“No, of course, no one would do that, and besides, I don’t know the child. Who are you, baby?”
“Middy,” said the little one. “I Middy.”
“You are, are you? Well, that doesn’t help much. Who brought you here, Middy?”
“Muddy.”
“Muddy, Middy. Your vocabulary seems to be limited! Well, what shall I do with you?”
The baby gurgled and smiled and reiterated a demand for “f’owers.”
“Yes, you may have the flowers,” and Patty gave her the violets, “but I don’t understand your presence here.”
Apparently it mattered not to the baby what Patty understood, and she smelled the flowers with decided evidences of satisfaction.
Patty turned to the doorman, who had followed her from the shop.
“What do you make of it?” she said.