will have to be quick, mother, if you are going to use the fat as
soon as it boils;" said Margaret after a minute or two. "It is boiling
already; see, it is bubbling all over. What shall I do? Shall I take it
off the fire?"

"It does not boil yet, dear; wait till it boils."

"But, mother, look. It is bubbling fast. Oh, no, it is not; it is
quieting down. How very strange! and I had not lifted it from the fire."

"This is exactly what I wanted you to find out. Water, when it boils,
bubbles and spirts; fat is still when it boils. If you watch this fat,
it will become quite still."

"How shall we know, then, when it boils?"

"By watching it carefully. When you see a thin blue fume rising from it,
it is hot enough. That is the sign. If you do not look closely it may
escape your notice, for it is only a thin fume you want, not a thick
smoke. If we were to let the fat remain till it smoked it would be
spoilt."

"Oh dear, how careful we have to be!" said Margaret.

"The slices of apple are quite ready, ma'am," said Mary.

"And the batter is quite ready," said Margaret.

"I see too, that cook has put a dish with kitchen paper on it for us to
put the fritters on as they are fried. And there is the fume. Do you see
it, children?"

"No, I see nothing," said Margaret.

"And I see nothing," said Mary.

"Look closely. Hold this piece of black paper behind, that will help
you. Be quick, we must not let the fat burn."

"Oh yes, I think I see something," said Margaret, who seemed rather
bewildered. "But I thought----"

"Think and work together, dear; we have no time to lose. Take a slice of
apple on a skewer, dip it in the batter, and when it is completely
covered, lift it up and drop it in the fat. Now do the same to another,
and another. You can fry two or three at once if only you are careful
that the fritters do not touch. As the batter blows out and forms
fritters, turn them over that they may be equally coloured on both
sides. They must be very pale brown, or rather fawn-coloured; on no
account let them get very brown."

"How shall we get them out?" said Margaret.

"Lift them by the skewer, and put them straight away on the paper to
drain. You should put everything on kitchen paper after frying before
you dish it; do not let things lie one on top of another, or they will
be spoilt."

"There, all the first ones are out," said Mary. "Shall we put some more
slices of apple in?"

"Wait a moment. You see there a