"

"Oh, no. Some limp artist who could never get the commission for
himself. Gay stands about in a natty blue-serge effect and takes the
credit and the check. What's new?"--turning to the beauty doctor. "I'm
as dull as the Dead Sea."

Miss Flinks informed them of a labour revolt in the West.

"Horrid creatures, always wanting more! Well, they won't get it. I
think Steve is ridiculous with his banquets and bonuses and all, and
upon my word, Mary Faithful has as good an Oriental rug in her office
as I have in my house. Tell us something really important, Miss
Flinks."

Retrieving her error the beauty doctor whispered a scandal concerning
the newly married Teddy Markhams, who had had such a violent quarrel
the week before that Mrs. Teddy had pushed the piano halfway out the
window and police had rushed to the scene thinking it might be another
bomb explosion.

"How ripping!"

Beatrice was all animation, and she gave Miss Flinks no peace until
she learned all the details, and the rumour about the actress who had
rented an expensive town house for the season and a debutante who was
being rushed to a retreat to prevent her marriage to a gypsy violinist
who had already taught her the drug habit.

Trudy telephoned the latter part of the afternoon, and as it was a
gray, blowy day with nothing special to do to revive one's spirits
Beatrice urged her to come in for tea--tea to be cocktails and
buttered toast.

Within a few moments she appeared--a symphony of blonde broadcloth set
in black furs, very charming and chic, and so solicitous about Aunt
Belle's recently removed mole and the scar left by the electric
needle, and so admiring of the two newly beautified ladies that they
were quite won in spite of themselves.

"Were you near here when you telephoned?" Beatrice asked, curiously.
"You weren't ten minutes getting here and you look as spick and span
as if you had stepped out of a bandbox."

"Look outside and you'll see that Gay and I have had a true case of
auto-intoxication!"

Outside the window there proved to be a smart, selfish roadster,
battleship-gray with vivid scarlet trimmings.

"Well!" Beatrice said in astonishment. At this identical moment she
began to envy Trudy. She was really ashamed of the fact, nor did she
understand why she should envy this bankrupt yet progressive little
nobody in her homemade bargain-remnant costume. The reason was that
Beatrice's latent abilities longed to be doing something,