“Buy her?  I guess they would,” Ruby Ann replied, all her blood astir at the thought of the doll house, with Judy and Mandy Ann.

She knew nothing of their antecedents, or how they were connected with Amy’s childhood, but she felt intuitively that almost any price put upon them would be paid because they belonged to Mrs. Amy, and particularly because of the dilapidated appearance of Judy, which was sure to rouse the mirth of the spectators.  She was very doubtful as to whether she ought to take the dresses without consulting some one besides Amy, to whom she said, “Are you sure you want to give these away?  They are different from anything we shall have, and will seem out of place.”

For a moment Amy looked at her with a strange glitter in her eyes, as she said, “I hate them!  I have been going to burn them more than once.  You don’t know what they represent to me.  I shall burn them, or tear them, if you don’t take them.”

She made a motion as if she were going to tear one of the lace flounces, when Ruby Ann stopped her by saying, “Don’t, Mrs. Amy,—­please don’t.  I’ll take the dresses, of course.  I only feared you might be giving too much, with the doll house and Mandy Ann and Judy.  I want them, sure.”

“Yes,” Amy said, her mood changing.  “Take them all; but don’t try to improve them,—­Mandy Ann and Judy, I mean.”

There was another choke in her voice as she smoothed Judy’s old brown dress, and brushed a bit of bran from her face.  There was no danger that Ruby would try to change either Mandy Ann or Judy.  They were perfect as they were, and telling Amy when the articles would be sent for, she left her and went to interview the Colonel, anticipating a different reception from what she had received from Mrs. Amy.

“Better not handle him to-day; he had some awful twinges this morning,” Peter said, after she had “picked him clean,” as he expressed it, “and scarcely left him a shoe to his foot or a coat to his back.”

Ruby knew she could not come again, and in spite of Peter’s advice, resolved to beard the lion at once.  She found him, with his lame foot on a cushion, and a not very encouraging look on his face.  He had liked Ruby ever since she first came to be examined as to her qualifications for a teacher, and he had found her rooted and grounded in the fundamentals, and he had taken sides stoutly for her when the question of normal graduates came up and Eloise had won the day.  Ruby Ann’s head was level, he always said, and when she was ushered into his room, he greeted her with as much of a smile as he could command, with his foot aching as it did.  But the smile faded when she told him her errand, and said she was sure he would be glad to contribute either in money or clothing to so good a cause as the public library.  The Colonel had not been consulted with regard to the library, except to be asked if he didn’t think it would be a fine thing for the school and neighborhood generally.  He was not very often consulted about anything now.  Plans were made without him, and he was only asked to contribute, which he generally did.