“If he has time. I told him it was something very particular. You don’t mind his knowing, do you, Nettie? He won’t tell, I am sure. You don’t know how well he can keep a secret.”
“No, I don’t mind,” Nettie replied, “because he has been here and knows all about everything.”
“Then let’s go at it.”
“I must finish the dishes first.”
“Then would you rather I should help you with them or start on the puzzle?”
“I think you’d better start on the puzzle.”
“Very well. I’ve been thinking a little about it, and I believe I’ve guessed part. They are in the paper every week on Fridays, and I often do them, but this is the first time I’ve noticed that a prize has been offered.”
She took off her coat and hat, sat down at the table and spread out the paper before her. Nettie furnished paper and pencil and then went back to her work in the kitchen. The two were busying their brains over the puzzle when Ben appeared an hour later.
“Hallo,” he said, “what’s up, kiddies?”
“Why you see,” Edna began, “Nettie has been taken into the club, and when her time comes to have the club meeting she won’t have any way of getting the refreshments, so we thought and thought of what we could do to get some money, and last night I saw in the Children’s Corner of the Times that they would give prizes for guessing a puzzle, you know those puzzles, Cousin Ben.”