This rainbow-hued specimen of humanity opened the door with a flourish and bowed to the visitors with an air of extreme elegance.

Marjorie looked at her in astonishment.  The gorgeous trappings and the formal demeanor of the child made her think she must have mistaken the house.

“Is this Mrs. Dunn’s house?” she inquired, with some hesitation.

“Yes; I’m Miss Dunn,” said the child, with such a ridiculous air of affectation that Molly giggled outright.

“Yes,” Miss Dunn went on, “I am the eldest daughter.  My name is Ella.  They call me the Elegant Ella, but I don’t mind.”

“I am Marjorie Maynard and Mrs. Sherwood is my grandmother.  She heard your mother was ill and she sent her these baskets.”

“How kind of her!” exclaimed the Elegant Ella, clasping her hands and rolling up her eyes.  “Won’t you come in?”

As Marjorie and Molly had been with difficulty balancing themselves on the broken boards of the porch, they were glad to accept the invitation.

Their first glance at the interior of the cottage showed that the rest of the family and the ways of the house did not at all harmonize with the manner and appearance of the eldest daughter.

Everything was of the poorest, and there was no attempt at order or thrift.

Mrs. Dunn sat in a rockerless rocking-chair, her left hand wrapped in bandages and her right hand holding a book which she was reading.

As the girls entered she threw the book on the floor and smiled at them pleasantly.

“Walk right in,” she said, “and take seats if you can find any.  Hoopsy Topsy, get off that chair this minute and give it to the ladies!  Dibbs, you lift Plumpy out of the other one, quick!  There!  Now you girls set down and rest yourselves!  Did you bring them baskets for us?  Lawsee!  What a good woman Mis’ Sherwood is, to be sure!  Now ain’t that just like her!  She’s so kind and gen’rous-hearted that she makes it a pleasure fer folks to get all scalted with hot water!  Ella, you fly round and empty them baskets so’s the young ladies can take them home again.  But you set a while, girls, and visit.”

“Are you much hurt, Mrs. Dunn?” asked Marjorie.  “And how did it happen?”

“Hurt!  Land sakes, I guess I am!  Why, the hull kittle of boilin’ water just doused itself on my hand and foot!”

“That’s why Ma didn’t rise to greet you,” explained the Elegant Ella, and again Molly had hard work to keep her face straight as she noted the girl’s comical efforts at etiquette.

“Aw, you keep still, Ella,” said her mother; “you ain’t got no call to talk to the young ladies.”

But although Mrs. Dunn apparently tried to subdue her elegant daughter, yet it was plain to be seen that she greatly admired the flower of the family, and spoke thus merely from a pretended modesty.

“Ella’s so fond of dress,” said Mrs. Dunn, “that she jest don’t hev time to bother with housekeepin’.  So Hoopsy Topsy does it, and that’s why we ain’t so slick as we might be.  But fer a child of eight, I must say Hoopsy Topsy does wonderful well.”