{{betlep235.png}}

to ride "properly," with Lucia, for from little
things that Lucia said from time to time, she
fancied this to be Lucia's last year at Lyon
High. But Betty could not do everything. Rid-
ing would be just as good another year, her
mother said.

And now, one lovely week-end, Mrs. Murch-
ison sent for Mrs. Lee. The poor bewildered
old lady in the suite upstairs was slipping
quietly over the border from life here to life
eternal. Betty went over to stay with Lucia, who
had told Betty before how they had put the dolls
away when Grandmother Ferris had seemed to
come to herself for a while, though weak, sleep-
ing a great deal and finally falling asleep not
to waken.

"This takes away one reason for Mother's
staying here," said Lucia to Betty after the fu-
neral, when Betty came after school to stay all
night again. "This is what I wanted to talk
over with you, Betty. I wrote everything to my
father, Betty, and I wrote again to Italy where
he is now., I haven't had a word from him in
reply to all I said, or about coming, just cards
about where he was and how soon he would
reach Italy and how he was having the _palazzo_
opened in Milan. Now _that_ may mean some-
thing. I left the letter where mother would

 [[235]]