136 MISS BADSWORTH, M.F.H. 



Lavvy leant back and smiled. " I'm afraid that is the case 

 with a good many of the schemes," she said. " They all ap- 

 pear to me to come off the same piece, manufactured specially 

 to provide occupation for restless people who desire to get 

 the credit for originality under the guise of philanthropy. 

 The vicar of Tordon does just the same." 



Miss Badsworth was silent for nearly a minute. The last 

 conversation with her brother Hugo passed through her mind. 



" You are very like your uncle, Lavvy," she said at length. 

 " Well, what does the vicar do ? " 



'* I hope I am like dad, too," was the reply. " The vicar ? 

 Pie doesn't seem to understand that all the members of his 

 flock have their different callings and that the ordinary 

 routine of life isn't necessarily drudgery. He has guilds, 

 associations, mothers' meetings, and his intention is good, 

 but he doesn't know the people and their requirements as his 

 predecessor did, and the result is discontent on one hand 

 and schism on the other. People who belong to the various 

 societies despise the rest, and those who don't belong think 

 the others ' new-fangled ' in their ideas." 



'' Perhaps there is something in what you say, Lavvy." 

 Miss Badsworth relapsed into silence. She felt that she 

 certainly had not so much time to devote exclusively to other 

 people's affairs since the reins of government were placed in 

 her hands at Cranstoo. 



Jack Morgan was on the doorstep in Portman Square 

 (quite by accident, of course) when the hansom drew up, 

 and being bidden to partake of a cup of tea, remained. 



Miss Badsworth was the first to reappear in the drawing- 

 room. Naturally Jack had hoped that the reverse might be 

 the case. 



" I have just come from a meeting which I persuaded 

 Lavvy to attend in the hope of interesting her, and owing to 

 Lady Hodbearer being in the chair the whole thing was a 

 fiasco." 



" I don't think she will mind," Jack replied, after success- 

 fully resisting the temptation to say ^' A good job, too ". 



