The following version of this story was used to create this guide: Mansfield, Katherine. "The Daughters of the Late Colonel." Katherine Mansfield Society Online. https://www.katherinemansfieldsociety.org/assets/KM-Stories/THE-DAUGHTERS-OF-THE-LATE-COLONEL1920.pdf

Note that parenthetical citations refer to the page number on which the quotation appears.

"The Daughters of the Later Colonel" begins with Jospehine and Constantia Pinner discussing whether they should gift their late father's top hat to the porter. They cannot decide, and move on to discussing whether they should dye their clothing black to continue their mourning whilst inside their house where nobody can see them. They note that they must continue to send out notices of their father's death to Ceylon, and question whether they have purchased enough stamps.

Their father's nurse, Nurse Andrews, is staying with them as their guest, but the sisters do not like having her there. Meals with Nurse Andrews are particularly frustrating for the sisters. One day soon after their father's passing, a clergyman named Mr. Farolles comes to the house to ask the sisters about funeral arrangements. The sisters are indecisive about what kind of funeral to have for their father, and they worry that he would have been unhappy with what they chose. After the funeral, Josephine and Constantia go to their father's bedroom to clean out his things. However, they are both too overwhelmed by their emotions to continue, and they lock the wardrobe and leave the room.

Later, the sisters contend with their housekeeper, Kate, who is rude to them and treats them with contempt. They discuss whether they should give their father's watch to their brother, Benny, or his son, Cyril. One time before their father's death, Cyril had visited them. Josephine and Constantia tired to entice him with desserts, but Cyril was impatient to leave. They brought Cyril into their father's room, where the old man yelled at Cyril and his daughters.

Back in the present, the sisters wonder if, now that their father is gone, they should fire Kate. They are unable to make a decision, as they are unsure if they can trust Kate. While they think through the problem, an organ grinder begins playing outside. The sisters rush to stop him, but remember that their father is no longer around to be bothered by the music. Both sisters fall into thinking about the past and wondering what their futures will look like. When they begin talking again, they both say that they have forgotten what they were thinking.