"Do you enjoy that?" he asked, incredulously.
"I'm not a star," she replied looking up with a quiet smile, "but
only a planet--one of the smaller asteroids--and shine with borrowed
light. These little women enjoy this hugely; and I receive a pale
reflection of their pleasure."
"You are certainly happy in your answer, if not in your work," he
remarked.
"Mr. Van Berg," said one of the children emphatically, "Miss Burton
is the best lady that ever lived."
"I agree with you, my dear," responded the artist, with answering
emphasis.
"Yes, children," said Miss Burton, her eyes dancing with mischief,
"and I want you to appreciate Mr. Van Berg's genius too. He is the
greatest artist that ever lived, and there never were such pictures
as he paints."
"Miss Burton, I beg off," interrupted Van Berg, laughing. "You
always get the better of one. No, children," he continued in answer
to their looks of wonder, "I know less about painting pictures, in
comparison, than you do of dressing dolls."
"But Miss Burton always tells us the truth," persisted the child.
"Now you see the result of our folly," said the young lady,
shaking her head at him. "We have given this child an example of
insincerity.
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