generally so careful;
but you see she was startled, and she only thought the diamond thing was
broken or loosened.

Anne's face grew scarlet.

'What do you mean, Maudie?' said mother. 'Anne, what does she mean?'

It was hard upon Anne, for it looked as if she hadn't been going to
tell, and that wasn't at all her way. In another moment I daresay she
would have blurted it out; but then, you see, she had hardly had time
to take in that most likely she had caused the mischief, for she knew
she hadn't _meant_ to, and she quite thought she had left the pin just
as firmly fastened as she had found it.

'Oh, mother,' she cried, 'I didn't think-- I never meant-- I'm sure I
screwed it in again quite the same.'

'When did you touch it? I don't understand anything about it. Jack, what
do Anne and Maud mean?' said poor mums, turning to me.

'It was my fault,' I said. 'I shouldn't have left any one in your room,
with all your things about, and Rowley even not there.'

'And I did tell Anne not to touch the diamond brooch,' said Maud. For
once she really seemed quite angry with Anne.

Then we told mother all there was to tell--at least Anne did, for she
knew the most of course. She had been fiddling at the diamond thing all
the time she was standing by the table, but no one had noticed her
except Maud. For you remember mums was in a great hurry, and I was
helping her to fasten her bracelet, and Rowley was fussing at her skirt,
and then Hebe and I went half-way downstairs to see mother start. Oh
dear, I did feel vexed with myself! Anne said she wanted to see how the
ornament could be turned into different things; she had unscrewed the
pin and unclicked the little catch, and then she had fixed in the other
kind of pin to make it into a brooch, and she wanted to try the screw
with a ring to it, to make it a hanging ornament, but Maud wouldn't let
her stay. So she screwed in the hairpin again--the one that gran had
fastened in himself. She meant to do it quite tight, but she couldn't
remember if she clicked the little catch. And she was in a hurry, so no
doubt she did it carelessly.

That was really about all Anne had to tell.

But it was plain that it had been her fault that the beautiful ornament
was lost. It had dropped off. Mums didn't say very much to her: it
wouldn't have done before all the visitors. They were very good-natured,
and very sorry for mother. And several people said again what a good
thing it was it was onl