Later in the evening, Mrs. Mack danced the minuet for us, holding up her skirt and singing in a delicate old-lady voice. Then she said:
"Do you remember, Mack? Do you remember that they were playing that air the evening you asked me to marry you?"
"Do I remember?" And Mr. Mack and his wife beamed tenderly at each other.
"Think! That such a homely woman as I should get married!" said Mrs. Mack to us on the sofa.
"You homely!" and Mr. Mack gave the dear old lady a kiss right on the mouth.
"Now we shall see, children, whether, when you get old, you have done like Mack and me. We have danced a minuet our whole life through, and the memories of youth have been our music."
When we went home at the end of the evening, we had our pockets crammed full of apples and nuts and cakes.
It is jolly fun to go out mumming at Christmas! Just try it!