PENFOLDS' on Monday afternoon, the drawing-room was simply littered
with bonnets and hats, none of them much larger than a crown piece,
which Miss PENFOLD had been constructing. She tried several of them
on, in order to get my opinion as to their merits. She looked very
pretty in one of them, a cunning arrangement of forget-me-nots and
tiny scraps of pink ribbon. Mother promised some time ago to open the
Bazaar, though she assured me she had never done such a thing before,
and added that I must be sure to see that the doors moved easily, as
new doors were so apt to stick, and she didn't know what she should
do if she had to struggle over the opening. I comforted her by telling
her she would only have to say a few brief words on a platform,
declaring the Bazaar open. For the last week I have had a letter from
her by absolutely every post, sending draft speeches for my approval.
After much consideration I selected one of these, which I returned to
her. I heard from home that she was very busily occupied for some time
in learning it by heart. When cook came for orders in the morning, she
was forced to listen while Mother said over the speech to her. Cook
was good enough to express a high opinion of its beauties.

Yesterday evening Mother arrived, with the usual enormous amount of
luggage, including the inevitable _Carlo_. After dinner I heard her
repeat the speech, which went off very well. This is it:--"Ladies
and Gentlemen, I am so pleased to be here to-day, and to have the
opportunity of helping the dear Conservative cause in Billsbury. I am
sure you are all so anxious to buy as many of these lovely things as
you can, and I therefore lose no time in declaring the Bazaar open."
Simple, but efficient.

The opening to-day was fixed for 2:30, the Bazaar being held in the
large room of the Assembly Rooms, which had been arranged to represent