"I don't require them at any special date. Pay me when it is convenient.
Here, you may as well have ten."

"I could not; it is too much," said Elma. She put her hands behind her
back, her teeth were chattering, and she was trembling all over. She was
afraid that Kitty must read her through and through.

"Oh, what is the use of bothering?" cried Kitty Malone. "If you won't
take ten, take eight. Let me see, that leaves me seven over. Seven
sovereigns. I don't ever want to spend any money here. Of course I may
require a new dress when the fashions change. I must keep strictly up to
date now that I have joined the Tug-of-war; but in case I do, I'll just
send a wire to Aunt Bridget in Dublin and she'll send me over a beauty.
Ah, she's a dear old soul, Aunt Bridget is. There, Elma, do take the
money and be quick about it."

Elma--feeling sick and low, hating herself as she had never hated
herself before--dipped her greedy fingers into Kitty's sealskin purse,
and soon extracted eight of the golden sovereigns. These she slipped
into her pocket.

"I cannot tell you how grateful I am to you," she said.

"Not another word!" cried Kitty. "I have forgotten all about it already.
Now shall we have a run? I want to catch up to Bessie; I have not had a
word with her for the whole of the day."

Elma no longer required to keep Kitty Malone in the background. She had
now gained her object. Hoping against hope to extract from half a