and so many places had queer old
legends. Dr. Hoffman was very much interested, and it seemed to Hanny as
if she had strayed over into Holland. She resolved when she went home to
ask Ben to get her a history of Holland, so she and her father might
read it together. Her mother never had any time.

Margaret was much surprised at her gifts, and thanked the cousins with
warmest gratitude. Even Grandmother Van Kortlandt had hinted "that she
wasn't going to save up everything for Haneran." But the elder people in
those days were fond of holding on to their possessions until the very
last.

Uncle David came up for them and took them to White Plains, where they
had a nice visit; and grandmother selected some articles from her store
for the prospective bride.

Hanny remembered what Cousin Archer had said about the mittens, and
asked Uncle David. He found his hook, and, sure enough, it was something
like a crochet-needle. He took what the little girls called single
stitch. But he admitted that Hanny's pretty edgings and tidies were
quite wonderful.

"I thought the Germans must have brought the knowledge to the country,"
she said. "How long have you known it?"

"Oh, since my boyhood," and he gave a smile. "I heard a very old man say
once that Noah set his sons to work in the Ark making fishing-nets.
Perhaps Mrs. Noah set her daughter-in-laws to crocheting, as you call
it. Forty days was a pretty long spell of rainy weather, when they had
no books or papers to read, and couldn't go out to work in the garden."

"Didn't they have any books?" Hanny's eyes opened wide.

"All their writing was done on stone tablets, and very little of that."

"I think I wouldn't have liked living then. Books are so splendid. And
you get to know about so many people. But there was the Bible," and the
child's voice dropped to a reverent tone.

"Still, if Moses wrote the first books, that was a long while after the
Flood."

Hanny's vague idea was that the Bible had been created in the beginning,
like Adam and Eve.

Cousin Ann and Aunt Eunice were as much in love with the little girl as
ever, but were tremendously surprised at her stock of knowledge. It
didn't seem possible that one little girl could know so much. That she
could play tunes on the piano, and repeat ever so many French words,
then explain what they meant in English, was a marvel. But the child
never seemed spoiled by the admiration.

They had to come down to Yonkers, for Uncle