"Now you sing," said Dolly, getting up from her little table, and trotting round to her eldest brother.
He started up. "I? Well I will sing a funny one; and then when the others come we will see if we can sing something all together."
"Mamma," said Ada, when they came back breathless, and Nellie was pouring out the cool fresh water, "it is such a nice little cottage, and such a nice woman; she has a table under a great mulberry tree; and she said, 'Should we want tea? Because of putting on the water.'"
"Yes; we will go down there presently and tell her. I thought I had heard there was a cottage."
"So nice!" said Ada.
Arthur sat down by his mother and pretended he had not finished dinner; but after one more tart, he protested the run had taken away his appetite, and turned from the table.
"We were going to have some more singing," said Mrs. Arundel.
"Oh, that was what we heard!" answered Ada. "We could not think what it was."
"What shall we sing, Walter?" asked Mrs. Arundel. "See, I have a few hymn sheets here. The first is, 'O God, our help in ages past.'"
"That is dear papa's favourite," said Mrs. Arundel; "how I wish he were here!"