this unseemly familiarity.

His curiosity was but mildly stirred; indeed, having other things to
think of, he had quite forgotten the incident, when on Monday she
presented herself swinging her school bag.

"Say," she began, "I have found out about her Ladyship and the Little
Red Chimney."

"Oh, have you?" he answered vaguely.

Virginia, resting her bag on the carriage block, looked disappointed.
"I have been crazy to tell you, and now you don't care a bit."

"Indeed I do," the Candy Man protested. "I'm a trifle absent-minded,
that's all."

Thus reassured she began: "Don't you know I told you I could see
that chimney from our dining-room, and that I was going to watch it?
Well, the other day at lunch I happened to look toward the window, and
I jumped right out of my chair and clapped my hands and said, 'It's
smoking, it's smoking!' There was company, and mother said, 'Good
gracious, Virginia! what's smoking? You do make me so nervous!' Then
I was sorry I'd said anything, because she wouldn't understand, you
know. Well, after lunch I took one of Ted's balls, and went over to
Uncle Bob's, and I got a little darkey boy to throw it in the yard, and
then I went in to look for it. You see if Uncle Bob wasn't there and
anybody asked me what I was doing, I could say I was looking for my
brother's ball."