Two weeks later the old gentleman saw something different from the train window.
It was another white sheet with black letters.
It said: Mother Is Much Better. Thank You.
The children decided to tell Mother what they had done.
Mother was extremely angry and then suddenly she began to cry.
Crying is contagious, like measles, and soon everyone was crying.
Mother stopped first.
She dried her eyes and said, "I'm sorry I was angry, I know you tried to help.
It's true that we're poor, but you must not tell everyone.
And you must never ask strangers to give you things."
"We didn't mean to be naughty," cried Bobbie.
"We're sorry," said Phyllis and Peter, still crying too.
"I'll write a letter to the old gentleman and thank him for his kindness," Mother said, hugging them.
"You can give it to the stationmaster to give him.
And we won't talk about it anymore."
Afterward, when the children were alone, Bobbie said,
"Isn't Mother good?
Other grown-ups aren't sorry after they're angry."
"Yes," agreed Peter, "but it's awful when she's angry."
The day after they took the letter to the station was Bobbie's birthday.
In the afternoon she was politely told to stay outside until teatime.
"You mustn't see what we're doing.
It's a surprise," said Phyllis.
Bobbie went into the garden.
When she came back, Phyllis and Peter met her at the back door and led her to the front room.
They were unusually clean, and Phyllis had a red bow in her hair.
They stood with Mother near the table.
There were 12 lit candles on the table because Bobbie was turning 12.
The table held buns and jam and a big cake.
There were also flowers from the garden, and interesting little packages.
"Happy Birthday, Bobbie!" they shouted happily.
"Open your presents!"
They were very nice presents.
There was a dainty handkerchief from Phyllis.
There was also a silver brooch of Mother's, shaped like a rose.
Bobbie had admired it for a long time.
Mrs. Viney gave Bobbie a vase.
"This is my present,"
said Peter, placing his toy steam engine on the table.
It was full of sweets.
Bobbie was surprised.
Peter was giving her his treasured engine?
"Not the engine," he said quickly. "Only the sweets."
But Peter had seen the look on Bobbie's face.
"I mean, not all the engine.
You . . . you can have half, if you like," he said bravely.
"Thanks, Peter," said Bobbie. "It's a wonderful present."
And Bobbie thought, "It was very kind of Peter to give me half his engine.
Well, I'll have the broken half, and I'll get it fixed."
"And now look at the cake," said Mother.
Bobbie looked more closely at the cake.
On top was something that looked like a pattern, made with flowers.
"What is it?" asked Bobbie.
"It's a map—a map of the railway!" said Peter.
After tea Mother played games with them.
It was a lovely birthday.
Later that night Bobbie crept downstairs to get her presents.
Bobbie saw Mother sitting at the table, with a pen and some writing paper.
"She's writing to Father," thought Bobbie.
But she saw Mother wasn't writing.
Mother's head rested on her arms on the table.
"It's my birthday, and she doesn't want me to know she's unhappy," thought Bobbie.
She went quietly back to her room.
But it was a sad end to her birthday.