n Sarah brought up our tea she proved to be as good or even better
than her word. She had brought us not only the strawberry jam as she had
promised, but a beautiful big plateful of toast all ready buttered, and
as hot as anything. We were so pleased we all jumped up to kiss her,
which was a great honour, as the boys were very particular whom they
kissed. She looked very pleased too, but seemed rather hurried.

"Miss Audrey," she said, "I've been thinking after you've had your tea,
you might all come down to the big dining-room for a change. Your uncle
won't be in till late, and any way I'm sure he wouldn't mind your being
there, for it's all nonsense of Mrs. Partridge saying you're so
mischievous. There's lots of papers with pictures lying there for the
ladies and gentlemen to look at while they're waiting. I've got some
work I want dreadfully to get finished, for Mrs. Partridge never will
give me the least bit of time to myself, and if you can amuse yourselves
good in the dining-room I could be quite easy-like in my mind, for if
you wanted me you'd only have to come to the top of the kitchen stairs
and call me."

A sudden idea darted through my mind while she was speaking. Here was
the moment for posting my letter!

"Oh, yes, Sarah," I said, "we'd like very much to go to the dining-room,
and we'll do no mischief you may be sure. And you can get your work done
without troubling about us one bit."

"Thank you, Miss Audrey, and I hope you'll enjoy your tea," said Sarah,
as she left the room.

We did enjoy our tea exceedingly--the boys perhaps more than I, for I
was excited with the idea of what I meant to do, and I thought it better
not to tell Tom till the last moment. So we finished our tea, and Sarah
came up and took the things away and told us to follow her down-stairs
to the dining-room.

There was a nice fire in the dining-room and the gas was already
lighted. It was a pleasant change from the nursery where we seemed to
have been "such a lot of days," as Racey said. Sarah came up again from
the kitchen to see that we were all right before settling down to her
work, she said. She told us which of the papers we might look at, and
put a great heap of _Illustrated London News_ and _Graphics_ on the rug
in front of the fire for us, and we all sat down on the floor to look at
them. Then she went away saying she would come back in an hour to take
us up-stairs--the man-servant was out with Uncle Geoff, and the cook w