Master of the Vineyard

"The agent was some upset by it," Matilda agreed. "He's been keepin' station here for more'n ten years now and nobody ever did the likes of that before."

"I didn't say it was an upsetment--I said it was a tip."

"What's the difference?"

"A tip is money that you give somebody who thinks he's done something for you, whether you think he has or not."

"I don't understand," Matilda muttered.

"I didn't either, at first," Grandmother admitted, "but I was readin' a piece in the paper about women travellin' alone and it said that 'in order to insure comfort, a tip should be given for every slight service.' Them's the very words."

"It means bowin', then," returned Matilda. "Bowin' and sayin', 'Thank you.'"

"It's no such thing. Wait till I get the paper."

After a prolonged search through the hoarded treasures of the past three or four months, Grandmother came back to her chair by the window, adjusted her spectacles, and began to read "The Lady Traveller by Land."

A Lady's Baggage

"'When it becomes necessary, for the sake of either business or pleasure, for a lady to start out upon a trip alone, no matter how short, she should make all her preparations well in advance, so that she need not be hurried just before starting, and may embark upon her journey with that peaceful and contented mind which is so essential to the true enjoyment of travelling.

"'She will, of course, travel with the smallest amount of baggage compatible with comfort, but a few small articles that should not be overlooked will more than repay the slight trouble caused by their transportation. Among these may be mentioned the medicine chest, in which are a few standard household remedies for illness or accident, a bottle of smelling-salts, another of cologne, and a roll of old linen for bandages. While accident is not at all likely, it is just as well to be prepared for all emergencies.

"'The lady traveller will naturally carry her own soap and towels, and also a silk or cotton bag for her hat. She----'"

"A what for her hat?" asked Matilda, with unmistakable interest.

"'A silk or cotton bag for her hat,'" Grandmother repeated. "'To keep the dust out.'"

The Hat-Bag

"What's the good of wearin' a hat if she's got to set with a bag over it?"

"It doesn't say she's to wear the bag."