For Herr Liesecke was due at Wickham Place to call for
the two younger girls. He was not entering the hall--in
fact, he did not enter it for quite five minutes. But
Frieda detected a delicate situation, and said that she and
Helen had much better wait for Bruno down below, and leave
Margaret and Mrs. Munt to finish arranging the flowers.
Helen acquiesced. But, as if to prove that the situation
was not delicate really, she stopped in the doorway and said:

"Did you say the Mathesons' flat, Aunt Juley? How
wonderful you are! I never knew that the woman who laced
too tightly's name was Matheson."

"Come, Helen," said her cousin.

"Go, Helen," said her aunt; and continued to Margaret
almost in the same breath: "Helen cannot deceive me, She
does mind."

"Oh, hush!" breathed Margaret. "Frieda'll hear you, and
she can be so tiresome."

"She minds," persisted Mrs. Munt, moving thoughtfully
about the room, and pulling the dead chrysanthemums out of
the vases. "I knew she'd mind--and I'm sure a girl ought
to! Such an experience! Such awful coarse-grained people!
I know more about them than you do, which you forget, and if
Charles had taken you that motor drive--well, you'd have
reached the house a perfect wreck. Oh, Margaret, you don't
know what you are in for. They're all bottled up against