g but idle hours and sunshine. It was the strangest
thing in the world at first, and quite difficult to believe, that as
long as she appeared at meal-times, no one would ask, "Where is Iris?"
No one would say, "Fetch this," or "Go there," or "Do this." Her time
was her own at Paradise Court, and she was left to fill it up just as
she pleased. And she spent most of it in the garden and fields, for
fortunately the fine weather continued, and it was hardly necessary to
be indoors at all.

How beautiful it all was! Every morning something new had budded or
blossomed, and was ready to greet her with its fresh bright face; for
the spring had till lately been so cold and wet that the flowers could
not bloom at the right time, and now, called out by the mild soft air,
they all came crowding eagerly together, looking over each other's
shoulders, as it were, and almost tripping each other up in their haste.
So Iris found kingcups, primroses, and cowslips all in blossom together
in different parts of the fields, and the garden was suddenly bright
with all sorts of flowers which had seldom seen the sunshine in each
other's company before. And there were other interesting things too,
for the birds were all busy just now about their domestic concerns, and
she discovered more than one nest built so confidingly, that they were
low enough for her to peep into them and meet the bright glance of the
mother bird.

"If I could only show them to Max and Clement," she said to herself as
she stole away on tiptoe, holding her breath. Then there were the bees,
Moore's deadly enemies, which lived in a long row of hives under the
kitchen-garden wall; they were quite friendly to Iris, and allowed her
to watch their comings and goings without any show of anger. She had
friends, too, in the pigeons, which soon learnt to come fluttering round
her to be fed, and in the three sleek brown and white cows which she saw
milked every evening.

In the midst of so much that was pleasant and delightful Iris sometimes
felt almost beside herself with enjoyment. She was driven to jump and
sing, and even to whistle in order to relieve her feelings, for there
was no one to whom she could express them. There were, indeed, moments
when she hardly restrained herself from rushing indoors to share some
new-found delight with her godmother and Miss Munnion. It was almost
impossible to keep it all to herself. One of these occasions was when,
for the first tim