`` You 'd better begin to pick up your duds right away , for she wo n't want them cluttering round her front yard . If you are not too tired , Ben , you might rake round a little while I shut the blinds . I want things to look nice and tidy . '' Two little groans went up from two afflicted little girls as they looked about them at the shady bower , the dear porch , and the winding walks where they loved to run `` till their hair whistled in the wind , '' as the fairy-books say . `` Whatever shall we do ! Our attic is so hot and the shed so small , and the yard always full of hens or clothes . We shall have to pack all our things away , and never play any more , '' said Bab , tragically . `` May be Ben could build us a little house in the orchard , '' proposed Betty , who firmly believed that Ben could do any thing . `` He wo n't have any time . Boys do n't care for baby-houses , '' returned Bab , collecting her homeless goods and chattels with a dismal face . `` We sha 'n' t want these much when all the new things come ; see if we do , '' said cheerful little Betty , who always found out a silver lining to every cloud . CHAPTER VIII MISS CELIA 'S MAN Ben was not too tired , and the clearing-up began that very night . None too soon , for in a day or two things arrived , to the great delight of the children , who considered moving a most interesting play . First came the phaeton , which Ben spent all his leisure moments in admiring ; wondering with secret envy what happy boy would ride in the little seat up behind , and beguiling his tasks by planning how , when he got rich , he would pass his time driving about in just such an equipage , and inviting all the boys he met to have a ride . Then a load of furniture came creaking in at the lodge gate , and the girls had raptures over a cottage piano , several small chairs , and a little low table , which they pronounced just the thing for them to play at . The live stock appeared next , creating a great stir in the neighborhood , for peacocks were rare birds there ; the donkey 's bray startled the cattle and convulsed the people with laughter ; the rabbits were continually getting out to burrow in the newly made garden ; and Chevalita scandalized old Duke by dancing about the stable which he had inhabited for years in stately solitude . Last but by no means least , Miss Celia , her young brother , and two maids arrived one evening so late that only Mrs. Moss went over to help them settle . The children were much disappointed , but were appeased by a promise that they should all go to pay their respects in the morning . They were up so early , and were so impatient to be off , that Mrs. Moss let them go with the warning that they would find only the servants astir . She was mistaken , however , for , as the procession approached , a voice from the porch called out , `` Good-morning little neighbors ! ''
so unexpectedly , that Bab nearly spilt the new milk she carried , XXXXX gave such a start that the fresh-laid eggs quite skipped in the dish , and Ben 's face broke into a broad grin over the armful of clover which he brought for the bunnies , as he bobbed his head , saying briskly , -- `` She 's all right , miss , Lita is ; and I can bring her over any minute you say . ''
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