His smile was so easy, so friendly that Laura recovered. What nice eyes he
had, small, but such a dark blue! And now she looked at the others, they
were smiling too. "Cheer up, we won't bite," their smile seemed to say.
How very nice workmen were! And what a beautiful morning! She mustn't
mention the morning; she must be business-like. The marquee.

"Well, what about the lily-lawn? Would that do?"

And she pointed to the lily-lawn with the hand that didn't hold the bread-
and-butter. They turned, they stared in the direction. A little fat chap
thrust out his under-lip, and the tall fellow frowned.

"I don't fancy it," said he. "Not conspicuous enough. You see, with a
thing like a marquee," and he turned to Laura in his easy way, "you want to
put it somewhere where it'll give you a bang slap in the eye, if you follow
me."

Laura's upbringing made her wonder for a moment whether it was quite
respectful of a workman to talk to her of bangs slap in the eye. But she
did quite follow him.

"A corner of the tennis-court," she suggested. "But the band's going to be
in one corner."

"H'm, going to have a band, are you?" said another of the workmen. He was
pale. He had a haggard look as his dark eyes scanned the tennis-court.
What was he thinking?

"Only a very small band," said Laura gently. Perhaps he wouldn't mind so