Miss Clegg stopped and drew a deep breath.

Mrs. Lathrop looked anxious, not to say fearful.

"It was Mrs. Sperrit as begun again," the narrator continued
presently. "Mrs. Sperrit said why not divide the children up among us
all 'n' each take one, 'n' she looked to be talkin' sense till they
started dividin', 'n' then it turned out 't naturally every one wanted
the big easy ones 'n' no one wanted Augustus. I was dreadful uneasy
myself for fear 't I'd be 'xpected to take Brunhilde Susan on account
o' her hind half bein' named for me, but I didn't have to worry long,
for Mrs. Allen said 't she'd take Brunhilde Susan 'cause Polly's
tended Brunhilde Susan so much 't she knows just what Brunhilde Susan
'll stand 'n' Brunhilde Susan knows just what Polly 'll stand. So
Brunhilde Susan was fixed, but every one else was all upset 'n'
undecided, 'n' it was plain 't nothin' wouldn't work, so Mrs. Macy up
'n' proposed 't they put all but the baby in a sugar-bowl 'n' shake
'em up 'n' draw.

"Well, we did, 'n' it was 'xcitin', I c'n tell you, 'n' I wish you'd
been there to see their faces. Mrs. Macy drew first, seein' 't it was
her plan, 'n' she was awful put out over gettin' Henry Ward Beecher.
Seems she was countin' on using her trundle-bed, 'n' she said right
flat out 't she _must_ use her trundle-bed, 'n' so she jus' up 'n' put
Henry Ward Beecher right straight back in the sugar-bowl. Mrs. Sweet
drew next, 'n' 'f _she_ didn't get Henry Ward Beecher too, 'n' she was
madder yet 'cause she was intendin' to have her child sleep with Emma,
'n' she said 't her child had jus' _got_ to sleep with Emma, so she up
'n' stuffed Henry Ward Beecher back into the sugar-bowl too. Then Mrs.
Brown wanted to draw, 'n' so they put on the cover 'n' shook 'em up