"Ma backed her up to-day when she said my face was dirty just after I had washed it, so she did," Mary said with a grieved air.
Nearly every one of them had some special grievance against Aunt
Kate.
"Let's make her sign a Charta," Tommy said, "like they did with
John."
The idea became immensely popular.
"She won't sign it," said Bugsey, the pessimist. "Let her dare to not," said Jimmy gravely, "and she shall know that the people are the king."
Pearl said that it would do no harm to draw up the paper anyway, so a large sheet of brown paper was found, and Pearl spread it on the floor. Mrs. Watson and Aunt Kate had gone downtown, so every person felt at liberty to speak freely. Pearl wasn't sure of the heading and so wrote:
Mrs. Kate Shenstone
Please take notice of these things, and remember them to do them, and much good will follow here and hereafter.
She read it over to the others, and everybody was well pleased with it.
After receiving suggestions from all, the following by-laws were recommended to govern the conduct of Aunt Kate in future: