THE GOLDEN AGE
dated without shame from Whitehall. The result worked out as follows:—
| s. d. | |
| By one uncle, unspent through having been lost for nearly a week—turned up at last in the straw of the dog-kennel | 2 6 |
| By advance from me on security of next uncle, and failing that, to be called in at Christmas | 1 0 |
| By shaken out of missionary-box with the help of a knife-blade. (They were our own pennies and a forced levy) | 0 4 |
| By bet due from Edward, for walking across the field where Farmer Larkin's bull was, and Edward bet him twopence he wouldn't—called in with difficulty | 0 2 |
| By advance from Martha, on no security at all, only you mustn't tell your aunt | 1 0 |
| Total | 5 0 |
and at last we breathed again.
The rest promised to be easy. Selina had a tea-party at five on the morrow, with the chipped old wooden tea-things that had served her successive dolls from babyhood. Harold would slip off directly after dinner, going alone, so as not to arouse suspicion, as we were not allowed to go into the town by ourselves. It was nearly two miles to our small metropolis, but there
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