactory. There should be a tower, and you must put one on
somewhere."

[Illustration: COUSIN GEORGE'S FIRST FLOOR.]

[Illustration: COUSIN GEORGE'S SECOND FLOOR.]

Then followed several pages of advice about furnishings and a
postscript announced that Colonel Livingston was charmed with the house
and would probably build one like it for Clara. The charm of Aunt
Melville's advice lay in its abundant variety. It was new every morning
and fresh every evening. The latest thing was always the best. The
plans of to-morrow were certain to be better than those of yesterday.

Jill therefore made a careful study of the first installment, not
doubting that others of superior merit would be forthcoming. She found
many things to approve. The hall promised comfort and good cheer,
whether stylish or not. The vista across through the parlor bay and the
wide library window would give a pleasant freedom and breadth. The
stairs were well placed, the second landing with its window of stained
glass being especially attractive, whether as a point of observation or
as a cosy retreat, itself partly visible from the hall below. Every
chamber had a closet of its own, not to mention several extra ones, and
there was a place for every bed.

"As for your sanctum, Jack, I don't at all approve. It will be hard
enough, I've no doubt, to keep you from lapsing into barbarism, and I
shall never allow you to set up a den, a regular Bluebeard's room, all
by yourself. I promise never to put your table in order, but I wouldn't
trust the best of men with the care of a closet or a bureau-drawer for
a single week, much less of an entire room with two closets, a case of
drawers, a cupboard and a chimney-piece. But the chief fault of the
plan is that it doesn't happen to suit our lot. The entrances are not
right, the outlooks are not right, the chimneys are not right."

"Turn it around."

"And spoil it? No; I learned a second lesson on our journey, and it was
well worth what it cost. We shall never find a plan made for somebody
else that will suit us."

"Not good enough?"

"It isn't a question of goodness--it's a question of fitness. Neither
Cousin George's, nor any other house I ever saw, is precisely what we
need."

"Moral: Draw your own plans."