been ineffective but had left them lukewarm. The idea of a box of candy—Alice went to that length—to whichever of the two older children kept the stillest, with a special extra bribe to Jamie to stop making what Alice in her moments of enlightenment called his "experiments in Rhythm" and in her moments of darkness called "that unbearable racket," made an instant atmosphere of cheer in the house. She explained to them again in words of one syllable what she wanted. She shamelessly described the box of candy in the most mouth-watering fashion, and returned to her writing.
This scheme might have worked perfectly, but it didn't. The only reason that it didn't was that it just happened not to. And it happened not to right under Alice's window.
It was one of Sara's squawks that sent Alice to the window. Sara was on the ground. Robert was saying:
"There, now you've disturbed Mother! Now I get the candy!"
To the horrors of bribery had been added the indecency of competition.
"You don't get it! It's your fault that I made a noise. You stuck your foot out sideways and tripped me. If he sticks a foot out and I fall and hit my funny bone and cry, it's Robert that's made the first noise, isn't it, Mother?"
"I just didn't think. I didn't mean to trip you up."
"He's got tripping feet; he trips me all the time."
"My foot just went out of itself. I didn't put it. I didn't make any noise."
"Neither of you gets the candy," cried their exasperated mother. "Both of you go right in the house and reflect!"
"Am I going to reflect too?" asked Sara. There were both interest and curiosity in her tone.
