‘I do wish Aunt Grace had let me have that extra piece of bread and jam!’ said Micky. ‘I’m sure I could have made room for it all right. Do you think Diamond Jubilee will need quite all our supper, Emmeline?’
‘I’m sure he will,’ said Emmeline, indignantly. ‘You’re a very selfish boy, Micky, to grudge poor Diamond Jubilee anything you can give him. How would you like to have only three biscuits and three cups of milk for tea and supper and breakfast put together? I count what he had in the shop as dinner.’
Micky hung his head for a moment, then his face suddenly grew bright with a pleasant idea. ‘I know!’ he cried. ‘We’ll pour some of the milk into my tooth-glass, and it can be saved for Diamond Jubilee’s breakfast. We can hide the tooth-glass somewhere for the night. I wouldn’t mind not brushing my teeth, not just for once,’ he added hastily, as Emmeline’s face began to assume its most elder-sisterly expression.
‘It would be for twice, to-night and to-morrow morning,’ said Emmeline, severely. ‘I’m sometimes afraid you’ll grow up into a disgusting person, Micky, for you’re always trying to get out of brushing your teeth!’
Micky muttered something about not caring if he did grow up into a disgusting person, which Emmeline thought it more dignified not to hear. ‘Well, get on with your copies,’ she ordered, ‘else we shan’t have done in time for Aunt Grace to read to us.’
Silence settled down on the schoolroom—silence which was broken suddenly by Kitty’s voice, raised in its shrill, questioning key.
‘Are we guileless children?’ she asked, abruptly.
‘Sh—sh!’ said Emmeline, frowning. Her sum was just at its most critical stage. It cancelled out to one-third, and with a sigh of relief Emmeline gave her mind to Kitty’s question. ‘What made you think of it, Kitty?’ she asked.
‘Because of what Mary said this morning about the wonderful things guileless children can do. Is that why we are adopting Diamond Jubilee?’