E-text prepared by David Clarke, Ronnie Sahlberg,
and the Project Gutenberg Online Distributed Proofreading Team
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Bulbs and Blossoms
by
Amy Le Feuvre
author of
"Probable Sons", "Teddy's Button", etc
Illustrated by Eveline Lance
London
The Religious Tract Society
56 Paternoster Row &
65 St Pauls Churchyard
CHAPTER I
The Ugly Flower Pots
T was five o'clock in the afternoon. MissHunter, a tall, dignified-looking woman,was presiding at the afternoon tea-tablein the drawing-room of Chatts Chase.Miss Amabel Hunter stood at the windowin a rather muddy riding-habit, and shewas speaking in her sharp, short tones toher twin sister Hester, who lay back inthe depths of a large armchair, a novelopen in her lap. Sitting by the cheery wood fire was theyoungest of the sisters, a frail and delicate invalid. She wasturning her face anxiously towards the speaker, and now put inher word very gently.
'We only thought, Amabel, that it would have comforted thepoor children if you had returned with them in the brougham.An aunt would naturally have been more acceptable to themthan a strange maid.'
'But I tell you, Sibyl, they are with their own nurse, andGraham will be far more likely to put them all at ease thanI should. They will hear that "Miss 'Unter, is the missis, and[Pg 8]lets every one know she is. Miss 'Ester keeps the maids ontheir legs all day long because she won't use hers. MissH'Amabel does the sporting gent, and is never indoors exceptto meals; while Miss Sibyl—well, there, she is not much 'countin the fam'ly, for she can't say bo to a goose, and doesn't mindhow people put on her!"'
'You saw the children, I suppose?' questioned Miss Huntergravely.
'Of course I did. I rode down to the station for that expresspurpose. They are two skinny, puny little monkeys, envelopedin bundles of wraps. I packed them all up comfortably in thecarriage, and rode on to tell you of their arrival. I don't seemto have done the right thing, as usual; but that is always theway. Here is the carriage lumbering up the