at could leave them
money."

"This isn't a relation," Mrs. Jowett explained. "It's someone Jean was
kind to quite by chance. I think it is _so_ sweet. It quite makes one
want to cry. _Dear_ Jean!"

Mrs. Duff-Whalley looked at the sentimental woman before her with bitter
scorn.

"It would take more than that to make me cry," she snorted. "I wonder
what fool wanted to leave Jean money. Such an unpractical creature!
She'll simply make ducks and drakes of it, give it away to all and
sundry, pauperise the whole neighbourhood."

"Oh, I don't think so," Miss Duncan broke in. "She has had a hard
training, poor child. Such a pathetic mite she was when her great-aunt
died and left her with David and Jock and the little Gervase Taunton! No
one thought she could manage, but she did, and she has been so plucky,
she deserves all the good fortune that life can bring her. I'm longing
to hear what Jock says about this. I do like that boy."

"They are, all three, dear boys," said Mrs. Jowett. "Tim and I quite
feel as if they were our own. Tim, dear," to that gentleman, who had
bounced suddenly and violently into the room, "we are talking about the
great news--Jean's fortune--"

"Ah yes, yes," said Mr. Jowett, distributing brusque nods to the women
present. "What I want is a bit of thick string." (His wife's delicate
drawing-room hardly seemed the place to look for such a thing.) "No, no
tea, my dear. I told you I wanted a bit of _thick string_.... Yes,
let's hope it won't spoil Jean, but I think it's almost sure to. Fortune
hunters, too. Bad thing for a girl to have money.... Yes, yes, I asked
the servants and Chart brought me the string basket, but it was all thin
stuff. I'll lose the post, but it's always the way. Every day more
rushed than another. Remind me, Janetta, to get some thick string
to-morrow. I've no time to go down to the town to-day. Why, bless me, my
morning letters are hardly looked at yet," and he fussed himself out of
the room.

Mrs. Duff-Whalley rose to go.

"Then, Mrs. Jowett, I can depend on you to look after that collecting?
And please be firm. I find that collectors are apt to be very lazy and
unconscientious. Indeed, one told me frankly that in her district she
only went to the people she knew. That isn't the way to collect. The
only way is to get into each house--to stand on the doorstep is no use,
they can so easily send a maid to refuse--and sit there till they give a
subscription. Every year since