"Yes," Elizabeth answered.
He bent over the case and took up one ornament after the other and examined them closely. After he had done this he looked at the little girl's innocent, trustful face, seeming more puzzled than before.
"Are they your own?" he inquired.
"Yes, they are mine," she replied, timidly.
"Do you know how much they are worth?"
"I know that they are worth much money," said Elizabeth. "I have heard it said so."
"Do your friends know that you are going to sell them?"
"No," Elizabeth said, a faint color rising in her delicate face. "But it is right that I should do it."
The man spent a few moments in examining them again and, having done so, spoke hesitatingly.
"I am afraid we cannot buy them," he said. "It would be impossible, unless your friends first gave their permission."