on the big lawn of the boarding house. The day was so fine that the ladies were sitting out in front and the children thought it a good chance to make some money, for, like their elders, they were doing everything in their power to help the work for wounded soldiers.
Sammy-Sam was dressed to represent a dog, Freddie was a pony, Lucy-Loo was a bird, and Beatrice was a cat.
The two boys were going along on all fours. Sammy-Sam had on an old curly black woolen coat of his aunt’s, strapped well round his little body, so as to leave his arms and legs free to run on. Freddie wore a ponyskin coat of his mother’s.
Beatrice had on a gray costume that she had worn at a children’s party when she represented a cat, and Lucy-Loo was dressed in bright blue, and had a very perky little tail.
Beatrice, who usually took command of their play, marshaled them all in a row at the back of the lawn, then she stepped forward, adjusted the cat head mask she wore, which was always slipping on one side, so that the eye holes came over one ear.
“Ladies and gentlemen,” she began, in her
clear young voice, “no, I mean just ladies, you are always so kind about helping us with your money that when we saw you sitting out here we thought we would give our new entertainment. This is really truly brand new. We made up the verses ourselves. I did most of them, ’cause the boys aren’t much good at poetry. Costumes are new, too, ’cept mine. I will begin with my ‘Song of a Cat.’”
Then she made a pretty little bow, gave her long tail a throw, and began:
“THOMAS, THE NOBLE CAT”
“One night, not very long ago,