“You must go to a school, of course,” answered Primrose.  “There is a seminary for young ladies just round the corner—­we will call there this afternoon, and find out if the lady can give you lessons.”

Miss Egerton, the principal of the seminary in question, opened her eyes a good deal at Jasmine’s modest request.

“I don’t want French, nor German, nor music,” quoth the young lady, “but I do want to be helped to make very smooth and flowing verses, and I want to have the plots of my novels cut up and criticised—­for I don’t mind telling you,” continued Jasmine, looking full into Miss Egerton’s deeply-lined and anxious face, “that I mean to live by my pen.  My sister is to be an artist, and I am to be a novelist and poet.”

Miss Egerton owned to herself afterwards that she had never met such extraordinary girls; but then they were so pretty, and so fresh, and the times were hard, and the High Schools were carrying off all her pupils, so though she knew little or nothing of making up verses or developing plots, she promised to receive Jasmine as a pupil, to direct her reading, and to help her to the best of her ability.  She was a good and kind-hearted woman, and she made a further suggestion.

“What is to become of your little sister while you are both so busy, young ladies?” she said.

“Oh, Daisy promises to be very good,” said Primrose with a tender smile at the little one.  “Daisy will stay at home, and take care of the Pink, and she is learning to sew very nicely.  When Daisy is good and stays quietly at home she helps our plan, and does as much for our cause as any of us.”

Miss Egerton looked straight into Daisy’s eyes.  Long ago this dry and hard-looking old maid had a little sister like Daisy—­a pretty little lass, who went away to play in the heavenly gardens many and many a year ago.  For the sake of little Constance Miss Egerton felt a great kindness welling up in her heart towards Daisy Mainwaring.

“Your little sister must not stay at home by herself,” she said.  “She shall come to me.  While I am teaching Miss Jasmine, Daisy can play or work as she pleases, only not by herself in your lodgings, young ladies, but in the room with her sister.”

So it was arranged, and the three girls might fairly have been said to commence their work.

When Primrose had gone to Mr. Danesfield and asked him to allow her to draw their little capital out of his bank, he had made wonderfully few objections.  Of all their friends, he was the one who had opposed Primrose’s scheme the least, and perhaps for that reason she was more willing to take his advice, and to be guided by him, than by either Mrs. Ellsworthy or Miss Martineau.  Mr. Danesfield had said to her:  “My dear, you and your sisters are in some particulars in a very unique and unfortunate position.  You are all three very young, yet you are absolutely your own mistresses.  No one in all the world has any real control over you.