So Mrs. Merrill just held her little girl close and waited.
"Oh, I know!" exclaimed Mary Jane as suddenly she remembered it all, "it came around the corner so fast—something big did, and then I'm here!"
"And lucky you are to be here, young lady," said Dr. Smith, coming around to where she could see him. "How do you feel?"
"Hungry," said Mary Jane briefly.
Dr. Smith and Mother laughed so that the others heard them downstairs and came running to hear what the good news could be.
"Is he going to stay for breakfast?" asked Mary Jane as she sat up in bed and pointed to Dr. Smith. "It is breakfast time, isn't it, Grandmother?"
"Bless the child!" exclaimed Grandmother from the doorway, "of course it is! She shall have anything she wants!"
They could hardly believe their eyes—those five who had seen the accident, but it was true. Mary Jane had not been hurt a bit—not more than a half-dozen scratches—only stunned by her fall. She got up in a few minutes, and with her mother's help (and how good it did seem to have her mother there to help) they soon came downstairs to breakfast. Grandmother was so happy and excited that if it hadn't been for the help of Alice, who could always be counted on to be "steady" when there was excitement a-foot, there's no telling what would have happened to that breakfast.
Alice got out the honey and set the extra place for Dr. Smith and cut the melons and brought the eggs to her grandmother. And Grandmother made some of her wonderful griddle cakes and they had a merry feast.
"Aren't you glad that big thing hit me?" asked Mary Jane of Dr. Smith as she passed up her plate for a third (or was it the fourth) helping of cakes, "'cause if it hadn't, you wouldn't have had any of Grandmother's griddle cakes this morning, you wouldn't."