FRIENDS AND ACQUAINTANCES 79 



lander, " I had a great respect for Mister Brodie ; 

 he was a fine scholar." 



At the time that the two Canadian-born grand- 

 daughters of Mr. Brodie first claimed acquaintance 

 in the most natural and kindly manner, one had just 

 turned up her hair, and presided at the organ, 

 the other looked about fifteen, and still attended the 

 public school with all the other boys and girls of 

 the village. 



They walked with me to the foot of Cemetery 

 Hill, and explained that their mother had been 

 unable to call on us because they had no conveyance, 

 and in the end I believe I was their guest without 

 that tribute to the orthodox. They have always 

 seemed to me typical Canadian girls, probably 

 because I knew them more intimately than any 

 others, and in the perfect appointments of their 

 simple and delightful home I also drew my type 

 of Canadian home which did not run the gauntlet 

 of public opinion without occasional attack. The 

 peculiar charm in the household appointments 

 and delightful appearance of these North- Western 

 girls was that everything seemed to arise without 

 effort, never by any chance was one permitted to 

 " smell the lamp " ; but later on I found that there 

 lay behind it the strenuous day by day effort of a 

 British-Canadian woman, in whom was the tradition 

 of the Mother Country controlled by the splendid 

 energizing impulse of the North- West. 



These girls of the North- West have a peculiarly 

 characteristic way of investing their household 

 tasks with an air of accomplishment. I remember 

 being their guest in a neighbouring city after they 

 had left the happy valley. My hostess and I returned 



