I want you to tell me all about it . She was much younger than I was , and when our mother died my stepfather went away and took her with him . I remained with my father 's people and eventually lost all trace of my sister . I was a poor boy then , but things have looked up with me and I have often tried to find her . '' By this time Carol had returned with her father and mother , and there was a scene -- laughing , crying , explaining -- and I do n't really know which of the two girls was the more excited , Carol or Ruth . As for Mr. Swift , he was overjoyed to find his niece and wanted to carry her off with him then and there , but Mrs. Golden insisted on her finishing her visit . When the question of returning to Oaklawn came up , Mr. Swift would not hear of it at first , but finally yielded to Carol 's entreaties and Ruth 's own desire . `` I shall graduate next year , Uncle , and then I can come back to you for good . '' That evening when Ruth was alone in her room , trying to collect her thoughts and realize that the home and love that she had so craved were really to be hers at last , Golden Carol was with her mother in the room below , talking it all over . `` Just think , Mother , if I had not asked Ruth to come here , this would not have happened . And I did n't want to , I wanted to ask Maud so much , and I was dreadfully disappointed when I could n't -- for I really could n't . I could not help remembering the look in Ruth 's eyes when she said that she had no home to go to , and so I asked her instead of Maud . How dreadful it would have been if I had n't . '' Detected by the Camera One summer I was attacked by the craze for amateur photography . It became chronic afterwards , and I and my camera have never since been parted . We have had some odd adventures together , and one of the most novel of our experiences was that in which we played the part of chief witness against Ned Brooke . I may say that my name is Amy Clarke , and that I believe I am considered the best amateur photographer in our part of the country . That is all I need tell you about myself . Mr. Carroll had asked me to photograph his place for him when the apple orchards were in bloom . He has a picturesque old-fashioned country house behind a lawn of the most delightful old trees and flanked on each side by the orchards .
So I went one June afternoon , with all my accoutrements , prepared XXXXX `` take '' the Carroll establishment in my best style .
By about at behind if in on than to with