Mrs. Jelks nearly subsided on to a piled-up heap of pots and pans, under the impression that they were a chair.
"Well," she gasped, "more broken toys! Well, I never did!"
Molly crept back and took part in the choosing.
"I think that's all," Nell said at last.
"Yes, miss. I've kep' count. That'll be eleven and threepence."
"How much?"
"Eleven and threepence, miss."
They began to laugh.
"Denis, we didn't mean to go beyond two or three shillings! I wouldn't have thought if we'd bought pounds' worth of fourpenny halfpenny things, it could have come to that!"
Mrs. Jelks did not deliver goods at houses, and she had no brown paper. So the O'Briens marched forth laden heavily with weird-shaped newspaper parcels. It happened that Ted Lancaster, in a silk hat, long fawn coat, and immaculate patent-leather boots, came strolling across their path. Over a large and bulging Noah's ark up went Nell's head.