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Rh before going, was plain,—but which?—became a momentous question.

So it went on until about two weeks before our prospective departure. I had not opened up the subject, nor had Charlotte. But the situation looked serious indeed, when one day Charlotte appeared at my door bearing a huge paste-board box in her arms.

"May I show you me noo furs, ma'am?" she asked hesitatingly.

"Why certainly, Charlotte, I should like very much to see them."

Untying the tapes with evident relish, Charlotte drew forth for my admiring inspection an enormous bolster muff in the latest style, and a neck-piece to match, adorned with many tails. The dangling price-labels revealed their value—fifty-two dollars.

"They were marked down, ma'am, it bein' spring. They was said to be a great bargain. I thought you'd know," she said, stroking them with loving pride.

I stroked them too, and praised. Fifty-two dollars! But then, why not? Charlotte is really the moneyed member of our household, considering her income in relation to her requirements.