D " " 97

WE HAD NO DIFFICULTY IN FINDING HER BATH-CHAIR " " 108

HE LOOKED AT THE TICKETS . . . 'HOW'S THIS?' HE SAID " " 145

'NOW,' SHE BEGAN . . . DRAWING MARGARET TO HER, 'TELL
ME ALL ABOUT IT' " " 159

THE FRILLS HAD WORKED UP ALL ROUND HIS FACE " " 173

PETERKIN

CHAPTER I

WHAT _CAN_ HAVE BECOME OF HIM?

WE were all at tea in the nursery. All except him. The door burst open
and James put his head in.

'If you please, Mrs. Brough,' he began,--'Mrs. Brough' is the servants'
name for nurse. Mamma calls her 'Brough' sometimes, but we always call
her 'nurse,' of course,--'If you please, Mrs. Brough, is Master Peterkin
here?'

Nurse looked up, rather vexed. She doesn't like burstings in.

'Of course not, James,' she said. 'He is out driving with his mamma. You
must have seen them start.'

'It's just that,' said James, in his silly way. 'It's his mamma that
wants to know.'

And then we noticed that James's face was much redder than usual. It may
have been partly that he had run upstairs very fast, for he is really
very good-natured, but it looked as if he was rather in a fuss, too.

Nurse sat very bolt up in her chair, and _her_ face began to get queer,
and her voice to get vexeder. Lots of people get cross when they are
startled or frightened. I have noticed it.

'What do you mean, James? Please to explain,' she said.

'I can't stop,' he said, 'and I don't rightly understand, myself. His
mamma sent Master Peterkin home before her, half-an-hour ago or more,
but he hasn't come in, not as I've seen, nor nobody else, I'm afraid. So
where he's got to, who can say?'

And James turned to go.

Nurse stopped him, getting up from her place as she spoke.

'Was he in the carriage?' she asked.

'Of course not. Beckett would have seen him in, all right, if he had
been,' said James, in a very superior tone. 'He was to run home by
himself a bit of a way, as I take it,' he added, as he hurried off at
last.

'I must go downstairs to your mamma,' said nurse. 'Miss Blanchie, my
dear, will you look after Miss Elvira, and see that she doesn't spill
her tea?'

'_Nursie_,' said Elvira, in a very offended tone, 'you know I never
spill my tea now.'

'Not since the day before yesterday,' I was beginning to say, but I
didn't. For I thought to myself, if there was