ured him, taking
his knowledge of a plan for granted. "It's only about eight or nine
miles from here and twelve from Bennington. Hugh can easily come out
in the car. You must have seen the house, Jack--it is right on the
tip-top of that hill to the right, the little white clapboarded house
you see as soon as you pass the cross-roads."

"I've seen it," said Jack.

"Well, you may have seen it, but you can't tell how lovely it is until
you go through it," declared Rosemary, winding a free length of line
about her slender wrist for safe-keeping. "There's no front porch--you
step into the living-room right from the lawn. But there is a side
porch with awnings and screens that Mother will just love."

"Where are the folks who live there?" demanded the practical Jack.

"They're going to California, to visit their married daughter,"
Rosemary explained. "They're patients of Hugh's--Mr. and Mrs. Hammond.
And they wanted to rent the house because they didn't like the idea of
closing it for almost three months with all their nice furniture and a
piano and everything in it. So--wasn't it lucky--they happened to ask
Hugh if he knew of anyone who would rent the place furnished and he saw
right away it would be just the thing for us."

"Whereupon they insisted that he take it as a gift, with a maid and two
butlers thrown in," recited Jack, who knew in what affection Doctor
Hugh's patients held him.

"Not exactly," dimpled Rosemary, "but they did say that if Mother would
live there during the summer they would consider it a favor and
wouldn't dream of charging rent. Mrs. Hammond said she knew she
wouldn't have to worry about her things if Doctor Hugh's mother would
be there to look after them. But, of course, Hugh wouldn't listen to
that--he said business was business and as soon as he and Mr. Hammond
had the rent fixed, Hugh took Mother and me to see Rainbow Hill. And
it's too lovely for words."

"Any butlers?" suggested Jack.

"Not a butler," answered Rosemary firmly. "Winnie beats all the
butlers I ever saw--or read about," she emended, remembering that her
actual experience with butlers was limited.

"Winnie won't take kindly to pumping water from the well every
morning," said Jack, sorting fish hooks with a practised hand.

"There's no water to pump," was the prompt and cheerful response.
"It's an old-fashioned house, but the plumbing is new--Hugh found that
out before he even mentioned Rainbow Hill to Mothe