"A professional aunt," I answered. "You are an uncle, I suppose."

"I am constantly getting wires to that effect, but I am hanged if
I have ever eaten mud-pies."

" No, that is part of the profession," I said; "you see, I
promised Betty."

Mr. Dudley relapsed into silence. I had given him food for
reflection.

Here Betty appeared, "not to eat anything," she carefully
explained. Hugh came next, followed a moment later by Sara, who
was beside herself with excitement, which was centered in the blue
ribbon in her hair, to which she had that morning been promoted.
A red curl had become more rebellious than its fellows, and it was
tied up with a blue ribbon, in the fashion beloved of young
mothers. Diana dislikes any reference made to poodles.

"Yaya's got a ved vimvirn in her har," she announced.

We all expressed the keenest interest and unbounded surprise. One
very well-meaning person put down his knife and fork and said he
was too surprised to eat any more breakfast; whereupon Hugh said,
"You needn't be so very funny, because Sara doesn't understand
those sort of jokes."

Whether Sara understood it or not, it seemed to encourage her to
further revelations, and she announced with bated breath, "Yaya's
got ved vimvims in her -- "She opened her eyes very wide and