them all the time."

"Well, but, Mark--" said Mrs. Paget, laughing as at the vagaries of a
small child, "Father Paget did have twelve children--and Daddy and I
eight--" she sighed, as always, at the thought of the little son who
was gone,--"and there you are! You can't get away from that, dear."

Margaret did not answer. But she thought to herself that very few
people held Mother's views of this subject.

Mrs. Carr-Boldt's friends, for example, did not accept increasing
cares in this resigned fashion; their lives were ideally pleasant and
harmonious without the complicated responsibilities of large families.
They drifted from season to season without care, always free, always
gay, always irreproachably gowned. In winter there were daily
meetings, for shopping, for luncheon, bridge or tea; summer was filled
with a score of country visits. There were motor-trips for week-ends,
dinners, theatre, and the opera to fill the evenings, German or
singing lessons, manicure, masseuse, and dressmaker to crowd the
morning hours all the year round. Margaret learned from these
exquisite, fragrant creatures the art of being perpetually fresh and
charming, learned their methods of caring for their own beauty,
learned to love rare toilet waters and powders, fine embroidered linen
and silk stockings. There was no particular strain upon her wardrobe
now, nor upon her purse; she could be as dainty as she liked. She
listened to the conversations that went on about her,--sometimes
critical or unconvinced; more often admiring; and as she listened she
found slowly but certainly her own viewpoint. She was not mercenary.
She would not marry a man just for his money, she decided, but just as
certainly she would not marry a man who could not give her a
comfortable establishment, a position in society.

The man seemed in no hurry to appear; as a matter of fact, the men
whom Margaret met were openly anxious to evade marriage, even with the
wealthy girls of their own set. Margaret was not concerned; she was
too happy to miss the love-making element; the men she saw were not of
a type to inspire a sensible busy, happy, girl with any very deep
feeling. And it was with generous and perfect satisfaction that
she presently had news of Julie's happy engagement. Julie was
to marry a young and popular doctor, the only child of one of
Weston's most prominent families. The little sister's letter
bubbled joyously with news.

"Harry's father is going to bui