ONE afternoon Mrs. Fussy¹, who lived next door, came to call on Dorothy’s mamma. When they had exchanged greetings Mrs. Fussy exclaimed:  
“Dear, dear, what shall I do! Cook has left me without a moment’s notice—the third this month. It is really discouraging.”
 
Dorothy was drinking in every word that fell from the visitor’s lips, and mamma said, “Run away, dear, and play with your dolls.”
 
Dorothy ran to her play-room and took down all her dolls and toys to have a real good time. She decided² to play house, so she said, “Now I’m going to be Mrs. Fussy.”
 
She gazed earnestly at her dolls and sighed, “Dear, dear, what shall I do! Cook has left without a moment’s notice—the third this month. It is really ’raging.”
 
Suddenly all the dolls jumped up and began to roll up their sleeves.
 
“We’ll help,” they cried, and Dorothy was so surprised that she could not speak for a minute.
 
“I’m glad you are so willing,” said the little girl at last. “Suppose you go into the kitchen and cook the dinner, Dinah.”
 
“Yeth, ma’am,” replied Dinah with a sweeping³ bow and hurriedly left the room.
 
“Susan Ida may go into the laundry and iron, while you, Kathleen, had better dust the hall.”
 
“What shall I do?” asked Jessop with his usual grin, and his little mistress told him to make himself generally useful.
 
When they had gone to do their work Dorothy breathed a sigh of relief and said, “I think I’ll rest a minute.” She took out her Mother Goose and was so very much interested in Little Bo-Peep that she did not notice anything going on around her. But when she raised her eyes from her book she was surprised to find herself quite alone.
 
“Why, where are all my toys?” exclaimed Dorothy. “I sent the dolls to work, but those naughty toys had no business to leave this room.”
 
Then she decided to go into the kitchen and see how Dinah was getting along with the dinner. She tripped down-stairs and the minute she opened the kitchen door there was a strong odor of something burning. But worse than that, there stood her tin soldier with his arm around Dinah’s waist. Dorothy ran for the tin soldier, but he dodged⁴ her and jumped out of the window. Dinah threw back her head and began to swing a soup ladle, while her indignant little mistress exclaimed, “I’m ashamed of you, Dinah, and you can go to your room at once.” Dinah sulked out of the kitchen and Dorothy took up the burned potatoes.
 
“Now I’m going to give Dinah a good whipping,”104 said Dorothy; but the minute she opened the kitchen door she heard loud voices on the stairs. Hurrying to the spot, there stood Kathleen (her quiet, gentle Kathleen) brandishing⁵ a feather duster in the most threatening manner at Jessop.
 
Dorothy was astonished. “Why, Kathleen,” she cried, “what is the matter?”
 
“Well, he isn’t going to call me doll-faced,” said Kathleen, looking very angry at Jessop.
 
“She said I was a clown,” shouted Jessop, “and I won’t stand it.”
 
“Go to your room both of you; not another word,” exclaimed Dorothy shaking her finger at Kathleen, who walked off with her head in the air.
 
“Well, I declare,” sighed the mistress, “I wonder what will happen next!” She started for the laundry to see how Susan Ida was getting along, and found her crying bitterly and no work done.
 
“Why, Susan Ida, what have you been doing all this time?”
 
“Nothing, ma’am,” was the answer. “It’s all his fault. Boo-hoo-o!” and she pointed⁶ to Dorothy’s toy rooster, who was calmly standing⁷ on the table watching them.
 
“What are you doing here, Dick?” asked Dorothy, turning to the rooster; “the idea of coming into the laundry!”
 
“He came to crow over me, ma’am,” exclaimed Susan Ida between her sobs⁸.
 
“I don’t care,” cried Dick; “she said she’d take my head off.”
 
“Get out both of you,” and Dorothy made a rush for the bad toys, but they nearly fell over each other in their efforts to get out of the kitchen.
 
“I’ll go up-stairs and give them a good whipping and put them to bed,” said Dorothy; but when she reached the stairs she stopped in amazement⁹. There was Toto her toy monkey106 sliding down the banister, while her toy puppy barked with all his might. A toy broom was whacking¹⁰ the stairs at a grinning Jack¹¹-in-the-box, who was trying to stand on his head.
 
“Toto,” cried Dorothy, and she was just going to catch him, when her toy cat flew past chasing the toy mouse.
 
“Goodness! he must not catch my mouse,” cried Dorothy, and she caught up the toy broom and hurried after the toy cat. The toy puppy and the monkey followed, and the Jack came out of his box and joined in the chase. Across the hall they flew, and as the door happened to be opened, down the steps and into the yard. It was the strangest race you ever saw, and as they ran through the street people came to the windows and shouted at them. A great many soldiers left their barracks in the toy shops and hurried after the procession.
 
On and on they ran through the street, into another, across vacant lots, over stones and hedges, through the green fields, up the hills, down the lanes, and never stopped until they came to Toy-land.
 
The minute they got there the mouse was still, the cat curled himself like a ball and went to sleep, the puppy stretched out and began to snore, the Jack-in-the-box............