“And are you quite satisfied?” asked her mother.
Elizabeth stroked lovingly the blue ribbons which her mother had taken off. “I don’t know,” she replied. “I do wish I could wear them again some day. Betsy says they are becoming to my complexion, but not to my hair.”
“I think she is right.”
“When I grow up,” said Elizabeth, “I think I will go off somewhere for a whole year, somewhere that I am a perfect stranger to everyone, and I will dye my hair and wear blue for a whole year.”
Mrs. Hollins laughed. “Well, honey, that would be an idea, but now you’d better run along. You look much more like my own little girl as you are.”
However, Elizabeth did not have to grow up before she wore blue again, for when she reached home that afternoon there was Mr. Kemp with a delightful scheme to unfold. “My trunk full of costumes has come,” he announced, “and I want you to come and help me unpack.”
Elizabeth looked at her mother. “You may go for a little while,” Mrs. Hollins gave permission, “but you must be sure that she comes home before dark, Mr. Kemp. She stayed much too long the last time.”
“I give you my word that I will bring her back before dark,” Mr. Kemp promised, and the child went off, after giving her mother a rapturous hug and kiss.
These costumes had been much talked over by Mr. Kemp and Elizabeth. They appealed to her very strongly, for he had promised that she should dress up in some of them. To wear a train, a peasant’s dress, a Watteau costume and others quite as picturesque, was something the child had been looking forward to for some time. The dressing up was not for that day, however, for there was only time for a short survey. In the midst of this Mr. Kemp exclaimed: “I’ll tell you what we will do, Elfie; we’ll give some tableaux. This place is quite big enough, and we’ll have a lot of the crowd here. We can make pictures, you know; set a big frame over there and pose the figures behind it. That will be a fine way to show off my costumes and be good fun, too.”
“And may I be in them?” asked Elizabeth eagerly.