] 33 
A Joyful Reunion 
companions, Budge and Toddy. On entering the 
library I saw upon the table a vase of beautiful 
flowers, and Budge and Toddy up there walking 
around the vase, admiring the flowers, and smelling 
them. I went up to them but they did not seem to 
remember me, and acted rather uppish — I mean with 
their backs. But after a while they recognized me 
as their former playmate, and their backs went down. 
Of course they wanted to know all about my ab- 
sence, and they told me of all the searching that 
had been done, and how mistress would go out in 
the yard day after day and call for me. 
“ Even Dennis was hunting for you all over the 
neighborhood,” said Toddy. 
“ And Jack came over every day,” said Budge, 
“ to inquire whether you had returned.” 
When it got to be time for the children to come 
from school, I went to the window to watch for 
Guy. But after all the children had passed by, and 
he did not come, I went to his room. 
There I found a strange lady dressed in blue, and 
wearing a white cap and apron, and somebody was 
lying in Guy’s bed. I jumped up on the bed, as I 
had often done, and saw that it was Guy ; but he 
looked so pale and thin, and to my great surprise, 
