XXXVIIIThey got on with the unpacking, and when everything was neatly arranged Miss Carstairs put on a very handsome fur coat and a bonnet of black velvet with a wonderful steel ornament on one side, called for a cab, and took her way to the shops. She had pale grey gloves and pale grey shoes which she told Anne were only “ones”. She seemed very proud of this, and explained that she had them specially made for her as there was no demand for the size in a grown-up shoe. She seemed to be pleased with Anne’s society.
“Ada is nothing but a wet fish,” she explained. “Of course she hasn’t any money, so she can’t spend any. It makes her the most tiresome company you can imagine on a shopping expedition. Quality means nothing to her—nothing at all. Cheapness is her one criterion of value, and the
