Skip into the house now, you children, for I want to talk to Pompton without the interruption of a crowd of chatter-boxes." So the three went into the house and stood together at a front window, flattening their noses against the glass, as they looked out at their new treasure.

King was in the middle, behind his two sisters, with an arm around both their necks, and he explained to them in a very learned way, a great many points about the machine that they did not understand.

His explanations were far from being correct or true, but as he didn't know that, nor the girls either, it really made no difference.
At last Pompton drove away with the car, and they watched it disappear down the street, and then turned to greet Mr.Maynard as he entered.
Marjorie went straight up to her father, and stood in front of him.
"I do think you are the most wonderful Father in the whole world," she said, eyeing him in a judicial manner.
"And the grandest!" said Kitty, snuggling herself in under his arm.
"And the tip-toppest!" declared King, grasping his father's other hand.
"Well, well!" exclaimed Mr.Maynard, dropping into an armchair, "I am certainly catching some fine compliments! And I'd like to return them.
I don't mind confessing that I think you young people just about the highest class of goods in the market!" "But we're not as splendid as you are," said Marjorie, thoughtfully; "because you do things for us, and we never do anything for you." "Oh, yes, you do," returned her father; "you do all I want you to, by just living, and growing, and trying to behave yourselves properly." "But we don't always do that," said Kitty, with a repentant air.
"You do, Kit," said King, generously, "you're always good.

Mops and I are the ones that slip up." "It's human nature to slip up occasionally," said Mr.Maynard, "but I think on the whole my kiddies do pretty well.

Now, as you know, we start to-morrow for Grandma Sherwood's, and while I'm not going to give you a lecture on the subject, I _am_ going to ask you to behave pretty fairly well while you're at her house.