'Certainly not,' said Desmond, sitting on the floor with his hands round his knees. 'What's it about?' And he gave Pamela's right foot a nudge with his left by way of conveying to her that he thought her behaviour ungracious. Pamela hurriedly murmured, 'Delighted.' 'I want to tell you about the servants,' said Elizabeth. 'I can't do anything unless you help me.' 'Help you in what?' said Desmond, wondering. 'Well, you know, it's simply scandalous what you're all eating in this house!' exclaimed Elizabeth, with sudden energy. 'You ought to be fined.' She frowned, and her fair Dutch complexion became a bright pink. 'It's quite true,' said Pamela, startled. 'I told father, and he laughed at me.' 'But now even the servants are on strike,' said Elizabeth. 'It's Forest that's been preaching to them. He and Cook have been drawing up a week's _menu_, according to the proper scale. But--' 'Father won't have it,' said Pamela decidedly. 'An idea has occurred to me,' was Elizabeth's apologetic reply. 'Your father doesn't come in to lunch?' 'Happy thought!' cried Desmond. 'Send him in a Ritz luncheon, while the rest of you starve. Easy enough for me to say as I'm off--and soldiers aren't rationed! We may be as greedy pigs as we like.' 'What do you say?' Elizabeth looked at Pamela. The girl was flattered by the deference shown her, and gradually threw herself into the little plot. How to set up a meatless day for the household, minus the Squire, and not be found out; how to restrict the bread and porridge allowance, while apparently outrunning it--knotty problems! into which the twins plunged with much laughter and ingenuity. At the end of the discussion, Elizabeth said with hesitation, 'I don't like not telling Mr. Mannering, but--' 'Oh no, you can't tell him' said Pamela, in her most resolute tone. 'Besides, it's for the country!' 'Yes, it's the country!' echoed Elizabeth. 'Oh, I'm so glad you agree with me. Forest's splendid!' 'I say, Broomie's not bad,' thought Desmond. Aloud he said, 'Forest's a regular Turk in the servants' hall--rules them all with a rod of iron.' Elizabeth laughed. 'He tells me there was a joint of cold beef last night for supper, and he carried it away bodily back into the larder. And they all supped on fried potatoes, cheese, oatcake and jam! So then I asked him whether anybody minded, and he said the little kitchen-maid cried a bit, and said she "was used to her vittles and her mother would be dreadfully put out." "'_Mother_!' says I, 'haven't you got _a young man_!' And then I give her a real talking to about the war. 'You back your young man,' I said, 'and there's only one way as females can do it--barring them as is in munitions. Every bit of bread you don't eat is helping to kill Boches. And what else is your young man doin'? Where do you say he is? Wipers? You ask him. He'll tell you!' So then we were all nice and comfortable--and you needn't bother about us downstairs. _We're_ all right!"'