acks, beautiful fire-screens, large mirrors, soft fur lying
about on the floor, and many-coloured antimacassars on the chairs. By
and by, all these wonders had happy memories pinned on to them, of
uproarious games with merry little play-fellows. Now, I was all alone,
and very lonely, in it all. True, there was grandmamma nodding in her
easy-chair, in the firelight, on one side, and there was Uncle Hugh
reading the "Times" by the same light on the other. But what were either
of them to the little tired stranger on the low stool between them? Once
grandmamma's eyes had opened just to look at me, and say, "Making pretty
pictures of the red coals, my dearie?"

And Uncle Hugh had answered, "Yes, to be sure; dreaming of the King of
Salamanders!"

And they went to sleep again or went on reading, and the little company
smile faded away from my face, and I went back to those very real dreams
of the nursery at home, and baby there, and little brother, and papa and
mamma, and the long time ago, hours and hours ago! when I said good-bye,
and Bobbie kissed his hand out of window, and the carriage took me
off--a happy little woman, really going in the puff-puff! Oh, how could
I ever have felt so happy then and be so miserable now? Had I ever
thought that I was coming away from them all, with nobody at all but
Jane, the new nursemaid, to take care of me? Had I ever thought how
_quite_ alone I should be, never able to find my way in this great, big
house, sure to get lost in some of the passages? And how could I ever go
to sleep without Bobbie close by, and wouldn't Bobbie cry for me at
home? And oh, nurse wouldn't be there to tuck me up, and perhaps
grandmamma wouldn't like the candle left! And who would give me my
good-night kiss like,--like,--oh, oh, like----But it would come, that
great big sob, it wasn't any use to choke it back! And, when it had
come, of course, it was all over with me, and there was nothing for it
but to cry out just as if I was not in that grand drawing-room--

"I want to go home! I want, oh, I do want mamma!"

What a disturbance that cry of mine did make, to be sure! Grandmamma was
wide-awake in a moment, looking very much distressed, and laying her
hand on the bell. This troubled me very much; for hadn't Jane told me
when she brushed my hair and made me tidy, that I was to go down and be
a good girl, "and do things pretty" in the drawing-room, and would she
scold me if I was sent away for crying and making