here,"
said Maudie.

"Well, they didn't know _at first_, but when they saw the house turned
round, of course they knowed it must be a witch that lived there. Nobody
else could turn their house round," said Hoodie, composedly. "And so
they both _screamed_, they were so pleased, and all the time the witch
was settling about the trick she'd play them. Now I must tell you what
the trick was. The witch wasn't all a bad witch--she was a little good
too, and there was a little girl lived in the room next to her that
liked her very much, 'cos the witch was very good to her and used to
tell her funny stories. And that was why the witch didn't want the
goblins to peep into her room, 'cos she thought perhaps they'd steal
away the little girl for a trick, for she was very often in the witch's
room, and goblins is _awful_ fond of stealing children and taking them
up into the stars to live with them, so she--the witch, I mean--was sure
that they'd try to steal her little girl once they saw her. So when the
little girl came to see her that night, she made her go to bed in a nice
little bed she'd made for her, and told her she was to be quite still,
for perhaps a' ogre was coming to see her. The little girl was a little
frightened but not very, for she knowed the witch would take care of her
even though she knowed the witch had got very funny friends, ogres you
know, and black cats that was really fairies, and all creatures like
that--it's rather a dedful story, isn't it?--but you needn't be
frightened, Duke and Hec, it'll come unfrightening soon. And so the
little girl got into the little bed and cuddled herself up just like the
witch had told her. And the goblins came sailing and sailing up on the
star; they was working it like, to make it go quick you know, like a
boat with men oaring it you know, and they was oaring and oaring so
hard, they was as hot as hot. And at last they got the star right up to
the edge of the window, but they made a little noise and the little girl
was startled and jumped up in bed, just what the witch had not wanted
her to do, and the goblins when they saw her forgot all about the witch
and called out, 'Oh what a nice little girl to steal,' and they were
_just_ going to jump in and catch her up and steal her, when--what _do_
you think?--the witch jumped out of the corner where she had been
watching them and caught hold of them fast, one in each hand, and put
them--where _do_ you think?--one into each of the