"I"d love to have you do that, Mopsy Midget; in fact, I can scarcely wait till morning to hear about it all. But it is my duty as a stern parent to order you off to bed at once. Little girls that wheedle fond fathers into letting them go to evening parties must be content to scoot for bed the minute they get home."
"All right, then, Father, but do get up early in the morning to hear all about it, won"t you?"
"I"ll guarantee to get up as early as you do, Sleepyhead," said Mr.
Maynard, for Marjorie was yawning as if the top of her head was about to come off.
Mrs. Maynard accompanied the little girl to her bedroom, but Midge was too tired to do more than tell her mother that it was the most beautiful party in the world, and that next day she should hear all about it.
"I can wait, little girl," said Mrs. Maynard, as she tucked Midget up and kissed her good-night, but the exhausted child was already in the land of dreams.
CHAPTER XII
TOTTY AND DOTTY
"Marjorie," said her mother, one Sat.u.r.day morning, "I expect Mrs.
Harrison to spend the day. She will bring her little baby with her, and I want you to stay at home, so that you can wheel the baby about if she asks you to do so."
"I will, Mother. The Jinks Club meets here this afternoon anyway, and this morning I"ll stay at home. Can"t I ask Gladys to come over? We"d love to take care of the baby together."
"Yes, have Gladys if you like. I don"t mind."
Mrs. Maynard went off to look after housekeeping affairs, and Marjorie ran over to ask Gladys to come and spend the morning.
The two girls were sitting on a bench under a tree on the front lawn, when they saw Mrs. Harrison come in at the gate. She was wheeling her baby-carriage, and Marjorie ran to meet her.
"How do you do, Mrs. Harrison?" she said. "Mother is expecting you.
Come right on up to the house. Mayn"t I wheel Baby for you?"
"I wish you would, my dear. I gave nurse a holiday, but I didn"t realize how tiresome that heavy carriage is, after wheeling it so many blocks."
Marjorie pushed the little coach, while Gladys danced alongside, talking to the winsome baby.
"What"s her name, Mrs. Harrison?" she said.
"Oh!" replied the young mother, "she has the dignified name of Katharine, but we never call her that. I"m ashamed to say we call her Totty."
"I think Totty is a lovely name," said Midget. "It makes me think of Dotty, a baby who lives about a block away from us. She"s just the same size as this baby."
"Probably she"s older, then," said Mrs. Harrison, complacently; "Totty"s just a year old, but she"s much larger than most children of that age."
"Yes, I suppose so," said Midget, wagging her head wisely, though she really knew little about the comparative sizes of infants. Mrs. Maynard awaited them at the front door, and the procession arrived with a flourish.
"Here we are, Mother," announced Marjorie, and she and Gladys lifted baby Totty out of her nest of pillows and knit afghans.
"Why, how handy you are, child," said Mrs. Harrison. "But give her to me now, and I"ll look after her."
Marjorie handed the pretty burden over, and said:
"But mayn"t we take her out for a ride, Mrs. Harrison? I"m sure she ought to be out in the fresh air this morning."
"I"ll see about it later," said Totty"s mother, and then she went into the house with her hostess, and the girls ran away to play.
But an hour later, Mrs. Maynard called Marjorie, and said she might take the baby for a ride.
Gleefully, Marjorie and Gladys ran into the house.
They helped arrange Miss Totty"s coat and cap, and so merry were they that the baby laughed and crowed, and made friends at once.
"How she takes to you!" said Mrs. Harrison. "Sometimes she is afraid of strangers, but she seems to love you."
""Cause I love her," said Midge; "she"s a sweet baby, and so good.
Shall I bring her in if she cries, Mrs. Harrison?"
"Yes; but she won"t cry. She"s more likely to go to sleep."
The little lady was tucked into her carriage; white mittens on her tiny hands, and a white veil over her rosy face.
"Does she need the veil?" asked Mrs. Maynard, doubtfully. "It isn"t cold to-day."
"No," said Mrs. Harrison; "but the breeze is brisk; and she"s used to a light veil. I think she"d better wear it."
"How far can we go?" asked Marjorie, as the preparations were completed.
"Stay in the yard, mostly," said her mother. "If you go out in the street, don"t go more than two blocks away."
"All right, we won"t," said Marjorie. "Come on, Glad." The two little girls started off with the baby-carriage.
"She"s a careful child," said Mrs. Harrison, as she noticed Marjorie turn a corner with precision.
"Yes," said Mrs. Maynard. "And she"s devoted to children. You need have no fear of Totty."
"Oh, I haven"t," said Mrs. Harrison, and then the two friends returned to the house, and sat down for a long chat.
The girls had a fine time with the baby. They rolled the carriage carefully, pausing now and then to present their little guest with a bright autumn leaf, or a big horse-chestnut, which they picked up from the ground.
"Let"s pretend she"s an infant princess, and we"re kidnapping her," said Marjorie.
"All right; what"s her name?"
"Princess Petronella," said Marjorie, promptly, using a favorite name of hers.
"I don"t think much of that," said Gladys; "I like Ermyntrude."
"Both, then," said Marjorie; for this was a way they often settled their differences. "Her name is Princess Ermyntrude Petronella; and we call her Ermyn Pet for short."