Then came his sisters noisy laughter, and the child’s eyes filled with tears.
“Be silent, Chrissie,” said Miss Earle sternly, and Chrissie’s face just then was not pleasant to see.
Nor did she recover her good temper till the French lesson came and her translation was found to have only two faults, whereas Leila’s rejoiced in five!
On fine days the three children went for a walk with Miss Earle from twelve to one—that, at least, was the rule. But how seldom was it obeyed! At a quarter to twelve they were sent upstairs to get ready, but in spite of Nurse’s and Fanny’s doing their best, it was rarely, if ever, that Leila and Chrissie made their appearance again till ten or twenty minutes past the proper time. And to-day was no exception. Nurse brought them downstairs herself, almost in tears.
“Miss Earle,” she began, “I don’t know what to do. Will you—can you say anything to the young ladies? I did so want to tell their Mamma that they had been good while she was away, and it’s worse than ever. Miss Leila’s been reading all the time I was trying to dress her, and Miss Chrissie pulled off her hat three times and stamped on it.”
“She put it all on one side. I looked like Falstaff in it,” said Christabel coolly.
“Then why do you not put it on yourself?” said Miss Earle, as they went out.
“Why should I, when they’re there to dress us?” was the reply. Miss Earle was silent. Chrissie repeated her question.
“I don’t think there is any use in my answering you,” she said at last. “We look at these things in such a different way, according to different ideas.”
Chrissie grew more amiable at this. She liked to be spoken to as if she were grown-up.