“Bless me!” he said, “Mrs. Graham’s little girl! Baby ill again, I suppose? All right, my dear!” he cried to Lucy. “I’ll be there instantly. Run and tell them I’m coming!” and he shut the door and called for his boots.
Lucy danced along, enchanted with her new play, and soon reached Aunt Maria’s house, where she called again, with might and main. Now, Aunt Maria was slightly deaf, and when she heard her own name resounding in a clear, shrill scream, “Aunt Mari-i-i-i-ia!!” she thought it was a cry of fire!
Throwing up the window (she was a very nervous and excitable person), she shrieked, “Fire! fire! Police! watchman! Help! help! Fire!! FIRE!!!” till everyone within a dozen blocks heard her, and came rushing to the rescue with buckets and fire extinguishers.
Lucy was rather frightened at all this, and thought, on the whole, she would not make any more calls that day.
So she went home. And there were Grandmamma and the doctor and Mamma, all waiting for her, with very grave faces.
The two first had arrived, breathless and agitated, inquiring what had happened, and who was ill.
Much perplexity followed. And now that the author of all the mischief had arrived, what should be done to her?
Lucy’s finger went into her mouth, and her head went down.
But she told her story truthfully; and it was such a funny one that the doctor burst into a roar of laughter, and Grandmamma laughed heartily, and even Mamma could not look grave.
So Goosey Lucy had a lecture, and a New Year’s cookie, and went to tell her dolls all about it, while Mamma and Grandmamma and the doctor went to see how Aunt Maria was.