"I don't believe."
"No, I'm not," declared Joel, his black head going up again, "never again, Polly."
"That's right," and she smiled approvingly. "Oh, now, do go on again, Ben," she said, "with your plan."
"Yes, we're all going to give Grandpapa presents," cried Joel, before Ben had time to put in a word. "I am, and I won't tell what I'm going to buy, either. You can't make me, Dave." He slapped the pocket containing his purse, but encountering the big pin, drew off his fingers. "Ow!"
"There, who's hurt now?" cried Ben, with a laugh as he looked down at the rueful face.
"Pooh—it didn't hurt any," said Joel, pulling off his glove to suck the drop of blood that came up to meet him.
David, who never could bear to see Joel hurt, pressed up to see the extent of his injury, and turned pale. Perhaps it went clear through his finger, for it was Mamsie's big shawl-pin!
"Oh, don't, Joel," cried Polly, with a grimace; "take your handkerchief, do!"
"No, I'm not going to," said Joel, squirming away, and repeating the process as another little drop appeared; "I can spit it out, and my handkerchief'll stay bad."
"Joel," said Polly, sternly, "you must not do that. Do you hear me?"
"Well, that's the last drop, anyway," declared Joel, "so I haven't got to do anything."
"Let me see," said Polly, feeling quite motherly with all her brood to look after. So the whole row stopped and Joel leaned over and thrust out his finger for Polly to examine it.
"Yes, that's all right," she said with a sigh of relief. "Well, now, we must hurry, for we have so much to do. And, Ben, do go on."
"Well, you see Grandpapa has so many things that it'll be hard to pick out five that he'd like," said Ben, "so I thought—"
"He'll like mine," interrupted Joel.
"Hold on, Joe, and wait till I get through," commanded Ben, turning on him.
"And if you interrupt again, you must walk behind, Joel," said Polly, severely.
"I don't want to walk behind," said Joel, ducking as he caught her glance.
"Well, then, you mustn't interrupt Ben again," declared Polly, in her most decided fashion.
"Oh, I won't, I won't!" he promised, much alarmed as he saw her face.
"See that you don't, then," said Ben. "Well, so it seems as if perhaps it would be a good plan to all put our money together and get Grandpapa one good thing."
"I think it would be a perfectly elegant plan," declared Polly, radiantly.
Joel stood stock-still twitching the end of Ben's coat, so that he was pulled up short. "I'm not going to put any money in," he cried in a loud tone.
"Hey? Oh, then, you don't like the plan, Joe?" said Ben, getting his coat free and whirling around on him.
"I'm not going to put any money in," repeated Joel, in the same high key.
"Well, then, you needn't," said Ben, nowise disturbed.
"Oh, Ben, then we can't any of us do it," said Polly, quite dismayed, "and it would have been so perfectly splendid." She stopped short, and Phronsie, looking up in surprise, pulled her hand gently. "Oh, Polly," she exclaimed, "are you sick?"
"Oh, the rest of us will do it," said Ben, coolly, "and Joel can stay outside."
"Oh, I'm not going to stay outside," howled Joel, throwing his arms around Ben and clinging to him in his distress. "I'm not. I'm not, Ben, don't make me."
"I don't make you," said Ben, getting himself free from Joel's frantic little hands; "if you don't want to join us, why, you'll just have to stay by yourself."
"I'm not going to stay by myself," cried Joel, in the greatest distress, "need I, Polly?" and he flew over to her. "I don't want to stay by myself, I don't."
But Ben answered instead of Polly.
"Hush now, Joel, we're to walk along quietly, else you'll have to go home. And we'll vote now, and all who don't want to get Grandpapa one big, nice present, can just stay out of the plan. Polly and I are going together in it, anyway."
Which was just the same as saying the plan would be carried out. If Polly and Ben were to join in it, all the remainder of the "Five Little Peppers" would consider it the greatest calamity to be left out, so Joel pushed as near to Ben as he could get as the whole group drew off to the curbstone to vote on the question.
"I'm in it,—I'm in it," screamed Joel, making more than one passer-by turn the head to look back at the busy little group. "Come on, Dave," twitching that individual's jacket to get him into the centre of things. "He's in it, too, Ben," he added, anxious to have that settled beyond a doubt. "David is."
"Everybody is looking at us," said Polly, whose greatest pride was to have the children appear well, and she looked quite mortified. "O dear me!" and this was only the beginning of the Christmas shopping!
"Now you must just understand, Joe," Ben laid hold of him; "we aren't going to have such carryings on. Look at Polly, how you're making her feel."
All the children now regarded Polly anxiously, Phronsie standing on tiptoe to achieve the best result. "Oh, I won't make her feel," cried Joel, much alarmed, "I won't. Please don't, Polly; I'll be good," he promised. His face worked, and he had hard work not to burst out crying.
"All right, Joey," said Polly, trying to smile, and the little pucker between her eyebrows straightened itself out at once. And she leaned over and set a kiss on the chubby cheek.
"You kissed me on the street!" said Joel, quite astounded. "Why, Polly Pepper, and you said the other—"
"Never mind," broke in Ben, hastily.
"And I couldn't help it," said Polly, happily, yet with a backward glance to see if any one saw it, for Polly deeply loved to be fine on all occasions.
"And if we are going shopping for Christmas presents," said Ben, "we must hurry up. Hush, Joe, don't say a word. Now how many want to put in their money to buy one big, nice present for Grandpapa instead of little bits of ones? Put up your hands."
Joel's hand shot up as high as he could raise it, while he stood on tiptoe, and of course Polly's went up, and so did David's. But Phronsie stood looking down at her money-bag dangling from her arm, while she patted it lovingly and crooned softly to herself.
"She doesn't understand," said Polly, so she got down until she could look into the face within the fur-trimmed bonnet. "Look up, pet; now don't you want to buy Grandpapa a big, big present with all of us?"
"I'm going to buy my dear Grandpapa a present," cried Phronsie, in a happy little voice, and, taking her gaze from the money-bag, "I am, Polly," she declared, dreadfully excited. Then she put her mouth close to Polly's rosy cheek; "I'm going to buy him a cat," she whispered.
"O dear me!" exclaimed Polly, nearly tumbling over backward.
"Yes, I am," said Phronsie, decidedly,
