g?"

_Gatty_ (demurely).--"If you please, little Mother, we can't."

_Schillie._--"Cannot! What stops you, I should like to know? Nothing but
your own laziness, keeping me waiting here all day."

_Gatty_ (still more meekly).--"If you please, little Mother, you have
got the book."

_Schillie._--"Got the book! Who wants to keep your book? I am sure I
don't; I only wish to have done with you as soon as possible."

_Gatty._--"If you please, little Mother, you stopped us to talk about
those people."

_Schillie._--"Those people indeed! You who ought to be more interested
in such characters than the other girls, because your Father's name will
be handed down to posterity in the same manner. I am quite done up with
you being such an owlet, Gatty."

_Gatty._--"If you please, little Mother, I don't care about them at all.
They are all dead, and they are nothing to me, and I only wish they had
not lived, and then we should not have had such a long History of
England to read through."

Such speeches were too much for Schillie's fortitude, and Gatty's
sparkling eyes showed how successful her man[oe]uvres were in being
dismissed at once, "as too stupid to be borne with."

Sometimes I handed over the little girls to her to say their lessons,
and they were invariably dismissed before they could have said half of
them. And when I enquired the reason thereof, "Poor little victims," she
answered, "what is the use of addling their brains with such a cart load
of lessons, one more silly than another. As if they could not order a
much better dinner than is mentioned in this French phrase book, and all
that trumpery poetry; and their geography book is the stupidest I ever
saw, as if they did not all know what an island is. It's my opinion they
will know too well what an island is, without learning it in a book."

With the boys she got on pretty well, except hurting Felix's feelings
now and then by saying, "Now learn your book, and don't eat it this
time," which allusion generally caused a tear or two, he having a well
very near his eyes.

None of the young ones were anxious to give up their new governesses,
but they, on the contrary, hailed the return of fine weather with great
joy.

CHAPTER XX.

I fancied we all looked quite mouldy, when we emerged from our dusky
dark caverns. But the weather was so delicious, so cool and refreshing;
everything was so green and beautiful that we soon revived. I thought it
necessary t