fraid the average person of
the class you cater for does not recognise the duty of social
intercourse."

"This house," replied the witch, "caters for people who are outside
averages. The ferryman says that people who are content to be average
are lowering the general standard. I wish you could have met Peony, the
only guest up to now, but she is out, and may be a teeny bit drunk when
she comes in. She has gone to draw her money."

"What sort of money?" asked Miss Ford, who was always interested in the
sources of income of the Poor.

"Soldier's allotment. Unmarried wife."

The expression of Miss Ford's face tactfully wiped away this bald
unfortunate statement from the surface of the conversation. "And how do
you make your boarding-house pay," she asked, "if there is no charge for
residence?"

"How d'you mean--pay?" asked the witch. "Pay whom? And what with? Look
here, if you will come and live here you shall have a little Wednesday
every week on the stairs, under license from me. Harold the Broomstick
is apt to shirk cleaning the stairs, but as it happens, he is keeping
company with an O-Cedar Mop in Kentish Town, and I've no doubt she would
come over and do the stairs thoroughly every Tuesday night. Besides, we
have overalls in stock at only two and eleven three----"

"Oh, I like your merry mood," said Miss Ford, laughing heartily. "You
must remember to talk like that when you come to my Wednesdays. Most of
my friends are utter Socialists, and believe in bridging as far as
possible the gulf between one class and another, so you needn't feel
shy or awkward."

The splashing of the ferry-boat was once more heard, and then the shop
quaked a little as a heavy foot alighted on the landing-stage. The
ferryman was heard saying: "I don't know any party of that name, but I
believe the young woman at the shop can help you."

Lady Arabel Higgins entered the shop.

"What, Meta, you here? And Sarah Brown? What a too dretfully funny
coincidence. Well, Angela dear, I made a note of your address yesterday,
and then lost the note--too dretfully like me. So I rang up the Mayor,
and he said he also had made a note, and he would come and show me the
way. But I didn't wait for him. I wanted to talk to you about----"

"Well, I must truly be going," interrupted Sarah Brown. "I'll just nip
across to the Brown Borough and find a pawn-shop, being hungry."

"There is no need for any one to move on my account," said Lady Arabel.
"You