"Of course it is," said Leigh. "Never mind, nurse. The best plan will be for me to hold her chair while she gets down. Are you ready, Artie? Mary and I are."

Artie had managed to "honey" his face and hands, and nurse thought Mary too would not be the worse for a slight sponging.

"Papa likes a a sweet kiss, but not a honey one," she said.

But at last they were all ready and on their way down to the dining-room, where they came upon Robert again, ready to throw open the door with great dignity, as he had hurried down the back stairs on purpose to be there before them. Papa was just finishing his breakfast.

looked up with a bright smile.

"Well, young people," he said.

He

"Well, my

pet," this was to Mary. "So this is your birthday, my little queen - eh?"

He lifted her on to his knee and kissed her. Mary loved when papa called her his little

queen.

"I have to be off immediately," he said, "but

first I have to give you your birthday presents

from dear mamma and me.'

"And ours, papa, Leigh's and mine. They're all together-mamma put them all together," said Artie.

"All right. They are over there on the sidetable. You fetch them," said papa.

"Are you going to a meeting, father?" asked Leigh.

"Yes, my boy, to lots of meetings. I shan't be back till late to-night."

66

"What are meetings?" Mary was just going to ask, but the sight of Artie and the parcels put it out of her head. There was a beautiful doll's perambulator from papa and from papa and mamma, and a church book," bound in red, and with "Mary' outside, in lovely gold letters; and from Leigh and Artie, a doll's tea-service cups and saucers and teapot and everything-in white china with little pink flowers, and dear little teaspoons of shining silver, or at least quite as pretty as silver. And then there was the birthday cakecovered with white sugar and with "Mary" in

pink letters.

There was no fear of Mary for

getting her name this birthday, was there?

How her eyes sparkled, and how quick her breath came with pleasure, and how rosy her cheeks grew!

"Oh papa," she said, "oh Leigh, oh Artie!" and for a minute or two that was all she could say.

"Are you pleased, my pet?" said papa.

“Oh, I never, never did have such sp'endid presents," said Mary.

"Dear little Mary," said Artie, kissing her. "I am so glad you like them."

Then another thought struck Mary, as she stood touching gently one of her treasures after the other, as if she did not know which she loved the most.

"Papa, dear," she said, "can't I see dear mamma? I would like to zank dear mamma.”

"And so you shall, my pet," said her father. And he picked her up as he spoke and seated her on his shoulder. Mary was very fond of riding on papa's shoulder. "Come along, boys," he said,

"you may come with me, if you won't be noisy, to see mamma and something else - Mary's best birthday present of all."

"Anoder birfday present," said Mary, so surprised that she felt quite breathless. "Anoder, papa?"

"Yes, old woman-you couldn't guess what, if you tried for a week of Sundays," said papa.

Papa did say such funny things sometimes! Mary would have begun wondering what a week of Sundays could be like, if her thoughts had not been so busy with the idea of another birthday present, that she could not take in anything else. What could it be?

"There's been nothing but guessing to-day," said Artie. "Nurse was making us guess so at breakfast, about something that's that's comed for Mary's birthday. Could it be this other present, papa? I'm tired of guessing."

"Well, don't guess any more," "I'm going to show you."

said papa.