lady comed what
wasn't _hern_ godmozer, so she didn't like her, and she toldened her she
was ugly. But zen--oh zen she founded out that she wasn't ugly but she
was pretty, vezy, vezy pretty--oh, she was so nice, and the little girl
liked her vezy much--wasn't zat a nice story?"

"Beautiful," said Miss King. "All except the part about her papa and
mamma and sister and brothers not liking her. I don't like that part."

"Nebber mind," replied Hoodie again. "Nebber mind about zat part zen.
Doesn't zou like about the lady? Can zou guess who it was?"

"Let me see," said Magdalen, solemnly. "I must think. A lady came that
wasn't _her_ godmother--dear me, who could it be?"

"It was zou; it was zou," cried Hoodie, jumping up in bed and rushing at
her cousin. "And the little girl was Hoodie, 'cos I do like zou now. I
do, I do, and I'll be vezy good all day, to please you."

"That's my dear little girl," said Cousin Magdalen, really gratified.
"But won't you try to be good to please your papa and mamma too--and
most of all, Hoodie dear, to please God."

She lowered her voice a little, and Hoodie looked at her gravely.

"I don't know," she said. "I couldn't try such a long time and zey
_alvays_ says I'm naughty. No, I'll just please zou; nobody else, and if
zou aren't pleased, I'll sc'eam. I can sc'eam in a minute."

Magdalen grew alarmed.

"Please don't," she said. "I'll be very pleased if you don't. And when
you see how nice it is to please me, perhaps you'll go on trying to
please everybody."

Hoodie shook her head.

"Zey _alvays_ says I'm naughty," she repeated.

Just then there came a knock at the door, and Martin put her head in.

"Is Miss Hoodie awake yet, ma'am?" she inquired. "And I do hope she's
let you have some sleep?"

"Oh, yes indeed, thank you, Martin," said Miss King, cheerfully. "We
have got on _very_ well, haven't we, Hoodie? And I think you are going
to have a very good little girl in the nursery to-day."

"I hope so, I'm sure, ma'am," said Martin, rather dolefully. Her tone
did not sound as if her hopes were very high, and Hoodie's next remark
did not make them higher.

"Yes," she said, "I is going to be good--vezy, vezy good, _too_ good.
But it isn't to please zou, Martin. It's all to please _her_," pointing
to Miss King, "and not zou, one bit. 'Cos I like her; she didn't scold
me about the cock--she zanked me, and she's going to tell me a story."

"Hoodie," said Magdalen gravely, "I don't c