at it is. It's a punishment
because you and Jim cheated yesterday, Lark."

"What did you do?" asked Connie. "You seem to be getting the
punishment!"

"Shall we have Alice or Katie? Which do you prefer, Lark?"

"You'll have to get them both," was the stoic answer. "I won't
bridesmaid without Carol."

"Don't be silly, Lark. You'll have to."

"Then wait for Carol."

"Papa, you must make her."

"No," said Prudence slowly, with a white face. "We'll postpone it. I
won't get married without the whole family."

"I said right from the start--"

"Oh, yes, Fairy, we know what you said," interjected Carol. "We know how
you'll get married. First man that gets moonshine enough into his head
to propose to you, you'll trot him post haste to the justice before he
thinks twice."

In the end, the wedding was postponed a couple of months,--for both
Connie and Fairy took the measles. But when at last, the wedding party,
marshalled by Connie with a huge white basket of flowers, trailed down
the time-honored aisle of the Methodist church, it was without one
dissenting voice pronounced the crowning achievement of Mr. Starr's
whole pastorate.

"I was proud of us, Lark," Carol told her twin, after it was over, and
Prudence had gone, and the girls had wept themselves weak on each
other's shoulders. "We get so in the habit of doing things wrong that I
half expected myself to pipe up ahead of father with the ceremony. It
seems--awful--without Prudence,--but it's a satisfaction to know that
she was the best married bride Mount Mark has ever seen."

"Jerry looked awfully handsome, didn't he? Did you notice how he glowed
at Prudence? I wish you were artistic, Carol, so you could illustrate my
books. Jerry'd make a fine illustration."

"We looked nice, too. We're not a bad-looking bunch when you come right
down to facts. Of course, it is fine to be as smart as you are, Larkie,
but I'm not jealous. We're mighty lucky to have both beauty and brains
in our twin-ship,--and since one can't have both, I may say I'd just as
lief be pretty. It's so much easier."

"Carol!"

"What?"

"We're nearly grown up now. We'll have to begin to settle down. Prudence
says so."

For a few seconds Carol wavered, tremulous. Then she said pluckily, "All
right. Just wait till I powder my nose, will you? It gets so shiny when
I cry."

"Carol!"

"What?"

"Isn't the house still?"

"Yes--ghastly."

"I never thought Prudence was much of a chatter-box,