, how pretty!' said Jane.
When they asked him their question he showed them a label on the case.
It said, 'From the collection of--.' A name followed, and it was the
name of the learned gentleman who, among themselves, and to his face
when he had been with them at the other side of the Amulet, they had
called Jimmy.
'THAT'S not much good,' said Cyril, 'thank you.'
'How is it you're not at school?' asked the kind man in blue. 'Not
expelled for long I hope?'
'We're not expelled at all,' said Cyril rather warmly.
'Well, I shouldn't do it again, if I were you,' said the man, and
they could see he did not believe them. There is no company so little
pleasing as that of people who do not believe you.
'Thank you for showing us the label,' said Cyril. And they came away.
As they came through the doors of the Museum they blinked at the sudden
glory of sunlight and blue sky. The houses opposite the Museum were
gone. Instead there was a big garden, with trees and flowers and smooth
green lawns, and not a single notice to tell you not to walk on the
grass and not to destroy the trees and shrubs and not to pick the
flowers. There were comfortable seats all about, and arbours covered
with roses, and long, trellised walks, also rose-covered. Whispering,
splashing fountains fell into full white marble basins, white statues
gleamed among the leaves, and the pigeons that swept about among the
branches or pecked on the smooth, soft gravel were not black and tumbled
like the Museum pigeons are now, but bright and clean and sleek as birds
of new silver. A good many people were sitting on the seats, and on the
grass babies were rolling and kicking and playing--with very little on
indeed. Men, as well as women, seemed to be in charge of the babies and
were playing with them.
'It's like a lovely picture,' said Anthea, and it was. For the people's
clothes were of bright, soft colours and all beautifully and very simply
made. No one seemed to have any hats or bonnets, but there were a great
many Japanese-looking sunshades. And among the trees were hung lamps of
coloured glass.
'I expect they light those in the evening,' said Jane. 'I do wish we
lived in the future!'
They walked down the path, and as they went the people on the benches
looked at the four children very curiously, but not rudely or unkindly.
The children, in their turn, looked--I hope they did not stare--at the
faces of these people in the beautiful soft clot
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