in her sleep." "I say," said I, "that's
frightfully interesting, she must be _moonstruck_; I suppose it always
happens when the moon is full." Then Mother said: "Tell me, Gretel, how
do you know about all these things? Has Ada talked to you about them?"
"No," said I, "but the Frankes had a maid who walked in her sleep and
Berta Franke told Hella and me about it." It has just struck me that
Mother said: how do you know about all _these_ things? So it must have
something to do with _that_. I wonder whether I dare ask Ada, or whether
she would be offended. I'm frightfully curious to see whether she will
walk in her sleep while she is staying here.

August 15th. Hella's answer came to-day to what I had written her about
the _friendship_ between Mother and Dora. Of course she does not believe
either that _that_ is why Dora _bade farewell_ to Viktor, for it is no
reason at all. Lizzi has never had any particular friendship with her
mother, and Hella could never dream of anything of the sort; she thinks
I'm perfectly right, one may be _awfully_ fond of one's parents, but
there simply can't be any question of a friendship. She would not stand
it if I were so changeable in my friendships. She thinks Dora can never
have had a true friendship, and that is why she has taken up with Mother
now. The Bruckners are coming back on the 19th because everything is so
frightfully expensive in Gastein. After that most likely they will go to
stay with their uncle in Hungary, or else to Fieberbrunn in Tyrol. For
Hella's name day I have sent her A Bad Boy's Diary because she wanted
to read it again. Now we have both got it, and can write to one another
which are the best bits so that we can read them at the same time.

August 20th. _Last night Ada really did walk in her sleep_, probably
we should never have noticed it, but she began to recite Joan of Arc's
speech from The Maid of Orleans, and Dora recognised it at once and
said: "I say, _Rita_, Ada really is walking in her sleep." We did not
stir, and she went into the dining-room, but the dining-room door was
locked and the key taken away, for it opens directly into the passage,
and then she knocked up against Mother's sofa and that woke her up. It
was horrible. And then she lost her way and came into our room instead
of going into her own; but she was already awake and begged our pardon
and said she'd been looking for the W. Then she went back to her own
room. Dora said we had better pretend