me among brothers and sisters whose interests had necessarily
drifted apart from her own! As the years passed by she would become
staid and prim; schoolmistressy manner; the girls would speak of her by
derisive nicknames...

A knifelike pang of envy pierced Darsie's heart; she dropped the dainty
morsel of cake on to her plate with a feeling of actual physical nausea;
for the moment her old ambitions lost their savour, and appeared grey
and dead; she was pierced with an overpowering pity for her own hard
lot.

The sensation was, perhaps, as much physical as mental, for no one can
pass through a moment of acute mental tension without suffering from a
corresponding nervous collapse, but being too young and inexperienced to
realise as much, Darsie mentally heaped ashes on her head, and shed
tears over her blighted life. The signs of her emotion were noticeable,
not only in an unusual silence but in whitening cheeks, which brought
upon her the quick attention of her friends.

"Aren't you feeling quite well, dear?" Mrs Percival asked kindly.
"You look pale. Would you like to lie down?"

"Darsie, you are _green_! What's the matter? You were all right a
moment ago."

"I'm all right now. Please, please, take no notice. I'm perfectly all
right."

Noreen was beginning to protest again, when Ralph called her sharply to
order--

"That's enough, Nora! Awfully bad form to fuss. Talk about something
else. What about that garden-party you were discussing? I thought you
wanted to ask suggestions."

Instantly both sisters were sparkling with excitement and animation.

"Oh, yes, yes. Of course! We must ask Darsie. She has such lovely
ideas. Darsie, we are going to have a garden-party. The invitations
are going out to-morrow. Hundreds of people are coming--mother's
friends, our friends, everybody's friends, every bowing acquaintance for
miles around. The question of the hour is--_What shall we do_? Garden-
parties are such monotonous occasions, always the same over and over
again--people sitting about in their best clothes, eating ices and
fruit, listening to a band, and quizzing each other's best clothes. We
want to hit on a brilliant novelty. What shall it be?"

Darsie mused, her face lighting with pleasure and anticipation.

"I know nothing about garden-parties. There aren't any in town. What
have you done before?"

"Tennis, croquet, clock-golf, ping-pong, archery, yeomanry sports, blue
bands, red