“Of course we will, old girl.” Hester left the window, and crossing the room put her arms around her sister. “The two main things are to take care of Dad and earn our own living. We couldn’t be dependent on Dr. Ware, Julie. Do you suppose he meant he wanted to give us a home and everything?” 22 

22

 “I don’t know, Hester. He is so generous and so fond of Dad I believe he would; but that would not be right. I wonder what we can do to be self-supporting? We have the usual accomplishments, and I suppose we have average intelligence, don’t you?” she asked, anxiously. 

 “I would back the intelligence against the accomplishments any day,” said Hester, sagely. “We have not had the usual sort of bringing up, so we can’t do the usual thing.” 

 “Like teaching, you mean, or—or things like that? No, we can’t. We are not trained or qualified for any sort of position, and only one of us could work away from home anyway, for we can’t both leave Daddy.” 

 Hester’s forehead was creased into little wrinkles of perplexity. “If only I were a man!” she exclaimed, “I might stand some chance—I know how to do such a lot of mannish things. Why, I could be an engineer if I were put to it, Julie! You know I’ve run the engine attached to ‘The Hustle’ many a time; the men used to let me do it.” She drew in her breath with a little gasp of remembrance. “As it is,” she continued, “I suppose I’ll have to be a companion or something equally commonplace and ladylike,” she ended in a tone of disgust. 

 “I suppose so,” agreed her sister reluctantly; 23 “but, dear, the worst of that is it will separate us, and I don’t believe either one of us could stand that.” Julie’s lip quivered. “Isn’t it humiliating to have such a feeling of utter helplessness?” 

23

 “Yes, it is.” Hester gave herself a shake. “I cannot seem to take it all in yet, Julie—what it all means. It seems to me we must be some other girls talking, not ourselves at all. Somehow it never entered my mind that dreadful things could happen to us—not while we had Dad to take care of us.” 

 “But that is just it now, Hester dear; we haven’t Dad to take care of us—it is we who must take care of him.” 

 “We’ll do it, too,” said Hester, with a ring in her voice. “I’m going down now to the kitchen to see about making him some wine jelly. Bridget said she did not believe Dr. Ware would let him eat 

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