they sat and gazed at the river. But it happened _this_
afternoon that no ships came in, and only one went out; and all the
steamboats kept far over towards the opposite shore. They were glad when
the bell rung for tea; for when people do nothing, their meals are a
sort of amusement, and are therefore expected with anxious interest. In
the evening, they declined joining Mrs. Mortlake and Adelaide in their
usual long walk, and took a short stroll under the willows on the bank
of the river; after which they returned to the parlour, where Mr.
Edington sat reading the newspaper, and Josephine threw herself on the
sofa; while Rosalind sat beside her on a chair, and played with the
kitten.

Next morning, their amusements in the garden were a little diversified
by playing jack-stones and platting ribbon-grass; and when they went up
to the play-room, Rosalind, looking among her old toys, found a doll
long since laid aside, and a basket with its clothes. She offered the
doll to Josephine proposing that she should dress it: but Josephine said
"I would rather look at you, while _you_ do it." Rosalind accordingly
dressed the doll in two different suits, one after another; but soon
grew tired, and had recourse to an ivory cup and ball, which she failed
to catch with as much dexterity as usual. She gave Josephine a wooden
lemon, which on being opened in the middle, contained a number of other
lemons one within another, and diminishing in size till the last and
smallest was no bigger than a pea. When Josephine had got through the
lemon, Rosalind took it, and resigned the cup and ball to her cousin,
who soon gave it up, as she could never make the cup catch the ball; and
she again finished the morning with her never-failing resource the
rocking-chair.

Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday having been passed in this manner, on
Thursday Rosalind began to acknowledge to herself, what she had indeed
suspected on the first day, that a life of entire idleness was not quite
so agreeable as she had supposed. Having no useful or interesting
occupation to diversify her time, she found that play had lost its
relish; and now that she could play all day, she found all plays
tiresome. These three days had appeared to her of never-ending length;
and she began to think that when her week of idleness had expired she
would not solicit Mrs. Mortlake to prolong the term.

On Thursday afternoon Rosalind gave up her nap, and went and seated
herself at the ope