What Timmy Did

at Betty started off to pay an informal call on Miss Pendarth, in so

-were some of the epithets which had been, and were still, used, to describe the woman to whose house, Ro

s quiet charm and nearness to London. Also because Rose Cottage, which, in spite of its unassuming name, was, if a small yet a substantial, red-brick house with a good garden, paddock and stables, exactly suited them, as to price, and as to the acco

student of human nature to find how many distinct types are gathered within its narrow bounds. And

o early to follow up any of the various paths now open to the intelligent, educated woman. Yet she belonged, by birth and upbringing, to that a

to be found in all county histories. Olivia Pendarth was wordlessly very proud of their lineag

spent herself to some beneficent purpose. Yet there was a considerable circle who much disliked her and whom she herself regarded with almost limitless scorn. Thes

r many small and great troubles, and taking real pains to help their sons and daughters to make good starts in life. Many a village mother had asked Miss Pendarth to "speak" to he

eat interest-too great an interest-in the private affairs of people some of whom she disliked, and even despised. She was also not as scrupulous as she might have been in repeating unsavoury gossip. Yet, even so, so substantially good a woman was she, that what some people called Miss Pendarth's interfering ways had more than once brought

mily gathering of the important and prosperous clan to which, in spite of her own lack of means, she yet belonged, and with whom she kept in touch. But she herself never entertained a visitor at Rose Cottage, for a reason of which she herself was painfully aware and which the more careless of those about her did not in the least realise. This reason was that she was very, very poor. Before the War, her little settled in

ss Pendarth was proud of the fine old Sussex ironwork gate and railing which separated her domain from the village street. The gate was exactly opposite the entrance to the churchyard, while a

slight, rather stiff, figure of her girlhood. She still wore her hair, which was only now beginning to turn really grey, braided in the way which had been becoming to her thirty years before. The effect, if neat, was rather wig-like, and the one peculiar-looking thing about her appe

the time of her brother's death, she had had none of more sincerely expressed sympathy than that from this old friend whom she was now going to see. And yet? Yet what pain and distress Miss Pendarth had caused them all at the time of the Rosamund trouble! Instead of behaving like a true friend, and, as far as possible, st

ate of Old Place, there had been something like open war between himself and Miss Pendarth, and when she had

Rose Cottage would be out. Miss Pendarth, unlike most of her neighbours, always kep

ile of welcome lighting up her rather grim face she dre

t I'm so glad. Perhaps you'll be able to tell me something ab

e out to what branch of the Croftons she belongs," she went on reflectively. "There was

e young," said

herself talked about the first hour she

k she can hav

st before he left they had some kind of quarrel which was overhear

at really shocked her was that Miss Pend

e lock of the sitting-room, and it stuck for a minute or two when o

xtraordina

but now that I've seen Mrs. Croft

e seen her?"

s Pendarth grudgingly, "as she came out of chu

dinarily prett

that she will prove a very formidable rival to most of our young ladies

imsoned. She felt a close kinship to all those

t fair to th

o mean. Only a few of

ntroduce the subject which filled her mind. But Miss Pend

y's dog gave her

almost uncanny knowledge of all that went on in the villa

rofton come to Beechfield, of all places in the world. Somehow she

," said Betty, and in spite of herself, she f

genuinely surprised. "Godfrey Radmore! Then she's Aus

tated. In some ways Miss Pendar

Her husband was quartered there at the same time as Godfrey." She paused uncomfortably-somehow sh

ck in Brisbane by now. One of the strange things about this war has

y has come back to England for good," she said q

"that he's coming to stay with this

sometimes had.) "He's coming to Old Place of course: he

said so before, my dear, but I thought it exceedingly ungrateful of him not to have come down

d felt-what she too seldom did feel-that she migh

, but she was one of those people-there are many su

both

very uncharitable," said

u are, does not make more allowances for people. For my part, I wonder that Godfrey is coming here at all. As I look back and reme

rily reserved-she very rarely spoke out her secret thoughts. But Miss Pendarth was destined t

don't think that Godfrey would have been happy with me, and so I feel that we both had a great escape. I want to tell you this

. "You can count on me, my dear," she said gravely, "and may I say, Betty, that I

st office she was glad that

perhaps one reason why he had not made a better thing of his life. So his wife was not surprised when, after luncheon, he observ

shamefacedly:-"I'll be back in time to

entirely dependent on her. But though she loved and admired him, she no longer relied on him, as she had once done; he had a queer way of failing her at the big moments of life, and now, to-day, she felt it too ba

and gazed at the list of plants and bulbs she could not a

but both her father and step-mother had been agonised at the thought of trusting her to a man-and so very young a man-who had made such a failure of his life. That he was goi

ssion, had told Betty plainly that she would only be a dangerous hindrance to a man situated

Yet now to-day, Janet tried to tell herself that Betty had had a happy escape. Godfrey had been like a bull in the net during those painful days nine years ago. He had shown h

g, went into the room which was to be Godfrey Radmore's. Then she walked across to where stood Ti

n the days of his preparatory school, and

y tidy, for Timmy was curiously grown-up in some of his way

he time-for ever. She remembered how he had shouted at her, hurling bitter reproaches, telling her she would be sorry one day for having persuaded Betty to give him up. But though she, Janet Tosswill, had not forgotten, he had evidently made up his mind, the moment he had

wonderful gifts out of the blue never seemed to wing their way to Betty or Janet. Yet stop, there had been an exception. Last Christmas each had received an anonymous fairing-Betty, a beautiful little watch, set in diamonds,