, Betty had her arm sadly burned in the confusion. Mrs. Marmalade's
cap was completely destroyed, and Mrs. Crabtree's best gown had so large
a hole burned in the skirt, that she never could wear it again!

After all was quiet, and the fire completely extinguished, Major Graham
took Laura down stairs to Lady Harriet's dressing-room, that she might
tell the whole particulars of how this alarming accident happened in the
nursery, for nobody could guess what had caused so sudden and dreadful a
fire, which seemed to have been as unexpected as a flash of lightning.

Lady Harriet had felt so terrified by the noise and confusion, that she
was out of bed, sitting up in an arm-chair, supported by pillows, when
Laura entered, at the sight of whom, with her well-cropped head, she
made an exclamation of perfect amazement.

"Why! who on earth is that! Laura! my dear child! what has become of all
your hair? Were your curls burned off in the fire? or did the fright
make you grow bald? What is the meaning of all this?"

Laura turned perfectly crimson with shame and distress, for she now felt
convinced of her own great misconduct about the scissors and curls, but
she had been taught on all occasions to speak the truth, and would
rather have died than told a lie, or even allowed any person to believe
what was not true, therefore she answered in a low, frightened voice,
while the tears came into her eyes, "My hair has not been burned off,
grandmama! but--but--"

"Well, child! speak out!" said Lady Harriet, impatiently, "did some
hair-dresser come to the house and rob you?"

"Or are you like the ladies of Carthage who gave their long hair for
bows and arrows?" asked Major Graham. "I never saw such a little fright
in my life as you look now; but tell us all about it?"

"I have been quite as naughty as Harry!" answered Laura, bursting into
tears and sobbing with grief; "I was cutting off my hair with Mrs.
Crabtree's scissors all the time that he was setting the nursery on
fire!"

"Did any mortal ever hear of two such little torments!" exclaimed Major
Graham, hardly able to help laughing. "I wonder if anybody else in the
world has such mischievous children!"

"It is certainly very strange, that you and Harry never can contrive to
be three hours out of a scrape!" said Lady Harriet gravely; "now Frank,
on the contrary, never forgets what I bid him do. You might suppose he
carried Mrs. Crabtree in his pocket, to remind him constantly of