s. Ess Kay had gone to her stateroom soon after lunch, as the motion
of the ship had given her a headache, and I didn't happen to be near
Sally Woodburn; so I said "yes" to Mr. Doremus on the impulse of the
moment, without stopping to think whether I ought to ask permission
first.

We had great fun going about, for Mr. Doremus was so witty and said
such amusing things to the people he begged of, that I could hardly
speak for laughing, and everyone else laughed too. I wished that he
wouldn't put me forward always, and say it was my idea, and I had
started the subscription; but he argued that I must sacrifice myself
for the success of the Charity, just as I would at home, if I had to
work off damaged pincushions or day before yesterday's violets at a
bazaar. Of course, not being out, I've never sold anything at bazaars,
but Victoria is continually doing it in the Season, and she makes quite
a virtue of forcing perfect strangers to "stand and deliver," as she
calls it. This seemed much the same sort of thing to me, and so I felt
nice and virtuous, too, as Vic does when she comes home with a new
frock torn and stepped on, and lies in bed late next day, with Thompson
to brush her hair, and me to read to her.

People were very kind, and though they laughed a great deal, they gave
so much that before we'd been half the rounds, Mr. Doremus said we had
more than enough for our friend. He wanted to know if I would like to
"hit the nail on the head" and settle matters at once, by arranging
with the purser for a second-class cabin to be put at the hero's
disposal. I wanted him to do that part alone, but he pretended to be
shy, and said he had grown to depend so entirely on my co-operation,
that he felt unequal to undertaking any responsibility without it. He
told the same story to the purser that he had told others, about my
being the one to start the subscription, and he wanted me to sign a
kind of letter which he wrote, to the effect that the passengers had
chosen this way of testifying their appreciation of a gallant deed, and
so on; but I wouldn't, and he stopped teasing at last, when he saw that
I was going to be vexed.

After the business was what Mr. Doremus called "fixed up," he took me
back to my chair on deck. Sally wasn't in her place, and as I was
wondering what had become of her, the dressing-for-dinner bugle went
wailing over the ship like a hungry Banshee. I said to myself that
Sally must have gone early because h