A Terrible Tomboy

brown, his

heart, comman

to make cowslip beer. It was pleasant work wandering among the green meadows picking the sweet-smelling flowers, while the larks sang their loudest overhead, and the little brook babbled by on

f blossoms into the ever-increasing pile in the bakehouse. 'I'm almost tired of gat

bravely to work on her task of pulling the yellow pips away from the green cal

te it,' said unromantic Bobby, who was

d face and sandy hair of Joe, the farm-boy, made its appearance, followed by the rest of his

t there, Joe?' cried

nea-pig as Mrs. Davenport promised to give her, and forgot all about, that I says to myself, "I must make it up to her some way

, with tan chest and paws, and a wagging morsel of a tail like a black tassel. It had the brightest of brown eyes, the pinkest of tongues, and the shrilles

she exclaimed, almos

make a grand dog, it will, when it's growed, and master was sayin' only the

obby, hugging the wriggling burden,

uired Lilian, kissing the funny black

iece of him all the same, though he's mine,' announced Peggy magnanimou

as fun sometimes to let them out for a scamper on the granary floor. Then there was Prickles, a bright little hedgehog, which Peggy had rescued from some village boys who were using the poor little fellow as a football. She had brought him home, and fed him on bread and milk, and he soon got to know her, and wou

him inside a basket, and fed him on worms and scraps of raw meat until he was old enough to fly, when he would follow them everywhere about the farmyard and outbuildings, cal

laced on the kitchen window-sill to cool; he had snatched Joe's breast-pin-a glittering imitation diamond-from his Sunday tie, under the very nose of that injured youth, and had stolen so many small articles that if anything were missing the children would have a grand search for Master Jack's hiding-place, and woul

ts for pieces of bread or lumps of sugar; there were numerous cats who lived in the barns and stables, and Tabbyskins, the stately gray Pers

t them from him at threepence a dozen-a transaction which he always recorded in chalk upon the hen-house door, the pennies

Nancy had reared it on a feeding-bottle like a baby. It returned her care by an affection which was quite embarrassing to the worthy girl, for however attractive a pet lamb may be, it becomes d

ce it has of growing up an intelligent and broad-minded individual, and of escaping from that lethargy of boredom which swallows up the lives of many young people who ought to know better how to amuse themselv

. It was a bright, cheerful room, with a view over the river to the sunset and the Welsh mountains, and had a French window which opened into the garden

hells and fossils which they had brought home from their one never-to-be-forgotten visit to the seaside, a curious plaited basket filled with bone rings, shell bracelets, and other curiosities

worms lay in a box on the sideboard, and Bobby's white mi

nd the window; and in the corner might be found a miscellaneous collection of cricket-bats, fishing-rods, tennis-racquets, bows and arrows, croquet-mallets,

le short, sharp barks, worrying at their heels till Aunt Helen declared there would soon not be a whole stocking left in the establishment; he had a fray at once with Jack, but was much worsted by that worthy, returning to Peggy for protection with his scrap of a tail between hi

d so piteously on being left alone that Pe

ll just cuddle down on the rug at the foot of my b

nest with the help of an old pillow, and he

Peggy, 'for he doesn't want hushing and

oke Master Rollo, who, having had a refreshing nap, was now very wide awake, and ready for anything. He heaved himself out of his wrappings, and with a d

unted and whined, and wriggled down on to the floor, where, with a shrill bark, he unearthed a cardboard box full of old gloves, which had been stored away under the bed. The chewing and tearing up of these afforded him much

in there, at any rat

e wickerwork, and scratched with his claws, and after ten minutes of much commotion managed to tip over the ba

l just have to take it in turns to nurse him till morning; he's as lively as a cricket, and if we

tention, pursued his diversions until the sun was well in at the window, when at length he snuggled into Peggy's pillow, and comp

c about having Rollo for a bedfellow, and he slept

uits, and Peggy promised herself to teach him many more accomplishments in c

eggy!' cried Mr. Vaughan one day, bursting indignantly

vourite, and an instant search was made for the murderer. But Rollo had fled from the stern hand of jus

barns,' said Lilian. 'He must be fearfully

on the point of following their example when he noticed a

clothes he disclosed to view, not the expected earthenware bottle, but the shrinking and apologetic form of Master Rollo, wh

The body of the dead kitten was securely tied round his neck with a piece of rope, and, like the albatross in the ballad of the 'Ancient Mariner,' it proved such a w

not allow Rollo to be relieved from

aid. 'I cannot have him touching any of the animals on the fa

e sympathetic Peggy, who, while mourning for the departed Ruffles, forgave her err