woods and fields. Their beauty thrilled her while it tranquilized her.
Some of the weight of worry and responsibility that she had carried
since her baby sister of two weeks had been turned over to her care
left her.

Kent was enchanted with the new home. Football was very engrossing,
yet he managed to get out for at least one visit a week. He and Lydia
discovered a tiny spring in the bank above the lake and they began at
once to dam it in and planned a great series of ditches and canals.

The doll's furniture was finished by October and Lydia began work on
the doll's house.

One Saturday afternoon early in October she was established on the
front steps with her carpentry when a surrey stopped at the gate.
Little Patience, in a red coat, rolled to her feet. She had been
collecting pebbles from the gravel walk.

"Mardy!" she screamed. "Baby's Mardy!" and started down the walk to
meet Margery and her father.

"Darn it," said Lydia to herself. "Hello, Marg! How de do, Mr.
Marshall."

"Well! Well!" Dave Marshall lifted the tails of his light overcoat
and sat down on the steps. "Gone into house building, eh, Lydia? Did
you do it all yourself? Gee! that's not such a bad job."

Lydia had the aptitude of a boy for tools. On one end of the cracker
box was a V-shaped roof. There were two shelves within, making three