“I think we shall both be very pleased,” she answered directly, with a bit of a smile; while Miss Fraley gazed at her admiringly, and thought she had never seen the girl look so fresh and fair as she did in this plain, cool little dress.  There had been more water than was at first suspected; the handkerchief was a limp, white handful, and they both laughed as it was held up.  Miss Fraley insisted that she could not stay.  She must go to the shops to do some errands, and hoped to meet Miss Prince who had gone that way half an hour before.

“Don’t mind anything mother may say to you,” she entreated, after lingering a minute, and looking imploringly in Nan’s face.  “You know we can’t expect a person of her age to look at everything just as we do.”

“Am I to be scolded?” asked Nan, serenely.  “Do you know what it is about?”

“Oh, perhaps nothing,” answered Miss Fraley, quickly.  “I ought not to have spoken, only I fancied she was a little distressed at the idea of your being interested in medicines.  I don’t know anything that is more useful myself.  I am sure every family needs to have some one who has some knowledge of such things; it saves calling a doctor.  My sister Susan knows more than any of us, and it has been very useful to her with her large family.”

“But I shouldn’t be afraid to come, I think,” said Nan, laughing.  “Mrs. Fraley told me that she would finish that story of the diamond ring, you know, and we shall get on capitally.  Really I think her stories of old times are wonderfully interesting.  I wish I had a gift for writing them down whenever I am listening to her.”

Miss Eunice was much relieved, and felt sure that Nan was equal to any emergency.  The girl had put a strong young arm quickly round her guest’s thin shoulders, and had kissed her affectionately, and this had touched the lonely little woman’s very heart.

There were signs of storm in Madam Fraley’s face that evening, but everybody feigned not to observe them, and Nan behaved with perilous disregard of a lack of encouragement, and made herself and the company uncommonly merry.  She described the bad effect her coming had had upon her aunt’s orderly house.  She confessed to having left her own possessions in such confusion the evening before when she dressed again to go up the river, that Priscilla had called it a monkey’s wedding, and had gone away after one scornful look inside the door.  Miss Fraley dared to say that no one could mind seeing such pretty things, and even Miss Prince mentioned that her niece was not so careless as she would make them believe; while Nan begged to know if anybody had ever heard of a monkey’s wedding before, and seemed very much amused.

“She called such a disarray in the kitchen one morning the monkey’s wedding breakfast,” said Miss Prince, as if she never had thought it particularly amusing until this minute.  “Priscilla has always made use of a great many old-fashioned expressions.”