e the
march."

Then she turned to the maid. "Tell Benson to have the carriage at the
gate, just as soon as he can get it there. Then come to my room. Bring
the thread box from the sewing-room, that roll of wide white ribbon on
the cutting table, and gather all the white pins from every dresser in
the house. But first come with me a minute."

"I want that trunk with the Swamp Angel's stuff in it, from the cedar
closet," she panted as they reached the top of the stairs.

They hurried down the hall together and dragged the big trunk to the
Bird Woman's room. She opened it and began tossing out white stuff.

"How lucky that she left these things!" she cried. "Here are white
shoes, gloves, stockings, fans, everything!"

"I am all ready but a dress," said Elnora.

The Bird Woman began opening closets and pulling out drawers and boxes.

"I think I can make it this way," she said.

She snatched up a creamy lace yoke with long sleeves that recently had
been made for her and held it out. Elnora slipped into it, and the Bird
Woman began smoothing out wrinkles and sewing in pins. It fitted very
well with a little lapping in the back. Next, from among the Angel's
clothing she caught up a white silk waist with low neck and elbow
sleeves, and Elnora put it on. It was large enough, but distressingly
short in the waist, for the Angel had worn it at a party when she was
sixteen. The Bird Woman loosened the sleeves and pushed them to a puff
on the shoulders, catching them in places with pins. She began on the
wide draping of the yoke, fastening it front, back and at each shoulder.
She pulled down the waist and pinned it. Next came a soft white dress
skirt of her own. By pinning her waist band quite four inches above
Elnora's, the Bird Woman could secure a perfect Empire sweep, with the
clinging silk. Then she began with the wide white ribbon that was to
trim a new frock for herself, bound it three times around the high waist
effect she had managed, tied the ends in a knot and let them fall to the
floor in a beautiful sash.

"I want four white roses, each with two or three leaves," she cried.

Anna ran to bring them, while the Bird Woman added pins.

"Elnora," she said, "forgive me, but tell me truly. Is your mother so
poor as to make this necessary?"

"No," answered Elnora. "Next year I am heir to my share of over three
hundred acres of land covered with almost as valuable timber as was in
the Limberlost. We adjoin it. There