four
little Blossoms, that made twelve children, a most convenient number,
Aunt Polly said.

"I'll show you what we're going to do," she promised them, beckoning to
Twaddles and Dot to follow her. "Since the twins will have to go to
bed in half an hour, we'll let them be the first demonstrators."

Aunt Polly and the twins went out of the room, and in three minutes
there pranced back the cunningest little bear you ever saw. He wobbled
about on his four legs, opened a red flannel mouth and yawned, shook
hands with the delighted boys and girls and behaved altogether as a
well-brought-up bear should.

"Let me do it!" shouted the other boys and girls. "Let me! Let me!"

The bear was unbuttoned down his back by smiling Aunt Polly, and the
flushed and triumphant twins stepped out.

"Didn't we do it right?" they demanded happily. "Isn't it fun? But
you can't be a bear--Aunt Polly said so. There's only one of
everything."

Then Aunt Polly, who had cut out and stitched the white muslin case for
the bear and painted his nose and lined his red flannel mouth,
explained that for every two children there could be an animal. The
play would be an animal play. They would act and talk as people would,
only the actors would be lions and tigers and other animals.

"Choose what you would like to be to-night, and I will measure you and
start work on the cases," she said. "And if you do not tell outsiders
what kind of an animal you are going to be, that will double the fun."

So the other children, long after the twins had gone reluctantly up to
bed, paired off and argued about their choice of an animal and changed
their minds and finally decided. Then they were measured by Aunt
Polly, and it was announced that three rehearsals a week would be held
till the Saturday set for the fair. Mother Blossom brought in a plate
of cookies and a basket of apples, and after these were eaten it was
time to go home.

With all the preparations for the play and fair, school went on as
usual. The children sometimes thought that it might be interrupted for
a week or two without loss to any one, but the school committee never
took kindly to this idea. They were sure that nothing in the wide
world could be of more importance than regular attendance at school.

"I know enough now," grumbled Bobby one morning, scowling at his
oatmeal.

"We could stay at home and play with the animal bags," said Meg, who
never tired of trying on the musli