pain."
"Humph!" said the Starling, and hopped on to the railing of Barbara's cot. He sidled along it until he came to the head of the cot. Then he said in a soft, wheedling voice:
"Well, Barbara B., anything for the old fellow today, eh?"
Barbara pulled herself into a sitting position by holding on to one of the bars of her cot.
"There's the other half of my arrowroot biscuit," she said, and held it out in her round, fat fist.
The Starling swooped down, plucked it out of her hand and flew back to the window-sill. He began nibbling it greedily.
"Thank you!" said Mary Poppins, meaningly, but the Starling was too busy eating to notice the rebuke.
"I said 'Thank you!'" said Mary Poppins a little louder.
The Starling looked up.
"Eh — what? Oh, get along, girl, get along. I've no time for such frills and furbelows." And he gobbled up the last of his biscuit.
The room was very quiet.
John, drowsing in the sunlight, put the toes of his right foot into his mouth and ran them along the place where his teeth were just beginning to come through.
"Why do you bother to do that?" said Barbara, in her soft, amused voice that seemed always to be full of laughter. "There's nobody to see you."
"I know," said John, playing a tune on his toes. "But I like to keep in practice. It
does
so amuse the Grown-ups. Did you notice that Aunt Flossie nearly went mad with delight when I did it yesterday? 'The Darling, the Clever, the Marvel, the Creature!'—didn't you hear her saying all that?" And John threw his foot from him and roared with laughter as he thought of Aunt Flossie.
"She liked my trick, too," said Barbara complacently. "I took off both my socks and she said I was so sweet she would like to eat me. Isn't it funny — when I say I'd like to eat something I really mean it. Biscuits and Rusks and the knobs of beds and so on. But Grown-ups never mean what they say, it seems to me. She couldn't have
really
wanted to eat me, could she?"
"No. It's only the idiotic way they have of talking," said John. "I don't believe I'll ever understand Grown-ups. They all seem so stupid. And even Jane and Michael are stupid sometimes."
"Um," agreed Barbara, thoughtfully pulling off her socks and putting them on again.
"For instance," John went on, "they don't understand a single thing we say. But, worse than that, they don't understand what
other
things say. Why, only last Monday I heard Jane remark that she wished she knew what language the Wind spoke."
"I know," said Barbara. "It's astonishing. And Michael always insists — haven't you heard him? — that the Starling says 'Wee-TWe — ee — ee!' He seems not to know that the Starling says nothing of the kind, but speaks exactly the same language as we do. Of course, one doesn't expect Mother and Father to know about it — they don't know
anything,
though they
are
such darlings — but you'd think Jane and Michael would—"
"They did once," said Mary Poppins, folding up one of Jane's nightgowns.
"What?" said John and Barbara together in very surprised voices. "Really? You mean they understood the Starling and the Wind and—"
"And what the trees say and the language of the sunlight and the stars — of course they did!
Once,
" said Mary Poppins.
"But — but how is it that they've forgotten it all?" said John, wrinkling up his forehead and trying to understand.
"Aha!" said the Starling knowingly, looking up from the remains of his biscuit. "Wouldn't you like to know?"
"Because they've grown older," explained Mary Poppins. "Barbara, put on your socks at once, please."
"That's a silly reason," said John, looking sternly at her.
"It's the true one, then," Mary Poppins said, tying Barbara's socks firmly round her ankles.
"Well, it's Jane and Michael who are silly," John continued. "I know I shan't forget when I get older."
"Nor I," said Barbara, contentedly sucking her finger.
"Yes, you will," said Mary Poppins firmly.
The Twins sat up and looked at her.
"Huh!" said the Starling
"Humph!" said the Starling, and hopped on to the railing of Barbara's cot. He sidled along it until he came to the head of the cot. Then he said in a soft, wheedling voice:
"Well, Barbara B., anything for the old fellow today, eh?"
Barbara pulled herself into a sitting position by holding on to one of the bars of her cot.
"There's the other half of my arrowroot biscuit," she said, and held it out in her round, fat fist.
The Starling swooped down, plucked it out of her hand and flew back to the window-sill. He began nibbling it greedily.
"Thank you!" said Mary Poppins, meaningly, but the Starling was too busy eating to notice the rebuke.
"I said 'Thank you!'" said Mary Poppins a little louder.
The Starling looked up.
"Eh — what? Oh, get along, girl, get along. I've no time for such frills and furbelows." And he gobbled up the last of his biscuit.
The room was very quiet.
John, drowsing in the sunlight, put the toes of his right foot into his mouth and ran them along the place where his teeth were just beginning to come through.
"Why do you bother to do that?" said Barbara, in her soft, amused voice that seemed always to be full of laughter. "There's nobody to see you."
"I know," said John, playing a tune on his toes. "But I like to keep in practice. It
does
so amuse the Grown-ups. Did you notice that Aunt Flossie nearly went mad with delight when I did it yesterday? 'The Darling, the Clever, the Marvel, the Creature!'—didn't you hear her saying all that?" And John threw his foot from him and roared with laughter as he thought of Aunt Flossie.
"She liked my trick, too," said Barbara complacently. "I took off both my socks and she said I was so sweet she would like to eat me. Isn't it funny — when I say I'd like to eat something I really mean it. Biscuits and Rusks and the knobs of beds and so on. But Grown-ups never mean what they say, it seems to me. She couldn't have
really
wanted to eat me, could she?"
"No. It's only the idiotic way they have of talking," said John. "I don't believe I'll ever understand Grown-ups. They all seem so stupid. And even Jane and Michael are stupid sometimes."
"Um," agreed Barbara, thoughtfully pulling off her socks and putting them on again.
"For instance," John went on, "they don't understand a single thing we say. But, worse than that, they don't understand what
other
things say. Why, only last Monday I heard Jane remark that she wished she knew what language the Wind spoke."
"I know," said Barbara. "It's astonishing. And Michael always insists — haven't you heard him? — that the Starling says 'Wee-TWe — ee — ee!' He seems not to know that the Starling says nothing of the kind, but speaks exactly the same language as we do. Of course, one doesn't expect Mother and Father to know about it — they don't know
anything,
though they
are
such darlings — but you'd think Jane and Michael would—"
"They did once," said Mary Poppins, folding up one of Jane's nightgowns.
"What?" said John and Barbara together in very surprised voices. "Really? You mean they understood the Starling and the Wind and—"
"And what the trees say and the language of the sunlight and the stars — of course they did!
Once,
" said Mary Poppins.
"But — but how is it that they've forgotten it all?" said John, wrinkling up his forehead and trying to understand.
"Aha!" said the Starling knowingly, looking up from the remains of his biscuit. "Wouldn't you like to know?"
"Because they've grown older," explained Mary Poppins. "Barbara, put on your socks at once, please."
"That's a silly reason," said John, looking sternly at her.
"It's the true one, then," Mary Poppins said, tying Barbara's socks firmly round her ankles.
"Well, it's Jane and Michael who are silly," John continued. "I know I shan't forget when I get older."
"Nor I," said Barbara, contentedly sucking her finger.
"Yes, you will," said Mary Poppins firmly.
The Twins sat up and looked at her.
"Huh!" said the Starling
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