94 THE GARDEN, YOU, AND I 



ure, I think we had both better 'have what we want 

 when we want it' !" I replied, for at that moment I 

 spied the Infant out on the porch, and to hug her lady- 

 ship was a swiftly accomplished desire. For some rea- 

 son she seemed rather astonished at this very usual per- 

 formance, and putting her hands, boy-fashion, into the 

 pockets of her checked overalls, surveyed herself de- 

 liberately, and then looking up at me rather reproach- 

 fully remarked, "Tousin Maria says that now you and 

 father are tumpany !" 



"And what is company?" I asked, rather anxious to 

 know from what new point we were to be regarded. 



"Tumpany is people that comes to stay in the pink 

 room wif trunks, and we play wif them and make them 

 do somfing to amuse 'em all the time hard, and give 'em 

 nicer things than we have to eat, and father shaves 

 too much and tuts him and wears his little dinky coat 

 to dinner. And by and by when they've gone away 

 Ann-stasia says, 'Glory be !' and muvver goes to sleep. 

 But muvver, if you are the tumpany, you can't go to 

 sleep when you've gone away, can you?" 



A voice joined me in laughter, Maria Maxwell's, 

 from inside the open window of the dining room. 

 Looking toward the sound, I saw that, though the din- 

 ing table itself had been cleared, a side table drawn close 



