11. CASTILIAN AMOROSO

One day when we suddenly found that we had half a crown we decided that
we really ought to try Dicky's way of restoring our fallen fortunes
while yet the deed was in our power. Because it might easily have
happened to us never to have half a crown again. So we decided to dally
no longer with being journalists and bandits and things like them, but
to send for sample and instructions how to earn two pounds a week each
in our spare time. We had seen the advertisement in the paper, and we
had always wanted to do it, but we had never had the money to spare
before, somehow. The advertisement says: 'Any lady or gentleman
can easily earn two pounds a week in their spare time. Sample and
instructions, two shillings. Packed free from observation.' A good deal
of the half-crown was Dora's. It came from her godmother; but she said
she would not mind letting Dicky have it if he would pay her back before
Christmas, and if we were sure it was right to try to make our fortune
that way. Of course that was quite easy, because out of two pounds a
week in your spare time you can easily pay all your debts, and have
almost as much left as you began with; and as to the right we told her
to dry up.

Dicky had always thought that this was really the best way to restore
our fallen fortunes, and we were glad that now he had a chance of trying
because of course we wanted the two pounds a week each, and besides, we
were rather tired of Dicky's always saying, when our ways didn't turn
out well, 'Why don't you try the sample and instructions about our spare
time?'

When we found out about our half-crown we got the paper. Noel was
playing admirals in it, but he had made the cocked hat without tearing
the paper, and we found the advertisement, and it said just the same as
ever. So we got a two-shilling postal order and a stamp, and what was
left of the money it was agreed we would spend in ginger-beer to drink
success to trade.

We got some nice paper out of Father's study, and Dicky wrote the
letter, and we put in the money and put on the stamp, and made H. O.
post it. Then we drank the ginger-beer, and then we waited for the
sample and instructions. It seemed a long time coming, and the postman
got quite tired of us running out and stopping him in the street to ask
if it had come.

But on the third morning it came. It was quite a large parcel, and
it was packed, as the advertisement said it would be, 'free from
observati