ENTERTAINING RELATIVES Spring and summer followed one another in their usual succession, and as the months went by, Boxley Hall became more beautiful and more attractively homelike, both inside and out.

Mr.Fairfield bought a pair of fine carriage horses and a pony and cart for Patty's own use.
A man was engaged to take care of these and also to look after the lawn and garden.
Patty, learning much from experience and also from Aunt Alice's occasional visits, developed into a sensible and capable little housekeeper.

So determined was she to make the keeping of her father's house a real success that she tried most diligently to correct all her errors and improve her powers.
Patty had a natural aptitude for domestic matters, and after some rough places were made smooth and some sharp corners rounded off, things went quite as smoothly as in many houses where the presiding genius numbered twice Patty's years.
With June came vacation, and Patty was more than glad, for she was never fond of school, and now could have all her time to devote to her beloved home.
And, too, she wanted very much to invite her cousins to visit her, which was only possible in vacation time.
"I think, papa," she said, as they sat on the veranda one June evening after dinner, "I think I shall have a house party.

I shall invite all my cousins from Elmbridge and Philadelphia and Boston and we'll have a grand general reunion that will be most beautiful." "You'll invite your aunts and uncles, too ?" said Mr.Fairfield.
"Why, I don't see how we'd have room for so many," said Patty.
"And, of course," went on her father, "you'd invite the whole Elliott family.

It wouldn't be fair to leave them out of your house-party just because they happen to live in Vernondale." Then Patty saw that her father was laughing at her.
"I know you're teasing me now, papa," she said, "but I don't see why.
Just because I want to ask my cousins to come here and return the visits I made to them last year." "But you didn't visit them all at once, my child, and you certainly could not expect to entertain them here all at once.