up to twelve. Kathleen and Frederick divide the distinction of
seniority, both being twelve. There is some doubt as to the actual age
of Henrietta and Guinevere, but for the sake of policy, Henrietta, who
came first, is down in the family records as six, Guinevere as five,
although Mrs. Bingle herself confesses that they came but six weeks
apart, and at a time when a few weeks, either way, make little or no
difference in the computation. This was the nearest that Mr. and Mrs.
Bingle ever came to being blessed with twins. For awhile they hoped
that they could make twins out of these infants, but, as the children
grew older, the impracticability of such a thought--or ambition--
became clear to them, and they reluctantly abandoned the project.
Henrietta revealed all the characteristics of being of Italian
extraction, while Guinevere was unmistakably Irish.

If you were to take a motor-ride along the North Shore of Long Island
Sound and feel your way back into private lanes that appear to lead
nowhere in particular, they are so deviously circuitous, you would
pass by the lodge gates of two magnificent estates. One of them
belonged to Mr. Bingle, the other to Sydney Force--or, more strictly
speaking, to Mrs. Sydney Force. It is worthy of mention that Mr. Force
lived up to his theory of regeneration by selling to Mr. Bingle, at a
tremendous profit, one hundred acres off of the least desirable end of
his late father-in-law's estate, thereby proving to himself that the
early bird is a much smarter creation than the one which is satisfied
to possess a mere nest-egg. Of course, the selling of that "parcel" of
land was provocative of most acrimonious disputes between Mr. and Mrs.
Force. Mrs. Force, while not averse to the sale of the land, was
frightfully cut up by the fact that she was to have the impossible
Bingles as neighbours, and Mr. Force, who was the prince of snobs,
berated her soundly for petty snobbishness.