Miss?"

Hoodie shook her head.

"No," she said decidedly, "I want to stay and nurse baby. May I take her
now?" she added, preparing to descend from her chair.

David could not help bursting out laughing again.

"What wages is her to get, Liz?" he inquired.

Hoodie turned upon him indignantly.

"Ugly man," she exclaimed; "you'se not to laugh at me. I don't love you.
I love baby--_please_ give me baby," she said beseechingly to the young
woman. "I'm all zeady," for by this time she was again settled in the
little chair and had smoothed a place for baby.

Lizzie good-humouredly laid baby again in her arms.

"Hold her tight, please, Missy," she said, turning towards the door
with her husband at a sign from him, and Hoodie sat in perfect content
for some minutes till baby's mother returned.

"Has zat ugly man gone?" inquired Hoodie coolly. "I'll stay with you and
baby, but I don't like zat man."

"But he's a nice man, Missy," said Mrs. David. "I don't know about his
being very pretty, but he's very kind to baby and me, and that's better
than being pretty, isn't it, Missy?"

"I don't know," said Hoodie.

After a time, in spite of her devotion, baby's unaccustomed weight made
her little arms ache.

"When does baby go to bed?" she asked.

Baby's mother seized the opportunity.

"Now, I think," she said. "I'll put her in her cradle for a bit, and
then you and I can talk a little.--Don't you think, Missy?" she went on,
when baby was safely deposited and Hoodie was free to stretch her tired
little arms, "don't you think your poor mamma will be wondering where
you are all this time?"

"She's out d'iving in the calliage with Maudie. She won't know where I'm
goned," replied Hoodie.

"But your nurse, Missy--_she'll_ have missed you?" said Mrs. David.

"We haven't no nurse. We've only Martin," replied Hoodie, "and Martin
loves Hec and Duke and Maudie best. She 'zinks Hoodie's naughty. She
_always_ says Hoodie's naughty."

"Little baby's mother" did not know very well what to reply to this, so
she contented herself with a general reflection.

"All little girls are naughty sometimes," she said.

"Yes," said Hoodie, "but not _always_. I'd like to stay here with you
and baby, little baby's mother, 'cos baby loves me, if you wouldn't have
zat ugly man here."

"But it's his house, Missy. We couldn't turn him out of his own house,
could we? And I'm afeared there'd be many things you'd want we couldn't
give you? At