A board , propped on two blocks of wood , stood in the middle of the walk , covered with a little plaid shawl much the worse for wear , and on it a miniature tea-service was set forth with great elegance . To be sure , the tea-pot had lost its spout , the cream-jug its handle , the sugar-bowl its cover , and the cups and plates were all more or less cracked or nicked ; but polite persons would not take notice of these trifling deficiencies , and none but polite persons were invited to this party . On either side of the porch was a seat , and here a somewhat remarkable sight would have been revealed to any inquisitive eye peering through the aforesaid keyhole . Upon the left-hand seat lay seven dolls , upon the right-hand seat lay six ; and so varied were the expressions of their countenances , owing to fractures , dirt , age , and other afflictions , that one would very naturally have thought this a doll 's hospital , and these the patients waiting for their tea . This , however , would have been a sad mistake ; for if the wind had lifted the coverings laid over them , it would have disclosed the fact that all were in full dress , and merely reposing before the feast should begin . There was another interesting feature of the scene which would have puzzled any but those well acquainted with the manners and customs of dolls . A fourteenth rag baby , with a china head , hung by her neck from the rusty knocker in the middle of the door . A sprig of white and one of purple lilac nodded over her , a dress of yellow calico , richly trimmed with red-flannel scallops , shrouded her slender form , a garland of small flowers crowned her glossy curls , and a pair of blue boots touched toes in the friendliest , if not the most graceful , manner . An emotion of grief , as well as of surprise , might well have thrilled any youthful breast at such a spectacle ; for why , oh ! why , was this resplendent dolly hung up there to be stared at by thirteen of her kindred ? Was she a criminal , the sight of whose execution threw them flat upon their backs in speechless horror ? Or was she an idol , to be adored in that humble posture ? Neither , my friends . She was blonde Belinda , set , or rather hung , aloft , in the place of honor , for this was her seventh birthday , and a superb ball was about to celebrate the great event . All were evidently awaiting a summons to the festive board ; but such was the perfect breeding of these dolls , that not a single eye out of the whole twenty-seven -LRB- Dutch Hans had lost one of the black beads from his worsted countenance -RRB- turned for a moment toward the table , or so much as winked , as they lay in decorous rows , gazing with mute admiration at Belinda . She , unable to repress the joy and pride which swelled her sawdust bosom till the seams gaped , gave an occasional bounce as the wind waved her yellow skirts , or made the blue boots dance a sort of jig upon the door . Hanging was evidently not a painful operation , for she smiled contentedly , and looked as if the red ribbon around her neck was not uncomfortably tight ; therefore , if slow suffocation suited her , who else had any right to complain ? So a pleasing silence reigned , not even broken by a snore from Dinah , the top of whose turban alone was visible above the coverlet , or a cry from baby Jane , though her bare feet stuck out in a way that would have produced shrieks from a less well-trained infant . Presently voices were heard approaching , and through the arch which led to a side-path came two little girls , one carrying a small pitcher , the other proudly bearing a basket covered with a napkin . They looked like twins , but were not , for Bab was a year older than Betty , though only an inch taller .
Both had on brown XXXXX frocks , much the worse for a week 's wear ; but clean pink pinafores , in honor of the occasion , made up for that , as well as the gray stockings and thick boots .
backs basket calico curls flowers inch joy mistake porch tea