r. Campbell's was very rough
and quite long.

"Mother," said Almira, when they were trying to settle the matter,
"couldn't we have a meeting here? It would be easier for Mrs. Thurston
to get here, and convenient enough for everybody else."

"Why, of course they may meet here," her mother replied. "Our parlor's a
plenty big enough to hold 'em."

"Oh! dear Mrs. Stokes," protested Marty, "don't let us meet in the house
when there's so much lovely out-of-doors. That grassy place in the
garden near the currant-bushes would be just an elegant place for a
meeting."

"I vote with Marty for out-of-doors," said Ruth. "We'll have enough
times for in-door meetings after a while."

"Suit yourselves," said kind Mrs. Stokes. "You're welcome to any place
I've anything to do with."

"And may some of the rest of us from the hotel come?" asked Miss Fanny,
who happened to be present when this talk was going on.

"Yes, indeed. The more the--." Mrs. Stokes was just going to say, as she
so often did, "the more the merrier," when she recollected that it
would be Sunday and the meeting a religious one. But she let them all
know she would like them to come. Mrs. Ashford and Ruth had great
difficulty in persuading her not to bake a quantity of cake on Saturday
and serve refreshments to the band.

"You must remember, dear Mrs. Stokes," said Ruth, "it isn't a party, and
nobody will expect anything to eat. Now you must not think of going to
any trouble."

"The idee of having a lot of people come to your house and not give 'em
a bite of anything!" exclaimed Mrs. Stokes.

Sunday afternoon chairs were carried out to the grassy spot Marty had
selected, among them a comfortable arm-chair for Mrs. Thurston. Marty
insisted on farmer Stokes' special arm-chair being carried out for him,
and with the help of Wattie Campbell contrived to get it there. Hiram,
before he drove down to the hotel for the ladies, made a couple of
benches of boards placed on kegs. These were for the girls. The boys,
he said, could sit on the ground, and that is where he sat himself.

Mrs. Thurston brought with her a cloth map of India which the young
ladies fastened to two trees. She also had some photographs of people
and places in India which were passed around among the company. Mr.
Stokes was particularly struck with the beautiful scenery these pictures
showed.

"Well," he said, "I never knew much about India, but I had no idea it
was such a handsome place."

"O