Lance came in by an early train. "Heard you were home," said he, "and ran in to see if you’d take some Broken Hills, or Grand Trunks, or Consolidated Johnnies, you know." He produced a note-book. "Now Mrs. Leighton promised to buy a whole mine of shares the other day, and she hasn’t done it. How am I to get on with my admirable firm, if my best clients fail me in this way?" Jean exploded into laughter. Lance as a stockbroker, what next! "You needn’t laugh," he said. "I made twenty-five pounds for the mater last week. Not your mater, mine!" "Don’t listen to Lance’s illegal practices," said Elma. Lance struck an attitude in front of Mabel. "Oh, mother," he said, "how you’ve growed. I’m afraid of you. Wait till you see what Maclean will say!" "Maclean?" "Yes. Now, Elma, don’t pretend to look blank about it. It was you who told me." Elma groaned. (If it only were Mr. Maclean!) "I told you nothing," she said. "You are not to be trusted, I’ve always known that, in Stock Exchange or out of it, I’d never tell you a single thing." "Well, it was Aunt Katharine," said Lance with conviction. She had just appeared in the doorway. "Well, well," she said in a fat, breathless way. "Well, you’re home, and I am glad. Dear, how tall you both are! And is that the latest?" She looked at Mabel’s hat. "Well, well. We’ve had enough trouble with you away. Elma will be ready for none of that nonsense for a year or two, that’s one comfort. Jean, you are quite fat. Living in other people’s houses seems to agree with you. Not the life we were accustomed to. Young people had to stay at home in my day." "Now, Aunt Katharine," said Lance, who was a privileged person, "are they your girls, or Mrs. Leighton’s, that you lecture them so?" "Look here, Lance," said Elma, "Aunt Katharine isn’t a Broken Hill, or a con--consolidated Johnnie. You just leave her alone, will you?" "Elma’s become beastly dictatorial since she was ill," said Lance savagely. "What’s that confab in the corner?" Mrs. Leighton was sitting with Adelaide Maud, and in the pause which ensued, everybody heard her say, "When Jean was a baby--no, it was when Elma was a baby, and Cuthbert, you know----" just as the girls were afraid she would five long years ago. "Oh," said Cuthbert from the other end of the room, "my dear mother, if you go on with that----" "I can’t imagine why they never want to know what they did when they were babies," said Mrs. Leighton, in an innocent manner. She disliked being stopped in any of these reminiscences. Adelaide Maud’s eyes danced. "They were so much nicer when they were babies," sighed Mrs. Leighton. Then she turned round on them all. "You two girls have been home for an hour or more, and you never asked after your dear father." Mabel giggled. Jean looked very serious. Elma said suddenly, "They are hiding something, mummy," and the secret was out.