ng ball of
string.'

"And so the work went on merrily. Bob and Tom doing the looking on, and
Mary and Jean smoothing and snipping the bits for the tail, and making
the tassel for the end. Dora fetched out a box of colours of his own,
and suggested painting a face on it.

"'Capital!' cried Uncle Gee; 'and I'll tell you how you can make
yourself useful, Dora, and that's by rubbing up a lot of colour on the
back of a clean plate, I'll show you how;' and so to work Dora went with
a will, and soon had a rare quantity all ready for the skilful hand of
the artist.

"Meanwhile, under Uncle Gee's superintendence, and with Mamma's help,
Polly and Jean had supplied the long piece of string, provided for the
tail with its cross pieces of paper to serve as light weights, and they
were now busily snipping some very fine red paper Mamma had routed out
from amongst her hoards for them, in order to make a grand tassel to
finish the tail with.

"'Does not this remind you of our own old days?' said Mamma to Uncle
Gee, as she came in for awhile to help in the interval of her busy
morning occupations.

"'Don't you remember what trouble we used to take with our toys and
playthings; and how seldom we were able to buy any real toys. I _do_
think children have many more than are good for them,' continued she.

"'Well, they don't value them now, as we did our patched up
contrivances, do they?' replied George; 'but look, sister, won't this be
a capital Kite? I think I never made a better, e'en in my boyish days! I
am sure it ought to fly well!'

"And so saying, he raised up the large, carefully planned framework of
slips of wood, with the calico neatly glued on it.

"'I am going to leave it to dry now,' said Uncle Gee; 'I can't paint it
while it is wet; and so now, young people, as I have worked in your
service all the morning, it is high time you did for mine. I am going to
write a letter, and have no more time to spare until after lunch. So you
must promise me to leave this table untouched, and go and amuse
yourselves until by-and-bye.'

"The children agreed to this very fair bargain, and very sensibly
dispersed, and amused themselves until lunch time, which was really
their dinner time.

"When they all came down with carefully brushed hair, and shining, clean
faces, and took their places round the great table, they were about as
merry a party as you would find anywhere, in spite of the drenching
rain, which had poured steadily on