1 UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA DAVIS FRANK R. STOCKTON VOLUME X MRS. CLIFF'S YACHT THE NOVELS AND STOKIES OF FRANK R. STOCKTON MRS. CLIFF'S YACHT NEW YORK CHARLES SCRIBNER'S SONS 1900 cA te^o-tfj zsvtt -wv&yt^-siXA K' ."\ .5\ OF CALIFOKNUk life-preserver was dropped to the swimmer. From a drawing by R. F. ZQGBAUM. THE NOVELS AND STOEIES OF FRANK R. STOCKTON MRS. CLIFF'S YACHT NEW YORK CHARLES SCRIBNER'S SONS 1900 OF CALIFORNIA DAVIS Copyright, 1896, 1900, by CHARLES SCRIBNBB'S SONS THE DEVINNE PRESS. CONTENTS CHAPTER PAGE i ALONE WITH HER WEALTH ... 3 ii WILLY CROUP DOESN'T KNOW . . 10 in Miss NANCY SHOTT 19 iv A LAUNCH INTO A NEW LIFE . . 28 v A FUR-TRIMMED OVERCOAT AND A SILK HAT 38 vi A TEMPERANCE LARK .... 47 vii MR. BURKE ACCEPTS A BESPONSIBILITY . 60 vin MR. BURKE BEGINS TO MAKE THINGS MOVE IN PLAINTON .... 70 ix A MEETING OF HEIRS . . . .81 x THE INTELLECT OF Miss INCHMAN . 93 xi THE ARRIVAL OF THE NEW DINING- ROOM 100 xn THE THORPDYKE SISTERS . . . 110 xin MONEY-HUNGER 116 xiv WILLY CROUP AS A PHILANTHROPIC DIPLOMATIST 123 xv Miss NANCY MAKES A CALL . . . 131 xvi MR. BURKE MAKES A CALL . . . 138 xvn MRS. CLIFF'S YACHT 150 vii CONTENTS CHAPTER PAGE xvni THE DAWN OF THE GROVE OF THE INCAS 160 xix THE "SUMMER SHELTER " . . . 166 xx THE SYNOD 173 xxi A TELEGRAM FROM CAPTAIN HORN . 178 xxn THE "SUMMER SHELTER" GOES TO SEA 187 xxni WILLY CROUP COMES TO THE FRONT . 197 xxiv CHANGES ON THE "SUMMER SHEL TER" ...... 209 xxv A NOTE FOR CAPTAIN BURKE . . 224 xxvi "WE'LL STICK TO SHIRLEY" . . 234 xxvn ON BOARD THE "DUNKERY BEACON " . 241 xxvin THE PEOPLE ON THE "MONTEREY" . 253 xxix THE "VITTORIO" FROM GENOA . . 260 xxx THE BATTLE OF THE MERCHANT SHIPS . . . .270 xxxi "SHE BACKED ! " 279 xxxn A HEAD ON THE WATER . . . 285 xxxin lio so/ 19" NORTH LATITUDE BY 56 io' 49" WEST LONGITUDE . . 292 xxxiv PLAINTON, MAINE .... 304 viii MRS. CLIFFS YACHT MRS. CLIFF'S YACHT CHAPTER I ALONE "WITH HER WEALTH ON a beautiful September afternoon, in a handsome room of one of the grand, up-town hotels in 'New York, sat Mrs. Cliff, widow and millionaire. Widow of a village merchant, mistress of an un pretending house in the little town of Plainton, Maine, and, by strange vicissitudes of fortune, the possessor of great wealth, she was on her way from Paris to the scene of that quiet domestic life to which, for nearly thirty years, she had been accustomed. She was alone in the hotel. Her friends, Captain Horn and his wife Edna, who had crossed the ocean with her, had stayed but a few days in New York, and had left early that afternoon for Niagara, and she was here by herself in the hotel, waiting until the hour should arrive when she would start on a night train for her home. Her position was a peculiar one, altogether new to her. She was absolutely independent. Not only could she do what she pleased, but there was no one to tell 3 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT her what it would be well for her to do, wise for her to do, or unwise. Everything she could possibly want was within her reach, and there was no reason why she should not have everything she wanted. For many months she had been possessed of enor mous wealth, but never until this moment had she felt herself the absolute, untrammelled possessor of it. Until now Captain Horn, to whom she owed her gold, and the power it gave her, had been with her or had exercised an influence over her. Until the time had come when he could avow the possession of his vast treasures, it had been impossible for her to make known her share in them, and even after everything had been settled, and they had all come home together in the finest state-rooms of a great ocean liner, she had still felt dependent upon the counsels and judgment of her friends. But now she was left absolutely free and inde pendent, untrammelled, uncounselled, alone with her wealth. She rose and looked out of the window, and, as she gazed upon the crowd which swept up and down the beautiful avenue, she could not but smile as she thought that she, a plain New England countrywoman, with her gray hair brushed back from her brows, with hands a little hardened and roughened with many a year of household duties, which had been to her as much a pleasure as a labor, was, in all probability, richer than most of the people who sat in the fine carriages or strolled in their fashionable clothes along the sidewalk. "If I wanted to do it," she thought, "I could have one of those carriages with prancing horses and a 4 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT driver in knee-breeches, or I could buy that house opposite, with its great front steps, its balconies, and everything in it. But there is nobody on this earth who could tempt me to live there." "No," said Mrs. Cliff to herself, as she turned from the window, and selecting a fresh easy-chair, sank down into its luxurious depths, "there is nothing in this world so delightful as to go back rich to Plainton. To be rich in Paris or New York is nothing to me. It would simply mean that I should be a common person there, as I used to be at home, and, for the matter of that, a little more common." As the good lady's thoughts wandered northward, and spread themselves from the railroad station at Plainton all over the little town, she was filled with a great content and happiness to go to her old home with her new money. This was a joy beyond any thing she had dreamed of as possible in this world. But it was the conjunction of the two which pro duced this delightful effect upon her mind. The money anywhere else, or Plainton without it, would not have made Mrs. Cliff the happy woman that she was. It pleased her to let her mind wander over the incidents of her recent visit to her old home, the most unhappy visit she had ever made in all her life, but everything that was unpleasant then would help to make everything more delightful in the present home coming. She thought of the mental chains and fetters she had worn when she went to Plainton with plenty of money in her purse and a beautiful pair of California blankets in her handsome trunk ; when she had been 5 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT afraid to speak of the one or to show the other ; when she had sat quietly and received charity from people whose houses and land, furniture, horses, and cows, she could have bought and given away without feel ing their loss ; when she had been publicly berated by Nancy Shott for spending on luxuries money which should have been used to pay her debts ; when she had been afraid to put her money in the bank for fear it would act as a dynamite bomb and blow up the fortunes of her friends ; and when she could find no refuge from the miseries brought upon her by the necessity of concealing her wealth, except to go to bed and cover up her head so that she should not hear the knock of some inquiring neighbor upon her front door. Then, when she had made this background as dark and gloomy as it was possible to make it, she placed before it the glittering picture of her new existence in Plainton. But this new life, bright as it now appeared to her, was not to be begun without careful thought and earnest consideration. Ever since her portion of the golden treasure had been definitely assigned to her, the mind of Mrs. Cliff had been much occupied with plans for her future in her old home. It was not to be altogether a new life. All the friends she had in the world, excepting Captain and Mrs. Horn, lived in Plainton. She did not wish to lose these friends she did not wish to be obliged to make new ones. With simple-minded and honest Willy Croup, who had long lived with her and for her, with Mrs. Perley, the minister's wife, with all her old neighbors and friends, she wished to live as she had always lived, but, of course, with a difference. 6 MRS. CLIFF'S YACHT How to manage, arrange, and regulate that difference was the great problem in her mind. One thing she had determined upon : her money should not come between her and those who loved her and who were loved by her. No matter what she might do or what she might not do, she would not look down upon people simply because she was rich. And oh, the blessed thought which followed that ! There would be nobody who could look down upon her because she was not rich ! She did not intend to be a fine new woman. She did not intend to build a fine new house. She was going to be the same Mrs. Cliff that she used to be she was going to live in the same house. To be sure, she would add to it. She would have a new dining-room, and a guest-chamber over it, and she would do a great many other things which were needed, but she would live in her old home, where she and her husband had been so happy, and where she hoped he would look down from heaven and see her happy until the end of her days. As she thought of the things she intended to do, and of the manner in which she intended to do them, Mrs. Cliff rose and walked the floor. She felt as if she were a bird a common-sized bird, perhaps, but with enor mous wings, which seemed to grow and grow the more she thought of them, until they were able to carry her so far and so high that her mind lost its power of directing them. She determined to cease to think of the future, of what was going to be, and to let her mind rest and quiet itself with what really existed. Here she was in a great city full of wonders and delights, of com- 7 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT forts, conveniences, luxuries, necessities, and all within her power. Almost anything she could think of she might have. Almost anything she wanted to do she might do. A feeling of potentiality seemed to swell and throb within her veins. She was possessed of an overpowering desire to do something now, this mo ment, to try the power of her wealth. Near her on the richly papered wall was a little button. She could touch this and order what should she order? A carriage and prancing pair to take her to drive ? She did not wish to drive. A cab to take her to the shops, or an order to merchants to send her samples of their wares, that here, in her own room, like a queen or a princess, she might choose what she wanted and think nothing of the cost? But no, she did not wish ta buy anything. She had purchased in Paris everything that she cared to carry to Plainton. She went and stood by the electric button. She must touch it, and must have something ! Her gold must give her an instant proof that it could minister to her desires, but what should she ask for ? Her mind travelled over the whole field of the desirable, and yet not one salient object presented itself. There was absolutely nothing that she could think of that she wished to ask for at that moment. She was like a poor girl in a fairy-tale, to whom a good fairy comes and asks her to make one wish and it shall be granted, and who stands hesitating and trembling, not being able to decide what is the one great thing for which she should ask. So stood Mrs. Cliff. There was a fairy, a powerful fairy, in her service, who could give her anything she 8 MRS. CLIFF'S YACHT desired, and with all her heart she wanted to want something that minute. What should she want? In her agitation she touched the bell. Half fright ened at what she had done, she stepped back and sat down. In a few minutes there was a knock, the door opened, a servant entered. "Bring me a cup of tea," said Mrs. Cliff. CHAPTER II WILLY CROUP DOESN'T KNOW THE next afternoon, as the train approached Plainton, Mrs. Cliff found herself a great deal agitated as she thought of the platform at the station. Who would be there? How should she be met? With all her heart she hoped that there would not be anything like a formal reception, and yet this was not improb able. Everybody knew she was coming ; everybody knew by what train she would arrive. She had written to Willy Croup, and she was very sure that everybody knew everything that she had written. More than this, everybody knew that she was coming home rich. How rich they were not aware, because she had not gone into particulars on this subject, but they knew that the wealthy Mrs. Cliff would arrive at five-twenty that afternoon, and what were they going to do about it? When she had gone home before, all her friends and neighbors, and even distant acquaintances, if such people were possible in such a little town, had come to her house to bid her welcome, and many of them had met her at the station. But then they had come to meet a poor, shipwrecked widow, pitied by 10 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT most of them and loved by many. Even those who neither pitied nor loved her had a curiosity to see her, for she had been shipwrecked, and it was not known in Plainton how people looked after they had been wrecked. But now the case was so different that Mrs. Cliff did not expect the same sort of greeting, and she greatly feared formality. If Mr. Perley should appear on the platform, surrounded by some of the leading members of his congregation, and should publicly take her by the hand and bid her "Welcome home ! " and if those who felt themselves entitled to do so should come forward and shake hands with her, while others, who might feel that they belonged to a different station in life, should keep in the background and wait until she came to speak to them, she would be deeply hurt. After all, Plainton and the people in it were dearer to her than anything else in the world, and it would be a great shock if she should meet formality where she looked for cordial love. She wanted to see Mr. Perley, he was the first person she had seen when she came home before, but now she hoped that he would not be there. She was very much afraid that he would make a stiff speech to her, and if he did that, she would know that there had been a great change, and that the friends she would meet were not the same friends she had left. She was almost afraid to look out of the window as the train slowed up at the station. The minds of the people of Plainton had been greatly exercised about this home-coming of Mrs. Cliff. That afternoon it was probable that no other subject of importance was thought about or talked 11 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT about in the town, and for some days before the whole matter had been so thoroughly considered and discussed that the good citizens, without really com ing to any fixed and general decision upon the subject, had individually made up their minds that, no matter what might happen afterwards, they would make no mistake upon this very important occasion which might subsequently have an influence upon their intercourse with their old, respected neighbor, now millionaire. Each one for himself, or herself, decided some of them singly and some of them in groups that as they did not know what sort of a woman Mrs. Cliff had become since the change in her circum stances, they would not place themselves in false positions. Other people might go and meet her at the station, but they would stay at home and see what happened. Even Mr. Perley thought it wise, under the circumstances, to do this. Therefore it was that, when Mrs. Cliff stepped down upon the platform, she saw no one there but Willy Croup. If Mrs. Cliff was a little shocked and a good deal surprised to find no one to meet her but that simple-minded dependant and relative, her emotions were excited in a greater degree by the manner in which she was greeted by this old friend and com panion. Instead of rushing toward her with open arms, for Willy was an impulsive person and given to such emotional demonstrations, Miss Croup came forward extending a loosely filled black cotton glove. Her large, light-blue eyes showed a wondering interest, and Mrs. Cliff felt that every portion of her visible attire was being carefully scanned. 12 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT For a moment Mrs. Cliff hesitated, and then she took the hand of Willy Cronp and shook it. But she did not speak. She had no command of words at least, for greeting. Willy earnestly inquired after her health, and said how glad she was to see her. But Mrs. Cliff did not listen. She looked about her. For an instant she thought that possibly the train had come in ahead of time. But this, of course, was absurd trains never did that. "Willy," she said, her voice a little shaken, "has anything happened? Is anybody sick 1 ? " "Oh, no ! " said Willy. "Everybody is well, so far as I know. I guess you are wondering why there is nobody here to meet you, and I have been wondering at that, too. They must have thought that you did not want to be bothered when you were attending to your baggage and things. Is anybody with you ? " "With me ! " exclaimed Mrs. Cliff. "Who could be with me?" "Oh, I didn't know," replied the other. "I thought perhaps you might have a maid-servant, or some of those black people you wrote about." Mrs. Cliff was on the point of telling Willy she was a fool, but she refrained. "Here is the baggageman," said Willy, "and he wants your checks." As Mrs. Cliff took the little pieces of brass from her purse and handed them to the man, Willy looked on in amazement. "Good gracious!" she exclaimed. "Seven! I guess you had to pay for extra baggage. Shall I get 13 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT you a carriage, and where do you want to be driven to to your own house or the hotel?" Now Mrs. Cliff could not restrain herself. "What is the matter with you, Willy? Have you gone crazy?" she exclaimed. "Of course, I am going to my own house, and I do not want any carriage. Did I ever need a carriage to take me such a short distance as that? Tell the man to bring some one with him to carry the trunks up-stairs, and then come on." "Let me carry your bag," said Willy, as the two walked away from the station at a much greater pace, it may be remarked, than Willy was accustomed to walk. "No, you shall not carry my bag," said Mrs. Cliff, and not another word did she speak until she had en tered the hallway of her home. Then, closing the door behind her, and without looking around at any of the dear objects for a sight of which she had so long been yearning, she turned to her companion. "Willy," she cried, "what does this mean? Why do you treat me in this way when I come home after having been away so long, and having suffered so much ? Why do you greet me as if you took me for a tax-collector? Why do you stand there like a a horrible clam ? " Willy hesitated. She looked up, and she looked down. "Things are so altered," she said, "and I didn't know" "Well, know now," said Mrs. Cliff, as she held out her arms. In a moment the two women were clasped in a tight embrace, kissing and sobbing. "How should I know? " said poor Willy, as she was 14 MRS CLIFFS YACHT wiping her eyes. "Chills went down me as I stood on that platform, wondering what sort of a grand lady you would look like when you got out of the car, with two servant- women, most likely, and perhaps a butler, and trying to think what I should say." Mrs. Cliff laughed. "You were born addle-pated, and you can't help it. Now, let us go through this house without wasting a minute ! " "Willy gazed at her in amazement. "You're just the same as you always was ! " she cried. "Indeed, I am !" said Mrs. Cliff. "Did you clean this dining-room yourself, Willy? It looks as spick- and-span, as if I had just left it." "Indeed, it does," was the proud reply, "and you couldn't find a speck of dust from the ceiling to the floor ! " When Mrs. Cliff had been up -stairs and down-stairs, and in the front yard, the side yard, and the back yard, and when her happy eyes had rested upon all her dear possessions, she went into the kitchen. "Now, Willy," she said., "let us go to work and get supper, for, I must say, I am hungry." At this Willy Croup turned pale, her chin dropped, a horrible suspicion took possession of her. Could it be possible that it was all a mistake, or that something dreadful had happened that the riches which every body had been talking about had never existed, or had disappeared? She might want to go to her old home ; she might want to see her goods and chattels, but that she should want to help get supper that was incomprehensible ! At that moment the world looked very black to Willy. If Mrs. Cliff had gone into the parlor, and had sat down in the best rocking- 15 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT chair to rest herself, and had said to her, "Please get supper as soon as you can/' Willy would have be lieved in everything. But now ! The grinding of heavy wheels was heard in front of the house, and Willy turned quickly and looked out of the window. There was a wagon containing seven enormous trunks ! Since the days when Plainton was a little hamlet, up to the present time, when it con tained a hotel, a bank, a lyceum, and a weekly paper, no one had ever arrived within its limits with seven such trunks. Instantly the blackness disappeared from before the mind of Willy Croup. "Now, you tell the men where to carry them," she cried, "and I will get the supper in no time ! Betty Handshall stayed here until this morning, but she went away after dinner, for she was afraid if she stayed she would be in the way, not knowing how much help you would bring with you." "I wonder if they are all crack-brained," thought Mrs. Cliff, as she went to the front door to attend to her baggage. That evening nearly all Plainton came to see Mrs. Cliff. No matter how she returned, as a purse-proud bondholder, as a lady of elegant wealth with her at tendants, as an old friend suddenly grown jolly and prosperous, it would be all right for her neighbors to go in and see her in the evening. There they might suit themselves to her new deportment, whatever it might be, and there would be no danger of any of them getting into false positions, which would have been very likely indeed if they had gone to meet her at the station. 16 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT Her return to her own house gave her real friends a great deal of satisfaction, for some of them had feared she would not go there. It would have been difficult for them to know how to greet Mrs. Cliff at a hotel, even such an unpretentious one as that of Plainton. All these friends found her the same warm-hearted ? cordial woman that she had ever been. In fact, if there was any change at all in her, she was more cordial than they had yet known her. As in the case of Willy Croup, a cloud had risen before her. She had been beset by the sudden fear that her money already threatened to come between her and her old friends. "Not if I can help it ! " said Mrs. Cliff to herself, as fervently as if she had been vowing a vow to seek the Holy Grail. And she did help it. The good people forgot what they had expected to think about her, and only remembered what they had always thought of her. No matter what had hap pened, she was the same. But what had happened, and how it had happened, and all about it, up and down, to the right and the left, above and below, everybody wanted to know. And Mrs. Cliff, with sparkling eyes, was only too glad to tell them. She had been obliged to be so reserved when she had come home before, that she was all the more eager to be communicative now, and it was past midnight before the first of that eager and delighted company thought of going home. There was one question, however, which Mrs. Cliff successfully evaded, and that was the amount of her wealth. She would not give even an approximate idea of the value of her share of the golden treasure. 17 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT It was very soon plain to everybody that Mrs. Cliff was the same woman she used to be in regard to keeping to herself that which she did not wish to tell to others, and so everybody went away with imagina tion absolutely unfettered. 18 CHAPTEE III MISS NANCY SHOTT THE next morning Mrs. Cliff sat alone in her parlor, with her mind earnestly fixed upon her own circum stances. Out in the kitchen, Willy Croup was dashing about like a domestic fanatic, eager to get the morn ing's work done, and everything put in order, that she might go up -stairs with Mrs. Cliff, and witness the opening of those wonderful trunks. She was a happy woman, for she had a new dish- pan, which Mrs. Cliff had authorized her to buy that very morning, the holes in the bottom of the old one having been mended so often that she and Mrs. Cliff both believed that it would be very well to get a new one and rid themselves of further trouble. Willy also had had the proud satisfaction of stop ping at the carpenter shop, on her way to buy the dish-pan, and order him to come and do whatever was necessary to the back kitchen door. Sometimes it had been the hinges and sometimes it had been the lock which had been out of order on that door for at least a year, and although they had been tinkering here and tinkering there, the door had never worked properly. But now Mrs. Cliff had said that it must be 19 MRS. CLIFF'S YACHT put in perfect order, even if a new door and a new frame were required, and without any regard to what it might cost. This to Willy was the dawn of a new era, and the thought of it excited her like wine. Mrs. Cliff's mind was not excited ; it was disquieted. She had been thinking of her investments and of her deposits, all of which had been made under wise ad vice, and it had suddenly occurred to her to calculate how much richer she was to-day than she had been yesterday. When she appreciated the fact that the interest on her invested property had increased her wealth, since the previous morning, by some hundreds of dollars, it frightened her. She felt as if an irre sistible flood of opulence was flowing in upon her, and she shuddered to think of the responsibility of direct ing it into its proper courses, and so preventing it from overwhelming her and sweeping her away. To-morrow there would be several hundred dollars more, and the next day more, and so on always. And what was she doing, or what had she planned to do, to give proper direction to these tidal waves of wealth ? She had bought a new dish-pan and ordered a door repaired ! To be sure, it was very soon to begin to think of the expenditure of her income, but it was a question which could not be postponed. The importance of it was increasing all the time. Every five minutes she was two dollars richer. For a moment she wished herself back in Paris or New York. There she might open some flood-gate which would give instant relief from the pressure of her affluence, and allow her time to think. But what could she do in 20 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT Plainton at least, how should she begin to do any thing? She got up and walked about the room. She was becoming annoyed, and even a little angry. She resented this intrusion of her wealth upon her. She wanted to rest quietly for a time, to enjoy her home and friends, and not be obliged to think of anything which it was incumbent upon her to do. From the bottom of her heart she wished that her possessions had all been solid gold, or in some form in which they could not increase, expand, or change in any way until she gave them leave. Then she would live for a week or two as she used to live, without thought of increment or responsibilities, until she was ready to begin the life of a rich woman, and to set in motion the currents of her exuberant income. But she could not change the state of affairs. The system of interest had been set in motion, and her income was flowing in upon her hour by hour, day by day, steadily and irresistibly, and her mind could not be at rest until she had done something at least, planned something which would not only prevent her from being overwhelmed and utterly discouraged, but which would enable her to float proudly, on this grand current of absolute power, over the material interests of the world. Mrs. Cliff was a woman of good sense. No matter how much money she might possess, she would have considered herself its unworthy possessor if she should spend any of it without proper value received. She might spend it foolishly, but she wanted the worth of her money. She would consider it a silly thing, for instance, to pay a thousand dollars for an India shawl, 21 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT because few people wore India shawls, and she did not care for them ; but if she had done so, she would have been greatly mortified if she found that she had paid too much, and that she might have bought as good a shawl for seven hundred and fifty dollars. Since she had been in that room and thinking about these things, enough interest had come to her to en able her to buy a good silver watch for some deserving person. Now, who was there to whom she could give a plain silver watch f Willy Croup would be glad to have it, but then, it would be better to wait a few hours and give her a gold one. Now it was that Willy came into the room with a disappointed expression upon her countenance. "I was just coming in to tell you," she said, "that I was ready now to go up and help you open the trunks, but here comes that horrid Miss Shott, and dear knows how long she will stay ! " Nancy Shott was the leading spinster of Plainton. In companies where there were married ladies she was sometimes obliged to take a second place, but never among maidens, old or young. There were very few subjects upon which Miss Shott had not an opinion, and whatever this opinion might be, she considered it her first duty in life to express it. As a rule, the expression was more agreeable to her than to others. When Mrs. Cliff heard that Miss Shott was ap proaching, she instantly forgot her wealth and all her perplexities concerning it. Miss Shott had not called upon her the previous evening, but she had not ex pected her, nor did she expect her now. On her previous visit to Plainton, Mrs. Cliff had 22 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT been shamefully insulted by Miss Shott, who had accused her of extravagance, and, by implication, of dishonesty, and, in return, the indignant widow had opened upon her such a volley of justifiable retaliation that Miss Shott, in great wrath, had retired from the house, followed, figuratively, by a small coin, which she had brought as a present, and which had been hurled after her. But Mrs. Cliff knew that her acrimonious neighbor could never be depended upon to do anything which might be expected of her, and she was not quite so much surprised as she was annoyed. Of course, she had known she must meet Nancy Shott, and she had intended to do nothing which would recall to the mind of any one that she remembered the disagreeable in cident referred to, but she had not expected that the meeting would be in private. She knew that Nancy would do something decidedly unpleasant. If she had stayed away because she wanted a chance to reopen the previous quarrel, that would be bad enough, but if she had determined to drop all resentment, and had come prepared to offer honey and sugar, and thus try to make a rich friend out of one she had considered as a poor enemy, that would be still more disagreeable. But by the time the visitor had entered the parlor, Mrs. Cliff had made up her mind to meet her as if nothing unpleasant had ever happened between them, and then to await the course of events. She was not at all pleased with the visit, but, notwithstanding this, she had great curiosity to know what Miss Shott had to say about the change in her circumstances. Nancy Shott was different from other people. She 23 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT was capable of drawing the most astounding inferences, and of coming to the most soul-irritating conclusions, even on subjects which could not be otherwise than pleasant to ordinary people. "How do you do?" said Miss Shott, offering her hand. "I am glad to see you back, Mrs. Cliff." Mrs. Cliff replied that she was quite well, and was glad to be back. "You are not looking as hale as you did," said the visitor, as she seated herself. "You must have lost a good many pounds. But that was to be expected. From what I have heard, South America must be about as unhealthy a place as any part of the world, and then, on top of that, living in Paris, with water to drink which, I am told, is enough to make anybody sick to look at it, is bound to have some sort of an effect upon a person." Mrs. Cliff smiled. She was used to this sort of talk from Nancy Shott. "I am better than I was two years ago," she said, "and the last time I was weighed I found that I had gained seven pounds." "Well, there is no accounting for that," said her visitor, "except as we grow old we are bound to show it, and sometimes aging looks like bad health, and as to fat, that often comes as years go on, though, as far as I am concerned, I think it is a great misfortune to have more to carry as you get less and less able to carry it." Mrs. Cliff might have said that that sort of thing would not be likely to trouble Miss Shott, whose scantily furnished frame was sure to become thinner and thinner as she became older and weaker, but she merely smiled and waited to hear what would come next. 24 MRS. CLIFF'S YACHT "I do not want to worry you," said Miss Shott, "but several people that were here last night said you was not looking as they had hoped to see you look, and I will just say to you, if it is anything connected with your appetite, with a feeling of goneness in the mornings, you ought to buy a quassia cup, and drink the full of it at least three times a day." Miss Shott knew that Mrs. Cliff absolutely detested the taste of quassia. Mrs. Cliff was not annoyed. She hoped that her visitor would soon get through with these prefatory remarks, and begin to take the stand, whatever it might be, which she had come there that morning to take. " There has been sickness here since you last left," said Miss Shott, "and it has been where it was least to be expected, too. Barney Thompson's little boy, the second son, has had the diphtheria, and where he got it nobody knows, for it was vacation-time, and he did not go to school, and there was no other diphtheria anywhere in all this town, and yet he had it, and had it bad." "He did not die?" said Mrs. Cliff. "Oh, no, he got over it, and perhaps it was a bad case, and perhaps it was not. But you may be sure I did not go near it, for I considered it my duty to keep away, and I did keep away. But the trouble is" "And did none of the other children take it?" asked Mrs. Cliff. "No, they didn't. But the trouble is that when diphtheria, or anything like it, comes up suddenly like this, without any reason that nobody can see, it is just as likely to come up again without any reason, and I am expecting to hear every day of another of them Thompson children being stricken down. So I was 25 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT very sorry indeed, Mrs. Cliff, to see, this very morning, Willy Croup coming out of Barney Thompson's house, and to hear from her afterwards that she had been to order him to come here to put up a new kitchen door, which I do not suppose is absolutely needed, and even if it is, I am sure I would wait a good while before I would have Barney Thompson come into my house with diphtheria, that very minute, perhaps, in the throats of one or maybe more of his children. But, of course, if people choose to trifle with their own lives, it is their own business." "It was not real diphtheria," said Willy Croup, who happened to be passing the open door at this moment. "It was only a bad sore throat, and the child was well in two days." "I suppose, of course," said Miss Shott, "that if the disease did get into this house, Willy Croup would be the first to take it, because she is such a spongy person that she takes almost anything that is in the air and is not wholesome. But then, you would not want to lose her, and after a funeral in the house, no matter whose it may be, things is always gloomy for a long time afterwards, and nobody can feel easy if it was a catching disease that the person died of." Mrs. Cliff was naturally desirous to hear all the domestic news of the town, but she would have liked to have had something pleasant thrown in among the gloomy tidings of which Miss Shott had made herself the bearer, and so she made a little effort to turn the conversation. "I shall be glad to go about and see my old friends and neighbors," she said, "for I am interested in every thing which has happened to them. But I suppose it 26 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT will be some days before I can settle down and feel ready to go on in the old way. It seems to me as if I had been on the move ever since I left here, although, of course, I was not travelling all the time." "I suppose nobody has told you," said Miss Shott, "that Edward Darley has ploughed up that little pasture of his, and planted it with young apple-trees. Now, it does seem to me that for a man like Edward Darley, who comes of a consumptive family, and who has been coughing regularly, to my certain knowledge, for more than a year, to go and plant apple-trees, which he can't expect to live to see bear fruit, is nothing more or less than a wicked waste of money, time, and labor. I suppose if I was to go and tell him so, he would not like that. But I do not know as I ought to consider it. There are people in this world who never know anything if they're not told ! " Five other topics of the town, each of a doleful nature, and each indicating an evident depravity in a citizen of Plainton, were related by Miss Shott, and then she arose to go. "I hope you'll remember what I told you about Thompson's children," she said, as she walked to the front door, "and if I was you, I'd have that kitchen fumigated after he has put the door in ! " "There, now!" said Miss Shott to herself, as she proudly walked down the street. "The Widow Cliff can't say I've done any toadying, and no matter what she's got, and what she hasn't got, she can't say to herself that I consider her any better able to give me twenty-five cents than she was when she was here before, or that it makes any difference to me whether she has much or little ! " 27 CHAPTER IV A LAUNCH INTO A NEW LIFE IT required the greater part of two days for Mrs. Cliff and Willy to open the seven trunks and properly display and dispose of the various articles and goods, astonishing in their variety and beauty, and absolutely amazing when the difference between the price paid for them and what they would have cost in New York was considered. During these fascinating operations it so happened that, at one time or another, nearly all of Mrs. Cliff's female friends dropped in, and all were wonderfully impressed by what they saw and what they heard. But although Miss Shott did not come there during the grand opening, it was not long before she knew the price, and something of the general appearance, of nearly everything that Mrs. Cliff had brought with her. Among the contents of the trunks were a great many presents for Mrs. Cliff's friends, and whenever Miss Shott heard of one of these gifts, she made a remark to the effect that she had not a doubt in the world that the Widow Cliff knew better than to bring her a present, for she would not want the thing, what- 28 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT ever it was, whether a glass pitcher or a pin-cushion, flung back at her after the fashion that she had set herself at a time when everybody was trying their best to be kind to her. It was clearly a fact that through the influence of the seven trunks Mrs. Cliff was becoming a very popu lar woman, and Miss Shott did not like it at all. She had never had any faith at least, she said so in those lumps of gold found in a hole in some part of the world that nobody had ever heard of, and had not hesitated to say that fortunes founded on such wild- goose stories as these should not even be considered by people of good sense who worked for their living, or had incomes which they could depend on. But the dress-goods, the ribbons, the gloves, the little clocks, the shoes, the parasols, the breast-pins, the portfolios of pictures, the jewelry, the rugs and table-covers, and hundreds of other beautiful and foreign things, were a substantial evidence that Mrs. Cliffs money was not all moonshine. It was very pleasant for Mrs. Cliff to bring out her treasures to display them to her enthusiastic friends, and to arrange them in her house, and to behold the rapturous delight of Willy Croup from early morn until bedtime. But the seven empty trunks had been carried up into the garret, and now Mrs. Cliff set her mind to the solution of the question : How was she to begin her new life in her old home ? It must be a new life, for to live as she had lived even in the days of her highest prosperity during her husband's life would be absurd and even wicked. With such an income she must endeavor, as far as was possible to her, to live in a 29 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT manner worthy of it. But one thing she was deter mined npon : she would not alienate her friends by climbing to the top of her money and looking down upon them. None of them knew how high she would be if she were to perch herself on the very top of that money, but even if she climbed up a little way, they might still feel that they were very small in her sight. No, the money should always be kept in the back ground. It might be as high as the sky and as glorious as a sunset, but she would be on the ground with the people of Plainton, and, as far as was possible, they should all enjoy the fine weather together. She could not repress a feeling of pride, for she would be looked upon as one of the principal persons if not the principal person in Plainton. But she could not believe that any real friend could possibly object to that. If her husband had lived and prospered, it was probable he would have been the principal man in Plainton, the minister always excepted. But now there was no reason whatever why any one should object to her being a principal personage, and, in this case, she could not see why the minister's wife should be excepted. But Plainton was to be her home, and the Plainton people were to be her friends. How should she set about using her money in such a way that she should not be driven forth to some large city to live as ordi nary wealthy people live, in a fashion to which she was utterly unsuited, and which possessed for her no attractions whatever? Of course, she had early determined to devote a large sum to charitable purposes, for she would have 30 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT thought herself a very unworthy woman if her wealth had not benefited others than herself. But this was an easy matter to attend to. The amount she had set aside for charity was not permanently invested, and through the advice of Mr. Perley, there would be no difficulty in devoting this to suitable objects. Already she had confidentially spoken to her pastor on the sub ject, and had found him enthusiastic in his desire to help her in every possible way in her benevolent pur poses. But who was there who could help her in regard to herself? Who was there who could tell her how she ought to live so as to gain all the good that her money should give her, and yet not lose that which was to her the highest object of material existence a happy and prosperous life among her old friends in her native town? Should she choose to elevate herself in the social circle by living as ordinary very rich people live, she could not hope to elevate her friends in that way, although she would be glad enough to do it in many cases, and there would be a gap between them which would surely grow wider and wider. And yet, here was this money coming in upon her in a steady stream day by day, and how was she going to make herself happier with it? She must do that, or, she believed, it would be her duty to hand it over to somebody else who was better adapted by nature to use it. "If I did not take so much pleasure in things which cost so little and which are so easy for me to buy," said poor Mrs. Cliff to herself, "or if I did not have so much money, I am sure I should get on a great deal better." 31 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT Mrs. Cliff's belief that she must not long delay in selecting some sort of station in life, and endeavoring to live up to it, was soon strengthened by Willy Cronp. During the time of the trunk-opening, and for some days afterwards, when all her leisure hours were occupied with the contemplation and considera tion of her own presents, Willy had been perfectly contented to let things go on in the old way, or any way. But now the incongruity of Mrs. Cliff's present mode of living, and the probable amount of her for tune, began to impress itself upon her. "It does seem to me," said she, "that it's a sin and a shame that you should be goin' about this house just as you used to do, helpin' me up-stairs and down-stairs, as if you couldn't afford to hire nobody. You ought to have a girl, and a good one, and, for the matter of that, you might have two of 'em, I suppose. And even if it wasn't too much for you to be workin' about when there's no necessity for it, the people are beginnin' to talk, and that ought to be stopped." "What are they talking about?" asked Mrs. Cliff. "Well, it's not everybody that's talkin'," returned Willy, "and I guess that them that does gets their opin ions from one quarter, but I've heard people say that it's pretty plain that all you got out of that gold-mine you spent in buyin' the things you brought home in your trunks, for if you didn't, you wouldn't be livin' like this, helpin' to do your own housework and cookin'." In consequence of this conversation, a servant of all work was employed, for Mrs. Cliff did not know what she would do with two women until she had made a change in her household arrangements ; and 32 MRS. CLIFF'S YACHT with this as a beginning, our good widow determined to start out on her career as a rich woman who in tended to enjoy herself in the fashion she liked best. She sent for Mr. Thompson, the carpenter, and con sulted with him in regard to the proposed additions to her house. But when she had talked for a time, she became disheartened. She found that it would be necessary to dig a new cellar close to her present premises, that there would be stones, and gravel, and lime, and sand, and carts and horses, and men, and dirt, and that it would be some months before all the hammering, and the sawing, and the planing, and the plastering, and tinwork could be finished, and all this would be going on under her eye, and close to her ears, during those first months in which she had pro posed to be so happy in her home. She could not bear to give the word to dig, and pound, and saw. It was not like building a new house, for that would not be near her, and the hubbub of its construction would not annoy her. So she determined she would not begin a new dining-room at present. She would wait a little while, until she had had some good of her house as it was, and then she would feel better satisfied to live in the midst of pounding, banging, and all-pervading dust. But she would do something. She would have the fence which separated the sidewalk from her front yard newly painted. She had long wanted to have that done, but had not been able to afford it. But when Mr. Thompson went to look at the fence, he told her that it would be really a waste of money to paint it, for in many places it was old and decayed, 33 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT and it would be mucli wiser to put up a new one, and paint that. Again Mrs. Cliff hesitated. If that fence had to be taken down, and the posts dug up, and new posts put in, and the flower-bed which ran along the inside of it destroyed, it would be just as well to wait until the other work began, and have it all done at once. So she told Mr. Thompson he need not send a painter, for she would make the old fence do for a while. Mrs. Cliff sighed a little as the carpenter walked away, but there were other things to do. There was the pasture-lot at the rear of her garden, and she could have a cow, and there was the little barn, and she could have a horse. The idea of the horse pleased her more than anything she had yet thought of in connec tion with her wealth. In her days of prosperity it had been her greatest pleasure to drive in her phaeton with her good brown horse, generally with Willy Croup by her side, to stop at shops or to make calls upon friends, and to make those little excursions into the surrounding country in which she and Willy both delighted. They had some times gone a long distance, and had taken their dinner with them, and Willy was really very good in unhar nessing the horse and watering him at a brook, and in giving him some oats. To return to these old joys was a delightful prospect, and Mrs. Cliff made inquiries about her horse, which had been sold in the town. But he was gone. He had been sold to a drover, and his whereabouts no one knew. So she went to Mr. Williams, the keeper of the hotel, who knew more about horses than anybody 34 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT else, and consulted with him on the subject of a new steed. She told him just what she wanted : a gentle horse which she could drive herself, and one which Willy could hold when she went into a house or a shop. Now, it so happened that Mr. Williams had just such a horse, and when Mrs. Cliff had seen it, and when Willy had come up to look at it, and when the matter had been talked about in all the aspects in which it presented itself to Mrs. Cliff's mind, she bought the animal, and it was taken to her stable, where Andrew Marks, a neighbor, was engaged to take care of it. The next morning Mrs. Cliff and Willy took a drive a little way out of town, and they both agreed that this horse, which was gray, was a great deal better traveller than the old brown, and a much handsomer animal ; but both of them also agreed that they did not believe that they would ever learn to love him as they had their old horse. Still, he was very easy to drive, and he went along so pleasantly, without needing the whip in the least, that Mrs. Cliff said to herself that, for the first time since her return, she really felt herself a rich woman. "If everything," she thought, "should come to me as this horse came to me, how delightful my life would be ! When I wanted him, I found him. I did not have to trouble myself in the least about the price. I simply paid it, and ordered him sent home. Now, that sort of thing is what makes a person feel truly rich.' 7 When they had gone far enough, and had reached a wide place in the road, Mrs. Cliff turned and started 35 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT back to Plainton. But now the horse began to be a different kind of a horse. With his face toward his home, he set out to trot as fast as he could, and when Mrs. Cliff, not liking such a rapid pace, endeavored to pull him in, she found it very hard to do, and when she began to saw his mouth, thinking that would restrain his ardor, he ambled and capered, and Mrs. Cliff was obliged to let him resume his rapid gait. He was certainly a very hard-mouthed horse going home, and Mrs. Cliff's arms ached, and Willy Croup's heart quaked, long before they reached the town. When they reached Plainton, Mrs. Cliff began to be afraid that he would gallop through the streets, and she told Willy that, if he did, she must not scream, but must sit quietly, and she would endeavor to steer him clear of the vehicles and people. But although he did not gallop, the ardent gray seemed to travel faster after he entered the town, and Mrs. Cliff, who was getting very red in the face from her steady tugging at the reins, thought it wise not to attempt to go home, but to let her horse go straight to the hotel stables where he had lived. When Mrs. Cliff had declared to Mr. Williams that that horse would never suit her, that she would not be willing to drive it, and would not even think of going into a house and leaving Willy Croup to hold him, he was very much surprised, and said that he had not a gentler horse in his stable, and he did not believe there was one in the town. "All horses," said he, "want to go home, especially at dinner-time." "But the old brown did not," urged Mrs. Cliff. "That is the sort of horse I want." 36 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT "Some very old beast might please you better," said he, "but really, Mrs. Cliff, that is not the sort of horse you should have. He would die or break down in a little while, and then you would have to get another. What you should do is to have a good horse and a driver. You might get a two-seated carriage, either open or closed, and go anywhere and everywhere, and never think of the horse." That was not the thing she longed for. That would not bring back the happy days when she drove the brown through the verdant lanes. If she must have a driver, she might as well hire a cab and be driven about. But she told Mr. Williams to get her a suitable vehicle, and she would have Andrew Marks to drive her, and she and Willy Croup walked sadly home. As to the cow she succeeded better. She bought a fairly good one, and Willy undertook to milk her and to make butter. "Now, what have I done so far ? " said Mrs. Cliff, on the evening of the day when the cow came home. "I have a woman to cook, I have a new kitchen door, and I have a cow ! I do not count the horse and the wagon, for if I do not drive myself, I shall not feel that they are mine in the way that I want them to be." 37 CHAPTER V A FUR-TRIMMED OVERCOAT AND A SILK HAT MRS. CLIFF now began to try very hard to live as she ought to live, without pretensions or snobbery, but in a style becoming, in some degree, her great fortune. There was one thing she determined to do immedi ately, and that was to begin a series of hospitalities and it made her feel proud to think that she could do this, and do it handsomely, and yet do it in the old home where everybody knew she had for years been obliged to practise the strictest economy. She gave a dinner to which she invited her most select friends. Mr. and Mrs. Perley were there, and the Misses Thorpdyke, two maiden ladies who consti tuted the family of the highest social pretension of Plainton. There were other people who were richer, but Miss Eleanor Thorpdyke, now a lady of nearly seventy, and her sister Barbara, some ten years younger, belonged to the very best family in that part of the country, and were truly the aristocrats of the place. But they had always been very friendly with Mrs. Cliff, and they were glad to come to her dinner. The other guests were all good people, and a dinner-party 38 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT of more distinction could not have been collected in that town. But this dinner did not go off altogether smoothly. If the people had come merely to eat, they must have been abundantly satisfied, for everything was of the very best and well cooked, Mrs. Cliff and Willy having seen to that. But there were certain roughnesses and hitches in the management of the dinner which dis turbed Mrs. Cliff. In her travels and at the hotels where she had lived she had seen a great deal of good service, and she knew what it was. "Willy, who, being a relative, should really have come to the table, had decidedly declined to do so, and had taken upon herself the principal part of the waiting, assisted by the general servant and a small girl who had been called in. But the dining-room was very small, some of the chairs were but a little distance from the wall, and it was evident that Willy had not a true appreciation of the fact that in recent years she had grown considerably rounder and plumper than she used to be, and it made Mrs. Cliff's blood run cold to see how she bumped the back of Mr. Perley's chair, as she thrust herself between it and the wall. The small girl had to be told almost everything that she must do, and the general servant, who did not like to wait on table, only came in when she was called, and left immediately when she had done what she had been called for. When the guests had gone, Mrs. Cliff declared to Willy that that was the last large dinner she would give in that house. "It was not a dinner which a woman of my means should offer to her friends." Willy was amazed. 39 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT "I don't see how it could have been better," said she, "unless you had champagne, and I know Mr. Perley wouldn't have liked that. Everything on the table was just as good as it could be." But Mrs. Cliff shook her head. She knew that she had attempted something for which her present resources were insufficient. After this she invited people to dinner once or twice a week, but the com pany was always very small and suited to the re sources of the house. "I will go on this way for a while," thought the good lady, "and after a time I will begin to spread out and do things in a different style." Several times she drove over to Harrington, a large town some five miles away, which contained a furni ture factory, and there she purchased many articles which would be suitable for the house, always securing the best things for her purposes, but frequently regret ting that certain beautiful and imposing pieces of furniture were entirely unsuited to the capacity of her rooms and hallways. But when her dining-room should be finished, and the room above it, she would have better opportunity of gratifying her taste for handsome wood in imposing designs. Then it might be that Harrington would not be able to give her anything good enough. Her daily mail was now much larger than it ever had been before. Business people sent her cards and circulars, and every now and then she received letters calling her attention to charities or pressing personal needs of the writers ; but there were not very many of these, for although it was generally known that Mrs. Cliff had come into a fortune, her manner of living 40 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT seemed also a matter of public knowledge. Even the begging letters were couched in very moderate terms ; but all these Mrs. Cliff took to Mr. Perley, and, by his advice, she paid attention to but very few of them. Day by day Mrs. Cliff endeavored to so shape and direct her fortunes that they might make her happy in the only ways in which she could be happy, but her efforts to do so did not always gain for her the approval of her fellow-townspeople. There were some who thought that a woman who professed to have command of money should do a good many things which Mrs. Cliff did not do, and there were others who did not hesitate to assert that a woman who lived as Mrs. Cliff lived should not do a great many things which she did do, among which things some people included the keeping of a horse and carriage. It was conceded, of course, that all this was Mrs. CliiFs own business. She had paid the money she had borrowed to go to South America. She had been very kind to some of the poor people of the town, and it was thought by some had been foolishly munificent to old Mrs. Bradley, who, from being a very poor person threatened with the loss of her home, was now an independent householder, and enjoyed an annuity sufficient to support her. More than that, Mrs. Cliff had been very generous in regard to the church music. It was not known exactly how much she had given toward this object, but there were those who said that she must have given her means a considerable strain when she made her contribution that is, if the things were to be done which Mr. Perley talked about. 41 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT When Mrs. Cliff heard what had been said upon this subject, and Willy Croup was generally very well able to keep her informed in regard to what the people of the town said abont her, she thought that the gossips would have been a good deal astonished if they had known how much she had really given to the church, and that they would have been absolutely amazed if they knew how much Mr. Perley had re ceived for general charities. And then she thought, with a tinge of sadness, how very much surprised Mr. Perley would have been if he had known how much more she was able to give away without feeling its loss. Weeks passed on. The leaves turned red and yellow upon the trees, the evenings and mornings grew colder and colder, and Mrs. Cliff did everything she could toward the accomplishment of what now appeared to her in the light of a great duty in her life the proper expenditure of her income and appropriation of her great fortune. Her labors were not becoming more cheerful. Day after day she said to herself that she was not doing what she ought to do, and that it was full time that she should begin to do something better, but what that better thing was she could not make up her mind. Even the improvements she contemplated were, after all, such mere trifles ! It was a very cold morning in October when Mrs. Cliff went into her parlor and said to Willy that there was one thing she could do : she could have a rousing, comfortable fire without thinking whether wood was five, ten, or twenty dollars per cord. When Willy found that Mrs. Cliff wanted to make herself comfort able before a fine, blazing fire, she seemed in doubt. 42 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT "I don't know about the safety of it," she said. "That chimney's in a pretty bad condition. The masons told us so years ago, and nothin' has ever been done to it. There have been fires in it, but they have been little ones ; and if I was you, I wouldn't have too large a blaze in that fireplace until the chimney has been made all right." Mrs. Cliff was annoyed. "Well, then, Willy, I wish you would go for the mason immediately, and tell him to come here and repair the chimney. It's perfectly ridiculous that I can't have a fire in my own parlor, when I am able to have a chimney as high and as big as Bunker Hill Monument if I wanted it ! " Willy Croup smiled. She did not believe that Mrs Cliff really knew how much such a chimney would cost, but she said, "You have got to remember, you know, that we can't have the Cuthberts here to dinner to-morrow if the masons come to work at that chim ney. Ten to one, they will have to take the most part of it down, and we shall be in a general mess here for a week." Mrs. Cliff sat down with a sigh. "You need not mind to have the wood brought in," she said. "Just give me a few sticks and some kindling, so that I can give things a little air of cheerfulness." As she sat before the gently blazing little fire, Mrs. Cliff felt that things needed an air of cheerfulness. She had that morning been making calculations, and, notwithstanding all she had bought, all she had done, and even including with the most generous margin all she had planned to do, her income was gaining upon her in a most discouraging way. "I am not fit for it," she said to herself. "I don't 43 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT know how to live as I want to live, and I won't live as I don't want to live. The whole business is too big for me. I don't know how to manage it. I ought to give up my means to somebody who knows how to use them, and stay here myself with just enough money to make me happy." For the fortieth time she considered the question of laying all her troubles before Mr. Perley, but she knew her pastor. The great mass of her fortune would quickly be swallowed up in some grand missionary enterprise, and this would not suit Mrs. Cliff. No matter how much she was discouraged, no matter how difficult it was to see her way before her, no matter how great a load she felt her wealth to be, there was always before her a glimmering sense of grand possi bilities. What they were she could not now see or understand, but she would not willingly give them up. She was an elderly woman, but she came of a long- lived family, all of whom had lived in good health until the end of their days, and if there was any grand, golden felicity which was possible to her, she felt that there was reason to believe she would live long to enjoy it when she wanted it. One morning, as Mrs. Cliff sat thinking over these things, there was a knock at the front door, and, of course, Willy Croup ran to open it. No matter where she was, or no matter what she was doing, Willy al ways went to the door if she could, because she had so great a desire to know who was there. This time it was a gentleman, a very fine gentleman, with a high silk hat and a handsome overcoat trimmed with fur fur on the collar, fur on the sleeves, and fur down the front. Willy had never seen such a coat. 44 MRS. CLIFF'S YACHT It was October and it was cool, but there was no man in Plainton who would have worn such a coat as that so early in the season, even if he had one. The gentleman had dark eyes and a very large mus tache, and he carried a cane and wore rather bright tan-colored gloves. All these things Willy observed in an instant, for she was very quick in taking notice of people's clothes and general appearance. The gentleman raised his hat and asked if Mrs. Cliff lived there. Now Willy thought he must be an ex traordinary fine gentleman, for how should he know that she was not a servant, and in those parts gentle men did not generally raise their hats to girls who opened front doors. The gentleman was admitted, and was ushered into the parlor, where sat Mrs. Cliff. She was a little sur prised at the sight of this visitor, who came in with his hat on, but who took it off and made her a low bow as soon as he saw her. But she thought she appre ciated the situation, and she hardened her heart. A strange man, so finely dressed, and with such man ners, must have come for money, and Mrs. Cliff had already learned to harden her heart toward strangers who solicited. But the hardness of her heart utterly disappeared in her amazement when this gentleman, having pulled off his right glove, advanced toward her, holding out his hand. "You don't remember me, Mrs. Cliff? " he said in a loud, clear voice. "No wonder, for I am a good deal changed. But it is not the same with you. You are the same as ever I declare you are ! " Mrs. Cliff took the proffered hand, and looked into the face of the speaker. There was something there 45 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT which seemed familiar, but she had never known such a fine gentleman as this. She thought over the people whom she had seen in France and in California, but she could not recollect this face. "It's a mean thing to be puzzlin' you, Mrs. Cliff," said the stranger, with a cheery smile. "I'm George Burke, seaman on the Castor, where I saw more of you, Mrs. Cliff, than I've ever seen since ; for though we have both been a good deal jumbled up since, we haven't been jumbled up together, so I don't wonder if you don't remember me, especially as I didn't wear clothes like these on the Castor not by any means, Mrs. Cliff!" "I remember you," she said, and she shook his hand warmly. "I remember you, and you had a mate named Edward Shirley." "Yes, indeed ! " said Mr. Burke, "and he's all right, and I'm all right, and how are you T " The overcoat with the fur trimmings came off, and, with the hat, the cane, and the gloves, was laid upon a chair, and Burke and Mrs. Cliff sat down to talk over old times and old friends. 46 CHAPTER VI A TEMPERANCE LARK As Mrs. Cliff sat and talked with George Burke, she forgot the calculations she had been making, she forgot her perplexities and her anxieties concerning the rapid inroads which her income was making upon her ability to dispose of it, in the recollection of the good-fellow ships which the presence of her companion recalled. But Mr. Burke could give her no recent news of Captain Horn and Edna, she having heard from them later than he had, and the only one of the people of the Castor of whom he could tell her was Edward Shirley, who had gone into business. He had bought a share in a shipyard, and as he was a man who had a great idea about the lines of a vessel, and all that sort of thing, he had determined to put his money into that business. He was a long-headed fellow, and Burke had no doubt but that he would soon hear of some fine craft coming from the yard of his old shipmate. "But how about yourself, Mr. Burke? I want to know what has happened to you, and what you intend doing, and how you chanced to be coming this way." "Oh, I will tell you everything that has happened to me," said Mr. Burke, "and it won't take long. But 47 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT first let me ask you something, Mrs. Cliff/' and as he spoke he quietly rose and shut the parlor door. "Now, then," said he, as he seated himself, "we have all been in the same box, or, I should say, in the same boxes of different kinds, and although I may not have the right to call myself a friend, I am just as friendly to you as if I was, and feel as if people who have been through what we have ought to stand by each other even after they've got through their hardest rubs. Now, Mrs. Cliff, has anything happened to you? Have you had any set-backs? I know that this is a mighty queer world, and that even the richest people can often come down with a sudden thump, just as if they had slipped on the ice." Mrs. Cliff smiled. "Nothing has happened to me," she said. "I have had no set-backs, and I am just as rich to-day I should say a great deal richer than I was on the day when Captain Horn made the division of the treasure. But I know very well why you thought something had happened to me. You did not expect to find me living in this little house." "No, by the Lord Harry, I didn't ! " exclaimed Burke, slapping his knee. "You must excuse me, Mrs. Cliff, for speaking out in that way, but really I never was so much surprised as when I came into your front yard. I thought I would find you in the finest house in the place until you could have a stately mansion built somewhere in the outskirts of the town, where there would be room enough for a park. But when I came to this house, I couldn't help thinking that perhaps some beastly bank had broke, and that your share of the golden business, had been swept away. Things like that do happen to women, you 48 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT know, and I suppose they always will. But I am mighty glad to hear you are sill right! "But, as you have asked me to tell you my story, I will make short work of it, and then I would like to hear what has happened to you, as much as you please to tell me about it. "Now, when I got my money, Mrs. Cliff, which, when compared to what your share must have been, was like a dory to a three-mast schooner, but still quite enough for me, and perhaps more than enough if a public vote could be taken on the subject, I was in Paris, a jolly place for a rich sailor, and I said to myself: "'Now, Mr. Burke/ said I, for I might as well begin by using good manners, 'the general disposition of a seafaring man with a lot of money is to go on a lark, or perhaps a good many larks, and so get rid of it, and then ship again before the mast for fourteen dol lars per month, or thereabouts.' "But I made up my mind right there on the spot that that sort of thing wouldn't suit me. The very idea of shipping again on a merchant- vessel made the blood run cold inside of me, and I swore to myself that I wouldn't do it. "To be sure, I wouldn't give up all notion of a lark. A sailor with money and I don't believe there ever was an able-bodied seaman with more money than I had who doesn't lark, at least to some degree, has no right to call himself a whole-souled mariner. So I made up my mind to have one lark, and then stop." Mrs. Cliff's countenance clouded. "I am sorry, Mr. Burke," said she, "that you thought it necessary to do that, I do hope you didn't go on one of those hor riblesprees, do they call them?" 49 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT "Oh, no ! " interrupted Burke, "I didn't do anything of that kind. If I'd begun with a bottle, I'd have ended with nothing but a cork, and a badly burnt one at that. No, ma'am ! drinking isn't in my line. I don't take anything of that sort, except at meals, and then only the best wine in genteel quantities. But I was bound to have one lark, and then I would stop, and begin to live like a merchant tailor with no family nor poor relations." "But what did you do? " asked Mrs. Cliff. "If it was a lark without liquor, I want to hear about it." "It was a temperance lark, ma'am," said Burke, "and this is what it was. "Now, though I have been to sea ever since I was a boy, I never had command of any kind of craft, and it struck me that I would like to finish up my life on the ocean wave by taking command of a vessel. It is generally understood that riches will give you any thing you want, and I said to myself that my riches should give me that. I didn't want a sailin'- vessel. I was tired of sailin' -vessels. I wanted a steamer. And when I commanded a steamer for a little while, I would stop short, and be a landsman for the rest of my life. "So I went up to Brest, where I thought I might find some sort of steamer which might suit me, and in that harbor I did find an English steamer, which had discharged her cargo, and was expectin' to sail again, pretty much in ballast and brandy, so far as I could make out. I went to this vessel, and I made an offer to her captain to charter her for an excursion of one week that was all I wanted. "Well, I'm not going to bother you, Mrs. Cliff, with 50 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT all that was said and done about this little business, which seemed simple enough, but which wasn't. There are people in this world who think that if you have money you can buy anything you want, but such people might as well get ready to change their opin ions if they ever expect to come into money." "That is true," said Mrs. Cliff. "Every word of it is true, as I have found out for myself ! " "Well," continued Burke, "there had to be a lot of telegraphin' to the owners in London, and a general fuss with the officers of the port about papers, and all that, but I got the business through all right, for if money won't get you everything, it's a great help in making things slip along easy. And so one fine after noon I found myself on board that steamer as com mander for one week. "Of course, I didn't want to give orders to the crew, but I intended to give my orders to the captain, and tell him what he was to do, and what he was not to do, for one week. He didn't like that very much, for he was inclined to bulldogism, but I paid him extra wages, and he agreed to knuckle under to me. "So I gave him orders to sail out of the harbor and straight to the island of Ushant, some twenty-five miles to the west of northwest. "'There's no use going there,' said the captain his name was Dork. e There's nothing on that blasted bit of rock for you to see. There's no port I could run this steamer into.' "I had been studying out my business on the chart, and this little island just suited my idea, and though the name was Ushant, I said to him, i You shall,' and I ordered him to sail to that island and lay to a mile or 51 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT two to the westward, and as to the landing, he needn't talk about that until I mentioned it myself. "So when we got about a couple of miles to the west of Ushant, we lay to. Now, I knew we were on the forty-eighth parallel of latitude, for I had looked that out on the chart, so I said to Captain Dork : "'Now, sir!' says I, 'I want you to head your vessel, sir, due west, and then to steam straight ahead for a hundred miles, keepin' your vessel just as near as you can on that line of latitude.' " "I see ! " said Mrs. Cliff, very much interested. "If he once got on that line of latitude, and kept sailing west without turning one way or the other, he would be bound to keep on it." "That's exactly it!" said Mr. Burke. " 'Twas pretty near midnight when we started off to run along the forty-eighth parallel, but I kept my eyes on the man at the wheel, and on the compass, and I let them know that that ship was under the command of an able-bodied seaman who knew what he was about, and if they skipped to one side of that line or to the other he would find it out in no time. "I went below once to take a nap, but, as I promised the fellow at the wheel ten shillings if he would keep her head due west, and told him he would be sure to wake me up if he didn't, I felt certain we wouldn't skip the line of latitude. "Well, that steamer, which was called the Duke of Dorchester, and which was a vessel of not more than a thousand tons, wasn't much of a sailer, or perhaps they was saving coal, I don't know which, and, not knowing how much coal ought to be used, I kept my mouth shut on that point. But I had the log thrown 52 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT a good deal, and I found that we never quite came up to ten knots an hour, and when we took an obser vation at noon the next day, we saw that we hadn't quite done the hundred miles ; but a little before one o'clock we did it, and then I ordered the captain to stop the engine and lay to. "There was a brig about a mile away, and when she saw us layin* to, she put about and made for us, and when she was near enough she hailed to know if anything was the matter. She was a French brig, but Captain Dork understood her, and I told him to bid her good morning, and to tell her that nothin' was the matter, but that we were just stoppin' to rest. I don't know what he did tell her, but she put about her helm and was off again on her own business. " ' Now, 7 said I to Captain Dork, 1 1 want you to back this steamer due east to the island of Ushant.' "He looked at me and began to swear. He took me for a maniac, a wild, crazy man, and told me the best thing I could do would be to go below and turn in, and he would take me back to my friends, if I had any. "I didn't want to tell him what I was up to, but I found I had to, and so I explained to him that I was a rich sailor takin' a lark, and the lark I wanted to take was to sail on a parallel of latitude a hundred miles in a steamer, and then to back that steamer along that same parallel to the place where she started from. I didn't believe that there was ever a ship in the world that had done that, and bein' on a lark, I wanted to do it, and was willin' to pay for it ; and if his engineers and his crew grumbled about backing the steamer for a hundred miles, he could explain to 53 MRS. CLIFF'S YACHT them how the matter stood, and tell them that, bein' on a lark, I was willin' to pay for all extra trouble I might put them to, and for any disturbances in their minds which might rise from sailin' a vessel in a way which didn't seem to be accordin' to the ordinary rules of navigation. "Now, when Captain Dork knew that I was a rich sailor on a lark, he understood me, and he made no more objections, though he said he wouldn't have spent his money in that way ; and when he told his crew and his engineers and men about the extra pay, they understood the matter, and they agreed to back her along the forty -eighth parallel just as nigh as they could until they lay to two miles west of the island of Ushant. "So back we went, and they kept her due east just as nigh as they could, and they seemed to take an interest in it, as if all of them wanted me to have as good a lark as I could for my money, and we didn't skip that parallel very much, although it wasn't an easy job, I can tell you, to keep her head due west and her stern due east, and steam backwards. They had to do a lot of things that you wouldn't understand, madam, such as running a spar out to stern to take sight by." "I declare," said Mrs. Cliff, "that sort of sailing must have astonished any ship that saw it. Did you meet any other vessels f " "Oh, yes," said Burke. "After daybreak we fell in with a good many sail and some steamers, and most of them ran close and hailed us, but there wasn't any answer to give them, except that we were returning to port, and didn't want no help. But some of the 54 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT skippers of the smaller crafts were so full of curiosity that they stuck to us, and when we arrived off Ushant, which wasn't until nearly dark the next day, the Duke of Dorchester had a convoy of five sloops, two schoon ers, a brig, eight pilot-boats, and four tugs." Although Mr. Burke had said that he was going to make very short work with his story, it had already occupied a good deal of time, and he was not half through with it; but Mrs. Cliff listened with the greatest interest, and the rich sailor went on with his recital of adventures. "Now, when I had finished scoring that forty-eighth parallel backward and forward for a hundred miles, I took out my purse and I paid that captain and all the crew what I promised to give them, and then we steamed back to Brest, where I told him to drop an chor and make himself comfortable. "I stayed on board for a day and a night, just to get my fill feeling I was in command of a steamer, before I gave up a seafaring life forever. I threw up the rest of the week that I was entitled to, and went ashore, and my lark was over. "I went to England and took passage for home, and I had a first-class state-room, and laid in a lot of good clothes before I started. I don't think I ever had greater comfort in my life than sittin' on deck, smokin' a good cigar, and watchin' the able-bodied seamen at their work. "I hope Fm not tiring you, madam, but I'm trying to cut things as short as I can. It's often said that a sailor is all at sea when he is on shore, but I was a country fellow before I was a sailor, and land doings come naturally to me when I fix my mind on them. 55 MRS. CLIFF'S YACHT "I'd made up my mind I was going to build my mother a house on Cape Cod, but when I got home 1 thought it better to buy her one already built, and that's what I did, and I stayed there with her a little while, but I didn't like it. I'd had a notion of having another house near my mother's, but I gave up that. There's too much sea about Cape Cod. "Now, she liked it, for she's a regular sailor's mother, but I couldn't feel that I was really a rich fellow livin' ashore until I got out of hearin' of the ocean, and out of smellin' of salt and tar. So I made up my mind that I'd go inland, and settle somewhere on a place of my own, where I might have command of some sort of farm. "I didn't know just exactly what I wanted, nor just exactly where I wanted to go, so I thought it best to look around a little and hold council with somebody or other. I couldn't hold council with my mother, because she wanted me to buy a ship and take com mand of her. And then I thought of Captain Horn, and goin' to ask him. But the captain is a great man" "Indeed, he is ! " exclaimed Mrs. Cliff. "We all know that ! " "But he is off on his own business," continued Burke, "and what sort of a princely concern he's got on hand I don't know. Anyway, he wouldn't want me followin' him about and botherin' him. So I thought of everybody I could, and at last it struck me that there wasn't anybody better than you, Mrs. Cliff, to give me the points I wanted, for I always liked you, Mrs. Cliff, and I consider you a woman of good sense down to the keel. And as I heard you were livin' in 56 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT sort of a country place, I thought you'd be the very person that I could come and talk to and get points. "I felt a hankering anyway, after some of the old people of the Castor ; for, after having had all that money divided among us, it made me feel as if we belonged to the same family. I suppose that was one reason why I felt a sort of drawing to you, you know. Anyway, I knew where you lived, and I came right here, and arrived this morning. After I'd taken a room at the hotel, I asked for your house and came straight here." " And very glad am I to see you, Mr. Burke ! " said Mrs. Cliff, speaking honestly from the bottom of her heart. She had not known Burke very well, but she had always looked upon him as a fine, manly sailor ; and now that he had come to her, she was conscious of the family feeling which he had spoken of, and she was very glad to see him. She saw that Burke was very anxious to know why she was living in a plain fashion in this unpretentious house, but she found it would be very difficult to ex plain the matter to him. Hers was not a straightfor ward tale, which she could simply sit and tell, and, moreover, although she liked Burke, and thought it probable that he was a man of a very good heart, she did not believe that he was capable of advising her in the perplexities which her wealth had thrown about her. Still, she talked to him, and told him what she thought she could make him properly understand, and so, from one point to another, she went on until she had given the ex-sailor a very good idea of the state 57 MRS. CLIFF'S YACHT of her mind in regard to what she was doing, and what she thought she ought to do. When Mrs. Cliff had finished speaking, Burke thrust his hands into his pockets, leaned back in his chair, and looked at the ceiling of the room, the walls, and the floor. He wanted to say something, but he was not prepared to do so. His mind, still nautical, desired to take an observation and determine the latitude and longitude of Mrs. Cliff, but the skies were very much overcast. At this moment Willy Croup knocked at the parlor door, and when Mrs. Cliff went to her, she asked if the gentleman was going to stay to dinner. Mrs. Cliff was surprised. She had no idea it was so late, but she went back to Mr. Burke and urged him to stay to dinner. He consented instantly, declaring that this was the first time that anybody not his mother had asked him to dinner since he came into his fortune. When Mrs. Cliff had excused herself to give some directions about the meal, Burke walked about the parlor, carefully examining everything in it. When he had finished his survey, he sat down and shook his head. "The trouble with her is," he said to himself, "that she's so dreadfully afraid of running ashore that she will never reach any port, that's what's the matter ! " When Mrs. Cliff returned, she asked her visitor if he would like to see her house, and she showed him over it with great satisfaction, for she had filled every room with all the handsome and appropriate things she could get into it. Burke noticed everything, and spoke with approbation of many things, but as he 58 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT walked behind his hostess, he kept shaking his head. He went down to dinner, and was introduced to Willy Croup, who had been ordered to go and dress herself, that she might appear at the meal. He shook hands with her very cordially, and then looked all around the little dining-room, taking in every feature of its furnishing and adornment. When he had fin ished, he would have been glad to shake his head again, but this would have been observed. When the dinner came on, however, Mr. Burke had no desire to shake his head. It was what might have been called a family dinner, but there was such a variety, such an abundance, everything was so admi rably cooked, and the elderberry wine, which was pro duced in his honor, was so much more rich and fragrant to his taste than the wines he had had at hotels, that Mr. Burke was delighted. Now he felt that in forming an opinion as to Mrs. Cliff's manner of living he had some grounds to stand upon. "What she wants," thought he, "is all the solid, sensible comfort her money can give her, and where she knows what she wants, she gets it. But the trouble seems to be that in most things she doesn't know what she wants ! " When Mr. Burke, that afternoon, walked back to the hotel, wrapped in his fur-trimmed coat, and carefully puffing a fine Havana cigar, he had entirely forgotten his own plans and purposes in life, and was engrossed in those of Mrs. Cliff. 59 CHAPTEE VII ME. BURKE ACCEPTS A RESPONSIBILITY WILLY CROUP was very mucli pleased with Mr. Burke, and she was glad that she had allowed herself to be persuaded to sit at table with such a fine gentleman. He treated her with extreme graciousness of man ner, and it was quite plain to her that if he recognized her in her silk gown as the person who, in a calico dress, had opened the front door for him, he had de termined to make her feel that he had not noticed the coincidence. He was a good deal younger than she was, but Willy's childlike disposition had projected itself into her maturer years, and in some respects there was a greater sympathy, quickly perceived by both, between her and Mr. Burke than yet existed between him and Mrs. Cliff. After some of the amusing anecdotes which he told, the visitor looked first toward Willy to see how she appreciated them ; but it must not be sup posed that he was not extremely attentive and deferen tial to his hostess. If Willy had known what a brave, gallant, and dar ing sailor he was, she would have made a hero of him ; but Mrs. Cliff had never said much about Burke, and 60 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT "Willy simply admired him as the best specimen of the urbane man of the world with whom she had yet met. The two women talked a good deal about their visitor that evening, and Mrs. Cliff said that she hoped he was not going to leave town very soon, for it was possible that she might be of help to him if he wanted to settle down in that part of the country. The next morning, soon after breakfast, when Willy opened the front gate of the yard and stepped out upon the street with a small covered basket in her hand, she had gone but a very little distance when she met Mr. Burke, with his furs, his cane, and his silk hat. The latter was lifted very high as its owner saluted Miss Croup. Willy, who was of a fair complexion, reddened somewhat as she shook hands with the gentleman, informed him, in answer to his questions, that Mrs. Cliff was very well, that she was very well, that the former was at home and would be glad to see him, and that she herself was going into the business part of the town to make some little purchases. She would have been better pleased if she had not been obliged to tell him where she was going, but she could not do otherwise when he said he supposed she was walking for the benefit of the fresh morning air. He added to her discomfiture by requesting to be allowed to walk with her, and by offering to carry her basket. This threw Willy's mind into a good deal of a flutter. Why could she not have met this handsomely dressed gentleman sometime when she was not going to the grocery store to buy such things as stove-blacking and borax ? It seemed to her as if these commodities must suggest, to the mind of any 61 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT one, rusty iron and obtrusive insects, and as articles altogether outside the pale of allusion in high-toned social intercourse. It also struck her as a little odd that a gentleman should propose to accompany a lady when she was going on domestic errands ; but then, this gentleman was different from any she had known, and there were many ways of the world with which she was not at all acquainted. Mr. Burke immediately began to speak of the visit of the day 'before. He had enjoyed seeing Mrs. Cliff again, and he had never sat down to a better dinner. "Yes," said Willy, "she likes good eating and she knows what it is, and if she had a bigger dining-room she would often invite people to dinner, and I expect the house would be quite lively, as she seems more given to company than she used to be, and that's all right, considerin' she's better able to afford it." Mr. Burke took a deep, satisfied breath. The op portunity had already come to him to speak his mind. "Afford it ! " said he. "I should think so ! Mrs. Cliff must be very rich. She is worth, I should say well, I don't know what to say, not knowing exactly and precisely what each person got when the grand division was made." Willy's loyalty to Mrs. Cliff prompted her to put her in as good a light as possible before this man of the world, and her own self-esteem prompted her to show that, being a friend and relative of this rich lady, she was not ignorant of her affairs in life. "Oh, she's rich!" said Willy. "I can't say, of course, just how much she has, but Pm quite sure that she owns at least" 62 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT Willy wished to put the amount of the fortune at one hundred thousand dollars, but she was a little afraid that this might be too much, and yet she did not wish to make the amount any smaller than could possibly be helped. So she thought of seventy-five, and then eighty, and finally remarked that Mrs. Cliff must be worth at least ninety thousand dollars. Mr. Burke looked up at the sky and wanted to whistle. "Ninety thousand dollars ! " he said to himself. "I know positively that it was at least four millions at the time of the division, and she says she's richer now than she was then, which is easy to be accounted for by the interest coming in. I see her game ! She wants to keep shady about her big fortune because her neighbors would expect her to live up to it, and she knows it isn't in her to live up to it. Now I'm beginning to see through the fog." "It seems to me," said he, "that Mrs. Cliff ought to have a bigger dining-room." This remark pulled up the flood-gate to Willy's ac cumulated sentiments on the subject, and they poured forth in a rushing stream. Yes, indeed, Mrs. Cliff ought to have a bigger din ing-room, and other rooms to the house, and there was the front fence, and no end of things she ought to have, and it was soon made clear to Mr. Burke that Willy had been lying awake at night thinking, and thinking, and thinking about what Mrs. Cliff ought to have and what she did not have. She said she really and honestly believed that there was no reason at all why she did not have them, except that she did not want to seem to be setting herself up above her neigh bors. In fact, Mrs. Cliff had told Willy two or three 63 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT times, when there had been a discussion about prices, that she was able to do anything she wanted, and if she could do that, why did she not do it? People were all talking about it, and they had talked and talked her fortune down until in some families it was not any more than ten thousand dollars. On and on talked Willy, while Mr. Burke said scarcely a word, but he listened with the greatest attention. They had now walked on until they had reached the main street of the little town, gone through the business part where the shops were, and out into the suburbs. Suddenly Willy stopped. "Oh, dear ! " she exclaimed, "I've gone too far ! I was so interested in talking that I didn't think." "I'm sorry," said Mr. Burke, "that I've taken you out of your way. Can't I get you what you want and save you the trouble? " Now Willy was in another flutter. After the walk with the fur-trimmed coat, and the talk about dollars by thousands and tens of thousands, she could not come down to mention borax and blacking. "Oh, no, thank you!" said she, trying her best to think of some other errand than the one she had come upon. "I don't believe it's finished yet, and it's hardly worth while to stop. There was one of those big cushion-covers that she brought from Paris that was to be filled with down, but I don't believe it's ready yet, and I needn't stop." Mr. Burke could not but think it a little odd that such a small basket should be brought for the purpose of carrying home a large down cushion, but he said nothing further on the subject. He had had a most gratifying conversation with this communicative and 64 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT agreeable person, and his interest in Mrs. Cliff was greatly increased. When he neared the hotel, he took leave of his com panion, saying that he would call in the afternoon, and Willy, after she had looked back and was sure he was out of sight, slipped into the grocery store and got her borax and blacking. Mr. Burke called on Mrs. Cliff that afternoon, and the next morning, and two or three times the day after. They came to be very much interested in each other, and Burke in his mind compared this elderly friend with his mother, and not to the advantage of the latter. Burke's mother was a woman who would always have her own way, and wanted advice and counsel from no one, but Mrs. Cliff was a very different woman. She was so willing to listen to what Burke said, and his remarks were nearly always on the subject of the proper expenditure of money, and ap peared to attach so much importance to his opin ions, that he began to feel that a certain responsibility, not at all an unpleasant one, was forcing itself upon him. He did not think that he should try to constitute himself her director, or even to assume the position of professional suggester, but in an amateur way he sug gested, and she, without any idea of depending upon him for suggestions, found herself more and more in clined to accept them as he continued to offer them. She soon discovered that he was the only person in Plainton who knew her real fortune, and this was a bond of sympathy and union between them, and she became aware that she had succeeded in impressing 65 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT him with her desire to live upon said fortune in such a manner that it would not interfere with her friend ships or associations, and her lifelong ideas of comfort and pleasure. The people of the town talked a great deal about the fine gentleman at the hotel, but they knew he was one of the people who had become rich in consequence of Captain Horn's discovery, and some of them, good friends of Mrs. Cliff, felt sorry that she had not prof ited to as great a degree by that division as this gen tleman of opulent taste, who occupied two of the best rooms in the hotel, and obliged Mr. Williams to send to Harrington, and even to Boston, for provisions suitable to his epicurean tastes, and who drove around the country with a carriage and pair at least once a day. When Burke was ready to make his suggestions, he thought he would begin in a mild fashion, and see how Mrs. Cliff would take them. "If I was in your place, madam," said he, "the first thing I would do would be to have a lot of servants. There's nothin' money can give a person that's better than plenty of people to do things lots of them on hand all the time, like the crew of a ship." "But I couldn't do that, Mr. Burke," said she. "My house is too small. I haven't any place for servants to sleep. When I enlarge my house, of course, I may have more servants." "Oh, I wouldn't wait for that," said he. "Until then you could board them at the hotel." This suggestion was strongly backed by Willy Croup, and Mrs. Cliff took the matter to heart. She collected together a domestic establishment of as many 66 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT servants as she thought her establishment could pos sibly provide with work, and although she did not send them to be guests at the hotel, she obtained lodging for them at the house of a poor woman in the neighborhood. When she had done this, she felt that she had made a step in the direction of doing her duty by her money. Mr. Burke made another suggestion. "If I was you," said he, "I wouldn't wait for times or seasons, for in these days people build in winter the same as in summer. I would put up that addition just as soon as it could be done." Mrs. Cliff sighed. "I suppose that's what I should do," said she. "I feel that it is. But you know how I hate to begin it." "But you needn't hate it," said he. "There isn't the least reason in the world for any objection to it. I've a plan which will make it all clear sailin'. I've been thinkin' it out, and this is the way I've thought it." Mrs. Cliff listened with great attention. "Now, then," said Burke, "next to you on the west is your own lot that you're going to put your new dining-room on. Am I right there ? " "Yes," said Mrs. Cliff, "you are right there." "Well, next to that is the little house inhabited by a family named Barnard, I'm told, and next to that there's a large corner lot with an old house on it that's for sale. Now, then, if I was you, I'd buy that corner lot, and clear away the old house, and I'd build my dining-room right there. I'd get a good architect, and let him plan you a first-class, A No. 1 dining-room, 67 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT with other rooms to it above it and below it and around it, with porticos, and piazzas, and little bal conies to the second story, and everything that any body might want attached to a first-class dining- room." Mrs. Cliff laughed. "But what good would it be to me away up there at the corner of the next street?" "The reason for putting it there," said Burke, "is to get clear of all the noise and dirt of building, and the fuss and bother, that you dislike so much. And then, when it was all finished, and painted and papered, and the carpets down, if you like, Fd have it moved right up here against your house, just where you want it. "When everything was in order, and you was ready, you could cut a door right through into the new dining-room, and there you'd be. They've got so in the way of slidin' buildings along on timbers now that they can travel about almost like the old stage coaches, and you needn't have your cellar dug until you're ready to clap your new dining-room right over it." Mrs. Cliff smiled, and Willy listened with open eyes. "But how about the Barnard family and their house f " said she. "Oh, I'd buy them a lot somewhere else," said he, "and move their house. They wouldn't object if you paid them extra. What I'd have if I was in your place, Mrs. Cliff, would be a clear lot down to the next street, and I'd have a garden in it, with flowers, and gravel walks, and greenhouses, and all that sort of thing." "All stretching itself out in the sunshine under the 68 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT new dining-room windows ! " cried Willy Croup, with sparkling eyes. Mrs. Cliff sat and considered, a cheerful glow in her veins. Here, really, was an opportunity of stemming the current of her income without shocking any of her social instincts ! 69 CHAPTER VIII ME. BURKE BEGINS TO MAKE THINGS MOVE IN PLAINTON IT was not long before Mr. Burke began to be a very important personage in Plainton. It was generally known that he intended to buy land and settle in the neighborhood, and as he was a rich man, evidently inclined to be liberal in his expenditures, this was a matter of great interest both in social and business circles. He often drove out to survey the surrounding coun try, but when he was perceived several times standing in front of an old house at the corner of the street near Mrs. ClifFs residence, it was supposed that he might have changed his mind in regard to a country place, and was thinking of building in the town. He was not long considered a stranger in the place. Mrs. Cliff frequently spoke of him as a valued friend, and there was reason to believe that, in the various adventures and dangers of which they had heard, Mr. Burke had been of great service to their old friend and neighbor, and it was not unlikely that his influence had had a geod deal to do with her receipt 70 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT of a portion of the treasure discovered by the com mander of the expedition. Several persons had said more than once that they could not see why Mrs. Cliff should have had any claim upon this treasure, except, perhaps, to the ex tent of her losses. But if she had had a friend in camp, and Mr. Burke was certainly a friend, it was easy to understand why he would do the best he could, at a time when money was so plenty, for the benefit of one whom he knew to be a widow in straitened circumstances. So Mr. Burke was looked upon not only as a man of wealth and superior tastes in regard to food and per sonal comfort, but as a man of a liberal and generous disposition. Furthermore, there was no pride about him. Often, on his return from his drives, his barouche and pair, which Mr. Williams had obtained in Har rington for his guest's express benefit, would stop in front of Mrs. Cliff's modest residence, and two or three times he had taken that good lady and Willy Croup to drive with him. But Mrs. Cliff did not care very much for the ba rouche. She would have preferred a little phaeton and a horse which she could drive herself. As for her horse and the two-seated wagon, that was declared by most of the ladies of the town to be a piece of ab solute extravagance. It was used almost exclusively by Willy, who was known to deal with shops in the most distant part of the town in order that she might have an excuse, it was said, to order out that wagon and have Andrew Marks to drive her. Of course, they did not know how often Mrs. Cliff had said to herself that it was really not a waste of 71 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT money to keep this horse, for Willy was no longer young, and if she could save her any weary steps, she ought to do it, and at the same time relieve a little the congested state of her income. Mr. Burke was not of an unknown family. He was quite willing to talk about himself, especially to Mr. Williams, as they sat and smoked together in the evening, and he said a good deal about his father, who had owned two ships at Nantucket, and who, according to his son, was one of the most influential citizens of the place. Mr. Williams had heard of the Burkes of Nan- tucket, and he did not think any the less of the one who was now his guest, because his father's ships had come to grief during his boyhood, and he had been obliged to give up a career on shore, which he would have liked, and go to sea, which he did not like. A brave spirit in poverty, coupled with a liberal disposi tion in opulence, was enough to place Mr. Burke on a very high plane in the opinions of the people of Plainton. Half a mile outside the town, upon a commanding eminence, there was a handsome house which belonged to a family named Buskirk. These people were really not of Plainton, although their post-office and railroad station were there. They were rich city people who came to this country place for the summer and au tumn, and who had nothing to do with the town folks, except in a limited degree to deal with some of them. This family lived in great style, and their coachman and footman in knee-breeches, their handsome horses with docked tails, the beautiful grounds about their house, a feebly shooting fountain on the front lawn, 72 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT were a source of anxious disquietude in the mind of Mrs. Cliff. They were like the skeletons which were brought in at the feasts of the ancients. "If I should ever be obliged to live like the Bus- kirks on the hill/ 7 the good lady would say to herself, "I would wish myself back to what I used to be, ask ing only that my debts be paid." Even the Buskirks took notice of Mr. Burke. In him they thought it possible they might have a neigh bor. If he should buy a place and build a fine house somewhere in their vicinity, which they thought the only vicinity in which any one should build a fine house, it might be a very good thing, and would cer tainly not depreciate the value of their property. A wealthy bachelor might, indeed, be a more desirable neighbor than a large family. The Buskirks had been called upon when they came to Plainton, a few years before, by several fami lies. Of course, the clergyman, Mr. Perley, and his wife, paid them a visit, and the two Misses Thorpdyke hired a carriage and drove to the house, and, although they did not see the family, they left their cards. After some time these and other calls were returned, but in the most ceremonious manner, and there ended the social intercourse between the fine house on the hill and the town. As the Buskirks drove to Harrington to church, they did not care about the Perleys, and although they seemed somewhat inclined to cultivate the Thorpdykes, who were known to be of such an excel lent old family, the Thorpdykes did not reciprocate the feeling, and, having declined an invitation to tea, received no more. 73 MRS. CLIFF'S YACHT But now Mr. Buskirk, who had come up on Satur day to spend Sunday with his family, actually called on Mr. Burke at the hotel. The wealthy sailor was not at home, and the city gentleman left his card. When Mr. Burke showed this card to Mrs. Cliff,, her face clouded. "Are you going to return the visit?" said she. "Oh, yes ! " answered Burke. "Some of these days I will drive up and look in on them. I expect they have got a fancy parlor, and I would like to sit in it awhile and think of the days when I used to swab the deck. There's nothin' more elevatin', to my mind, than just that sort of thing. I do it sometimes when I am eatin' my meals at the hotel, and the better I can bring to mind the bad coffee and hardtack, the better I like what's set before me." Mrs. Cliff sighed. She wished Mr. Buskirk had kept away from the hotel. As soon as Mrs. Cliff had consented to the erection of the new dining-room on the corner lot, and she did not hesitate after Mr. Burke had explained to her how easy it would be to do the whole thing almost without her knowing anything about it, if she did not want to bother herself in the matter, the enterprise was begun. Burke, who was of an active mind, and who de lighted in managing and directing, undertook to ar range everything. There was no agreement between Mrs. Cliff and himself that he should do this, but it pleased him so much to do it, and it pleased her so much to have him do it, that it was done as a thing which might be expected to happen naturally. Sometimes she said he was giving her too much of 74 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT his time, but lie scorned such an idea. He had noth ing to do, for he did not believe that he should buy a place for himself until spring, because he wanted to pick out a spot to live in when the leaves were coming out instead of when they were dropping off, and the best fun he knew of would be to have command of a big crew, and to keep them at work building Mrs. Cliff's dining-room. "I should be glad to have you attend to the con tracts," said Mrs. Cliff, "and all I ask is that, while you don't waste anything, for I think it is a sin to waste money, no matter how much you may have, you will help me as much as you can to make me feel that I really am making use of my income." Burke agreed to do all this, always under her ad vice, of course, and very soon he had his crew, and they were hard at work. He sent to Harrington and employed an architect to make plans, and as soon as the general basis of these was agreed upon, the build ing was put in charge of a contractor, who, under Mr. Burke, began to collect material and workmen from all available quarters. " We've got to work sharp, for the new building must be moored alongside Mrs. Cliff's house before the first snow-storm." A lawyer of Plainton undertook the purchase of the land, and as the payments were to be made in cash, and as there was no chaffering about prices, this busi ness was soon concluded. As to the Barnard family, Mr. Burke himself under took negotiations with them. When he had told them of the handsome lot on another street which would be given them in exchange, and how he would gently 75 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT slide their house to the new location, and put it down on any part of the lot which they might choose, and guaranteed that it should be moved so gently that the clocks would not stop ticking, nor the tea or coffee spill out of their cups, if they chose to take their meals on board during the voyage, and as, further more, he promised a handsome sum to recompense them for the necessity of leaving behind their well, which he could not undertake to move, and for any minor inconveniences and losses, their consent to the change of location was soon obtained. Four days after this Burke started the Barnard house on its travels. As soon as he had made his agreement with the family, he had brought a man down from Harrington whose business it was to move houses, and had put the job into his hands. He stipu lated that at 1 P. M. on the day agreed upon the house was to begin to move, and he arranged with the mason to whom he had given the contract for preparing the cellar on the new lot, that he should begin operations at the same hour. He then offered a reward of two hundred dollars to be given to the mover if he got his house to its desti nation before the cellar was done, or to the mason if he finished the cellar before the house arrived. The Barnards had an early dinner, which was cooked on a kerosene stove, their chimney having been taken down, but they had not finished washing the dishes when their house began to move. Mrs. Cliff and Willy ran to bid them good-by, and all the Barnards, old and young, leaned out of a back window and shook hands. Mr. Burke had arranged a sort of gang-plank with 76 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT a railing, if any of them wanted to go on shore that is, step on terra firma during the voyage. But Samuel Rolands, the mover, heedful of his special prize, urged upon them not to get out any oftener than could be helped, because when they wished to use the gang-plank he would be obliged to stop. There were two boys in the family, who were able to jump off and on whenever they pleased ; but boys are boys, and very different from other people. Houses had been moved in Plainton before, but never had any inhabitants of the place beheld a build ing glide along upon its timber course with, speaking comparatively, the rapidity of this travelling home. Most of the citizens of the place who had leisure came at some time that afternoon to look at the mov ing house, and many of them walked by its side, talking to the Barnards, who, as the sun was warm, stood at an open window, very much excited by the spirit of adventure, and quite willing to converse. Over and over they assured their neighbors that they would never know they were moving if they did not see the trees and things slowly passing by them. As they crossed the street and passed between two houses on the opposite side, the inhabitants of these gathered at their windows, and the conversation was very lively with the Barnards, as the house of the latter passed slowly by. All night that house moved on, and the young people of the village accompanied it until eleven o'clock, when the Barnards went to bed. Mr. Burke divided his time between watching the moving house at which all the men who could be em ployed in any way, and all the horses which could be 77 MRS. CLIFF'S YACHT conveniently attached to the windlasses, were working in watches of four hours each, in order to keep them fresh and vigorous and the lot where the new cellar was being constructed, where the masons continued their labors at night, by the light of lanterns and a blazing bonfire fed with resinous pine. The excitement caused by these two scenes of activ ity was such that it is probable that few of the people of the town went to bed sooner than the Barnard family. Early the next morning the two Barnard boys looked out of the window of their bedroom, and saw beneath them the Hastings 7 barn-yard, with the Hastings boy milking. They were so excited by this vision that they threw their shoes and stockings out at him, hav ing no other missiles convenient, and for nearly half an hour he followed that house, trying to toss the articles back through the open window, while the cow stood waiting for the milking to be finished. On the evening of the third day after its departure from its original position, the Barnard house arrived on the new lot, and, to the disgust of Samuel Kolands, he found the cellar entirely finished and ready for him to place the house upon it. But Mr. Burke, who had been quite sure that this would be the result of the competition, comforted him by telling him that, as he had done his best, he too should have a prize equal to that given to the mason. This had been suggested by Mrs. Cliff, because, she said, they were both hard working men with families, and although the house- mover was not a citizen of Plainton, he had once lived there, and therefore she was very glad of this opportunity of helping him along. 78 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT As soon as this important undertaking had been finished, Mr. Burke was able to give his sole attention to the new dining-room on the corner lot. He and the architect had worked hard upon the plans, and when they were finished they had been shown to Mrs. Cliff. She understood them in a general way, and was very glad to see that such ample provisions had been made in regard to closets, though she was not able to perceive with her mind's eye the exact dimensions of a room nineteen by twenty-seven, nor to appreciate the difference between a ceiling twelve feet high and another which was nine. However, having told Mr. Burke and the architect what she wanted, and both of them having told her what she ought to have, she determined to leave the whole matter in their hands. This resolution was greatly approved by her sailor friend, for, as the object of the plan of construction was to relieve her of all annoyance consequent upon building operations, the more she left everything to those who delighted in the turmoil of construction, the better it would be for all. Everything had been done in the plans to prevent interference with the neatness and comfort of Mrs. Cliff's present abode. The door of the new dining- room was so arranged that when it was moved up to the old house it would come against a door in the latter which opened from a side hall upon a little porch. This porch being removed, the two doors would fit exactly to each other, and there would be none of the dust and noise consequent upon the cut ting away of walls. So Mrs. Cliff and Willy lived on in peace, comfort, 79 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT and quiet in their old home, while on the corner lot there was hammering, and banging, and sawing all day. Mr. Burke would have had this work go on by night, but the contractor refused. His men would work extra hours in consideration of extra induce ments, but good carpenter work, he declared, could not be done by lantern-light. The people of Plainton did not at all understand the operations on the corner lot. Mr. Burke did not tell them much about it, and the contractor was not willing to talk. He had some doubts in regard to the scheme, but as he was well paid, he would do his best. It had been mentioned that the new building was to be Mrs. Cliff's dining-room, but this idea soon faded out of the Plainton mind, which was not adapted to grasp and hold it. Consequently, as Mr. Burke had a great deal to do with the building, and as Mrs. Cliff did not appear to be concerned in it at all, it was generally believed that the gentleman at the hotel was putting up a house for himself on the corner lot. This knowledge was the only conclusion which would explain the fact that the house was built upon smooth horizontal timbers, and not upon a stone or brick foundation. A man who had been a sailor might fancy to build a house something as he would build a ship in a ship yard, and not attach it permanently to the earth. 80 CHAPTEE IX A MEETING OF HEIRS WHILE the building operations were going on at such a rapid rate on the corner lot, Mrs. Cliff tried to make herself as happy as possible in her own home. She liked having enough servants to do all the work, and relieve both her and Willy. She liked to be able to drive out when she wanted to, or to invite a few of her friends to dinner or to tea, and to give them the very best the markets afforded of everything she thought they might like. But she was not a satisfied woman. It was true that Mr. Burke was doing all that he could with her money, and doing it well, she had not the slightest doubt ; but, after all, a new dining-room was a matter of small importance. She had fears that, even after it was all finished and paid for, she would find that her income had gained upon her. As often as once a day the argument came to her that it would be wise for her to give away the bulk of her fortune in charity, and thus rid herself of the necessity for this depressing struggle between her desire to live as she wanted to live, and the obliga tions to herself under which her fortune placed her. 81 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT But she could not consent to part thus with her great fortune. She would not turn her back upon her golden opportunities. As soon as she had so deter mined her life that the assertion of her riches would not interfere with her domestic and social affairs, she would be charitable enough she would do good works upon a large scale. But she must first determine what she was to do for herself, and so let her charities begin at home. This undecided state of mind did not have a good effect upon her general appearance, and it was fre quently remarked that her health was not what it used to be. Miss Nancy Shott thought there was nothing to wonder at in this. Mrs. Cliff had never been accustomed to spend money, and it was easy to see, from the things she had bought abroad and put into that little house, that she had expended a good deal more than she could afford, and no wonder she was troubled, and no wonder she was looking thin and sick. Other friends, however, did not entirely agree with Miss Shott. They thought their old friend was entirely too sensible a woman to waste a fortune, whether it had been large or small, which had come to her in so wonderful a manner, and they believed she had money enough to live on very comfortably. If this were not the case, she would never consent to keep a carriage almost for Willy Croup's sole use. They thought, perhaps, that the example and com panionship of Mr. Burke might have had an effect upon her. It was as likely as not that she had borne part of the expense of moving the Barnard house, so that there should be nothing between her and the 82 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT new building. But this, as they said themselves, was mere surmise. Mr. Burke might fancy large grounds, and he was certainly able to have them if he wanted them. Whatever people said and thought about Mrs. Cliff and her money, it was generally believed that she was in comfortable circumstances. Still, it had to be admitted that she was getting on in years. Now arose a very important question among the gossips of Plainton : Who was to be Mrs. Cliff's heir ? Everybody knew that Mrs. Cliff had but one blood- relation living, and that was Willy Croup, and no one who had given any thought whatever to the subject believed that Willy Croup would be her heir. Her husband had some distant relatives, but, as they had had nothing to do with Mrs. Cliff during the days of her adversity, it was not likely that she would now have anything to do with them, especially as any money she had to leave did not come through her husband. But although the simple-minded Willy Croup was a person who would not know how to take care of money if she had it, and although everybody knew that if Mrs. Cliff made a will she would never think of leaving her property to Willy, still, everybody who thought or talked about the matter saw the appalling fact staring them in their faces, that if Mrs. Cliff died without a will, Willy would inherit her possessions ! The more it was considered, the more did this un pleasant contingency trouble the minds of certain of the female citizens of Plainton. Miss Gushing, the principal dressmaker of the place, was greatly con cerned upon this subject, and as her parlor, where she generally sat at her work, was a favorite resort of 83 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT certain ladies, who sometimes had orders to give, and always had a great deal to say, it was natural that those good women who took most to heart Mrs. Cliff's heirless condition should think of Miss Gushing when ever they were inclined to talk upon the subject. Miss Shott dropped in there one day with a very doleful countenance. That very morning she had passed Mrs. Cliff's house on the other side of the way, and had seen that poor widow standing in her front yard, with the most dejected and miserable counte nance she had ever seen on a human being. People might talk as much as they pleased about Mrs. Cliff being troubled because she had spent too much money. That all might be, or it might not be, but it was not the reason for that woman looking as if she was just ready to drop into a sick-bed. When people go to the most unhealthy regions in the whole world, and live in holes in the ground like hedgehogs, they cannot expect to come home without seeds of disease in their system, which are bound to come out. And that those seeds were now coming out in Mrs. Cliff no sensible person could look at her and deny. When Miss Gushing heard this, she felt more strongly convinced than ever of the importance of the subject upon which she and some of her friends had been talk ing. But she said nothing in regard to that subject to Miss Shott. What she had to say, and what she had already said, about the future of Mrs. Cliff's property, and what her particular friends had said, were mat ters which none of them wanted repeated, and when a citizen of Plainton did not wish anything repeated, it was not told to Miss Shott. But after Miss Shott had gone, there came in Mrs. 84 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT Ferguson, a widow lady, and shortly afterwards Miss Inchman, a middle-aged spinster, accompanied by Mrs. Wells and Mrs. Archibald, these latter both worthy matrons of the town. Mrs. Archibald really came to talk to Miss Gushing about a winter dress, but during the subsequent conversation she made no refer ence to this errand. Miss Gushing was relating to Mrs. Ferguson what Nancy had told her when the other ladies came in, but Nancy Shott had stopped in at each of their houses and had already given them the information. "Nancy always makes out things a good deal worse than they are," said Mrs. Archibald, "but there's truth in what she says. Mrs. Cliff is failing ; every body can see that ! " "Of course they can," said Miss Gushing, "and I say that if she has any friends in Plainton, and every body knows she has, it's time for them to do some thing ! " "The trouble is what to do, and who is to do it," remarked Mrs. Ferguson. "What to do is easy enough," said Miss Gushing, "but who is to do it is another matter." "And what would you do ? " asked Mrs. Wells. "If she feels she needs a doctor, she has sense enough to send for one without waiting until her friends speak about it." "The doctor is a different thing altogether ! " said Miss Gushing. "If he comes and cures her, that's neither here nor there. It isn't the point ! But the danger is that, whether he comes or not, she is a woman well on in years, with a constitution breaking down under her, that is, as far as appearances go, for, 85 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT of course, I can't say anything positive about it, and she has nobody to inherit her money, and, as far as anybody knows, she has never made a will ! " "Oh, she has never made a will," said Mrs. Wells, "because my John is in the office, and if Mrs. Cliff had ever come there on such business, he would know about it." "But she ought to make a will," said Miss Gushing. "That's the long and short of it. And she ought to have a friend who would tell her so. That would be no more than a Christian duty which any one of us would owe to another, if cases were changed." "I don't look upon Mrs. Cliff as such a very old woman," said Miss Inchman, "but I agree with you that this thing ought to be put before her. Willy Croup will never do it, and really, if some one of us don't, I don't know who will." "There's Mrs. Perley," said Mrs. Archibald. "Oh, she'd never do ! " struck in Miss Gushing. "Mrs. Perley is too timid. She would throw it off on her husband, and if he talks to Mrs. Cliff about a will, her money will all go to the church or to some charity. I should say that one of us ought to take on herself this friendly duty. Of course, it would not do to go to her and blurt out that we all thought she would not live very long, and that she ought to make her will, but conversation could be led to the matter, and when Mrs. Cliff got to consider her own case, I haven't a doubt but that she would be glad to have advice and help from an old friend." All agreed that this was a very correct view of the case, but not one of them volunteered to go and talk to Mrs. Cliff on the subject. This was not from timid- 86 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT ity, nor from an unwillingness to meddle in other people's business, but from a desire on the part of each not to injure herself in Mrs. Cliff's eyes by any action which might indicate that she had a personal interest in the matter. Miss Gushing voiced the opinion of the company when she said : "When a person has no heirs, rela tives ought to be considered first, but if there are none of these, or if they aren't suitable, then friends should come in. Of course, I mean the oldest and best friends of the party without heirs." No remark immediately followed this, for each lady was thinking that she, probably more than any one else in Plainton, had a claim upon Mrs. Cliff's atten tion if she were leaving her property to her friends, as she certainly ought to do. In years gone by Mrs. Cliff had been a very kind friend to Miss Gushing, she had loaned her money, and assisted her in various ways, and since her return to Plainton she had put a great deal of work into Miss Cushing's hands. Dress after dress for Willy Croup had been made, and material for others was still lying in the house ; and Mrs. Cliff herself had ordered so much work that at this moment Miss Cushing had two girls up-stairs sewing diligently upon it. Having experienced all this kindness, Miss Cushing felt that if Mrs. Cliff left any of her money to her friends, she would certainly remember her, and that right handsomely. If anybody spoke to Mrs. Cliff upon the subject, she would insist, and she thought she had a right to insist, that her name should be brought in prominently. Mrs. Ferguson had also well-defined opinions upon 87 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT the subject. She had two daughters who were more than half grown, who had learned all that they could be taught in Plainton, and she was very anxious to send them away to school, where their natural talents could be properly cultivated. She felt that she owed a deep and solemn duty to these girls, and she had already talked to Mrs. Cliff about them. The latter had taken a great deal of interest in the matter, and although she had not said she would help Mrs. Ferguson properly to educate these girls, for she had not asked her help, she had taken so much interest in the matter that their mother had great hopes. And if this widow without any children felt inclined to assist the children of others during her life, how much more willing would she be likely to be to ap propriate a portion of what she left behind her to such an object ! Mrs. Wells and Mrs. Archibald had solid claims upon Mrs. Cliff. It was known that shortly after the death of her husband, when she found it difficult to make collections, and was very much in need of money for immediate expenses, they had each made loans to her. It is true that even before she started for South America she had repaid these loans with full legal interest. But the two matrons could not forget that they had been kind to her, nor did they believe that Mrs. Cliff had forgotten what they had done, for the presents she had brought them from France were generally considered as being more beautiful and more valuable than those given to anybody else ? except the Thorpdykes and the Perleys. This indi cated a very gratifying gratitude, upon which the two 88 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT ladies, each for herself, had every right to build very favorable hopes. Miss Inchman and Mrs. Cliff had been school -fellows, and when they were both grown young women there had been a good deal of doubt which one of them William Cliff would marry. He made his choice, and Susan Inchman never showed by word or deed that she begrudged him to her friend, to whom she had always endeavored to show just as much kindly feeling as if there had been two William Cliffs, and each of the young women had secured one of them. If Mrs. Cliff, now a widow with money enough to live well upon and keep a carriage, was making out her will, and was thinking of her friends in Plainton, it would be impossible for her to forget one who was the oldest friend of all. So it is easy to see why she did not want to go to Mrs. Cliff and prejudice her against herself by stating that she ought to make a will for the benefit of the old friends who had always loved and respected her. Miss Gushing now spoke. She knew what each member of the little company was thinking about, and she felt that it might as well be spoken of. "It does seem to me," said she, "and I never would have thought of it if it hadn't been for the talk we had, that we five are the persons that Mrs. Cliff would naturally mention in her will, not, perhaps, regarding any money she might have to leave" "I don't see why ! " interrupted Mrs. Ferguson. "Well, that's neither here nor there," continued Miss Gushing. "Money is money, and nobody knows what people will do with it when they die, and if she 89 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT leaves anything to the church or to charity, it's her money ! But I'm sure that Mrs. Cliff has too much hard sense to order her executors to sell all the beautiful rugs, and table-covers, and glass, and china, and the dear knows what besides is in her house at this mo ment ! They wouldn't bring anything at a sale, and she would naturally think of leaving them to her friends. Some might get more and some might get less, but we five in this room at this present moment are the old friends that Mrs. Cliff would naturally remember. And if any one of us ever sees fit to speak to her on the subject, we're the people who should be mentioned when the proper opportunity comes to make such mention." "You're forgetting Willy Croup," said Mrs. Wells. "No," answered Miss Gushing, a little sharply, "I don't forget her, but I'll have nothing to do with her. I don't suppose she'll be forgotten, but whatever is done for her, or whatever is not done for her, is not our business. It's my private opinion, however, that she's had a good deal already ! " "Well," said Mrs. Ferguson, "I suppose that what you say is all right at least, I've no objections to any of it ; but whoever's going to speak to her, it mustn't be me, because she knows I've daughters to educate, and she'd naturally think that if I spoke I was prin cipally speaking for myself, and that would set her against me, which I wouldn't do for the world. And, whatever other people may say, I believe she will have money to leave." Miss Cushing hesitated for a moment, and then spoke up boldly. "It's my opinion," said she, "that Miss Inchman is 90 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT the proper person to speak to Mrs. Cliff on this im portant subject. She's known her all her life, from the time when they were little girls together, and when they were both grown she made sacrifices for her which none of the rest of us had the chance to make. Now, for Miss Inchman to go and open the subject in a gradual and friendly way would be the right and proper thing, no matter how you look at it, and it's my opinion that we who are now here should ask her to go and speak, not in our names, perhaps, but out of good will and kindness to us as well as to Mrs. Cliff." Mrs. Wells was a lady who was in the habit of say ing things at the wrong time, and she now remarked : "We've forgotten the Thorpdykes ! You know, Mrs. Cliff-" Miss Gushing leaned forward, her face reddening. "Bother the Thorpdykes ! " she exclaimed. "They're no more than acquaintances, and ought not to be spoken of at all. And as for Mrs. Perley, if any one's thinking of her, she's only been here four years, and that gives her no claim whatever, considering that we've been lifelong friends and neighbors of Sarah Cliff. And now, in behalf of all of us, I ask you, Miss Inchman, will you speak to Mrs. Cliff? " Miss Inchman was rather a small woman, spare in figure, and she wore glasses, which seemed to be of a peculiar kind, for while they enabled her to see through them into surrounding space, they did not allow people who looked at her to see through them into her eyes. People often remarked that you could not tell the color of Miss Inchman's eyes when she had her spectacles on. 91 MRS. CLIFF'S YACHT Thus it was that, although her eyes were sometimes brighter than at other times, and this could be noticed through her spectacles, it was difficult to understand her expression and to discover whether she was angry or amused. Now Miss Inchman's eyes behind her spectacles brightened very much as she looked from Miss Gush ing to the other members of the little party who had constituted themselves the heirs of Mrs. Cliff. None of them could judge from her face what she was likely to say, but they all waited to hear what she would say. At this moment the door opened, and Mrs. Cliff entered the parlor. 92 CHAPTER X THE INTELLECT OF MISS INOHMAN IT was true that on that morning Mrs. Cliff had been standing in her front yard, looking as her best friends would not have liked her to look. There was nothing physically the matter with her, but she was dissatis fied and somewhat disturbed in her mind. Mr. Burke was so busy nowadays that when he stopped in to see her it was only for a few minutes, and Willy Croup had developed a great facility in discovering things which ought to be attended to in various parts of the town, and of going to attend to them, with Andrew Marks to drive her. Not only did Mrs. Cliff feel that she was left more to herself than she liked, but she had the novel ex perience of not being able to find interesting occupa tion. She was glad to have servants who could perform all the household duties, and could have done more if they had had a chance. Still, it was unpleasant to feel that she herself could do so little to fill up her unoccupied moments. So she put on a shawl and went into her front yard, simply to walk about and get a little of the fresh air. But when she went out 93 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT of the door, she stood still, contemplating the front fence. Here was a fence which had been an eyesore to her for two or three years ! She believed she had money enough to fence in the whole State, and yet those shabby palings and posts must offend her eye every time she came out of her door ! The flowers were nearly all dead now, and she would have had a new fence immediately, but Mr. Burke had dissuaded her, saying that when the new dining-room was brought over from the corner lot, there would have to be a fence around the whole premises, and it would be better to have it all done at once. "There are so many things which I can afford just as well as not,' 7 she said to herself, "and which I can not do ! " And it was the unmistakably doleful ex pression upon her countenance, as she thought this, which was the foundation of Miss Shott's remarks to her neighbors on the subject of Mrs. ClifPs probable early demise. Miss Shott was passing on the other side of the street, and she was walking rapidly, but she could see more out of the corner of her eye than most people could see when they were looking straight before them at the same things. Suddenly Mrs. Cliff determined that she must do something. She felt blue she wanted to talk to somebody. Feeling thus, she naturally went into the house, put on her bonnet and her wrap, and walked down to see Miss Gushing. There was not anything in particular that she wanted to see her about, but there was work going on, and she might talk about it, or it might happen that she would be inclined to give 94 MRS. CLIFF'S YACHT some orders. She was always glad to do anything she could to help that hard-working and kind-hearted neighbor ! When Mrs. Cliff entered the parlor of Miss Gushing, five women each gave a sudden start. The dress maker was so thrown off her balance that she dropped her sewing on the floor, and, rising, went forward to shake her visitor by the hand, a thing she was not in the habit of doing to anybody, because, as is well known to all the world, a person who is sewing for a livelihood cannot get up to shake hands with the friends and acquaintances who may happen in upon her. At this the other ladies rose and shook hands, and it might have been supposed that the newcomer had just returned from a long absence. Then Miss Gushing gave Mrs. Cliff a chair, and they all sat down again. Mrs. Cliff looked about her with a smile. The sight of these old friends cheered her. All her blues were beginning to fade, as that color always fades in any kind of sunshine. "Pm glad to see so many of you together," she said. "It almost seems as if you were having some sort of meeting. What is it about can't I join in? " At this there was a momentary silence which threat ened to become very embarrassing if it continued a few seconds more, and Miss Cushing was on the point of telling the greatest lie of her career, trusting that the other heirs would stand by her and support her in whatever statements she made, feeling as they must the absolute necessity of saying something in stantly. But Miss Inchman spoke before any one else had a chance to do so. 95 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT "You're right, Mrs. Cliff," said she, "we are con sidering something. We didn't come here on purpose to talk about it, but we happened in together, and so we thought we would talk it over. And we all came to the conclusion that it was something which ought to be mentioned to you, and I was asked to speak to you about it." Four simultaneous gasps were now heard in that little parlor, and four chills ran down the backs of four self-constituted heirs. "I must say, Susan," remarked Mrs. Cliff, with a good-humored smile, "if you want me to do anything, there's no need of being so wonderfully formal about it ! If any one of you, or all of you together, for that matter, have anything to say to me, all you had to do was to come and say it." "They didn't seem to think that way," said Miss Inchman. "They all thought that what was to be said would come better from me, because I'd known you so long, and we had grown up together." "It must be something out of the common," said Mrs. Cliff. "What in the world can it be? If you are to speak, Susan, speak out at once ! Let's have it!" "That's just what I'm going to do," said Miss Inch man. If Mrs. Cliff had looked around at the four heirs, who were sitting upright in their chairs, gazing in horror at Miss Inchman, she would have been startled, and, perhaps, frightened. But she did not see them. She was so much interested in what her old friend Susan was saying that she gave to her her whole attention. 96 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT But now that their appointed spokeswoman had announced her intention of immediately declaring the object of the meeting, each one of them felt that this was no place for her ! But, notwithstanding this feeling, not one of them moved to go. Miss Gushing, of course, had no excuse for leaving, for this was her own house ; and although the others might have pleaded errands, a power stronger than their disposi tion to fly stronger even than their fears of what Mrs. Cliff might say to them when she knew all kept them in their seats. The spell of self-interest was upon them and held them fast. Whatever was said and whatever was done, they must be there ! At this supreme moment they could not leave the room. They nerved themselves, they breathed hard, and listened ! "You see, Sarah," said Miss Inchman, "we must all die ! " "That's no new discovery," answered Mrs. Cliff, and the remark seemed to her so odd that she looked around at the rest of the company to see how they took it, and she was thereupon impressed with the idea that some of them had not thought of this great truth of late, and that its sudden announcement had thrown them into a shocked solemnity. But the soul of Miss Gushing was more than shocked it was filled with fury ! If there had been in that room at that instant a loaded gun pointed toward Miss Inchman, Miss Gushing would have pulled the trigger. This would have been wicked, she well knew, and contrary to her every principle, but never before had she been confronted by such treachery ! "Well," continued Miss Inchman, "as we must die, 97 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT we ought to make ourselves ready for it in every way that we can. And we've been thinking'' At this moment the endurance of Mrs. Ferguson gave way. The pace and the strain were too great for her. Each of the others had herself to think for, but she had not only herself, but two daughters. She gave a groan, her head fell back, her eyes closed, and, with a considerable thump, she slipped from her chair to the floor. Instantly every one screamed and sprang toward her. "What in the world is the matter with her ? " cried Mrs. Cliff, as she assisted the others to raise the head of the fainting woman and to loosen her dress. "Oh, I suppose it's the thought of her late hus band ! " promptly replied Miss Inchman, who felt that it devolved on her to say something, and that quickly. Mrs. Cliff looked up in amazement. "And what has Mr. Ferguson to do with anything ? " she asked. "Oh, it's the new cemetery I was going to talk to you about," said Miss Inchman. "It has been spoken of a good deal since you went away, and we all thought that if you'd agree to go into it" "Go into it ! " cried Mrs. Cliff, in horror. "I mean, join with the people who are in favor of it," said Miss Inchman. "I haven't time to explain she's coming to now, if you'll all let her alone. All I've time to say is that those who had husbands in the old graveyard, and might perhaps be inclined to move them and put up monuments, had the right to be first spoken to although, of course, it's a subject which everybody doesn't care to speak about, and as for Mrs. Ferguson, it's no wonder, knowing her as we 98 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT do, that she went off in this way when she knew what I was going to say, although, in fact, I wasn't in the least thinking of Mr. Ferguson ! " The speaker had barely time to finish before the unfortunate lady who had fainted opened her eyes, looked about her, and asked where she was. And now that she had revived, no further reference could be made to the unfortunate subject which had caused her to swoon. "I don't see," said Mrs. Cliff, as she stood outside with Miss Inchman, a few minutes later, "why Mr. Ferguson's removal I'm sure it isn't necessary to make it if she doesn't want to should trouble Mrs. Ferguson any more than the thought of Mr. Cliff's removal troubles me. I'm perfectly willing to do what I can for the new cemetery, and nobody need think I'm such a nervous, hysterical person that I'm in danger of popping over if the subject is mentioned to me. So when you all are ready to have another meeting, I hope you will let me know ! " When Mrs. Ferguson felt herself well enough to sit up and take a glass of water with something stimu lating in it, she was informed of the nature of the statements which had been finally made to Mrs. Cliff. "You know, of course," added Miss Gushing, still pale from unappeased rage, "that that Susan Inchman began as she did just to spite us ! " "It's just like her ! " said Mrs. Archibald. "But I never could have believed that such a dried codfish of a woman could have so much intellect ! " 99 CHAPTER XI THE ARRIVAL OF THE NEW DINING-ROOM THE little meeting at the house of Miss Cushing re sulted in something very different from the anticipa tions of those ladies who had consulted together for the purpose of constituting themselves the heirs of Mrs. Cliff. That good lady, being then very much in want of something to do, was so pleased with the idea of a new cemetery that she entered into the scheme with great earnestness. She was particularly pleased with this opportunity of making good use of her money, be cause, having been asked by others to join them in this work, she was not obliged to pose as a self-appointed public benefactor. Mrs. Cliff worked so well in behalf of the new ceme tery, and subscribed so much money toward it, through Mr. Perley, that it was not many months before it became the successor to the little crowded graveyard near the centre of the town, and the remains of Mr. Cliff were removed to a handsome lot and overshad owed by a suitable monument. Mrs. Ferguson, however, in speaking with Mrs. Cliff 100 MRS. CLIFF'S YACHT upon the subject, was happy to have an opportunity of assuring her that she thought it much better to devote her slender means to the education of her daughters than to the removal of her late husband to a more eligible resting-place. "I'm sure he's done very well as he is for all these years," she said, "and if he could have a voice in the matter, I'm quite sure that he would prefer his daughters' education to his own removal." Mrs. Cliff did not wish to make any offer which might hurt Mrs. Ferguson's very sensitive feelings, but she said that she had no doubt that arrangements could be made by which Mr. Ferguson's transfer could be effected without interfering with any plans which might have been made for the benefit of his daughters ; but although this remark did not satisfy Mrs. Fergu son, she was glad of even this slight opportunity of bringing the subject of her daughters' education be fore the consideration of her friend. As to the other would-be heirs, they did not imme diately turn upon Miss Inchman and rend her, in revenge for the way in which she had tricked and frightened them, for there was no knowing what such a woman would do if she were exasperated, and not for the world would they have Mrs. Cliff find out the real subject of their discussion on that unlucky morn ing when she made herself decidedly one too many in Miss Cushing's parlor. Consequently, all attempts at concerted action were dropped, and each for herself determined that Mrs. Cliff should know that she was a true friend, and to trust to the good lady's well-known gratitude and friendly feeling when the time should come for her to 101 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT apportion her worldly goods among the dear ones she would leave behind her. There were certain articles in Mrs. ClifPs house for which each of her friends had a decided admiration, and remarks were often made which it was believed would render it impossible for Mrs. Cliff to make a mistake when she should be planning her will, and asking herself to whom she should give this, and to whom that. It was about a week after the events in Miss Cush- ing's parlor that something occurred which sent a thrill through the souls of a good many people in Plainton, affecting them more or less, according to their degree of sensibility. Willy Croup, who had been driven about the town attending to various matters of business and pleasure, was informed by Andrew Marks, as she alighted about four o'clock in the afternoon at the house of an ac quaintance, that he hoped she would not stop very long, because he had some business of his own to attend to that afternoon, and he wanted to get the horse cared for and the cow milked as early as possible, so that he might lock up the barn and go away. To this Willy answered that he need not wait for her, for she could easily walk home when she had finished her visit. But when she left the house, after a protracted call, she did not walk very far, for it so happened that Mr. Burke, who had found leisure that afternoon to take a drive in his barouche, came up behind her, and, very naturally, stopped and offered to take her home. Willy, quite as naturally, accepted the polite proposi tion, and seated herself in the barouche by the side of the fur-trimmed overcoat and the high silk hat. 102 MRS. CLIFF'S YACHT Thus it was that the people of the town who were in the main street that afternoon, or who happened to be at doors or windows, that the very birds of the air, hopping about on trees or housetops, that the horses, dogs, and cats, that even the insects whose constitutions were strong enough to enable them to buzz about in the autumn sunlight, beheld the star tling sight of Willy Croup and the fine gentleman at the hotel riding together, side by side, in broad day light, through the most public street of the town ! Once before these two had been seen together out of doors, but then they had been walking, and almost any two people who knew each other, and who might be walking in the same direction, could, without im propriety, walk side by side, and converse as they went. But now the incident was very different. It created a great impression, not all to the advan tage of Mr. Burke, for, after the matter had been very thoroughly discussed, it was generally conceded that he must be no better than a fortune-hunter. Otherwise, why should he be paying attention to Willy Croup, who, as everybody knew, was not a day under forty-five years old, and therefore at least ten years older than the gentleman at the hotel. In regard to the fortune which he was hunting there was no difference of opinion. Whatever Mrs. Cliff's fortune might be, this Mr. Burke wanted it. Of course, he would not endeavor to gain his object by marrying the widow, for she was entirely too old for him ; but if he married Willy, her only relative, that would not be quite so bad as to age, and there could be no doubt that these two would ultimately come into Mrs. Cliff's fortune, which was probably 103 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT more than had been generally supposed. She had always been very close-mouthed about her affairs, and there were some who said that even in her early days of widowhood she might have been more stingy than she was poor. She must have considerable property, or Mr. Burke would not be so anxious to get it. Thus it happened that the eventful drive in the barouche had a very different effect upon the repu tations of the three persons concerned. Mr. Burke was lowered from his position as a man of means en joying his fortune, for even his building operations were probably undertaken for the purpose of settling himself in Mrs. Cliff's neighborhood, and so being able to marry Willy as soon as possible. Willy Croup, although everybody spoke of her con duct as absolutely ridiculous and even shameful, rose in public estimation simply from the belief that she was about to marry a man who, whatever else he might be, was of imposing appearance and was likely to be rich. As to Mrs. Cliff, there could be no doubt that the general respect for her was on the increase. If she were rich enough to attract Mr. Burke to the town, she was probably rich enough to do a good many other things, and, after all, it might be that that new house at the corner was being built with her money. Miss Shott was very industrious and energetic in expressing her opinion of Mr. Burke. "There's a chambermaid at the hotel," she said, "who's told me a lot of things about him, and it's very plain to my mind that he isn't the gentleman that he makes him self out to be ! His handkerchiefs and his hair-brush 104 MRS. CLIFF'S YACHT aren't the kind that go with fur overcoats and high hats, and she has often seen him stop in the hall down stairs and black his own boots ! Everybody knows he was a sailor, but as to his ever having commanded a vessel, I don't believe a word of it ! But Willy Croup and that man needn't count on their schemes coming out all right, for Sarah Cliff isn't any older than I am, and she's just as likely to outlive them as she is to die before them ! " The fact that nobody had ever said that Burke had commanded a vessel, and that Miss Shott had started the belief that Mrs. Cliff was in a rapid decline, en tirely escaped the attention of her hearers, so inter ested were they in the subject of the un worthiness of the fine gentleman at the hotel. Winter had not yet really set in when George Burke, who had perceived no reason to imagine that he had made a drop in public estimation, felt himself stirred by emotions of triumphant joy. The new building on the corner lot was on the point of com pletion ! Workmen and master workmen, mechanics and laborers, had swarmed in, over, and about the new edifice in such numbers that sometimes they impeded each other. Close upon the heels of the masons came the carpenters, and following them the plumbers and the plasterers, while the painters impatiently restrained themselves in order to give their prede cessors time to get out of their way. The walls and ceilings were covered with the plaster which would dry the quickest, and the paper-hangers entered the rooms almost before the plasterers could take away their trowels and their lime-beprimed hats 105 MRS. CLIFF'S YACHT and coats. Cleaners with their brooms and pails jostled the mechanics, as the latter left the various rooms. And everywhere strode Mr. Burke. He had made up his mind that the building must be ready to move into the instant it arrived at its final destination. It was a very different building from what Mrs. Cliff had proposed to herself when she decided to add a dining-room to her old house. It was so different, indeed, that, after having gone two or three times to look upon the piles of lumber and stone, and the crowds of men digging, and hammering, and sawing on the corner lot, she had decided to leave the whole matter in the hands of Mr. Burke, the architect, and the contractor. And when Willy Croup endeavored to explain to her what was going on, she always stopped her, saying that she would wait until it was done, and then she would understand it. Mr. Burke, too, had urged her, especially as the building drew near to completion, not to bother her self in the least about it, but to give him the pleasure of presenting it to her entirely finished and ready for occupancy. So even the painting and paper-hanging had been left to a professional decorator, and Mrs. Cliff assured Burke that she was perfectly willing to wait for the new dining-room until it was ready for her. This dining-room, large and architecturally hand some, was planned, as has been said, so that one of its doors should fit exactly against the side hall door of the little house, but the other door of the dining-room opened into a wide and elegant hall, at one end of which was a portico and spacious front steps. On the 106 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT other side of this hall was a handsome drawing-room, and behind the drawing-room, and opening into it, an alcove library with a broad piazza at one side of it. Back of the dining-room was a spacious kitchen, with pantries, closets, scullery, and all necessary adjuncts. In the second and third stories of the edifice were large and beautiful bedrooms, small and neat bed rooms, bath-rooms, servants' rooms, trunk-rooms, and every kind of room that modern civilization demands. Now that the building was finished, Mr. Burke al most regretted that he had not constructed it upon the top of a hill, in order that he might have laid his smooth and slippery timbers from the eminence to the side of Mrs. Cliff's house, so that, when all should be ready, he could have knocked away the blocks which held the building in place, and so have launched it as if it had been a ship, and everybody could have beheld it sliding gracefully and rapidly from its stocks into its appointed position. But as this would prob ably have resulted in razing Mrs. Cliff's old house to the level of the ground, he did not long regret that he had not been able to afford himself and the towns people the pleasure of this grand spectacle. The night before the day on which the new building was to be moved, the lot next to Mrs. Cliff's house was covered by masons, laborers, and wagons hauling stones, and by breakfast-time the next morning the new cellar was completed. Almost immediately the great timbers, which, polished and greased, had been waiting for several days, were put in their places, and the great steam- engines and windlasses, which had been ready as long a time, were set in motion. And, as the house began 107 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT to move upon its course, it almost missed a parting dab from the brush of a painter who was at work upon some final trimming. That afternoon, as Mrs. Cliff happened to be in her dining-room, she remarked to Willy that it was get ting dark very early, but she would not pull up the blind of the side window, because she would then look out on the new cellar, and she had promised Mr. Burke not to look at anything until he had told her to do so. Willy, who had looked out of the side door at least fifty times that day, knew that the early dark ness was caused by the shadows thrown by a large building slowly approaching from the west. When Mrs. Cliff came down-stairs the next morning, she was met by Willy, very much excited, who told her that Mr. Burke wished to see her. "Where is he?" said she. "At the dining-room door," answered Willy, and as Mrs. Cliff turned toward the little room in which she had been accustomed to take her meals, Willy seized her hand and led her into the side hall. There, in the open doorway, stood Mr. Burke, his high silk hat in one hand, and the other outstretched toward her. "Welcome to your new dining-room, madam ! " said he, as he took her hand and led her into the great room, which seemed to her, as she gazed in amazement about her, like a beautiful public hall. We will not follow Mrs. Cliff, Willy, and the whole body of domestic servants, as they pass through the halls and rooms of that grand addition to Mrs. CliiFs little house. "Carpets and furniture is all that you want, madam," said Burke, "and then you're at home ! " 108 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT When Mrs. Cliff had been up -stairs and down-stairs, and into every chamber, and when she had looked out of the window, and had beheld hundreds of men at work upon the grounds and putting up fences, and when Mr. Burke had explained to her that the people at the back of the lot were beginning to erect a stable and carriage-house, for no dining-room such as she had was complete, he assured her, without handsome quarters for horses and carriages, she left him and went down-stairs by herself. As she stood by the great front door and looked up at the wide staircase, and into the lofty rooms upon each side, there came to her, rising above all senti ments of amazement, delight, and pride in her new possessions, a feeling of animated and inspiring en couragement. The mists of doubt and uncertainty, which had hung over her, began to clear away. This noble edifice must have cost grandly ! And, for the first time, she began to feel that she might yet be equal to her fortune. 109 CHAPTER XII THE THORPDYKE SISTERS THE new and grand addition to Mrs. ClifPs house, which had been so planned that the little house to which it had been joined appeared to be an architec turally harmonious adjunct to it, caused a far greater sensation in Plainton than the erection of any of the public buildings therein. Its journey from the corner lot was watched by hun dreds of spectators, and now Mrs. Cliff, Willy, and Mr. Burke spent day and evening in exhibiting and explaining this remarkable piece of building enter prise. Mr. Burke was very jolly. He took no credit to himself for the planning of the house, which, as he truthfully said, had been the work of an architect, who had suggested what was proper, and had been allowed to do it. But he did feel himself privileged to declare that if every crew building a house were commanded by a person of marine experience, things would move along a good deal more briskly than they generally did, and to this assertion he found no one to object. Mrs. Cliff was very happy in wandering over her new rooms, and in assuring herself that no matter 110 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT how grand they might be when they were all fur nished and fitted up, nothing had been done which would interfere with the dear old home which she had loved so long. It is true that one of the win dows of the little dining-room was blocked up, but that window was not needed. Mr. Burke was not willing to give Mrs. Cliff more than a day or two for the contemplation of her new possessions, and urged upon her that while the chim neys were being erected and the heating apparatus was being put into the house, she ought to attend to the selection and purchase of the carpets, furniture, pictures, and everything which was needed in the new establishment. Mrs. Cliff thought this good advice, and proposed a trip to Boston. But Burke did not think that would do at all, and declared that New York was the only place where she could get everything she needed. Willy, who was to accompany Mrs. Cliff, had been to Boston, but had never visited New York, and she strongly urged the claims of the latter city, and an immediate journey to the metropolis was agreed upon. But when Mrs. Cliff considered the magnitude and difficulties of the work she was about to undertake, she wished for the counsel and advice of some one besides Willy. This good little woman was energetic and enthusiastic, but she had had no experience in regard to the furnishing of a really good house. When, in her mind, she was running over the names of those who might be able and willing to go with her and assist her, Mrs. Cliff suddenly thought of the Thorpdyke ladies, and there her mental category 111 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT stopped, as she announced to "Willy that she was going to ask these ladies to go with them to New York. Willy thought well of this plan, but she had her doubts about Miss Barbara, who was so quiet, domestic, and unused to travel that she might be unwilling to cast herself into the din and whirl of the metropolis. But when she and Mrs. Cliff went to make a call upon the Thorpdykes, and put the question before them, she was very much surprised to find that, although the elder sister, after carefully considering the subject, announced her willingness to oblige Mrs. Cliff, Miss Barbara agreed to the plan with an alacrity which her visitors had never known her to exhibit before. As soon as the necessary preparations could be made, a party of five left Plainton for New York, and a very well-assorted party it was ! Mr. Burke, who guided and commanded the expedition, supplied the impelling energy. Mrs. Cliff had her check-book with her. Willy was ready with any amount of enthusiasm. And the past life of Miss Eleanor Thorpdyke and her sister Barbara had made them most excellent judges of what was appropriate for the worthy furnishing of a stately mansion. Their youth and middle life had been spent near Boston, in a fine old house which had been the home of their ancestors, and where they had been familiar with wealth, distinguished society, and noble hospi tality. But when they had been left the sole repre sentatives of their family, and when misfortune after misfortune had come down upon them and swept away their estates and nearly all of their income, they 112 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT had retired to the little town of Plainton, where they happened to own a house. There, with nothing saved from the wreck of their prosperity but their family traditions, and some of the old furniture and pictures, they had settled down to spend in quiet the rest of their lives. For two weeks our party remained in New York, living at one of the best hotels, but spending nearly all their time in shops and streets. Mrs. Cliff was rapidly becoming a different woman from the old Mrs. Cliff of Plainton. At the time she stepped inside of the addition to her house the change had begun, and now it showed itself more and more each day. She had seen more beautiful things in Paris, but there she looked upon them with but little thought of purchasing. In New York whatever she saw and desired she made her own. The difference between a mere possessor of wealth and one who uses it became very apparent to her. Not until now had she really known what it was to be a rich woman. Not only did this consciousness of power swell her veins with a proud delight, but it warmed and invigorated all her better impulses. She had always been of a generous disposition, but now she felt an intense good will toward her fellow-beings, and wished that other people could be as happy as she was. She thought of Mrs. Ferguson, and remembered what she had said about her daughters. To be sure, Mrs. Ferguson was always trying to get people to do things for her, and Mrs. Cliff did not fancy that class of women, but now her wealth-warmed soul inclined her 113 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT to overlook this prejudice, and she said to herself that when she got home she would make arrangements for those two girls to go to a good school ; and, more than that, she would see to it that Mr. Ferguson was moved. It seemed to her just then that it would be a very cheerful thing to make other people happy. The taste and artistic judgment of the elder Miss Thorpdyke, which had been dormant for years, simply because there was nothing upon which they could exercise themselves, now awoke in their old vigor, and with Mrs. Cliff's good sense, reinforced by her experience gained in wandering among the treas ures of Paris, the results of the shopping expedition were eminently satisfactory. And, with the plan of the new building, which Mr. Burke carried always with him, everything which was likely to be needed in each room, hall, or stairway was selected and pur chased, and, as fast as this was done, the things were shipped to Plainton, where people were ready to put them where they belonged. "Willy Croup was not always of service in the pur chasing expeditions, for she liked everything that she saw, and no sooner was an article produced than she went into ecstasies over it. But as she had an intense desire to see everything which New York contained, she did not at all confine herself to the shops and bazaars. She went wherever she could, and saw all that it was possible for her to see ; but in the midst of the sights and attractions of the metropolis, she was still Willy Croup. One afternoon, as she and Miss Barbara were passing along one of the side streets, on their return from an attempt to see how the poorer people lived, Willy 114 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT stopped in front of a blacksmith's shop, where a man was shoeing a horse. " There ! " she exclaimed, her eyes sparkling with delight, "that's the first thing I've seen that reminds me of home ! " "It is nice, isn't it ! " said gentle Miss Barbara. 115 CHAPTER XIII MONEY-HUNGER DURING the latter part of their sojourn in the city, Willy went about a good deal with Miss Barbara, because she thought this quiet, soft-spoken lady was not happy, and did not take the interest in handsome and costly articles which was shown by her sister. She had been afraid that this noisy, bustling place would be too much for Miss Barbara, and now she was sure she had been right. The younger Miss Thorpedyke was unhappy, and with reason. For some months a little house in Boston which had been their principal source of in come had not been rented. It needed repairs, and there was no money with which to repair it. The agent had written that some one might appear who would be willing to take it as it stood, but that this was doubtful, and the heart of Miss Barbara sank very low. She was the business woman of the family. She it was who had always balanced the income and the expenditures. This adjustment had now become very difficult indeed, and was only accomplished by adding a little debt to the weight on the income scale. She had said nothing to her sister about this sad 116 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT change in their affairs, because she hoped against hope that soon they might have a tenant, and she knew that her sister Eleanor was a woman of such strict and punctilious honor that she would insist upon living upon plain bread, if their supply of ready money was insufficient to buy anything else. To see this sister insufficiently nourished was something which Miss Barbara could not endure, and so, sorely against her disposition and her conscience, she made some little debts ; and these grew and grew, until at last they weighed her down until she felt as if she must always look upon the earth, and could never raise her head to the sky. And she was so plump, and so white, and gentle, and quiet, and peaceful-looking that no one thought she had a care in the world until Willy Croup began to suspect, in New York, that something was the matter with her, but did not in the least at tribute her friend's low spirits to the proper cause. When Miss Barbara had favored so willingly and promptly the invitation of Mrs. Cliff, she had done so because she saw in the New York visit a temporary abolition of expense, and a consequent opportunity to lay up a little money by which she might be able to satisfy for a time one of her creditors, who was begin ning to suspect that she was not able to pay his bill, and was therefore pressing her very hard. Even while she had been in New York, this many-times rendered bill had been forwarded to her, with an urgent request that it be settled. It was not strange, therefore, that a tear should sometimes come to the eye of Miss Barbara when she stood by the side of her sister and Mrs. Cliff, and lis tened to them discussing the merits of some rich rugs 117 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT or pieces of furniture, and when she reflected that the difference in price between two articles, one appar ently as desirable as the other, which was discussed so lightly by Mrs. Cliff and Eleanor, would pay that bill which was eating into her soul, and settle, more over, every other claim against herself and her sister. But the tears were always wiped away very quickly, and neither Mrs. Cliff nor the elder Miss Thorpdyke ever noticed them. But although Willy Croup was not at all a woman of acute perceptions, she began to think that perhaps jit was something more than the bustle and noise of New York which was troubling Miss Barbara. And once, when she saw her gazing with an earnest, eager glare and whoever would have thought of any sort of a glare in Miss Barbara's eyes? upon some bank notes which Mrs. Cliff was paying out for a carved cabinet for which it was a little doubtful if a suitable place could be found, but which was bought because Miss Eleanor thought it would give an air of dis tinction in whatever room it might be placed, Willy began to suspect the meaning of that unusual exhi bition of emotion. "She's money -hungry," she said to herself, "that's what's the matter with her ! " Willy had seen the signs of such hunger before, and she understood what they meant. That night Willy lay in her bed, having the very unusual experience of thinking so much that she could not sleep. Her room adjoined Miss Barbara's, and the door between them was partly open, for the latter lady was timid. Perhaps it was because this door was not closed that Willy was so wakeful and thoughtful, 118 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT for there was a bright light in the other room, and she could not imagine why Miss Barbara should be sitting up so late. It was a proceeding entirely at variance with her usual habits. She was in some sort of trouble, it was easy to see that, but it would be a great deal better to go to sleep and try to forget it. So, after a time, Willy rose, and, softly stepping over the thick carpet, looked into the other room. There was Miss Barbara, in her day-dress, sitting at a table, her arms upon the table, her head upon her arms, fast asleep. Upon her pale face there were a great many tear- marks, and Willy knew that she must have cried herself to sleep. A paper was spread out near her. Willy was sure that it would be a very mean and contemptible thing for her to go and look at that paper, and so, perhaps, find out what was troubling Miss Barbara, but, without the slightest hesitation, she did it. Her bare feet made no sound upon the carpet, and as she had very good eyes, it was not necessary for her to approach close to the sleeper. It was a bill from William Bullock, a grocer and provision-dealer of Plainton. It contained but one item, "To bill rendered," and at the bottom was a statement in Mr. Bullock's own handwriting to the effect that if the bill was not immediately paid he would be obliged to put it into the hands of a collector. Willy turned and slipped back into her room. Then, after sitting down upon her bed and getting up again, she stepped boldly to the door and knocked upon it. Instantly she heard Miss Barbara start and push back her chair. 119 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT "What are you doing up so late?" cried Willy, cheerfully. "Don't you feel well?" "Oh, yes," replied the other, "I accidentally fell asleep while reading, but I will go to bed instantly." The mind of Willy Croup was a very small one, and had room in it for but one idea at a time. For a good while she lay putting ideas into this mind, and then taking them out again. Having given place to the conviction that the Thorpdykes were in a very bad way, indeed, for if that bill should be collected, they would not have much left but themselves, and Mr. Bullock was a man who did collect when he said he would, she was obliged to remove this conviction, which made her cry, in order to consider plans of relief ; and while she was considering these plans, one at a time, she dropped asleep. The first thing she thought of, when she opened her eyes in the morning, was poor Miss Barbara in the next room, and that dreadful bill ; and then, like a flash of lightning, she thought of a good thing to do for the Thorpdykes. The project which now laid itself out, detail after detail, before her seemed so simple, so sensible, so absolutely wise and desirable in every way, that she got up, dressed herself with great rapidity, and went in to see Mrs. Cliff. That lady was still asleep, but Willy awakened her, and sat on the side of the bed. "Do you know what I think? "said Willy. "How in the world should I ! " said Mrs. Cliff. "Is it after breakfast-time? " "No," said Willy, "but it's this ! What are you going to do in that big house, with all the bedrooms, parlor, library, and so forth? You say that you are 120 MRS. CLIFF'S YACHT going to have one room, and that I'm to have an other, and that we'll go into the old house to feel at home whenever we want to. But I believe we'll be like a couple of flies in a barrel. You're going to furnish your new house with everything but people. You ought to have more people. You ought to have a family. That house will look funny without people. You can't ask Mr. Burke, because it would be too queer to have him come and live with us, and, besides, he'll want a house of his own. Why don't you ask the Thorpdykes to come and live with us? Their roof is dreadfully out of repairs. I know to my certain knowledge that they have to put tin wash basins on every bed in the second story when it rains, on account of the holes in the shingles ! If they had money to mend those holes, they'd mend them, but as they don't mend them, of course they haven't the money. It strikes me that they aren't as well off as they used to be, and they'll have a hard time gettin' through this winter. Now, there isn't any piece of furniture that you can put in your house that will give it 'such an air of distinction/ as Miss Eleanor calls it, as she herself will give it, if you put her there. If you could persuade Miss Eleanor to come and sit in your parlor when you are having company to see you, it would set you up in Plainton a good deal higher than any money can set you up." "They would never agree to anything of the kind,' 7 said Mrs. Cliff, "and you know it, Willy ! " "I don't believe it," said Willy. "I believe they'd come ! Just see how willing they were to come here with you! I tell you, Sarah, that the older and older those Thorpdyke ladies get, the more timid 121 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT they get, and the more unwilling to lire by them selves ! If you make Miss Eleanor understand that it would be the greatest comfort and happiness to both of us if she would come and spend the winter with you, and so help you to get used to your great big new house, and, more than that, if they'd bring with them some of their candlesticks and pictures on ivory, and that sort of thing, which everybody knows can't be bought for money, it would be the great accommo dation to you, and make your house look something like what you would like to have it. I believe that old-family lady would come and stay with you this winter, and think all the time that she was giving you something that you ought to have, and which nobody in Plainton could give you but herself. And as to Miss Barbara, she'd come along as quick as lightning ! " "Willy," said Mrs. Cliff, very earnestly, "have you any good reason to believe that the Thorpdykes are in money trouble f " "Yes, I have," said Willy, "I'm positive of it, and, what's more, it's only Miss Barbara who knows it ! " Mrs. Cliff sat for some minutes without answering, and then she said, "Willy, you do sometimes get into your head an idea that absolutely sparkles ! " 122 CHAPTER XIV WILLY CROUP AS A PHILANTHROPIC DIPLOMATIST MRS. CLIFF was late to breakfast that day, and the reason was that, thinking so much about what Willy had said to her, she had been very slow in dressing. As soon as she had a chance, Mrs. Cliff took Willy aside and told her that she had determined to adopt her advice about the Thorpdykes. "The more I think of the plan," she said, "the better I like it ! But we must be very, very careful about what we do. If Miss Eleanor suspects that I invite them to come to my house because I think they are poor, she will turn into solid stone, and we will find we cannot move her an inch. But I think I can manage it ! When we go home, I will tell them how pleasant we found it for us all to be together, and speak of the loneliness of my new big house. If I can get Miss Eleanor to believe that she is doing me a favor, she may be willing to come. But on no account, Willy, do you say a word to either of them about this plan. If you do, you will spoil everything, for that's your way, Willy, and you know it ! " Willy promised faithfully that she would not inter fere in the least ; but although she was perfectly satis- 123 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT fied with this arrangement, she was not happy. How could she be happy, knowing what she did about Miss Barbara? That poor lady was looking sadder than ever, and Willy was very much afraid that she had had another letter from that horrid Mr. Bullock, with whom, she was delighted to think, Mrs. Cliff had never dealt. It would be some days yet before they would go home and make the new arrangement, and then there would be the bill and the collector, and all that horrid business, and if Miss Eleanor found out the condition of affairs, and if the bill was not paid, she must find out, she would never come to them. She would probably stay at home and live on bread ! Now, it so happened that Willy had in her own possession more than enough money to pay that wretched Bullock bill. Mrs. Cliff made her no regular allowance, but she had given her all the money that she might reasonably expect to spend in New York, and Willy had spent but very little of it, for she found it the most difficult thing in the world to select what it was she wanted out of all the desirable things she saw. It would rejoice her heart to transfer this money to Miss Barbara, but how in the world could she do it? She first thought that she might offer to buy something that was in the Thorpdyke house, but she knew this idea was absurd. Then she thought of mentioning, in an offhand way, that she would like to put some money out at interest, and thus, perhaps, induce Miss Barbara to propose a business transaction. But this would not do. Even Miss Barbara would suspect some concealed motive. Idea after idea came to her, 124 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT but she could think of no satisfactory plan of getting that money into Miss Barbara's possession. She did not go out with the party that morning, but sat in her room trying in vain to solve this prob lem. At last she gave it up, and determined to do what she wanted to do without any plan whatever. She went into Miss Barbara's room, and placed upon the table, in the very spot where the bill had been lying, some bank-notes, considerably more than suffi cient to pay the amount of the bill, which amount she well remembered. It would not do to leave just money enough, for that would excite suspicion. And so, placing Miss Barbara's hair-brush upon the bank notes, so that she would be sure not to overlook them, for she would not think of going down to luncheon without brushing her hair, Willy retired to her own room, nearly closing the door, leaving only a little crack through which she might see if any servant entered the room before Miss Barbara came back. Then Willy set herself industriously to work hem ming a pocket-handkerchief. She could not do this very well, because she was not at all proficient in fine sewing, but she worked with great energy, waiting and listening for Miss Barbara's entrance. At last, after a long time, Willy heard the outer door of the other room open, and glancing through the crack, she saw Miss Barbara enter. Then she twisted herself around toward the window, and began to sew savagely, with a skill much better adapted to the binding of carpets than to any sort of work upon cambric handkerchiefs. In a few minutes she heard a little exclamation in the next room, and then her door was opened sud- 125 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT denly, without the customary knock, and Miss Barbara marched in. Her face was flushed. "Willy Croup," said she, "what is the meaning of that money on my table? " "Money?" said Willy, turning toward her with as innocent an expression as her burning cheeks and rapidly winking eyes would permit. "What do you mean by money?" Miss Barbara stood silent for some moments, while Willy vainly endeavored to thread the point of her needle. "Willy," said Miss Barbara, "did you come into my room last night, and look at the bill which was on my table ? " Now Willy dropped her needle, thread, and hand kerchief, and stood up. "Yes, I did ! " said she. Miss Barbara was now quite pale. "And you read the note which Mr. Bullock had put at the bottom of it?" "Yes, I read it ! " said Willy. "And don't you know," said the other, "that to do such a thing was most" " Yes, I do ! " interrupted Willy. "I knew it then, and I know it now, but I don't care any more now than I did then ! I put it there because I wanted to ! And if you'll take it, Miss Barbara, and pay it back to me any time when you feel like it and you can pay me interest at ten per cent., if you want to, and that will make it all right, you know. And oh, Miss Barbara ! I know all about that sort of bill, because they used to come when my father was alive. If you'd only take it, you don't know how happy I would be !" 126 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT At this she began to cry, and then Miss Barbara burst into tears, and the two sat down beside each other on a lounge and cried earnestly, hand in hand, for nearly ten minutes. "I'm so glad you'll take it ! " said Willy, when Miss Barbara went into her room, "and you may be just as sure as you're sure of anything that nobody but our two selves will ever know anything about it ! " Immediately after luncheon Miss Barbara went by herself to the post-office, and when she came back her sister said to her that New York must just be begin ning to agree with her. "It is astonishing," said Miss Eleanor, "how long it takes some people to get used to a change, but it often happens that if one stays long enough in the new place, great benefit will be experienced, whereas, if the stay is short, there may be no good result what- ever ! " That afternoon Mrs. Cliff actually laughed at Miss Barbara a thing she had never done before. They were in a large jewelry store, where they were looking at clocks, and Miss Barbara, who had evinced a sudden interest in the beautiful things about her, called Mrs. ClifPs attention to a lovely necklace of pearls. "If I were you," said Miss Barbara, "I would buy something like that ! I should not want to wear it, perhaps, but it would be so delightful to sit and look at it ! " The idea of Miss Barbara thinking of buying neck laces of pearls ! No wonder Mrs. Cliff laughed. When the party returned to Plainton, Mrs. Cliff was amazed to find her new house almost completely furnished; and no time was lost in proposing the 127 MRS. CLIFF'S YACHT Thorpdyke project, for Mrs. Cliff felt that it would be wise to make the proposition while the sense of companionship was still fresh upon them all. Miss Thorpdyke was very much surprised when the plan was proposed to her, but it produced a pleas ant effect upon her. She had much enjoyed the com pany she had been in. She had always liked society, and lately had had very little of it, for no matter how good and lovable sisters may be, they are some times a little tiresome when they are sole companions. As to Barbara, she trembled as she thought of Mrs. Cliff's offer trembled with joy, which she could not repress, and trembled with fear that her sister might not accept it. But it was of no use for her to say any thing, and she said nothing. Eleanor always decided such questions as these. After a day's consideration, Miss Thorpdyke came to a conclusion, and she sent Miss Barbara with a mes sage to Mrs. Cliff to the effect that as the winters were always lonely, and as it would be very pleasant for them all to be together, she would, if Mrs. Cliff thought it would be an advantage to her, come with her sister and live in some portion of the new building which Mrs. Cliff did not intend to be otherwise occupied, and that they would pay whatever board Mrs. Cliff thought reasonable and proper, but in order to do this, it would be necessary for them to rent their pres ent home. They would offer this house fully fur nished, reserving the privilege of removing the most valuable heirlooms which it now contained, and, as soon as such an arrangement could be made, they would be willing to come to Mrs. Cliff and remain with her during the winter. 128 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT When Miss Barbara had heard this decision her heart had fallen. She knew that it would be almost impossible to find a tenant who would take that house, especially for winter occupancy, and that even if a tenant could be found the rent would be very little. She knew, moreover, that having come to a decision, Eleanor could not be moved from it. She found Mr. Burke and Willy with Mrs. Cliff, but as he knew all about the project, and had taken great interest in it, she did not hesitate to tell her message before him. Mrs. Cliff was very much dis appointed. "That ends the matter !" said she. " Your house cannot be rented for the winter ! " "I don't know about that ! " exclaimed Mr. Burke "By George ! I'll take the house myself! I want a house I want just such a house. I want it furnished, except I don't want to be responsible for old heir looms, and I'm willing to pay a fair and reasonable rent for it. And I'm sure, although I never had the pleasure of being in it, it ought to bring rent enough to pay the board of any two ladies any winter, wher ever they might be ! " "But, Mr. Burke," Miss Barbara said, her voice shaking as she spoke, "I must tell you that the roof is very much out of repair, and" "Oh, that doesn't matter at all ! " said Burke. "A tenant, if he's the right sort of tenant, is bound to put a house into repair to suit himself. I'll attend to the roof, if it needs it you may be sure of that ! And if it doesn't need it, I'll leave it just as it is ! That'll be all right and you can tell your sister that you've found a tenant. I'm getting dreadfully tired of living 129 MRS. CLIFF'S YACHT at that hotel, and a house of my own is something that I've never had before ! But one thing I must ask of you, Miss Thorpdyke : don't say anything to your sister about tobacco smoke, and perhaps she will never think of it ! " 130 CHAPTEK XV MISS NANCY MAKES A CALL IT was a day or two after the most satisfactory arrange ment between the Thorpdykes, Mrs. Cliff, and Mr. Burke had been concluded, and before it had been made public, that Miss Nancy Shott came to call upon Mrs. Cliff. As she walked, stiff as a grenadier, and almost as tall, she passed by the new building without turning her head even to glance at it, and going directly up to the front door of the old house, she rang the bell. As Mrs. Cliff's domestic household were all engaged in the new part of the building, the bell was not heard, and after waiting nearly a minute, Miss Shott rang it again, with such vigor that the door was soon opened by a maid, who informed her that Mrs. Cliff was not at home, but that Miss Croup was in. "Very well," said Miss Shott, "I'll see her ! " And, passing the servant, she entered the old parlor. The maid followed her. "There's no fire here," she said. "Won't you please walk into the other part of the house, which is heated ? Miss Croup is over there." "No 1 " said Miss Shott, seating herself upon the 131 MRS. CLIFFS YACHT Sofa. "This suits me very well, and Willy Croup can