"I don't want her!" cried Mrs. Harrison. "But what are _you_ doing with
_my_ baby?"
Totty, in the visitor's arms, held out her hands to her mother, and
gurgled with glee.
"Ma-ma!" said the other baby, waking up at all this commotion and
holding out her hands also.
The exchange was made in a moment, and, still unpacified, Mrs. Harrison
and Mrs. Curtis glared at each other.
Mrs. Maynard struggled to suppress her laughter, for the scene was a
funny one; but she knew the two ladies were thoroughly horrified at the
mystery, and mirth would be quite out of place.
"Let me introduce you," she said. "Mrs. Curtis, this is my dear friend,
Mrs. Harrison. Your little ones are the same age, and look very much
alike."
"Not a bit alike," said both mothers, at once.
"I confess," went on Mrs. Maynard, "that I can't understand it at all,
but you certainly each have your own babies now; so, my dear Mrs.
Curtis, won't you tell me what you know about this very strange affair?"
Mrs. Curtis had recovered her equilibrium, and, as she sat comfortably
holding Dotty, she smiled, with a little embarrassment.
"Dear Mrs. Maynard," she said, "I'm afraid I understand it all better
than you do; but I'm also afraid, if I explain it to you, you will,--it
will make----"
Suddenly Mrs. Maynard saw a gleam of light.
"Marjorie!" she exclaimed.
"Yes," said Mrs. Curtis; "I think it was due to Miss Mischief. When I
returned home from an errand, Lisa said that your Marjorie and Gladys
Fulton had had Dotty out in her carriage, and had also another baby who
was visiting you. The girls had left Dotty--or rather, Lisa supposed it
was Dotty--asleep in her coach, and Nurse let her stay there, asleep,
until my return. Then the child wakened--and it wasn't Dotty at all! The
baby had on Dot's slippers, cap, coat, and veil, but the rest of her
clothes I had never seen before. I felt sure there had been foul play of
some sort, but Lisa was sure those girls had exchanged the babies'
clothes on purpose. I hoped Lisa was right, but I feared she wasn't, so
I picked up the baby and ran over here to see."
Mrs. Maynard was both grieved and chagrined.
"How could Marjorie do such a thing!" she exclaimed.
"Oh, don't be too hard on her, Mrs. Maynard," said Mrs. Curtis. "It's
all right, now, and you know Marjorie and Gladys are a mischievous
pair."
"But this is inexcusable," went on Mrs. Maynard. "Mrs. Harrison nearly
went frantic, and you were certainly greatly alarmed."
Mrs. Curtis smiled pleasantly. "I was," she admitted, "but it was only
for a few moments. I was mystified rather than alarmed, for Lisa said
the carriage had not been out of her sight a moment, except when the
girls had it."
Mrs. Curtis took her leave, and, carrying with her her own baby, went
away home.
Mrs. Maynard made sincere apologies to her friend for naughty Marjorie's
mischief.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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