The great secret must be kept, she said--kept from the daughters and everybody else.
The pair were puzzled.

They must celebrate, they were determined to celebrate, but since the secret must be kept, what could they celebrate?
No birthdays were due for three months.

Tilbury wasn't available, evidently he was going to live forever; what the nation COULD they celebrate?
That was Sally's way of putting it; and he was getting impatient, too, and harassed.

But at last he hit it--just by sheer inspiration, as it seemed to him--and all their troubles were gone in a moment; they would celebrate the Discovery of America.

A splendid idea! Aleck was almost too proud of Sally for words--she said SHE never would have thought of it.