my visits to the attic, for the
lid was very heavy, and I was neither big nor strong for my age. But it
_was_ open, and it stayed so, for no one else ever went up to the attic
but I. The other people in the house were too busy, and no one would
have thought there was anything amusing in looking at empty trunks in a
row. But I went up to the attic day after day. I climbed up the narrow
staircase as soon as I had had my breakfast, and stayed there till I
heard my nurse calling me to get ready to go out, or to come to my
lessons, for I was beginning to learn to read, and I used to have a
little lesson every day. And at last one day I said to my sister,

"'Helen, may I have the big trunk with the little cupboards in it for
_my_ trunk?'

"Helen was busy at the time, and I don't think she heard exactly what I
said. She answered me hurriedly that she would see about it afterwards.
But I went on teasing.

"'May I begin putting Marietta and Lady Regina into the little cupboards
inside?' I said.

"'Oh yes, I daresay you can if you like,' said Helen. She told me
afterwards that when I spoke of cupboards she never thought I meant a
trunk, she thought I was speaking of some of the nursery cupboards.

"It was just bed-time then, too late for me to go to the attic, for I
knew there was no chance of my getting leave to go up there with a
candle. But I fell asleep with my head full of how nicely I could put
the dolls into the trunk, each with her clothes beside her, and the very
first thing the next morning I got them all together and I mounted up to
the attic. I had never told nurse about my going up there. Once or
twice, perhaps, she had seen me coming down the stair, but very likely
she had thought I had only been a little way up to look out of a window
there was there. I don't know why I didn't tell her, perhaps I was
afraid of her stopping my going. I waited till she was busy about her
work, fetching coals and so on, and then I trotted off with Lady Regina
under one arm and Marietta under the other, and a bundle of their
clothes tied up in my pinafore before, to make my way upstairs to the
delightful trunk. It was open as usual, and after putting my dolls and
bundles down on the floor, I managed to lift out the two top trays. One
of them was much larger than the other, and it was in what I called the
cupboards below the smaller one that I settled to put Regina and
Marietta. There were two of these little cupboards, and each ha