Aunt Jane's Nieces Out West
Thank you!"
And then, before they could recover from their astonishment, he turned
abruptly and fled to his room.
The girls stared at one another a moment and then began laughing. Arthur
seemed crestfallen, while Uncle John handled his small box as gingerly as
if he suspected it contained an explosive.
"How ridiculous!" cried Patsy, her blue eyes dancing. "And did you
notice how scared poor Ajo was, and how he skipped as fearfully as though
he had committed some crime? But I'm sure the poor boy meant well. Let's
open our boxes, girls, and see what foolishness Ajo has been up to."
Slipping off the cover of her box, Beth uttered a low cry of amazement
and admiration. Then she held up a dainty lavalliere, with a pendant
containing a superb pearl. Louise had the mate to this, but the one Patsy
found had a pearl of immense size, its color being an exquisite shade of
pink, such as is rarely seen. Arthur displayed a ring set with a splendid
white pearl, while Uncle John's box contained a stick pin set with a huge
black pearl of remarkable luster. Indeed, they saw at a glance that the
size and beauty of all these pearls were very uncommon, and while the
others expressed their enthusiastic delight, the faces of Mr. Merrick and
Patsy Doyle were solemn and perplexed. They stared at the pearls with
feelings of dismay, rather than joy, and chancing to meet one another's
eyes they quickly dropped their gaze to avoid exchanging the ugly
suspicion that had forced itself upon their minds.
With a sudden thought Patsy raised her head to cast a searching glance
around the lobby, for although their party was seated in an alcove they
were visible to all in the big room of which it formed a part. Yes, Mr.
Isidore Le Drieux was standing near them, as she had feared, and the
slight sneer upon his lips proved that he had observed the transfer of
the pearls.
So the girl promptly clasped her lavalliere around her neck and openly
displayed it, as a proud defiance, if not a direct challenge, to that
detestable sneer.
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There was once an honest journeyman tailor, by name Labakan, who learned his trade with an excellent master in Alexandria. It could not be said that Labakan was unhandy with the needle; on the contrary, he could make excellent work: moreover, one would have done him injustice to have called him lazy. Nevertheless, his companions knew not what to make of him, for he would often sew for hours together so rapidly that the needle would glow in his hand, and the thread smoke, and that none could equal him.
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