I sound silly, I know, but it's really mother's fault, as I always tell her.
She never brought me up at all.

She likes me to wear pretty things and doesn't care about anything else.

Poor mother! She's had such a time with father; he's one of the most serious of all the Brethren and never has time to think about any of us.

Then he's in a bank all the week, where he can't think about God much because he makes mistakes about figures if he does, so he has to put it all into Sunday.

We will be friends, won't we ?" It came to Maggie with a strange ironic little pang that this was the first time that any one had asked for her friendship.
"Of course," she said.
Miss Smith's further confidences were interrupted by the aunts and behind them, to Maggie's great surprise, Mr.Warlock and his son.