'," she said in her queer talk. "An'
I didn't get any black on yo'; did I, Miss China Cat?"

"No, indeed. You were very nice," was the answer. "Come and play with us
again."

Then it was time for the toys to be very still and quiet, for the door
of the store opened, and in came Mr. Mugg.

"Ah, this is going to be a lovely day!" said the jolly toy-shop man. "I
shall do a good business to-day!"

A little later in came his daughters, Geraldine and Angelina. They began
dusting and setting the store to rights for the day's business.

"Oh, my dear! look at this," said Angelina to her sister.

"What is the matter?" asked Geraldine, pausing with a feather duster
under her arm.

"Why, the lovely white China Cat has a speck of dirt on her back," said
Angelina. "I must have forgotten to dust her yesterday."

"Oh, my!" thought the China Cat, who heard what was said, though she
could not turn around to lick off the speck with her red tongue, "some
black must have come off Topsy after all."

"Oh, no, it isn't dirt," said Angelina, as she took the Cat down to look
more closely at her. "It's just a little speck of black feather from my
duster. It must have just got on."

"Oh, I'm so glad of that!" thought the white Cat. "I wouldn't want to
think that Topsy's black rubbed off."

Soon the store was in readiness for customers, and among the first to
enter that morning was a little girl. She was with a lady, who was the
little girl's aunt.

"Now, Jennie," said the aunt, as Mr. Mugg came forward to wait on them,
"what present would you like? You may pick out anything you please."

"Oh, Aunt Clara! How lovely of you!" cried Jennie Moore, for that was
her name. "Let me see now. What would I like best?"

While Jennie was looking along the shelves of toys her aunt said in a
low tone to Mr. Mugg:

"Jennie has been such a good girl, helping her mother who was ill, that
I promised her any toy she wished."

"That is very kind of you, I am sure," said Mr. Mugg, rubbing his hands
and looking over the tops of his glasses. "We have many toys here for
good little girls, and for good boys, too. Not long ago I sold a Nodding
Donkey to a lame boy, and, would you believe me; that boy isn't lame at
all now," and Mr. Mugg laughed, and Aunt Clara laughed also.

But Jennie was looking along the shelves of toys. The China Cat looked
down, and when she saw what a nice little girl Jennie was, so neat and
clean, the China Cat thought to herself