Funny Little Socks

by Sarah L. Barrow

verygenteel.

  MRS. M. Oh, I am sure he must be lovely! Do bring him to dinner thisvery day.

  Here Maggie made the dining-room door open, and in walked Miss Isabella.She wore a pink merino morning dress, open in front, to show herembroidered petticoat, a pair of bronze slippers with pink bows, and anet with steel beads in it. Maggie set her down hard in one of thechairs, and pushed her up to the table; while Minnie, who moved thenigger boy doll, who waited on table, picked him up by his woollytop-knot, from the floor, where he had tumbled, and made him hand theyoung lady a cup of tea. Then Maggie began:

  MISS ISABELLA. Dear me, mamma! this tea's as cold as a stone! I wish youwould have breakfast a little later; as I'm so tired when I come homefrom a party, that I can't think of getting up at seven o'clock.

  MRS. M. But you must get up, my love. Besides, we want plenty of timeto-day, so's we can be ready; for we are going to have company todinner.

  ISABELLA. Who is coming, mamma?

  MRS. M. Mr. Morris, my dear.

  ISABELLA. Oh, I am so glad!

  MRS. M. Yes, you're going to be married to-morrow, my dear; we willinvite all our relations and friends, and you must have a white satinwedding dress; you certainly must.

  ISABELLA. How nice! S'pose we go out and buy it now.

  MRS. M. We can't go to-day; it's our _eceptin_ (reception) day, youknow.

  MR. M. Well, I 'spect I must go down town. Good-by, my dears. I shallcertainly ask Mr. Morris to dinner. He's a very nice young man for asmall dinner party.

  So the children made Mr. Montague kiss his wife and daughter; which theydid by bumping his china nose against their cheeks, until it nearly madea dent in the wax; and then pranced him down the front steps, and puthim in his corner again.

  Then Minnie's doll came in. She took up Mr. Morris, a composition doll,in a Seventh Regiment uniform, who had been bought at a fair, and beganmoving him across the floor until he was opposite the door. Then shecommenced talking.

  MR. MORRIS. Why, I declare! here is Mr. Montague's house. I think Iwill go in and make a call.

  And he ran up the steps, and pretended to ring the bell; but as it wasonly a handle, Lina rang the dinner bell instead.

  MR. MORRIS. It's very funny they don't answer the bell!(Ting-a-ling-ling.) Come! make haste, I want to get in.

  Here Minnie took up Toby, the black boy, carried him to the front door,and kindly opened it for him.

  TOBY. Laws, massa! is dat you? I was jus' tastin' de jolly, to be sureit was good for dinner! so I couldn't come no sooner.

  MR. MORRIS. Is Miss Isabella Belmont Montague at home?

  TOBY. Yes, massa, de ladies is to hum; walk in de parlor.

  So Mr. Morris came in (with Minnie's hand behind him), and sat down onthe sofa. It was rather small for him, and he covered it up so much thatthere wasn't a bit of room for Miss Isabella, when she came down. Maggiehad dressed her meanwhile in her green silk skirt, which had real littlethree-cornered pockets, with an embroidered pocket handkerchief stickingout of one, and her white tucked waist.

  Up jumped Mr. Morris, and made her such an elegant bow, that his cap,which he was obliged to keep on all the time, in consequence of thestrap being glued fast under his chin, fell all to one side; and lookedas if the top of his head had accidentally come off and been stuck oncrooked.

  MR. MORRIS. Good morning, Miss Isabella; how do you do?

  _Isabella_. Very well, thank you. How do you do, Mr. Morris?

  MR. MORRIS. Oh, Miss Isabella, I should be quite well if I hadn't_sitch_ a pain in my heart!

  ISABELLA. A pain in your heart! What makes you have that, Mr. Morris?

  MR. MORRIS. YOU!

  ISABELLA. I!

  MR. MORRIS. Oh, Miss Isabella, you can't think how I adore you! I loveyou so much that it makes my eyes shut up when I don't want them to;and my heart beats so that it shakes my cap all to one side!

  ISABELLA. Dear me, Mr. Morris, you are quite _afflitted_! but nevermind--papa is going to have you to dinner to-day; you'd better go rightdown town, so he can ask you.

  MR. MORRIS. But I can't eat any dinner, Miss Isabella, without you willmarry me!

  Here Minnie tried to make Mr. Morris pop down on his knees; but as hewasn't a jointed doll, he lost his balance, and tumbled flat on his faceinstead.

  MISS ISABELLA. Here, what are you doing? get up, do, and stop yournoise! [For Minnie couldn't help a long-sounding o--h! when her dollflopped down. So Maggie made the young lady catch hold of Mr. Morris'sshoulder straps and help twitch him on the sofa again, to go on with hisproposal.]

  MR. MORRIS. Will you marry me, Miss Isabella? I'm such a nice youngman--you don't know--and we'll live in a real pretty house.

  MISS ISABELLA. No, I can't marry you till after you have come to dinner;mamma said so.

  MR. MORRIS. Well, then, I must wait; but only say that you will have me.

  ISABELLA. Oh, yes!

  At this point the children laid down the dolls and broke into such amerry trill of laughter, that it would have done anybody's heart good tohear them. It seemed so funny to have the dolls making love in thisfashion, they couldn't help it. As soon as they were sober again, theplay went on thus:

  MR. MORRIS. Well, Miss Isabella, I b'lieve I must go now; I've got anold sister at home, who will scold me if I don't come back. Can't you'vite her too? She has a pretty bad time, poor thing! 'cause she is sooldy that she is kept on a shelf till she's all dusty. Her wig isdreadful fuzzy, and some of it comes out and stands up at the top. ButI'll dust her well and stick a pin in her wig to keep it on, and makeher look real nice, if you'll only ask her.

  ISABELLA. Well, I guess she can come; but she must have a new dress forthe wedding.

  MR. MORRIS. Yes, she shall, certainly. Good-by, Miss Isabella. I'm goingdown town pretty soon, so your father can ask me to come.

  MISS ISABELLA. Oh yes, do! I want you to come _velly_ much.

  * * * * *

  "Now, Maggie, we must stop the play a little while," said Lina, "and fixthe dinner for them."

  "Yes, do," cried Maggie; "let's see, what shall be for dinner?"

  "Oh, chicken, that's the nicest!" said Minnie.

  "No, they had chicken yesterday," said Lina; "let them have roastbeef."

  "Very well," went on Maggie, who was looking over the dishes in the boxof "eatables," as Lina called them. "Roast beef, mashed potatoes, andmacaroni."

  "Oh, not macaroni," cried Minnie; "the cheese will bite their tongues."

  "Oh, yes! Mr. Morris likes macaroni," said her sister.

  "Well, macaroni, then; and plum-pudding for dessert--and apples."

  "Ah, make them have jelly," said Lina; "that's the prettiest thing inthe box."

  So the dinner was hunted out, and the three children set the table infine style; while Toby, the black boy, whose business it certainly wasto have done it, sat coolly in Mr. Montague's armchair, with hismaster's newspaper in his lap, and goggled at the table without movingan inch. Then Lina dressed Mrs. Montague, and Maggie and Minnie togetherdressed Miss Isabella; and nobody dressed poor Mr. Morris, or Mr.Charles Augustus Montague; because they unluckily had but one suit apiece, sewed fast on to them at that.

  This time Miss Isabella wore a pink silk frock, with a deep puffinground the bottom, finished at each edge with black velvet. Then she hada long pink sash, edged with two rows of narrow black velvet; a pointedbelt encircled her waist, and the body of her dress was a mass of puffs,with narrow black velvet between. On her head was a pink wreath, withlong ribbon ends hanging down her back; and tied fast to her wrist was apink feather fan with gold sticks. In fact, Miss Isabella looked ratheras if she were going to a party than coming down to dinner; but thechildren thought the pink silk so charming, that she must wear it,whether or no.

  Mrs. Montague wore a purple silk, a black lace shawl, and a head-dressof pink rosebuds and black lace.

  When the ladies were fairly seated in the parlor, Lina rang the bell,and Minnie and Maggie made
Mr. Morris come in, leading his sister by thehand. She was a dismal object to behold, sure enough! and if she couldhave blushed for herself, I think she certainly would. She wore a greenbarege dress, trimmed with flaming red ribbons; some of the gathers wereout at the waist, and her petticoat showed at the bottom.

  Mr. Morris, or Minnie--I don't know which--had stuck the ends of her wigdown for her once, but they had come up again, and looked as if her hairhad taken to growing with the roots uppermost. The end of her nose wasblacker than Mrs. Montague's, and her eyes, which moved with a wire likeother wax dolls, had got out of order somehow, and remained stationary,with nothing but the whites showing; and, altogether, poor Miss Morrislooked like a two-legged rag-bag come home from the wars, with botheyes out, half a nose, and no hair worth mentioning.

  Lina made Mr. Montague come home