"But I did enjoy it, my dear young lady-for five years. And I only paid sixty dollars a month, during that time, too. When the owner raised me, this year, to ninety I rebelled, because I had spent so much money on beautifying the rooms. I thought he would really relent and say I could have it for about seventy-five a month. I was mistaken."

"We're paying a hundred and fifty a month and make all repairs, ourselves," Anne ventured.

"He took advantage of the unusual conditions. But you have a better bargain, even so, than if you had rented a seven-room apartment, uptown, for two or three thousand a year."

By this time they were standing on the corner once more, and Mr. Fabian seemed ready to leave them. Then Polly remembered that the cashier had said the bed and high-boy she just bought had come from the Studio.

"Oh, Mr. Fabian, excuse me for speaking of it, but did you really own the four-poster I got at the sale just now?"

"Yes, my dear. It was in the room my little daughter occupied when she was home. She is now in Paris taking an art course." The girls were deeply interested in this intimate information. "That box-spring with the mattress on the bed was made to order of the best material I could buy. You'll find the silk-floss in that mattress is so soft you'll never care to get up, once you rest upon it."

"But I didn't know the spring and mattress went with the bed," Polly said, amazed.

"Oh, yes. That is the way they generally sell other folks' goods. But I wish to say, that Nancy only used the bed a few weeks, as she had a splendid opportunity to enter a cla.s.s in a friend's school in Paris, so we started her across without delay. My wife went, too, to look after her; that is one reason I refused to pay the increased rent; I thought it was too much for one lone man to pay."

"It almost makes me feel as if we ought to take you in to live with us,"

said Mrs. Stewart, sympathetically. "If there only was one extra bedroom, now, we could make you a member of our family just as well as not."

"But we haven't that extra room!" laughed Anne, wondering what this stranger would think of her mother's free western hospitality.

What he thought was soon expressed. "I certainly appreciate such unusual kindness and I see it is genuine. So I will dare to do this: I shall love to drop in, now and then, and see how you all are doing. Perhaps I can be of some a.s.sistance to you, in various ways."

"I know you can!" declared Eleanor, eagerly. "Polly and I are taking up art and interior decorating and we need lots of ideas from grown-ups who have had experience. You can advise us that way."

"Begin your regular home visits a week from Sunday, Mr. Fabian. We will be settled then and ready to welcome you to our house," added Anne.

Then they parted and Mr. Fabian went downtown, while the four companions walked northwards to the hotel. As they walked, Anne said: "It certainly was queer how that gentleman sent us past his own home and we saw it.

Now, he turns out to be just the kind of a friend Polly and Eleanor will need to advise them about art school."

"Anne, what shall we do with the rest of the afternoon? We still have two hours before dinner-time," said Eleanor, glancing at her wrist.w.a.tch.

"We can go over to the nearest shop and get Polly an everyday hat. I can't bear to see this lovely one hacked out at auction rooms. She needs complete outfits of underwear, too, but we may be too late at the shops, for that."

"Anne, I saw in the paper this morning, when you were looking for apartments, that a fine Fifth avenue shop is having a sale of early fall models. Let's go up and get Polly's hat there," advised Eleanor, eagerly.

Anne laughed. "You are willing to get one for yourself, too, eh?"

So both girls were supplied with chic hats before they returned to the hotel. There they found an invitation from the Latimers to come, informally, and dine with them that night. Dr. and Mrs. Evans would try to come in later.

"It's now five-thirty. Can we get dressed and make it, in time?" asked Eleanor, anxiously.

"Oh, yes; we haven't far to go, you know. A taxi will take us there in ten minutes," replied Anne.

All was hurry and bustle, then, and when the two girls emerged from their rooms dressed in their new gowns, Anne felt that they did her credit. She could not but remark at the great improvement that clothes, well-fitting and of fine material, made in Polly's appearance. Now the girl looked positively beautiful.

A pleasant evening ensued, Jim and Ken insisting upon the right to escort the ladies home after everyone had said good-night.

"You know, girls, Ken and I are going to Yale next week?" said Jim, as they started down Broadway.

"So your father said, to-night. We will miss you, Jim," returned Anne.

"But we'll be home every chance we get-Thanksgiving, Christmas and other times," Kenneth said, hopefully.

"Nolla and I will be awfully busy in school, and in trying to get started in the art cla.s.ses," added Polly.

"I hope you have the stable settled before we leave the city. We want to give you-all a house-warming," said Kenneth.

"That will be great! Let's have it, anyway, even if everything is not in apple-pie order in the house," exclaimed Polly.

So before they parted, that night, it was all arranged that the house-warming should take place the next Tuesday evening. The boys were leaving for college on Thursday, and the last few days before starting in the new school, would be busy ones for the girls.

"All right, we'll tell the folks the fun is on for next Tuesday, then,"

said Jim, as they shook hands.

"And it must be a regular surprise, you know-we bring our own refreshments and everything," laughed Kenneth.

"Oh, no! That is the least we can do in return for all you folks have done for us. We will furnish your refreshments!" declared Eleanor, positively.

"As long as you furnish plenty, all right. But remember, girls, that Ken and I still have our Rocky Mountain appet.i.tes!"

CHAPTER IV-BARGAINS, BARGAINS EVERYWHERE!

With the worry of house-hunting gone, the young friends felt at liberty to be deliberate while apportioning their time. Anne took Polly and Eleanor to the West End School, the morning following their meeting with Mr. Fabian, and introduced them to the proprietress as the two young ladies she had written about.

Polly thought the elegant mansion that looked more like a prince's residence than a school, would keep her from concentrating upon her lessons. While Anne and the princ.i.p.al of the select school talked business, Polly glanced about the reception room.

The rugs were beautiful, most of them having the faded soft colors of the antique Persian and Turkish. But the furniture was too gorgeous in upholstering for the type of room. Then there were heavy boxed oil paintings in rich gilt frames, hanging on the walls; and teakwood pedestals holding statuettes and busts; and onyx stands with palms. The mantel was loaded with bric-a-brac of all sorts. Many other minor items showed bad taste in whoever furnished the room.

Polly felt all this, but could not explain just why she resented such a conglomeration of color and furnishings. But Eleanor, having had the results of a decorator's judgment displayed in her home, in Chicago, felt inclined to smile at what she saw about her. It was sure evidence of Polly's improvement in artistic interiors since the day she thought the green window-shades quite the thing, to this time when the indiscriminate mixing of colors offended her eyes.

"I really am relieved to hear that you will not be resident here, Miss Stewart, as I need your room for two boarders. I had planned to enlarge the dormitory this year, but everything costs so much that I postponed it. Now this extra room will come in very nicely for me," Mrs.

Wellington was saying when Polly and Eleanor had finished a survey of the room, and rejoined Anne.

"Girls, Mrs. Wellington says we may have a look at the cla.s.s-rooms.

Would you like to go with me?" said Anne.

Without demur they followed the lady of the house. They pa.s.sed through the formal parlor where guests of distinction were entertained. Here the two girls also saw the lack of taste in furnishing. Gilded furniture with delicate satin upholstery, fought with wallpaper of heavy Spanish-leather design. Curtains and portieres were of velour, heavily edged with fringe. Valances of velour were over the windows, and on the mantel. Instead of having a delicate French carpet on the floor, there were thick napped dark-toned Beloochistan rugs.

The long library opened out from the parlor, and here there was an atmosphere of rest, because the entire wall s.p.a.ces were lined with dark cabinets whose shelves were well filled with volumes in bindings made to harmonize with the rich paper that showed above the book-cases. The window-seats were built in and upholstered in tapestry to match the paper. The tables and leather armchairs were not so glaringly out of keeping with the room as the furniture in the first two rooms had been.

Mrs. Wellington waved her hand carelessly at this room: "When I bought this house, all the books went with it, just as you see them now. The window-seats are still covered as they were, but I hope soon to spend some money in making this library more cheerful for the girls. I like bright colors, but that dun wall paper and that dull tapestry on the window cushions gives me the blues. If the books had not been such a bargain-the executor of the estate was most anxious to dispose of them-I never would have taken them. Their dull green morocco bindings make the room seem heavy, don't you think?"

"Oh, no! I was just thinking how lovely the glint of the gold lettering on each dark book makes the room seem. If only there was a dark polished floor to reflect the chair and table legs, the room would be wonderful!

But this large carpet spoils that effect!" Nolla exclaimed impetuously.