“Well, most of us have that failing to fight—and some have reasons to make it harder to win. But anyway, girlie, that doesn’t seem very awful, after all. You know how the stores are? The dressmaking shops run after the popular girls and beg for their trade and offer them special prices and say, ‘Oh, my dear, I shouldn’t bother about paying now—just let it go on the account.’ And the account seems so elastic—and you just order a gown or suit whenever you imagine you need one, and they are forever calling you up by phone and saying they have something extra nice——”
“I don’t know,” said Peggy thoughtfully; “I’ve found most of the stores in this town wonderfully lenient. They will carry an account on and on, and if you pay once a year they’re satisfied. It must be a great inconvenience to them to handle such erratic accounts, but they know the college girls are all honest and will pay sometime.”
“And I could have paid sometime—but I dare not tell dad. He would think running such accounts was awful. This dressmaking place is not like the other concerns. They—they hound—you——”
Terror filled the baby-blue eyes.
“Well, you should have told somebody when you found it getting beyond you. I have quite a bit of money each month, and I don’t know anything I’d rather——”
“Oh, but I shall not need it now.” Gloria even smiled in her realization. “You see, I’ve sold everything I had for what it would bring, and—it made enough, I am thankful to say.”
“Did you tell the woman?”
“Not how I got it, no. I endorsed Doris’ check and handed it over to her as if I had been a princess——”
“I know your manner. Was she properly overcome?”
“Well, no. In fact she said, ‘This is but a drop in the bucket. I’ll have you persecuted.’”