But neither Freda nor Daffy would allow this, nor would they agree to go to the poultry yard and work havoc there. Then Dreamikins seized hold of Bertie, who was playing on the lawn by himself.
"I know what we'll do," she said; "we'll make Bertie into a Red Indian. Have you any paints?"
"Yes," said Freda delightedly, "in our paint-boxes. I'll go and get some."
Off she ran to the house; then Daffy and Dreamikins took Bertie off to a secluded corner of the flower-garden where there was an empty shed used by the gardener for his tools and flowerpots. Unfortunately, upon a shelf Dreamikins found some green paint. She seized upon it.
"Oh, we'll make him a green Indian. Let's undress him."
But Freda, coming back, wouldn't allow this.
"You can take off his jacket and knicks, but he would take cold if he hadn't something on."
She and Daffy eagerly watched Dreamikins as she dabbed Bertie with spots of green paint all over his body. He was quite willing to be painted. His hair, his cheeks, his fat chubby arms and legs, were liberally sprinkled with the paint. His little vest was striped with it. The children shrieked with laughter when they saw how funny he looked. And then Bertie grew excited, and danced up and down, and in the middle of it Nurse swept down upon them. She had heard their laughter and screams, and Freda and Daffy shrank into a corner of the shed, thoroughly ashamed of themselves. Not so Dreamikins. She waved her paint brush in front of Nurse, and besprinkled her white cotton dress with paint.
"He's a green Indian, and I'll make you one too," she cried, and then, as Nurse furiously laid hands upon her, Dreamikins fled out of her reach, and raced across the lawn, singing as she went:
"There was a Haughty Dragon,
Her name was Mrs. Nurse!
She was a horrid woman,
She couldn't well be worse."