ted Linda. She had not known that the value of books had risen
with the price of everything else. The man with whom she dealt had known
her father. He had appreciated the strain in her nature which made her
suggest that he should number and appraise the books, but she must be
allowed time to go through each volume in order to remove any scraps of
paper or memoranda which her father so frequently left in books to which
he was referring. He had figured carefully and he had made Linda a far
higher price than could have been secured by a man. As the girl went
back to her absorbing task in the garage, she could see her way clear to
the comforts and conveniences and the material that she needed for her
work. When she reached the car she patted it as if it had been a living
creature.

"Cheer up, nice old thing," she said gaily. "I know how to get new tires
for you, and you shall drink all the gasoline and oil your tummy can
hold. Now let me see. What must I do next? I must get you off your
jacks; and oh, my gracious there are the grease cups, and that's a nasty
job, but it must be done; and what is the use of Saturday if I can't do
it? Daddy often did."

Linda began work in utter absorption. She succeeded in getting the car
off the jacks. She was lying on her back under it, filling some of the
most inaccessible grease cups, and she was softly singing as she worked:

"The shoes I wear are common-sense shoes--"

At that minute Donald Whiting swung down the street, turned in at the
Strong residence, and rang the bell. Eileen was coming down the stairs,
dressed for the street. She had inquired for Linda, and Katy had told
her that she thought Miss Linda had decided to begin using her car, and
that she was in the garage working on it. To Eileen's credit it may be
said that she had not been told that a caller was expected. Linda never
before had had a caller and, as always, Eileen was absorbed in her own
concerns. Had she got the rouge a trifle brighter on one cheek than on
the other? Was the powder evenly distributed? Would the veil hold the
handmade curls in exactly the proper place? When the bell rang her one
thought might have been that some of her friends were calling for her.
She opened the door, and when she learned that Linda was being asked
for, it is possible that she mistook the clean, interesting, and
well-dressed youngster standing before her for a mechanic. What she said
was: "Linda's working on her car. Go around t