was as pretty as Miss Madeline herself had
once been. She was also very happy, and her happiness seemed to
envelop her as in an atmosphere and lend her a new radiance and charm.
Miss Madeline loved her pretty niece very dearly and patted the curly
head tenderly with her slender white hands.

"What is it, my dear?"

"I'm--I'm engaged," whispered Lina, hiding her face in Miss Madeline's
flowered muslin lap.

"Engaged!" Miss Madeline's tone was one of surprise and awe. She
blushed as she said the word as deeply as Lina had done. Then she went
on, with a little quiver of excitement in her voice, "To whom, my
dear?"

"Oh, you don't know him, Auntie, but I hope you will soon. His name is
Ralph Wylde. Isn't it pretty? I met him last winter, and we became
very good friends. But we had a quarrel before I came down here and,
oh, I have been so unhappy over it. Three weeks ago he wrote me and
begged my pardon--so nice of him, because I was really all to blame,
you know. And he said he loved me and--all that, you know."

"No, I don't know," said Miss Madeline gently. "But--but--I can
imagine."

"Oh, I was so happy. I wrote back and I had this letter from him
today. He is coming down tomorrow. You'll be glad to see him, won't
you, Auntie?"

"Oh, yes, my dear, and I am glad for your sake--very glad. You are
sure you love him?"

"Yes, indeed," said Lina, with a little laugh, as if wondering how
anyone could doubt it.

Presently, Miss Madeline said in a shy voice, "Lina, did--did you ever
receive a proposal of marriage from anybody besides Mr. Wylde?"

Lina laughed roguishly. "Why, yes, Auntie, ever so many. A dozen, at
least."

"Oh, my dear!" cried Miss Madeline in a slightly shocked tone.

"But I did, really. Sometimes it was horrid and sometimes it was
funny. It all depended on the man. Dear me, how red and uncomfortable
most of them looked--all but the fifth. He was so cool and business
like that he almost surprised me into accepting him."

"And--and what did you feel like, Lina?"

"Oh, frightened, mostly--but I always wanted to laugh too. You must
know how it is yourself, Auntie. What did you feel like when somebody
proposed to you?"

Miss Madeline flushed from chin to brow.

"Oh, Lina," she faltered as if she were confessing something very
disgraceful, yet to which she was impelled by her strict truthfulness,
"I--I--never had a proposal in my life--not one."

Lina opened her big brown eyes in amazement. "W