Produced by Juliet Sutherland, Emmy and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net LITTLE PRUDY'S DOTTY DIMPLE _By_ SOPHIE MAY NEW YORK HURST & COMPANY PUBLISHERS [Illustration] DEDICATION. TO Little Nelly Clarke. CONTENTS. CHAPTER PAGE I. DOTTY'S BABYHOOD 7 II. THE BONE MAN 31 III. DOTTY'S VERSES 36 IV. THE NESTLINGS 52 V. FANNY HARLOW'S PARTY 65 VI. THE LITTLE TEACHER 83 VII. BOTH SIDES OF A STORY 98 VIII. THE WATER-KELPIE 117 IX. BROTHER ZIP 137 X. DR. PRUDY 154 XI. BUYING A BROTHER 173 XII. A WEDDING 189 DOTTY DIMPLE. CHAPTER I. DOTTY'S BABYHOOD. Alice was the youngest of the Parlin family. When Grandma Read called the children into the kitchen, and told them about their new little sister, Susy danced for joy; and Prudy, in her delight, opened the cellar door, and fell down the whole length of the stairs. However, she rolled as softly as a pincushion, and was not seriously hurt. "But you can't go into mother's room," said Susy, "you're crying so hard." "Poh!" replied three-years-old Prudy, twinkling off the tears; "yes, I can neither. I won't go _crying_ in! I didn't hurt me velly bad. I'm weller now!" So she had the first peep at the wee dot of a baby in the nurse's arms. "O, dear, dear," said she, "what shall I do? I _are_ so glad! I wish I could jump clear up to the _sky_ of this room! How do you do, little sister?" The baby made no reply. "Why! don't you love me? This is _me_: my name's Prudy. I've got a red pocket dress;--Santa Claw bringed it." Still the little stranger paid no heed,--only winked her small, bright eyes, and at last closed them entirely. "O, my stars! she don't hear the leastest thing," sobbed Prudy, glad of an excuse to cry again. "She can't hear the leastest mite of a thing! Where's the holes in her ears gone to? O, dear, dear!" It seemed to Susy that this was the happiest day of her life. She stole up to her mother and kissed her. "O, mamma," said she, "wasn't God good to send this little sister?--Why, I'm crying," added Susy, greatly surprised: "what do you suppose makes me cry, when I'm happy all over--clear to the ends of my fingers?" "Yes, your eyes are sprinklin' down tears, but you're laughing all over your face; and so 'm I," said little Prudy, delighted to see some one else as foolish as herself. "Susan, I hope thee'll receive this new sister as a gift from God," said grandma Read, wiping her spectacles. "It seems so funny," said Susy, gently stroking the baby's face; "so funny for me to have a new sister." "Now you've tolled a story, Susy Parlin; she was sended to me,--isn't I the littlest?" cried bruised and battered Prudy, shaking with another tempest of tears, and kissing the baby violently.