Mrs. Bunker, or Mother Bunch, as Lucy and her brothers and sisters called her, was housekeeper to their Uncle Joseph. He was really their great uncle, and they thought him any age you can imagine. They would not have been much surprised to hear that he sailed with Christopher Columbus, though he was a strong, hale, active man, much less easily tired than their own papa. He had been a ship's surgeon in his younger days, and had sailed all over the world, and collected all sorts of curious things, besides which he was a very wise and learned man, and had made some great discovery. It was _not_ America. Lucy knew that her elderly brother understood what it was, but it was not worth troubling her head about, only somehow it made ships go safer, and so he had had a pension given him as a reward. He had come home and bought a house about a mile out of town, and built up a high room from which to look at the stars with his telescope, and to try his experiments in, and a long one besides for his museum; yet, after all, he was not much there, for whenever there was anything wonderful to be seen, he always went off to look at it, and, whenever there was a meeting of learned men--scientific men was the right word--they always wanted him to help them make speeches and show wonders. He was away now. He had gone away to wear a red cross on his arm, and help to take care of the wounded in the sad war between the French and the Germans. But he had left Mother Bunch behind him. Nobody knew exactly what was Mrs. Bunker's nation; indeed she could hardly be said to have any, for she had been born at sea, and had been a sailor's wife; but whether she was mostly English, Dutch or Spanish, nobody knew and nobody cared. Her husband had been lost at sea, and Uncle Joseph had taken her to look after his house, and always said she was the only woman who had sense and discretion enough ever to go into his laboratory or dust his museum. She was very kind and good natured, and there was nothing that the children liked better than a walk to Uncle Joseph's, and, after a play in the garden, tea with her. And such quantities of sugar there were in her room! such curious cakes made in the fashion of different countries! such funny preserves from all parts of the world! And still more delightful, such cupboards and drawers full of wonderful things, and such stories about them! The younger ones liked Mrs. Bunker's room better than Uncle Joseph's museum, where there were some big stuffed beasts with glaring eyes that frightened them; and they had to walk round with hands behind, that they might not touch anything, or else their uncle's voice was sure to call out gruffly, "Paws off!"