ess her for a year?"

"I suppose thirty or forty thousand," was the reply. "I don't expect to
keep count."

Montague sat in silence. "You don't want to shut her up and keep her at
home, do you?" inquired his brother, at last.

"Do you mean that other women spend that much on clothes?" he demanded.

"Of course," said Oliver, "hundreds of them. Some spend fifty
thousand--I know several who go over a hundred."

"It's monstrous!" Montague exclaimed.

"Fiddlesticks!" was the other's response. "Why, thousands of people
live by it--wouldn't know anything else to do."

Montague said nothing to that. "Can you afford to have Alice compete
with such women indefinitely?" he asked.

"I have no idea of her doing it indefinitely," was Oliver's reply. "I
simply propose to give her a chance. When she's married, her bills will
be paid by her husband."

"Oh," said the other, "then this layout is just for her to be exhibited
in."

"You may say that," answered Oliver,--"if you want to be foolish. You
know perfectly well that parents who launch their daughters in Society
don't figure on keeping up the pace all their lifetimes."

"We hadn't thought of marrying Alice off," said Montague.

To which his brother replied that the best physicians left all they
could to nature. "Suppose," said he, "that we just introduce her in the
right set, and turn her loose and let her enjoy herself--and then cross
the next bridge when we come to it?"

Montague sat with knitted brows, pondering.' He was beginning to see a
little daylight now. "Oliver," he asked suddenly, "are you sure the
stakes in this game aren't too big?"

"How do you mean?" asked the other.

"Will you be able to stay in until the show-down? Until either Alice or
myself begins to bring in some returns?"

"Never worry about that," said the other, with a laugh.

"But hadn't you better take me into your confidence?" Montague
persisted. "How many weeks can you pay our rent in this place? Have you
got the money to pay for all these clothes?"

"I've got it," laughed the other--"but that doesn't say I'm going to
pay it."

"Don't you have to pay your bills? Can we do all this upon credit?"

Oliver laughed again. "You go at me like a prosecuting attorney," he
said. "I'm afraid you'll have to inquire around and learn some respect
for your brother." Then he added, seriously, "You see, Allan, people
like Reggie or myself are in position to bring a great deal of custom
to tradesp