g about my _pignig_. I
thought I had it on top o' the trees."

"Ah, it's the day for Grace's party, sure enough," said her
grandmother, sighing a little, and stirring faster at her drop-cake.

"You mean _my_ party," said Prudy, dancing around the table. "The
party b'longs to me. You didn't know that, _did_ you?"

"You'd better go and talk to your aunt Madge," said grandma, "I'm
busy."

"O," said Prudy, "I guess you ain't glad I got up. I tried to keep
asleep, grandma, but the flies waked me."

Prudy was going out of the room, but turned and came back.

"Grandma," said she, "if you love me, why don't you hug me?"

"O, I can't stop, dear," said grandma, laughing; "we can't hug little
girls all the time."

But she did it.

After a while Grace, and Horace, and Susy came down stairs, and then
there was a great time. As soon as breakfast was over, kind aunt
Madge promised to make out a list of the little folks to be invited.

"First of all," said she, "are you going to have boys and girls, or
only girls?"

"O, we don't want any boys," said cousin Grace, tossing her head;
"they race round, and act so."

"Of course we don't want 'em," said Susy. "I'd laugh if we'd got to
have a lot of noisy boys."

"Poh! we don't want boys," echoed Prudy. "They are pickin' fusses all
the time."

Cousin Horace stood by aunt Madge's chair, looking quite forlorn, but
too proud to say a word.

"See here, Horace," said Grace, very grandly, "we think you'd better
go a-strawberrying to-day."

"I reckon I won't if I don't want to," said Horace, working the flag
out of his cap. He knew the girls thought he was almost always in the
way.

"I want to tell you something, Horace," said aunt Madge, stroking his
hair. "Mr. Allen is going out to North Pond with some other gentleman,
fishing, and I begged him to let you go; and he said he would, though
he wouldn't take the girls for any thing."

"There, girls," cried Horace, with beaming face. "Did Mr. Allen truly
say so, auntie? Of course he wouldn't have girls go. If we caught a
fish, how they would scream; wouldn't they, though?"

Horace darted off to find Mr. Allen, and so he was out of the girls'
way.

"Now," said aunt Madge, smiling, "tell me what girls you want to ask,
Grace."

So they gave several names--Grace and Susy--which Prudy repeated after
them.

"But where is Abby Grant?" said aunt Madge. "Don't you want her?"

Grace and Susy looked at each other without speaking.