"Was—was George Washington one of those things?" queried Tess, liking the sound of the long word.
"What things?" asked Ruth.
"Pes-sa-pessamisty?"
"Pessimistic? No, dear," laughed Ruth. "He was an optimist—or he never would have espoused the American cause."
"He was first in war, first in peace, and first in the hearts of his coun-try-men," sing-songed Dot.
"Oh, yes! I can put that in," agreed Tess, abandoning both the hard words Ruth had used, and getting back to safe details. "And he married a lady named Mary, didn't he?"
"No; Martha," said Agnes.
"Well, I knew it was one or the other, for we studied about Mary and Martha in our Sunday school lesson last Sunday," Tess said, placidly. "Martha was troubled about many things."
"I should think she would have been," remarked Dot, reflectively, "for George Washington had to fight Indians, and Britishers, and Hessians (who wore blue coats and big hats) and cabals——"
"Hold on!" shouted Neale. "What under the sun is a 'cabal'? A beast, or a bug?"