er father,
took possession of Julia with heartening and obvious pleasure.

Sally took her upstairs, lighted a small but exquisitely appointed guest
room, found a stiffly embroidered nightgown, a wrapper of dark-blue
Japanese crepe, and a pair of straw slippers. Julia, inwardly trembling
with excitement, was outwardly calm as she got ready for bed; she hung
her clothes in a closet delightfully redolent of pine, and brushed and
braided her splendid hair. Sally whisked about on various errands, and
presently Mrs. Toland bustled in, brimful of horrified apologies and
regrets, and Barbara dawdled after, rolling her belt and starched stock,
generally unhooking and unbuttoning.

Perhaps the haughty Barbara found the round-eyed, golden-haired girl in
a blue wrapper a little more companionable than the dreadful Miss Page,
or perhaps she was a little too lonely to-night to be fastidious in her
choice of a confidante. At all events, she elected to wander in and out
of Julia's room while she undressed, and presently sat on Julia's bed,
and braided her dark hair. And if the whole adventure had excited Julia,
she was doubly excited now, frantic to win Barbara's friendship,
nervously afraid to try.

"You're an actress, Miss Page?" asked Barbara, scowling at her
hairbrush.

"Will be, I guess! I've had dozens of chances to sign up already, but
Mama don't want me to be in any rush."

The other girl eyed her almost enviously.

"I wish I could do something--sometimes," she sighed. And she added,
giving Julia a shamefaced grin, "I've got the blues to-night."

It was from this second that Julia dated her love for Barbara Toland. A
delicious sensation enveloped her--to be in Barbara's confidence--to
know that she was sometimes unhappy, too; to be lying in this fragrant,
snowy bed, in this enchanting room--

"Well," said Barbara presently, jumping up, "you'll want _some_ sleep. If
you hear us rushing about, at the screech of dawn to-morrow, it's
because some of us may go out with Dad in the Crow, if there's a breeze.
Do you like yachting? Would you care to go?"

"I've never been," said Julia.

"Oh, well, then, you ought to!" Barbara said with round eyes. "I'll tell
you--I'll peep in here to-morrow, and if you're awake I'll give you a
call!" she arranged, after a minute's frowning thought.

"I sleep awfully sound!" smiled Julia.

But she was awake when Barbara, true to her plan, peeped in at five
o'clock the next morning, and pre