ne in place of it at once," said Lloyd, stiffly,
her indignation rising till she could hardly speak calmly. "I'll go this
minute."

There was a small grocery store farther up the hill, where a little of
everything was kept in stock, and Lloyd dashed out bareheaded, glad of
an excuse to cool her temper. By the time she had made the coffee in the
new pot, Alec drove up to the door for her.

"You'll come again to-morrow to make that lemon pie, won't you?" asked
Mrs. Perkins, anxiously.

"No, I can't come till the day aftah."

"What? Thursday?" was the impatient answer. "Time drags awful slow for a
body that can only sit and wait."

"I have an engagement to-morrow," said Lloyd, stiffly, remembering it
was the day for Agnes Waring's music lesson. "But you can depend on me
Thursday."

Mrs. Sherman only laughed when Lloyd repeated her day's adventure at
home, but the old Colonel fairly snorted with indignation.

"Poor white trash!" he exclaimed. "Don't go near her again!"

"But I promised," answered Lloyd, dolefully. "I must keep my promise."

"Then tell Cindy to make a pie, and let Alec take it down," he
suggested.

"No, she said she wanted to smell it cooking, and to eat it hot out of
the oven, and I promised her she might."

The Colonel glared savagely at the fire. "Beggars shouldn't be
choosers," he muttered, then turned to Mrs. Sherman. "Little daughter,
are you going to let that poor child of yours be imposed on by that
creature?"

"I can't interfere with her promise, papa," she answered. "It may be a
disagreeable experience, but it will not hurt her any more than it hurt
the old woman to sweep the cobwebs out of the sky. Hers was a thankless
job, too, but no doubt she was better for the exercise, and she must
have learned a great deal on such a trip."

It was in the same spirit in which Ederyn cried, "Oh, heart and hand of
mine, keep tryst! Keep tryst or die!" that Lloyd gathered up the
necessary materials and started off on Thursday to Mrs. Perkins's
cottage. This time there was no admiring audience of little towheads
tiptoeing around the table, as there had been at Mrs. Crisp's. But
everything was clean, and, with her recipe spread out before her, Lloyd
followed directions to the letter.

Mrs. Perkins, watching the beating of eggs and stirring of the golden
filling, the deft mixing of pastry, grew cheerful and entertaining. She
forgot to complain of her neighbours, and was surprised into the telling