The silence, growing strained, was relieved by the advent of nurse, who carried off Baby Blossom and bade Dicky make haste and say good-night to his mamma and come along. He turned to her gravely. "Good-night, mother," he said.
Flower embraced him effusively and suggested a visit to the Zoo, now the warm weather was coming. Dicky allowed himself to be kissed, but ignored the remark about the Zoo.
When he reached the door he turned and looked back bravely.
"Mother," he said, "I don't know about the 'postles, but I think I ought to tell you that I have made that text my hown. Nurse says you can always make a text your hown if it meets your need. I feel this meets my need!"
He held his head bravely, though flinching a little, as if dreading his mother's scorn or laughter.
But Flower did not laugh. She looked across the room at the brave little figure, in blank astonishment. The sincerity of his convictions reached and convinced her. But what an ignorant old Puritan nurse must be! At last she smiled at Dicky, reassuringly.
"That may be true, darling. But my dear little boy, you haven't any 'needs.'"
"Oh, haven't I!" said Dicky, as one who would say, "That is all you know!" Then taking hold of the outer handle he drew the door slowly behind him, turning, before it quite closed, to fling back over his shoulder, "I need an entirely new inside to my rabbit."
Left alone another remark of Dicky's returned to Flower's mind and added to her despondency.
"You never seem to know about anything you have not done yourself," her little son had said, and this assertion let in a sudden light of revelation upon her whole mental standpoint. How true it was, how sickeningly, horribly true!