“Margaret did,” she said; and at the emphasis the doctor raised his eyebrows.
“But, surely the Whalens——”
“Did not,” supplied Mrs. Kendall.
“Did not!” cried the doctor.
“Well, ’twas this way,” laughed Mrs. Kendall. “It was my idea to find a nice little place outside the city where perhaps Mr. Whalen could raise vegetables, and Mrs. Whalen do some sort of work that paid better than flower-making. Perhaps Margaret’s insistence upon ‘grass and trees’ influenced me. At any rate, I found the place, and in high feather told the Whalens of the good fortune in store for them. What was my surprise to be met with blank silence, save only one wild whoop of glee from the children.
“‘An’ sure then, an’ it’s in the country; is it?’ Mrs. Whalen asked finally.
“‘Yes,’ I said. ‘With a yard, some flower beds, and a big garden for vegetables.’ I was just warming to my subject once more when Mr. Whalen demanded, ‘Is it fur from the Alley?’
“Well, to make a long story short, they at last kindly consented to view the place; but, after one glance, they would have none of it.”
“But—why?” queried the doctor.
“Various reasons. ’Twas lonesome; too far from the Alley; they didn’t care to raise vegetables, any way, and Mr. Whalen considered it quite too much work to ‘kape up a place like that.’ According to my private opinion, however, the man had an eye out for a saloon, and he didn’t see it; consequently—the result!