The Prescott daily news., 1907-06-25
Lady Isabel and
 the CuriO Shop
By Mrs. Neish
Copyright, by Joseph B. Bowles.)

less one always seems to have" Do you make so much, Isabel?"
 No, only scrap here and there, " she said respectfully, because, you see, it takes such an awful lot to make an income but I wasn't thinking of myself"
 'No?"
 You needn't say No in that tone, Marjorie, as though you thought me l ly aggreved voice. The fact Is, I am trying to help a friend"
 "Really-how kind of you, dear Who is it?"
 Laura Staunton." she answered; the dear girl, the youngest daughter of our old vicar. Like all clergymen he had what David or Solomon or somebody called a quiverful of daughters. l don't know why it should be considered in the light of bless | ing to have a quiverful of daughters. It's very hard, at any rate on them, for he has left them all without penny"
 IlON dlS you SOllS to hCip hCi asked with interest
 Well" replied Lady Isabel, she has opened shop for nice second hand things-now don't look like that Marjorie, l don't mean clothes, l mean things like grandfather's clocks and broken china and old lenders. and all that sort of thing" she added vaguely.
 "Oh, you mean curios-an old curi' osty shop, in fact"
 Yes" said Lady Isabel And now, Marjorie, dear ar"-delightedly-'you've put an idea in my head. I'll make her call it 'Ye anciente curiosyte 'hoppe;' but I must see she spells 1t light, or rather, wrong. it will sound SD mich more genuine"
 It .l certainly be an advantage in these days even to sound genuine" l said.
 Yes, won't it." she answered very pleasantly. especially as most of the things will be faked. You know they nearly always are faked at that sort of shop
 Really"
 She nodded. "Yes-and I'll tell how it's done a little later on.'
 How are you going to help Miss Staunton's shop?" I asked her pres ently.
 Well for one thing, am going to take Mrs. Harrington Brown there to buy things; you see, we shall both be i, fnr nnyf week
 q see. And MT. Malcolmstein, is he to be taken there as well?"
 No; I shan't take him there" said Lady Isabel hastily, nor the Flieder- manns; they know too much; but l dare say they'll pick me up some lit tie things for her to sell. She's very pretty-Laura, l mean
 'Is she faked. too?" I asked.
 Lady Isabel laughed. No, my dear, she's not; she's absolutely genuine"
 
 I've been going over the list of things in Laura's shop and rearranging them" said Lady Isabel the following afternoon.
 Have you; how very good of you" "Oh. it's rather fun she answered, bending over her table and writing something rapidly.
 La Marquise Victorine-Victime de la Revolution" leaning on her shoulder as I read. Who's she?"
 It's fol a small miniature I picked up cheap said Lady Isabel airily. Tt was very faded, so I got little artist l knew to touch it up for half guinea"
 And how did you find out who it was?"
 'I didn't" she replied frankly; but | if don't know, shall always put Vic time de la Revolution-there were so many of them, poor dears, so I shall always be safe"
 "Why call it anything"
 "Only on account of the price" she answered seriously. You see, Mrs. Barrington- Brown will pay so much more for something really historical"
 'I sec" l said
 "All the broken china has gone to be mended by a little man MT. Taken | stein told me of-he lives at White chapel, or Noting Hill, where no one ever goes, or somewhere, and he's a Polish Jew, and frightfully clever and tricky. His name is Balenski. and you can't tell a Balenski-Chelsea figure from the real thing, if you're ever such an expert-unless, of course, you know his work"
 'Is that how collectors get their china mended?"
 "No," she said. mot collectors, only