“What stuffs did you buy this morning?” the doctor asked.  Daisy drew back from the microscope.

“I got all you told me, sir?”

“Exactly.  I forget what that was.”

“I bought a little piece of red and green linsey-woolsey for a frock for the little girl—­and some brown strong stuff for the boy’s suit; and then white muslin to make things for the girl, and blue check for the boy’s shirt.”

“Just right.  Did your money hold out?”

“O I had three dollars and two shillings left, Dr. Sandford.  Two shillings and sixpence, I believe.”

“You did well.”  The doctor was arranging something else in the microscope.  He had taken out the bit of liverwort.

“I had Juanita to help me,” said Daisy.

“How do you suppose I am going to get all those things made up?” said the doctor.

“Won’t Mrs. Sandford attend to it?”

“Mrs. Sandford has her own contribution to attend to.  I do not wish to give her mine too.”

“Cannot the children’s mother make the things?”

The doctor’s lip curled in funny fashion.

“They have no mother, I think.  There is an old aunt, or grandmother, or something, that does not take care of the children.  I shall not trust the business certainly to her.”

Daisy wondered a little that Mrs. Sandford, who was so good-natured, could not do what was needful; but she said nothing.

“I think I shall turn over the whole thing in charge to you, Daisy?”

“But, Dr. Sandford, what can I do?”

“Drive down with me to-morrow and see how big the children are, and then have the things made.”

“But I am afraid I do not know enough.”

“I dare say you can find out. I do not know enough—­that is very certain; and I have other things to attend to besides overseeing mantua-makers.”

“Our seamstress could do it,—­if I could see her.”

“Very well, then some other seamstress can.  Now, Daisy—­you may look at this.”

“What a beautiful thing!  But what is it, Dr. Sandford?”

“What does it look like?”

“It does not look like anything that I ever saw.”

“It is a scale from a butterfly’s wing.”

“Why, it is as large as a small butterfly,” said Daisy.

The doctor shewed her where the little scale lay, so little that she could hardly see it out of the glass; and Daisy went back to the contemplation of its magnified beauty with immense admiration.  Then her friend let her see the eye of a bee, and the tongue of a fly, and divers other wonders, which kept Daisy busy until an hour which was late for her.  Busy and delightfully amused.

CHAPTER XXI.