There was silence in the room except for the sound of subdued crying in one corner, which came, not from Bessie Grey—that would not have been surprising—but from the smallest Meadowes child, who had torn her frock and refused to listen to comfort from either her sister or Maggie. Harriot stood close by, and ran forward as the door opened.
"Oh, has our nurse come?" she said eagerly. "She's so kind, I'm sure she'd mend Gussie's frock, and then her nurse wouldn't scold."
"Our nurse isn't cross really," said Mary. "It's only that Gussie's silly. I think she's too little to come to a party."
Then catching sight of "mamma" the little girl grew red, and all the others looked frightened—such of them as saw mamma, that is to say. For Bessie Grey, after a long fit of sobbing, had fallen asleep on the floor, poor child, and—what do you think Olive and Lily were doing? Each with a story-book in her hand, they were comfortably reading at different corners of the room, heedless of the other children's dullness and tiredness.
"I want to go home," wailed Gussie. On which Bessie suddenly awoke, and began to cry again.
"Please, Gussie is rather tired," said the motherly little Mary. "Do you think we might go home without waiting for nurse, as it's so near?"
"And might we be getting our things on too?" said Maggie and Harriot.
Poor Mamma! She could scarcely speak, so ashamed did she feel.
"Olive!" she exclaimed. How Olive and Lily too did jump! "Is this the way you take care of your guests?"
"They were so stupid," murmured Olive. "And Lily would be leader, and she was so cross. I thought it was best to leave off playing."