Naughty Miss Bunny | Page 6

good and kind to God, and you, and papa, and mama, because you are
all so good to me;" and she laid her soft cheek against Miss Kerr's face.
"That is right, darling," said the governess with a smile; "and now that I
have given you a little lecture, and you have promised to be good, I
have a piece of news to tell you that will, I am sure, give you great
pleasure;" and she smoothed the child's fair hair with her hand.
"Good news! Oh, dear Miss Kerr, do tell me what it is," cried the little
girl eagerly.
"Well, I have been having a long talk with your mama, Bunny, and--"

"Oh, yes, I know that. I saw you talk, talk, talk, only I couldn't hear
what you were saying, because the window was shut."
"No, I suppose not, dear, but listen. Your mama says you have an uncle
in India who has a little son of seven years old--"
"Oh, I know that, Miss Kerr! Why, that's no news! Of course I know
about Uncle Jim and Cousin Mervyn. I never saw them though, but still
I know they are in India, an awfully hot place it is, Sophie says."
"Yes, so it is. But would you like to see this Cousin Mervyn, do you
think?"
"Oh, I'd just love to see him--but is he black? Sophie says the people in
those countries are black. Oh, I shouldn't like a black cousin, Miss Kerr,
indeed I should not," cried Bunny in a piteous voice.
"You little goose, he's not black at all," cried Miss Kerr, laughing at the
little girl's look of consternation; "I have never seen him, but his papa is
supposed to be like your mama, so I daresay he will have fair hair, blue
eyes, and pink cheeks something very like your own."
"Oh, I'm glad he is like that, for indeed I could not bear a black cousin.
Once I had a black doll given to me for a present, and I screamed and
screamed till nurse put it away out of the nursery."
"It is certainly very lucky that your cousin is not black, for it would
never do to scream at him, would it?" said Miss Kerr, "for he has
arrived in London and is coming here with your papa to-morrow
evening."
"Oh, I am glad! Oh, I am glad!" sang Bunny, dancing round the room
on the points of her toes. "What fun it will be to have a little cousin to
play with! Will he stay long, Miss Kerr?"
"Yes, a long time, Bunny," answered the governess. "It is too hot in
India for him to stay there any longer--indeed they think he has stayed
there too long already, and your mama has promised to take care of him

until he is old enough to go to school."
"Oh, that will be a nice long visit," said the little girl; "he'll be staying
with us just as if it was home, and he was my own brother."
"Yes, dear, just so. He will be like your brother, I am sure; and he is to
have his lessons with you. I am to teach you both."
"Yes, and I'll lend him my pony and I'll let him play with my kittens.
And oh, Miss Kerr, I'll give him tea out of my own little tea-set; and
we'll have such fun."
"Yes, dear, it will be very nice, and I hope that little Bunny will be a
good child and not make her cousin naughty and teach him
mischievous tricks."
"Oh, I'll be good, indeed, dear Miss Kerr. I won't want to be naughty so
much when I have someone to play with, for it's always when I feel
lonely that I want to play tricks on people."
"Is that so really, you poor mite? Well, you will not be lonely any more,
Bunny, and I hope you will try hard and learn to read soon. When
children can read they do not want a companion so much, because they
can read pretty stories about other children and so amuse themselves
for hours together."
"Oh, I don't want to read stories one bit," said Bunny with a pout.
"Sophie and mama read lots of stories to me, so it doesn't matter
whether I can read them for myself or not."
"And what will you do when you grow up, Bunny? Don't you think you
would feel very much ashamed if you could not read when you had
grown to be a tall lady?"
"Oh, no one would ever know, for I am sure people never ask grown-up
ladies if they can read. Do they, now? No one ever asks you or mama if
you know how to read."

"No, people never ask us