But the mother began to see that a child's life has its own little troubles, and she smiled appreciatively at Midget, as she picked up the pencil from the floor for the twentieth time, and replaced it on the back of her hand, now stiff and lame from the unwonted restraint.
"You dear old darling!" cried Midget, flying over and kissing the patient musician; "you sha'n't do that any longer! I declare, King, it's clearing off, after all! Let's take the children out for a walk."
"Very well, we will. Oh, here comes Ruth! Come in, Ruth."
Ruth Rowland came in, and looked greatly mystified at the appearance of the elder members of the group before her.
But King and Midget explained what was going on, and said:
"And you can be Aunt Ruth, come to call on us and our children."
Ruth's eyes danced with fun, and she sat down, saying to Marjorie, "I'm glad to see the children looking so well; have any of them the whooping-cough? I hear it's around some."
"I have," declared Cousin Jack, and then he began to cough and whoop in a most exaggerated imitation of the whooping-cough. Indeed, in his paroxysms, he almost turned somersaults.
"I hab a bad cold id by head," declared Mr. Maynard, and he began a series of such prodigious sneezes that all the others screamed with laughter.
"Well, your children aren't so very well, after all, are they?" commented Ruth, as they watched the two men cutting up their capers.