She paid what was owing for the call, thanked the postmaster for his civility, and hustled the girls into the conveyance as quickly as possible.
"I suppose girls will be girls," she said, "but I think you've been very silly ones to-day! Why didn't you keep with the rest of the school, as you ought to have done ?" "It sounds a most horrible greedy confession," replied Beatrice guiltily, "but I'm afraid it was all the fault of--buns! They just threw us late, and we missed the others.

We'll never buy buns again! Never! Never! _O peccavi!_ We have sinned!" And she looked so humorously contrite that Mrs.Jackson, who was inclined to scold, laughed in spite of herself, and forgave the delinquents.
"On condition that such a thing doesn't happen again!" she declared.
"Trust us! We wouldn't go through such an experience again for all the buns in the world! Next time we'll cling to the College apron strings like--like----" "Like adhesive sticking-plaster!" supplied Ingred gently.
"Or oysters to a mermaid's tail!" murmured Verity..