ery, very long letters." The mine would be sprung, she
thought, before even a short letter was finished. But it was as well to
be on the safe side.

Dave was feeling the germination in his mind of hitherto unexperienced
thoughts about Death and Time, and he remained speechless. He shook his
head with closed lips and puzzled blue eyes fixed on his questioner. She
saw a little way into his mind as he looked up at her, and pinched his
cheek slightly, for sympathy, with the hand that was round his neck, but
said nothing. Children are so funny!

"I fink," said Dolly, "old Mrs. Spicture shall bring old Granny
Marrowbone back wiv her when she comes back and sets in her harm-chair
wiv scushions, and Mrs. Burr cuts the reel cake, wiv splums, in sloyces,
in big sloyces and little sloyces, and Mrs. Burr pawses milluck in my
little jug, and Mrs. Burr pawses tea in my little pot--ass, hot
tea!--and ven Doyvy shall cally round the scups and sources, but me to
paw it out"--this clause was merely to assert the supremacy of Woman in
household matters--"and ven all ve persons to help veirself to shoogy
..." etc., etc. Which might have run on musically for ever, but that a
difficulty arose about the names of the guests and their entertainer. It
was most unfortunate that the latter should have been rechristened
lately after one of the former. Her owner interpreted her to express
readiness to accept another name, and that of Gweng was selected, as a
compliment to the visitor.

Then it really became time for that young lady to depart. Think of that
doctor's pill-box waiting all this while round the corner! So she ended
what she did not suspect was her last look at old Mrs. Picture's
apartment, with the fire's last spasmodic flicker helping the gas-lamp
below in the Court to show Dolly, unable to tear herself away from the
glorious array of preparation on the floor. There it stood, just under
the empty chair with cushions, still waiting--waiting for its occupant
to come again; and meanwhile a Godsend to the cat, who resumed her place
the moment the intruder rose from it, with an implication that her
forbearance had been great indeed to endure exclusion for so long. There
was no more misgiving on the face of that little maid, putting the
fiftieth touch on the perfection of her tea-cup arrangements, that her
ideal entertainment would never compass realisation, than there was on
the faces of the Royal Pair in their robes and decorations, gazin