k my relations had come
out of the Ark. And where in the world have you put the provisions?"

"I--I--" Bridgie looked round for Pixie, but she had lingered behind,
and there was no one to help her out of her plight. "I had the basket
in my hand, and we were standing at the door, and I heard you calling
and I rushed in. I gave it to someone. I was in such a hurry I hardly
noticed who it was. I think it was the man in the dining-room now!"

"Montgomery!" echoed Esmeralda blankly. She stood staring at Bridgie
with horrified eyes. "Bridgie, how _could_ you? What do you mean by
it? What did you bring, and how was it made up?"

"A chicken, and pies, and apples, and a tin of toffee. Everything you
liked--and some little rolls and a pot of butter. They were in a
basket--a big basket with a serviette over the top!" cried Bridgie, with
desperate candour, determined to tell the worst at once and get it over.

At home at Rutland Road it had seemed such a simple and natural thing to
do, but ten minutes' experience of Park Lane had shown clearly enough
how unnecessary had been her anxiety, how ridiculous it must seem in the
estimation of the household! She looked at Esmeralda with troubled
eyes, and Esmeralda flushed, and cried testily--

"A basket of provisions, and you handed it to Montgomery! He would
think, of course, that it was his duty to open it, and-- Oh, Bridgie,
how could you? He will tell the story in the servants' hall, and they
will all laugh and make fun. It's too tiresome! I can't think how you
can have made such a mistake!"

"I thought of you, you see, and not of the servants. It never occurred
to my mind that you could be ashamed of me, whatever I did!" said
Bridgie quietly.

"I'm not in the least ashamed of you, I'm ashamed of the basket! You
ask Jack when you go home, and he'll tell you 'twas a foolish thing to
do, and you walking, too, and not driving to the door. We won't talk
about it any more, or we shall both get angry, and it's done now and
can't be helped. What do you think of this room? Geoffrey is quite
proud of his books, and we mean to make this our private little den, and
retire here when we are tired of living in public. Here's the electric
light, you see, switched on to these movable lamps, so that one can read
comfortably in any position!"

"Very nice! So convenient! It looks most comfortable!"

Bridgie's voice sounded formal and ill-at-ease, and both sisters felt
t