n borders) of pre-artistic days. Often she held forth to
wondering young people, for whom the 1880 fashions were but an echo of
ancient history, on the sad sinfulness of sunflowers and the fearful
folly of Japanese fans. Had the poor lady been but a decade or two more
old-fashioned she would have been considered quaint and up-to-date. (A
narrow escape, had she only known it!)

She was a small, pointed person, with a depressing effect of having
(perhaps) been a beauty once, and she regarded Sylvia and Felicity with
that mingled affection, pride, and annoyance compounded of a wish to
serve them, a desire to boast of them, and a longing to bully them that
is often characteristic of elderly relatives. The only special fault she
found was that they were too young, especially Sylvia. Mrs. Crofton did
not explain for what the girls were too young, but did her best to make
Sylvia at least older by boring her to death about etiquette, religion,
politics, cooking recipes, and kindred subjects. Aunt William was one of
those rare women of theory rather than practice who prefer a menu to a
dinner, and a recipe to either. Indeed, recipes were a hobby of hers,
and one of her pleasures was to send to a young housekeeper some such
manuscript as the following:--

"TO MAKE ELDERBERRY WINE REQUIRED--

Half a peck of ripe elderberries.
One and a half gallons of boiling water.

TO EACH GALLON OF JUICE

Three pounds of loaf sugar,
Four cloves,
Six allspice.

Stalk the berries, put them into a large vessel with the boiling water,
cover it closely, and leave for twenty-four hours," and so on.

To one person she was quite devoted--her nephew Savile.

One morning Aunt William woke up at half-past seven, and complained to
her maid that she had had insomnia for twenty minutes. Having glanced at
the enlarged and coloured photograph of the late William that decorated
every room, she ordered a luncheon of roast mutton and rice pudding,
rhubarb tart and cream, almonds and raisins, and oranges, thinking that
this menu would be at once suitable and attractive to a boy of sixteen.
In a more indulgent moment she then sent out for a large packet of
milk-chocolate, and prepared to receive Savile at lunch.

When Savile arrived in his father's motor, Mrs. Crofton, who had been
looking out for him at the window, ran up to her room (she could run
when alone) and allowed him to be shown into the drawing-room by
himself. Aunt