“I won’t say a word till you’re all through talkin’, Lois,” promised Mrs. Daggett meekly.  “Mebbe she’d kind of hate to say ‘no’ before me.  She’s took a real liking to Henry....  Git-ap, Dolly....  And anyway, she’s awful generous.  I could say, kind of careless; ’If I was you, I’d take a leather-bound.’  Couldn’t I, Lois?”

“Well, you can come in, Abby, if you’re so terrible anxious,” relented Miss Daggett.  “You might tell her, you and Henry was going to take a leather-bound; that might have some effect.  I remember once I sold three Famous People in a row in one street.  There couldn’t one o’ them women endure to think of her next door neighbor having something she didn’t have.”

“That’s so, Lois,” beamed Mrs. Daggett.  “The most of folks is about like that.  Why, I rec’lect once, Henry brought me up a red-handled broom from th’ store.  My! it wa’n’t no time b’fore he was cleaned right out of red-handled brooms.  Nobody wanted ’em natural color, striped, or blue.  Henry, he says to me, ’What did you do to advertise them red-handled brooms, Abby?’ ‘Why, papa,’ says I, ’I swept off my stoop and the front walk a couple of times, that’s all.’  ‘Well,’ he says, ’broom-handles is as catching as measles, if you only get ’em th’ right color!’ ...  Git-ap, Dolly!”

“Well, did you ever!” breathed Miss Daggett excitedly, leaning out of the buggy to gaze upon the scene of activity displayed on the further side of the freshly-pruned hedge which divided Miss Lydia Orr’s property from the road:  “Painters and carpenters and masons, all going at once!  And ain’t that Jim Dodge out there in the side yard talking to her?  ’Tis, as sure as I’m alive!  I wonder what he’s doing?  Go right in, Abby!”

“I kind of hate to drive Dolly in on that fresh gravel,” hesitated Mrs. Daggett.  “He’s so heavy on his feet he’ll muss it all up.  Mebbe I’d better hitch out in front.”

“She sees us, Abby; go on in!” commanded Miss Daggett masterfully.  “I guess when it comes to that, her gravel ain’t any better than other folks’ gravel.”

Thus urged, Mrs. Daggett guided the sulky brown horse between the big stone gateposts and brought him to a standstill under the somewhat pretentious porte-cochere of the Bolton house.

Lydia Orr was beside the vehicle in a moment, her face bright with welcoming smiles.

“Dear Mrs. Daggett,” she said, “I’m so glad you’ve come.  I’ve been wanting to see you all day.  I’m sure you can tell me—­”

“You’ve met my husband’s sister, Miss Lois Daggett, haven’t you, Miss Orr?  She’s the lady that made that beautiful drawn-in mat you bought at the fair.”

Miss Orr shook hands cordially with the author of the drawn-in mat.

“Come right in,” she said.  “You’ll want to see what we’re doing inside, though nothing is finished yet.”

She led the way to a small room off the library, its long French windows opening on a balcony.