“Taking a bath while Mammy unpacks her trunk. Then Mammy will brush her hair for her and help her dress.”
“Ah! I hope she will find herself quite refreshed and with a good appetite for her supper. Are you not fatigued after your long ride?”
“A little, papa.”
“Then sit here and rest for the present; and you and Annis would do well to retire early to your beds to-night. I should advise her to defer even an introduction to the dolls and their house until to-morrow.”
“I can hardly help wishing to-morrow was here,” exclaimed the little girl. “I’m in such a hurry to show her Gyp and Glossy and the two new ponies and the phaeton.”
“And ever so many other things? Well, my child, go to bed early, and to-morrow will soon be here. I shall give you a holiday for the rest of the week, that you and Annis may get your fill of play and find lessons enjoyable by next Monday.”
“Oh, how nice, papa!” she cried, giving him a hug.
“But I thought you were fond of lessons,” he said, pinching her cheek and smiling fondly down into the bright little face.
“Yes, papa, so I am usually; but I like a holiday now and then. And may I drive Annis out in the phaeton every day?”
“You may, when there is nothing to prevent; two or three times a day if you wish. But you will want to ride sometimes. The Shetlands can be used in the saddle, and I think will be the best for Annis to learn on; if, as I suspect, she has never ridden.”