dlock will have to get me some bigger dresses. Martha says my
hair is growing thicker. It isn't so flat and stringy."

The sun was beginning to set and sending deep gold-colored rays
slanting under the trees when they parted.

"It'll be fine tomorrow," said Dickon. "I'll be at work by sunrise."

"So will I," said Mary.

She ran back to the house as quickly as her feet would carry her. She
wanted to tell Colin about Dickon's fox cub and the rook and about what
the springtime had been doing. She felt sure he would like to hear.
So it was not very pleasant when she opened the door of her room, to
see Martha standing waiting for her with a doleful face.

"What is the matter?" she asked. "What did Colin say when you told him
I couldn't come?"

"Eh!" said Martha, "I wish tha'd gone. He was nigh goin' into one o'
his tantrums. There's been a nice to do all afternoon to keep him
quiet. He would watch the clock all th' time."

Mary's lips pinched themselves together. She was no more used to
considering other people than Colin was and she saw no reason why an
ill-tempered boy should interfere with the thing she liked best. She
knew nothing about the pitifulness of people who had been ill and
nervous and who did not know that they could control their tempers and
need not make other people ill and nervous, too. When she had had a
headache in India she had done her best to see that everybody else also
had a headache or something quite as bad. And she felt she was quite
right; but of course now she felt that Colin was quite wrong.

He was not on his sofa when she went into his room. He was lying flat
on his back in bed and he did not turn his head toward her as she came
in. This was a bad beginning and Mary marched up to him with her stiff
manner.

"Why didn't you get up?" she said.

"I did get up this morning when I thought you were coming," he
answered, without looking at her. "I made them put me back in bed this
afternoon. My back ached and my head ached and I was tired. Why
didn't you come?" "I was working in the garden with Dickon," said Mary.

Colin frowned and condescended to look at her.

"I won't let that boy come here if you go and stay with him instead of
coming to talk to me," he said.

Mary flew into a fine passion. She could fly into a passion without
making a noise. She just grew sour and obstinate and did not care what
happened.

"If you send Dickon away, I'll never come into thi