“No, dear. You see, I am careful not to sit with her in the train, and Tom always meets us at the station; besides, she’s hardly in her usual form, and I could be a match for her,” she added, modestly. “Oh, girls,” said the brown-eyed blonde, “speaking of mothers-in-law makes me think of wedding presents. Did you—oh, did you hear about the plates I gave Elizabeth?” “Yes, I did,” said the girl with the dimple in her chin, “and a girl who gives away old Crown Derby like that is either an angel, or not quite sane—I don’t know which!” “Say anything you like; I haven’t the spirit to reply. And after you’ve heard the story—well, it was this way: I ran across the dozen of them in a little second-hand shop, and the proprietor didn’t seem to know their value and asked a very moderate price.” “I beg your pardon, dear,” said the girl with the dimple in her chin, “I take back all that I said before!” “You needn’t. I saw that I could beat him down, so I didn’t take them then, but went in a day or two later, taking Elizabeth along to make sure they were genuine. Really, she does know something about china, though—” “She doesn’t know anything else,” finished the president. “Well, they were genuine, weren’t they?” “They were, Elizabeth became so affectionate on the spot that I saw she knew what I wanted them for. I didn’t take them then, but went back the next day to find that the man had raised his price; he said another person wanted them—as if I’d believe that. Well, it went on for a week, until the price demanded was so outrageous that I should never have paid it, but for the fact that Elizabeth had told everybody what lovely Crown Derby plates she was to have, and I wasn’t going to have her say that I couldn’t afford them!” “I should think not,” said the girl with the eyeglasses; “besides, it is necessary to give Elizabeth a handsome present, since she is marrying a wealthy man.” “Of course; if he was poor, a very simple thing would—ah, be in better taste, so that the contrast would not be so great.” “M’hm. Well, I bought the plates, and took them to her myself, because I wanted to see her face when she opened the package.” “But she wasn’t surprised, was she?” asked the blue-eyed girl. “Yes, she was. She—well, she was the other person who wanted to buy them, and whose inquiries had trebled the price I had to pay for them!” “In the face of a tragedy like that, it seems hopeless to offer consolation,” said the girl with the classic profile. “Still, Elizabeth will be obliged to give you a handsome present when you are married.” “Let us hope that she will not have had time to forget her obligations,” said the blue-eyed girl, sweetly. “Of course, she has a good memory, but—” “I only hope somebody will give her two chafing-dishes,” broke in the president. “I only have one, and if I was not the sweetest tempered mortal in the world Tom and I would quarrel seriously over it. Perhaps, I ought not to speak of myself in that way, but—”