her mother intercepted smoothly. "Because--it's just one of the
things that you young, inexperienced people can talk very easily
about," she interrupted herself to say with feeling, "but it never
seems to occur to any one of you that every household has its
different demands and regulations. The market fluctuates, the size
of a family changes--fixed laws are impossible! No. Lizzie is no
worse than lots of others, better than the average. I shall hold on
to her!"

"Mrs. Sargent says that all these unnecessary demands have been
instituted and insisted upon by women," said Alexandra. "She says
that the secret of the whole trouble is that women try to live above
their class, and make one servant appear to do the work of three--"

The introduction of Mrs. Sargent's name was not a happy one.

"Ellen Sargent," said Mrs. Salisbury icily, "is not a lady herself,
in the true sense of the word, and she does very well to talk about
class distinctions! She was his stenographer when Cyrus Sargent
married her, and the daughter of a tannery hand. Now, just because
she has millions, I am not going to be impressed by anything Ellen
Sargent does or says!"

"Mother, I don't think she meant quality by 'class,'" Sandy
protested. "Everyone knows that Grandfather was General Stanford,
and all that! But I think she meant, in a way, the money side of it,
the financial division of people into classes!"

"We won't discuss her," decided Mrs. Salisbury majestically. "The
money standard is one I am not anxious to judge my friends by!"