When Jim and his good mother realised that Mr. and Mrs. Wrigley desired the pleasure of their company to tea at 'Holly Grove I doubt whether their pleasure and pride were equal to their consternation. To be sure, they had sat at table with the master and mistress of Holly Grove at Sunday school treats. That was one thing, but it was quite another to be specially invited as guests to Holly Grove; just as, I suppose, it is one thing to sit at one end of the table at a public banquet and see a Royal Prince, with a powdered flunkey at his back, and quite another to receive a pressing invitation to dine at Buckingham Palace: though, I suppose, even in the former case, as in the latter, you can go about for the rest of your life bragging that you've dined with Royalty. I knew a man that did. But that' not to my story. "Weel! aw nivver did!" gasped Mary. "Oh! my poor heart, it's all o' a quivver. Aw knew that dratted letter 'ud upset me for th' rest o' th' week. "Weel, there's one gooid thing aw'n that silk gown mi aunt left me 'at aw'n had laid by i' th' prass these twenty year i' lavender, an' wi' camphor to keep th' moths off. There'll be a seet o' seams to be let out, to be sewer, for mi naunts were one o' th' lean kine, not to speak disrespectful o' one 'at's dead an' gone, but truth's truth an' 'll allus go farthest, choose what yo' say. An' even then aw'm feart aw'st ha' to be poo'd into th' frock bi horsepower, an' it'll give all ovver. But aw'll n'er heed if it'll last this do an' yo'r two weddin's. Aw'm noan likely to want it again. Aw'd aimed to leave it to Ruth after aw deed. But nah, aw'st wear it at th' Holly Greave if it strangles me. Out o' mi seet, yo' grinnin' lads, and mind how yo' speik to me till this thing's off mi mind." And Mary went upstairs to the sacred press in a highly perturbed state of mind. "We're coming up i' th' world mighty quick," quoth Jim, shaking his head very solemnly. "Aw'n heered abaat a chap 'at went up like a rocket an' cum dahn like a stick, an' aw'm feart this may be just such another do. Aw'n a gooid mind just to step ovver to th' Pole an' talk it ovver wi' yo'r Ruth. Aw'n two neck-cloths, one's a breet green an' t' other's a mottled 'un, an' aw wonder which oo'd like me to wear at th' Holly Greave," he concluded somewhat lamely. "Yo'll do nothing of the sort," I said with emphasis. "Our Ruth will tie you to her apron strings fast enough, I can tell you, without your trapezing off to Pole Moor every five minutes to ask her to do it. You'll just off with me to Mitchell Mill and set to work on that water-wheel. It will take us all our time to get things ship-shape by the day we've fixed for getting th' looms in.