bedroom window, kicking the wall, and a

an's dinner a saucer pie. It was juicy and brown and had fancy li

ng Grandmother, Susan had scowled up he

ttle pie. I want a p

ed it herself. The words seemed to pop out of her mouth, her face seemed to snarl itself up,

dreadful speech

emed to remember that Susan was at the table at all. She sat there, the lump in her throat growing bigger and bigger and with a strange prickly f

with such force that Snowball flew under the bed and struck the wall with a thu

ry into Flip's ear. "Nobody loves me but you, Flippy," finished Susan with a gasp. Al

e was not a breath of air stirring. The leaves of the fruit trees scarcely moved, the sky seemed to swim an

d she meant Grandmother, and Grandfather, and every

d to think of all the cross and disagreeable thing

self. For all she could remember were the times when Grandmother and Grandfather had bee

thought she. "And Grandmother made the new dress for Flip;

Susan began

" thought she to herself, for Susan was quite as sharp as are mos

, and flung her arm

ndmother, Grandmother." And if she had stood upon the church steps and shout

od her quite well, a

that my Susan woul

spered Susan, and, sealing the peace with

, and without a word she snuggled down upon his lap. With both hands she pulled his face round to hers a

t any one else kiss you th

d answered with a laugh. An

his baggy coat pocket and pu

er dinner in the garden." And with his knife he deftly cut eyes and nose and m

other have a nap this afternoon. I have to see a man on busin

t "to catch the breeze," said Grandfather

for he wore a brown velveteen jacket and had knotted about his throat a bright red handk

ewdly, and, as the man p

," said G

and looked Grandfath

rye," answe

ting laughed an

I know. But I wanted to see whether you would answer me. There

moved on. After a pause, he

asked Susan. "What were y

bend of the road. "I thought so when I saw him, so I spoke to him in Romany or gypsy talk. I said, 'Sar

iked the soft pretty word. "But w

life, Susan, and know and understand the gypsies better than others do. Sometimes they slip away and li

ove up just then, so she slipped across the road to the deserted schoolhouse, and, bringing out her own lit

Tied round the handle of the broom was a little blue cloth that Susan used for a duster. It was new and clean, so she

ilently across the road, so silently that they did not dis

"Hush! Hush!" The bees hummed and buzzed busily about among the flowers, one inquisitive young fellow, who knew no better, actually lighting on Su

hen at last she woke and stretched her stiff littl

g the ever-smiling squash baby upon the steps.

the end she halted, and, leaning on the garden wa

g out upon the air. The dismal wails grew louder, a

ear the foot of the steps, and, pulling out his pen-kni

Susan, terror-stricken.

s face was red, its arms were whirling, it was dancing up and down and crying all at once. But,

he was for him! She knew just how badly he felt. She, too, would have been dancing in a

. "No, no!" he shrieked; "I'll be

urned and lo

rying,"

moment longer, but at last his s

Then he shut his pen-knife with a sna

nished into the house, and hi

! But I won't tell I saw. I mean I won't tell an

he schoolhouse. On the little stone walk she sto

n searched carefully in the grass about the steps. She shook the schoolhouse door. It was firmly locked. She peeped in the window. The sa

ss friend drive away, and she hurried across t

e you another baby. Some mischievous boy has passed by and taken it. There is not much

d he was turning the leaves of a picture-book in a way that any proper and well-behaved child might imitate. At this moment,

a warm heart, and who had guessed something of Phil's unhappy afternoon, looked fr

back here with you. Tell her I have a little treat for you two. I hope I won't give them bad dreams," Grandmot

ng brighter, and when they saw the little saucer pi

, "and when you have finished, be sure

nightmare," reflected she, "though I don'

n cheerful self once more, as he jo

out in her chair to smile at Grandmother. Never, never aga

oking round at every one, "that