When the women appeared they were equally interested, and inquired all about Rose House.  One of them directed that enough ferns for the renewal of a centerpiece should be ready for her to take away when they left and the other bought one of the hanging baskets which Roger had arranged as a sample of what they could supply if called upon.

“Roger will be tickled to pieces that his idea caught on at once,” Ethel Brown murmured to Ethel Blue as they sorted and packed their orders, not very deftly, but swiftly enough for the posies to add to the enjoyment of the people at the table and for the parcels to be ready for them when the motor came to the door.

“We’ll tell all our friends about you,” the guests promised as they left.

These were the only patrons until afternoon brought in several parties for tea.  Almost every one of them was sufficiently drawn by the “Rose House” placard to make inquiries, and several of them bought flowers and potted plants.  The same was true of the dinner arrivals.

When the girls examined their receipts for the day they found they had taken in over seven dollars, had booked several orders and already had learned a good deal about what people liked and what they could carry conveniently in their machines.

“We shan’t need to have so many cut flowers here,” they decided after the day’s experience.  “It’s better to leave them on the plants and then if we run short to telephone to the house and have Dicky bring over an extra supply.”

“These potted plants are all right here, though.  We can leave them on the back porch at night, Miss Foster says, and bring them in to the table in the morning.”

“We must get Roger to fill some more hanging baskets and ox muzzles and make some ivy balls; those are going to take.”

The plan worked out extremely well, its only drawback being that the girls had to give more time to the table at the Inn than they liked.  They were “spelled” however, by other members of the Club, and finally, as a result of a trip when they all went away for a few days, they engaged a schoolmate of the Ethels who had helped them occasionally, to give her whole time to the work at the Inn.

Financially the scheme worked out very well.  When it came time to pay the rent for the first week the Ethels decided that they were accepting charity if they only paid Miss Foster five per cent. of their gross earnings, so they doubled it.

“I am buying the cut flowers at the same price that the girls are selling them to other customers, and I am glad to pay for their arrangement for it releases me to attend to matters that need me more,” she had explained.  “Even if it should be a few cents on the wrong side of my account, I am glad to contribute something to Rose House.  And the motoring season is comparatively short, too.”

Every once in a while they received an idea from some one who asked for something they did not have.  One housekeeper wanted fresh herbs and the Ethels telephoned directions for the picking of the herb bed that Roger had planted for their own kitchen use.