naturally wanted to give me the first chance. Their original
plan had been to have the bubble held in four equal shares,
taking in Morty Truslow as the fourth. I think there was a
little scheme in that, too, for Morty and I hadn't spoken for
three months, and it was all off between us. There was a time
when I thought there was only one thing in the world, and that
was Morty Truslow--but that was over for good, with nothing left
of it but a great big ache. I can never be grateful enough to
Mrs. Gettridge for putting me on to it, for, however much a girl
cares for a man, her pride won't let her--and she was Josie's
aunt, you know, and if anybody was on the inside track, she
was--and I cut him dead and sent back his letters unopened,
though he wrote and wrote--and it was awfully hard, you know,
because I just had to grit my teeth together to keep from loving
him to death. Nelly said I was just too proud and silly for
anything, and pa looked as depressed as though there was another
slump in Preferred Steel, and mama said he was such a catch that
the first designing girl would snap him up, and Harry said you
wouldn't know Morty now, he was so changed and different.

So that was how it was when Nelly and Harry started the Great
Bubble Syndicate and wanted to take Morty and me into it as
quarter share-holders each. But I wouldn't have joined in a
heavenly chariot on those terms, and so we talked and talked till
finally Morty was eliminated and we settled on a two-third and
one-third basis. The next point was to choose the car, for it
had to be a cheap car and we wanted to get the very best for our
money. Harry said the Model E Fearless runabout at seven hundred
and fifty was the bulliest little car on the market; and that the
Fearless agent was so good and kind and looked so much like Henry