a up at the corner," said Jim, one arm about his
wife as they stood in the window looking down at the departing visitors,
"and of course Anna must drag her along with us to see the baby lion! I
stopped at Lord Essels's, by the way, and it's a perfect knit--can't
tell where one bone stops and the other begins!"

"Oh, Jimmy, you old miracle worker! Aren't you pleased?"

"Well, rath-_er_! And young Lady Essels wants to call on you, Ju; says you
were the loveliest thing at the New Year's ball last year! Remember when
we rushed home to feed Georgie, and rushed back again?"

"Oh, perfectly. I hope she will come; she looked sweet. And every one's
coming to our Tuesday dinner, Jim, except Ivy; notes from them all. Ivy
says Lady Violet is so ill that she can't promise, but Phyllis is coming
with the new husband. She wrote such a cunning note! And--I'll see Ivy
this afternoon, and I think I'll tell her that I'm going to leave her
place open; if she can't come, why we'll just have to have a man over,
that's all! It won't be awfully formal anyway, Jimmy, at this time of
the year!"

"Whatever you say, old lady!" Jim was thinking of something else. "How
do you feel about leaving the kids and going off for a little run with
the Parkes to-morrow night?" he asked. "He's found some new place in
which he wants us to dine and sleep. Home the next morning."

"Well, I could do that," Julia said thoughtfully.

"You're terribly decent about leaving 'em," said Jim, who knew how Julia
hated to be away from Anna and George at night, "but, really, I think
this'll be fun--cards, you know, and a good dinner."

"That's to-morrow?"

"To-morrow." Jim hesitated. "I know you're not crazy about them," he
said.

"I don't _dislike_ them," Julia said brightly. "She's really lots of fun,
but of course he's the Honourable and he's a little spoiled. But I'm
really glad to go. Was Anna nice this morning?"

"Oh, she was lovely--held her little head up and trotted along, asking
_intelligent_ questions, don't you know--not like a chattering kid. She
pitched right into me on the governess question; she's all for Miss
Percival's school, won't hear of a governess for a minute!"

"And the stern parent compromised on Miss Percival?" smiled Julia.

"Well, I only promised for a year," Jim said, shamefaced. "And you were
against the governess proposition, too," he added accusingly.

"Absolutely," she assured him soothingly. "I love to have Anna with me
in th