Time passed on, and the question arose about tea. Would it do to have tea when they had had no dinner? A part of the family thought it would not do; the rest wanted tea.
“I suppose you remember the wise lady of Philadelphia, who was here not long ago,” said Mr. Peterkin.
“Oh, yes,” said Mrs. Peterkin.
“Let us try to think what she would advise us,” said Mr. Peterkin.
“I wish she were here,” said Elizabeth Eliza.
“I think,” said Mr. Peterkin, “she would say, let them that want tea have it; the rest can go without.”
So they had tea, and, as it proved, all sat down to it. But not much was eaten, as there had been no dinner.
When the nine-o’clock bell was heard, Agamemnon, Solomon John, and the little boys rushed to the church, and found the carpenter.
They asked him to bring a ladder, axes and pickaxe. As he felt it might be a case of fire, he brought also his fire-buckets.
When the matter was explained to him, he went into the dining-room, looked into the dumb-waiter, untwisted a cord, and arranged the weight, and pulled up the dinner.