"What a story! You did peep, I saw you. You were looking straight across at me," cried Kate, indignantly.
"What a nasty mean thing," cried Florrie. "I hate cheats."
"I'm not a cheat; you're very rude," cried Edith, bursting into tears; "I won't play with you any more. I shall tell mamma." And so saying she made for the door. But Kate was there before her.
"I won't let you go to your mother," she said, as she planted herself firmly against the door; "it's horridly mean to tell tales, as you always do."
"I will go; you shan't stop me," cried Edith, wildly, and she tried to kick and pinch her cousin. But Kate defended herself with ease, and remained provokingly cool. The others came to her aid, and drove Edith back, and Florrie pushed the round table across the room in such a way as to bar Edith's approach to the door. But this was an unfortunate defence, for Edith, trying to push it aside, clutched at the table-cloth and dragged it off, bringing with it to the ground a beautiful china vase, which had been standing on the table. The vase was shattered by the fall; and the children, their romping suddenly arrested, stood looking at each other, aghast.
Edith was the first to speak. "There!" she said, not without triumph, though she too was considerably frightened, "see what you have done!"
"What you have done, you mean," said Florrie, "it was you pulled the cloth."
"I didn't," she said.
"Oh, oh, oh!" cried the others in chorus.
Edith began to cry anew, and ran from the room, no one now attempting to stay her. The three sisters stood looking at each other in blank dismay.