He sang it until the other children heard and
laughed, too; and the crosser Mary got, the more
they sang "Mistress Mary, quite contrary"; and
after that as long as she stayed with them they
called her "Mistress Mary Quite Contrary"
when they spoke of her to each other, and often
when they spoke to her.

"You are going to be sent home," Basil said
to her, "at the end of the week. And we're glad
of it."

"I am glad of it, too," answered Mary.
"Where is home?"

"She doesn't know where home is!" said Basil,
with seven-year-old scorn. "It's England, of
course. Our grandmama lives there and our sister
Mabel was sent to her last year. You are not
going to your grandmama. You have none.
You are going to your uncle. His name is Mr.
Archibald Craven."

"I don't know anything about him," snapped
Mary.

"I know you don't," Basil answered. "You
don't know anything. Girls never do. I heard
father and mother talking about him. He lives
in a great, big, desolate old house in the country
and no one goes near him. He's so cross he
won't let them, and they wouldn't come if he would
let them. He's a hunchback, and he's horrid."

[[12]]

p011 _ -chap- _ toc-1 _ p012w _ toc-2 _ +chap+ _ p013

v?